Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Low-Power Operation
First Claim
1. A method of operating an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) using rotors for propulsion, the method comprising:
- determining, in a processor while the UAV is flying, whether an emergency-recovery state of a battery of the UAV has been reached;
activating an emergency recovery mode in response to determining that the emergency-recovery state has been reached, wherein the emergency recovery mode switches the rotors from drawing power from the battery for generating propulsion to harvesting energy from airflow that is used to recharge the battery;
determining, in the processor, whether a braking altitude has been reached; and
activating a braking mode in response to determining the braking altitude has been reached, wherein the braking mode switches the rotors from energy harvesting to drawing power from the battery to generate propulsion in order to reduce a descent rate of the UAV.
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Accused Products
Abstract
Methods, devices, and systems of various embodiments are disclosed for operating a UAV having insufficient power to operate normally. Various embodiments include determining whether an emergency-recovery state of a battery of the UAV has been reached while the UAV is flying. An emergency recovery mode may be activated in response to determining that the emergency-recovery state has been reached. The emergency recovery mode may switch the rotors from drawing energy from the battery to generate propulsion to harvesting energy from airflow that is used to recharge a battery of the UAV. A braking mode may be activated in response to determining that a braking altitude has been reached. The braking mode may switch the rotors from energy harvesting to drawing energy from the battery to generate propulsion in order to reduce a descent rate of the UAV.
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Citations
30 Claims
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1. A method of operating an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) using rotors for propulsion, the method comprising:
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determining, in a processor while the UAV is flying, whether an emergency-recovery state of a battery of the UAV has been reached; activating an emergency recovery mode in response to determining that the emergency-recovery state has been reached, wherein the emergency recovery mode switches the rotors from drawing power from the battery for generating propulsion to harvesting energy from airflow that is used to recharge the battery; determining, in the processor, whether a braking altitude has been reached; and activating a braking mode in response to determining the braking altitude has been reached, wherein the braking mode switches the rotors from energy harvesting to drawing power from the battery to generate propulsion in order to reduce a descent rate of the UAV. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), comprising:
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a rotor; a motor configured to drive the rotor for propulsion; a battery configured to supply power to the motor; and a processor couple to the battery and configured with processor-executable instructions to; determine whether an emergency-recovery state of the battery has been reached while the UAV is flying; activate an emergency recovery mode in response to determining that the emergency-recovery state has been reached, wherein the emergency recovery mode switches the rotor from drawing power from the battery for generating propulsion to harvesting energy from airflow that is used to recharge the battery; determining whether a braking altitude has been reached; and activating a braking mode in response to determining the braking altitude has been reached, wherein the braking mode switches the rotor from energy harvesting to drawing power from the battery to generate propulsion in order to reduce a descent rate of the UAV. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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21. An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), comprising:
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a battery; a rotor configured to be able to draw power from the battery to generate propulsion and to harvest energy from airflow to recharge the battery; means for determining whether an emergency-recovery state of a battery of the UAV has been reached while the UAV is flying; means for activating an emergency recovery mode in response to determining that the emergency-recovery state has been reached, wherein the emergency recovery mode switches the rotor from drawing power from the battery for generating propulsion to harvesting energy from airflow that is used to recharge the battery; means for determining whether a braking altitude has been reached; and means for activating a braking mode in response to determining the braking altitude has been reached, wherein the braking mode switches the rotor from energy harvesting to drawing power from the battery to generate propulsion in order to reduce a descent rate of the UAV.
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22. A non-transitory processor-readable storage medium having stored thereon processor-executable instructions configured to cause a processor of an unmanned autonomous vehicle (UAV) to perform operations comprising:
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determining whether an emergency-recovery state of a battery of the UAV has been reached while the UAV is flying; activating an emergency recovery mode in response to determining that the emergency-recovery state has been reached, wherein the emergency recovery mode switches a rotor of the UAV from drawing power from the battery for generating propulsion to harvesting energy from airflow that is used to recharge the battery; determining whether a braking altitude has been reached; and activating a braking mode in response to determining the braking altitude has been reached, wherein the braking mode switches the rotor from energy harvesting to drawing power from the battery to generate propulsion in order to reduce a descent rate of the UAV. - View Dependent Claims (23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30)
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Specification