FLIGHT PLANNING USING OBSTACLE DATA

• US 20190311636A1
• Filed: 04/10/2018
• Published: 10/10/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 04/10/2018
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Skyward IO, Inc. (Verizon Communications Inc.), Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: FANELLI, Matthew S., WILLIAMS, Shane Pierce, EVANS, Jonathan, RASHID, Tariq
• Granted Patent: US 10,672,281 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 3/0046 relating to electric energy storage systems, e.g. batteries or capacitors
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 58/18 of two or more battery modules
• CPC Class Codes: B64C 39/024 of the remote controlled vehicle type, i.e. RPV
• 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: G02B 27/017 Head mounted
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0274 using mapping information stored in a memory device navigation using map-matching G01C21/30
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0297 by controlling means in a control room
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/011 Arrangements for interaction with the human body, e.g. for user immersion in virtual reality blind teaching G09B21/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 17/05 Geographic models
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 19/006 Mixed reality object pose determination, tracking or camera calibration for mixed reality G06T7/00
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0008 with other aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0013 with a ground station
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/003 Flight plan management
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0034 Assembly of a flight plan
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0039 Modification of a flight plan
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0069 specially adapted for an unmanned aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0078 for monitoring traffic from the aircraft radar or analogous systems specially adapted for traffic control G01S13/91
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0082 for monitoring traffic from a ground station radar or analogous systems specially adapted for traffic control G01S13/91
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0086 for monitoring terrain radar or analogous systems specially adapted for terrain avoidance G01S13/935
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/045 Navigation or guidance aids, e.g. determination of anti-collision manoeuvers radar or analogous systems specially adapted for anti-collision between aircraft G01S13/933
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/383 : for tracking with gaze detection, i.e. detecting the lines of sight of the viewer's eyes
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/70 : Energy storage systems for electromobility, e.g. batteries

Abstract

A device can receive obstacle data from a plurality of sources. The obstacle data can include location data associated with obstacles. The device can determine weightings for the obstacles based on the plurality of sources. Each of the weightings can indicate a measure of reliability/accuracy of the information regarding an obstacle. The device can process the obstacle data to associate the obstacles with airspace voxel(s), that represent one or more 3D portions of airspace, based on the location data, receive flight parameters relating to a proposed flight plan of a UAV through airspace represented by a set of airspace voxels, determine whether the set of airspace voxels includes any of the airspace voxel(s), and perform one or more actions to cause a recommendation, regarding the proposed flight plan and based on the determination, to be provided. The recommendation can be based on one or more of the weightings.

Claims

1. A device, comprising:

one or more memories; and

one or more processors, communicatively coupled to the one or more memories, to;

receive obstacle data from a plurality of sources,

the obstacle data including information regarding a plurality of obstacles,

the information including location data associated with the plurality of obstacles;

determine weightings for the plurality of obstacles based on the plurality of sources,

each of the weightings indicating a measure of reliability and/or accuracy of the information regarding an obstacle of the plurality of obstacles;

process the obstacle data to associate the plurality of obstacles with one or more airspace voxels, that represent one or more three-dimensional (3D) portions of airspace, based on the location data;

receive flight parameters relating to a proposed flight plan of an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) through airspace represented by a set of airspace voxels;

determine whether the set of airspace voxels includes any of the one or more airspace voxels; and

perform one or more actions to cause a recommendation, regarding the proposed flight plan and based on determining whether the set of airspace voxels includes any of the one or more airspace voxels, to be provided to the UAV or to a client device associated with the UAV,

the recommendation being based on one or more of the weightings associated with the plurality of obstacles.

2. The device of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors, when performing the one or more actions, are to:

perform the one or more actions to cause the recommendation to be provided to the UAV to control the UAV to adjust a flight path of the UAV.

3. The device of claim 1, wherein the information further includes size information associated with the plurality of obstacles or time stamp information associated with the plurality of obstacles;

and

wherein the one or more processors, when processing the obstacle data, are to;

process the obstacle data to associate the plurality of obstacles with the one or more airspace voxels further based on the size information or the time stamp information.

4. The device of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further to:

perform one or more actions to cause information regarding the one or more weightings to be provided to the UAV or to the client device to enable the UAV or the client device to determine an adjustment to the proposed flight plan.

5. The device of claim 1, wherein the recommendation includes a recommended flight plan that is associated with a probability of successful flight that satisfies a threshold probability.

6. The device of claim 1, wherein the plurality of sources includes:

one or more government-related sources of obstacle data;

one or more third-party sources that maintain one or more repositories of obstacle data;

one or more sources associated with crowdsourcing;

or

one or more UAVs.

7. The device of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors, when processing the obstacle data to associate the plurality of obstacles with the one or more airspace voxels, are to:

process the obstacle data to map the plurality of obstacles to the one or more airspace voxels.

8. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing instructions, the instructions comprising:

one or more instructions that, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to;

receive obstacle data from a plurality of sources,

the obstacle data including information regarding a plurality of obstacles,

the information including location data associated with the plurality of obstacles;

determine weightings for the plurality of obstacles based on the plurality of sources,

each of the weightings indicating a measure of reliability and/or accuracy of the information regarding an obstacle of the plurality of obstacles;

process the obstacle data to associate the plurality of obstacles with one or more airspace voxels, that represent one or more three-dimensional (3D) portions of airspace, based on the location data;

receive flight parameters relating to a proposed flight plan of an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) through airspace represented by a set of airspace voxels;

determine whether the set of airspace voxels includes any of the one or more airspace voxels; and

perform one or more actions to cause a recommendation, regarding the proposed flight plan and based on determining whether the set of airspace voxels includes any of the one or more airspace voxels, to be provided to the UAV or to a client device associated with the UAV,

the recommendation being based on one or more of the weightings associated with the plurality of obstacles.

9. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 8, wherein the one or more instructions, that cause the one or more processors to perform the one or more actions, cause the one or more processors to:

perform the one or more actions to cause the recommendation to be provided to the UAV to control the UAV to adjust a flight path of the UAV.

10. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 8, wherein the information further includes size information associated with the plurality of obstacles or time stamp information associated with the plurality of obstacles;

and

wherein the one or more instructions, that cause the one or more processors to process the obstacle data, cause the one or more processors to;

process the obstacle data to associate the plurality of obstacles with the one or more airspace voxels further based on the size information or the time stamp information.

11. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 8, wherein the one or more instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, further cause the one or more processors to:

perform one or more actions to cause information regarding the one or more weightings to be provided to the UAV or to the client device to enable the UAV or the client device to determine an adjustment to the proposed flight plan.

12. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 8, wherein the recommendation includes a recommended flight plan that is associated with a probability of successful flight that satisfies a threshold probability.

13. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 8, wherein the plurality of sources includes:

one or more government-related sources of obstacle data;

one or more third-party sources that maintain one or more repositories of obstacle data;

one or more sources associated with crowdsourcing;

or

one or more UAVs.

14. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 8, wherein the one or more instructions, that cause the one or more processors to process the obstacle data to associate the plurality of obstacles with the one or more airspace voxels, cause the one or more processors to:

process the obstacle data to map the plurality of obstacles to the one or more airspace voxels.

15. A method, comprising:

receiving, by a device, obstacle data from a plurality of sources,

the obstacle data including information regarding a plurality of obstacles,

the information including location data associated with the plurality of obstacles;

determining, by the device, weightings for the plurality of obstacles based on the plurality of sources,

each of the weightings indicating a measure of reliability and/or accuracy of the information regarding an obstacle of the plurality of obstacles;

processing, by the device, the obstacle data to associate the plurality of obstacles with one or more airspace voxels, that represent one or more three-dimensional (3D) portions of airspace, based on the location data;

receiving, by the device, flight parameters relating to a proposed flight plan of an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) through airspace represented by a set of airspace voxels;

determining, by the device, whether the set of airspace voxels includes any of the one or more airspace voxels; and

performing, by the device, one or more actions to cause a recommendation, regarding the proposed flight plan and based on determining whether the set of airspace voxels includes any of the one or more airspace voxels, to be provided to the UAV or to a client device associated with the UAV,

the recommendation being based on one or more of the weightings associated with the plurality of obstacles.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein performing the one or more actions comprises:

performing the one or more actions to cause the recommendation to be provided to the UAV to control the UAV to adjust a flight path of the UAV.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein the information further includes size information associated with the plurality of obstacles or time stamp information associated with the plurality of obstacles;

and

wherein the method further comprises;

processing the obstacle data to associate the plurality of obstacles with the one or more airspace voxels further based on the size information or the time stamp information.

18. The method of claim 15, further comprising:

performing one or more actions to cause information regarding the one or more weightings to be provided to the UAV or to the client device to enable the UAV or the client device to determine an adjustment to the proposed flight plan.

19. The method of claim 15, wherein the recommendation includes a recommended flight plan that is associated with a probability of successful flight that satisfies a threshold probability.

20. The method of claim 15, wherein the plurality of sources includes:

one or more government-related sources of obstacle data;

one or more third-party sources that maintain one or more repositories of obstacle data;

one or more sources associated with crowdsourcing;

or

one or more UAVs.