Unmanned flying object and flight control method thereof

• US 10,023,310 B2
• Filed: 11/15/2016
• Issued: 07/17/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 11/30/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Corporation of America (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Corporation of America (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Maekawa, Hajime
• Primary Examiner(s): NGUYEN, TAN QUANG
• Application Number:
  US15/352,000
• Publication Number:
  US 20170153640A1
• Time in Patent Office: 609 Days
• Field of Search: 701 3
• CPC Class Codes: B64C 39/024 of the remote controlled vehicle type, i.e. RPV
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 10/00 Type of UAV
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 2201/10 autonomous, i.e. by navigating independently from ground or air stations, e.g. by using inertial navigation systems [INS]
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 2201/20 Remote controls
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0033 by having the operator tracking the vehicle either by direct line of sight or via one or more cameras located remotely from the vehicle

Abstract

A flight control method of an unmanned flying object includes acquiring first positional information indicating a position of the unmanned flying object using a position sensor, receiving a position reset command and second positional information that indicates a position of an operation device from the operation device used to operate the unmanned flying object, determining a rotation angle needed to orient a movement direction of the unmanned flying object in a predetermined direction in accordance with the first positional information and the second positional information, and performing control to orient the movement direction of the unmanned flying object in the predetermined direction in accordance with the rotation angle.

Claims

1. An unmanned flying object comprising:

a position sensor that acquires first positional information indicating a position of the unmanned flying object;

a wireless communicator that receives, from an operation device that operates the unmanned flying object, second positional information indicating a position of the operation device; and

circuitry that, in operation,

when the wireless communicator receives a position reset command from the operation device, determines a rotation angle, with respect to a horizontal, needed to orient a movement direction of the unmanned flying object in a predetermined direction in accordance with the first positional information and the second positional information, and

performs control to orient the movement direction of the unmanned flying object in the predetermined direction in accordance with the rotation angle.

2. The unmanned flying object according to claim 1, wherein

the movement direction is a forward direction of the unmanned flying object.

3. The unmanned flying object according to claim 1, wherein

the predetermined direction is a direction in which the operation device is positioned.

4. The unmanned flying object according to claim 1, wherein

when θ

represents the rotation angle, (X1, Y1) represents the position of the operation device, and (X2, Y2) represents the position of the unmanned flying object and when X=X1−

X2 and Y=Y1−

Y2, the circuitry determines the rotation angle θ

using an equation, θ

=arctan (X/Y).

5. The unmanned flying object according to claim 1, wherein

in accordance with the rotation angle, the circuitry controls the unmanned flying object so that the movement direction of the unmanned flying object is oriented in the predetermined direction and the unmanned flying object hovers at a predetermined altitude.

6. The unmanned flying object according to claim 1, wherein the position reset command is output by a switch on the operation device, the switch being operated when control of the unmanned flying object has become difficult.

7. The unmanned flying object according to claim 1, the second positional information comprises a sensor that uses a positional information system.

8. The unmanned flying object according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined direction is a direction in which a forward direction of the unmanned flying object is oriented towards the operation device.

9. The unmanned flying object according to claim 1, further comprising an imaging device oriented to obtain images in a forward direction of the unmanned flying object.

10. A flight control method of an unmanned flying object, the method comprising:

acquiring first positional information indicating a position of the unmanned flying object using a position sensor;

receiving a position reset command and second positional information from an operation device that operates the unmanned flying object, the second positional information indicating a position of the operation device;

determining a rotation angle, with respect to a horizontal, needed to orient a movement direction of the unmanned flying object in a predetermined direction in accordance with the first positional information and the second positional information; and

performing control to orient the movement direction of the unmanned flying object in the predetermined direction in accordance with the rotation angle.

11. The flight control method according to claim 10, wherein the performing control comprises controlling the unmanned flying object in accordance with the rotation angle so that the movement direction of the unmanned flying object is oriented in a predetermined direction and the unmanned flying object hovers at a predetermined altitude.

12. The flight control method according to claim 10, wherein the position reset command is output in response to a determination that control of the unmanned flying object has become difficult.

13. The flight control method according to claim 10, the second positional information being determined based on a positional information system.

14. The flight control method according to claim 10, wherein the predetermined direction is a direction in which a forward direction of the unmanned flying object is oriented towards the operation device.

15. The flight control method according to claim 10, further comprising orienting an imaging device to obtain images in a forward direction of the unmanned flying object.