3D modeling of cell sites and cell towers with unmanned aerial vehicles

• US 10,231,133 B2
• Filed: 05/20/2016
• Issued: 03/12/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 04/14/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Etak Systems, Llc
• Original Assignee: Etak Systems, Llc
• Inventors: Priest, Lee, Terry, Charlie, Godwin, Joshua
• Primary Examiner(s): Williams, Kimberly A
• Application Number:
  US15/160,890
• Publication Number:
  US 20170142596A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,026 Days
• Field of Search: 345427
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 10/13 Flying platforms
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 20/80 Arrangement of on-board electronics, e.g. avionics systems or wiring
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 2101/30 for imaging, photography or videography
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 2101/60 for transporting passengers; for transporting goods other than weapons
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 2201/202 using tethers for connecting to ground station
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 30/20 Rotors; Rotor supports
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/33 Multimode operation in different systems which transmit time stamped messages, e.g. GPS/GLONASS
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0094 involving pointing a payload, e.g. camera, weapon, sensor, towards a fixed or moving target
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0866 specially adapted to captive aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/22 comprising specially adapted graphical user interfaces [GUI]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 16/18 Network planning tools

Abstract

A method for modeling a cell site with an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) includes causing the UAV to fly a given flight path about a cell tower at the cell site, wherein a launch location and launch orientation is defined for the UAV to take off and land at the cell site such that each flight at the cell site has the same launch location and launch orientation; obtaining a plurality of photographs of the cell site during about the flight plane, wherein each of the plurality of photographs is associated with one or more location identifiers; and, subsequent to the obtaining, processing the plurality of photographs to define a three dimensional (3D) model of the cell site based on the associated with one or more location identifiers and one or more objects of interest in the plurality of photographs.

Claims

1. A method for modeling a cell site with an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV), the method comprising:

causing the UAV to fly a given flight path about a cell tower at the cell site, wherein the UAV takes a plurality of flights about the cell tower and a launch location and launch orientation is defined for the UAV to take off and land at the cell site via a zone indicator at the cell site which marks a location on the ground such that each flight of the plurality of flights has the same launch location at the cell site and launch orientation where the UAV is facing during the take off;

obtaining a plurality of photographs of the cell site during the plurality of flights, wherein each of the plurality of photographs is associated with one or more location identifiers;

subsequent to the obtaining, processing the plurality of photographs to define a three dimensional (3D) model of the cell site based on the associated with one or more location identifiers and one or more objects of interest in the plurality of photographs, wherein the 3D model further includes the zone indicator for future flights; and

subsequent to creation of the 3D model, relaunching the UAV from the launch location based on the zone indicator in the launch orientation to obtain updated photographs and updating the 3D model with the updated photographs.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

landing the UAV at the launch location in the launch orientation;

performing one or more operations on the UAV; and

relaunching the UAV from the launch location in the launch orientation to obtain additional photographs.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more location identifiers comprise at least two location identifiers comprising Global Positioning Satellite (GPS) and GLObal NAvigation Satellite System (GLONASS).

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the flight plane is constrained to an optimum distance from the cell tower.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of photographs are obtained automatically during the flight plan while concurrently performing a cell site audit of the cell site.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

providing a graphical user interface (GUI) of the 3D model; and

using the GUI to perform a cell site audit.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

providing a graphical user interface (GUI) of the 3D model; and

using the GUI to measure various components at the cell site.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

providing a graphical user interface (GUI) of the 3D model; and

using the GUI to obtain photographs of the various components at the cell site.

9. An Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) associated with a cell site, the UAV comprising:

one or more rotors disposed to a body;

a camera associated with the body;

wireless interfaces;

a processor coupled to the wireless interfaces and the camera; and

memory storing instructions that, when executed, cause the processor to;

process commands to cause the UAV to fly a given flight path about a cell tower at the cell site, wherein the UAV takes a plurality of flights about the cell tower and a launch location and launch orientation is defined for the UAV to take off and land at the cell site via a zone indicator at the cell site which marks a location on the ground such that each flight of the plurality of flights has the same launch location at the cell site and launch orientation where the UAV is facing during the take off;

obtain a plurality of photographs of the cell site during the plurality of flights, wherein each of the plurality of photographs is associated with one or more location identifiers;

provide the plurality of photographs to a processing system which defines a three dimensional (3D) model of the cell site based on the associated with one or more location identifiers and one or more objects of interest in the plurality of photographs, wherein the 3D model further includes the zone indicator for future flights; and

; and

subsequent to creation of the 3D model, obtain updated photographs where the UAV is relaunched from the launch location based on the zone indicator in the launch orientation for the updated photographs and update the 3D model with the updated photographs.

10. The UAV of claim 9, wherein the UAV lands at the launch location in the launch orientation, one or more operations are performed on the UAV, and the UAV is relaunched from the launch location in the launch orientation to obtain additional photographs.

11. The UAV of claim 9, wherein the one or more location identifiers comprise at least two location identifiers comprising Global Positioning Satellite (GPS) and GLObal NAvigation Satellite System (GLONASS).

12. The UAV of claim 9, wherein the flight plane is constrained to an optimum distance from the cell tower.

13. The UAV of claim 9, wherein the plurality of photographs are obtained automatically during the flight plan while concurrently performing a cell site audit of the cell site.

14. The UAV of claim 9, wherein the processing system provides a graphical user interface (GUI) of the 3D model, and the GUI is utilized to perform a cell site audit.

15. The UAV of claim 9, wherein the processing system provides a graphical user interface (GUI) of the 3D model, and the GUI is utilized to measure various components at the cell site.

16. The UAV of claim 9, wherein the processing system provides a graphical user interface (GUI) of the 3D model, and the GUI is utilized to obtain photographs of the various components at the cell site.

17. A cell site, comprising:

a cell tower with cell site components associated therewith;

a housing at the cell site storing an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV);

wherein the UAV is configured to fly a given flight path about a cell tower at the cell site, wherein the UAV takes a plurality of flights about the cell tower and a launch location and launch orientation is defined for the UAV to take off and land at the cell site via a zone indicator at the cell site which marks a location on the ground such that each flight of the plurality of flights has the same launch location at the cell site and launch orientation where the UAV is facing during the take off;

wherein the UAV is configured to obtain a plurality of photographs of the cell site about the plurality of flights, wherein each of the plurality of photographs is associated with one or more location identifiers;

wherein a processing system is configured to define a three dimensional (3D) model of the cell site based on the associated with one or more location identifiers and one or more objects of interest in the plurality of photographs, wherein the 3D model further includes the zone indicator for future flights; and

wherein, subsequent to creation of the 3D model, the UAV is relaunched from the launch location based on the zone indicator in the launch orientation to obtain updated photographs and the 3D model is updated by the processing system with the updated photographs.

18. The cell site of claim 17, wherein the UAV lands at the launch location in the launch orientation, one or more operations are performed on the UAV, and the UAV is relaunched from the launch location in the launch orientation to obtain additional photographs.

19. The cell site of claim 17, wherein the one or more location identifiers comprise at least two location identifiers comprising Global Positioning Satellite (GPS) and GLObal NAvigation Satellite System (GLONASS).

20. The cell site of claim 17, wherein the processing system provides a graphical user interface (GUI) of the 3D model, and the GUI is utilized to perform a cell site audit.