Unmanned aerial vehicle and method for controlling the unmanned aerial vehicle

• US 8,554,462 B2
• Filed: 01/13/2012
• Issued: 10/08/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 05/18/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Beijing Jingdong Century Trading Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.
• Inventors: Lee, Hou-Hsien, Lee, Chang-Jung, Lo, Chih-Ping
• Primary Examiner(s): Black, Thomas
• Assistant Examiner(s): CASTRO, PAUL A
• Application Number:
  US13/349,837
• Publication Number:
  US 20120296497A1
• Time in Patent Office: 634 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 701/301
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0202 specially adapted to aircraft

Abstract

In a method for controlling an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), a digital image is obtained by an image capturing device of the UAV. The method detects an object in the digital image, determines a distance between the detected object and the UAV, and obtains a flight direction of the UAV if the distance is less than a preset value. The method further calculates a relative position and a relative angle between the detected object and the UAV, determines a flight limiting range of the UAV according to the relative position and the relative angle, and controls the flight direction of the UAV according to the flight limiting range.

Claims

1. A method for controlling an unmanned aerial vehicle, the method comprising:

obtaining a digital image captured by an image capturing device of the UAV;

detecting an object in the digital image, and determining a distance between the detected object and the UAV;

obtaining a flight direction of the UAV using an electronic compass chip of the UAV upon the condition that the distance is less than a preset value;

calculating a relative position and a relative angle between the detected object and the UAV in a coordinate system of the digital image, a position of the UAV being determined as an origin of the coordinate system;

wherein the relative position and the relative angle are calculated by creating the coordinate system for the digital image based on the flight direction of the UAV, and determining the relative position between the detected object and the UAV according to the coordinate system; and

obtaining coordinates (x0, y0) of the detected object based on the coordinate system, and calculating the relative angle between the detected object and the UAV using a formula of)“

(x0×

360°

/W1,”

wherein “

x0”

represents an X-axis coordinate of the detected object and “

W1”

represents a width of the digital image;

determining a flight limiting range of the UAV according to the relative position and the relative angle; and

controlling the flight direction of the UAV according to the flight limiting range.

2. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a control command from a control device of the UAV; and

preventing the UAV from executing the control command upon the condition that a flight direction corresponding to the control command is within the flight limiting range.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the distance between the detected object and the UAV is determined as a distance between the detected object and a lens of the image capturing device.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the flight direction of the UAV comprises a cardinal direction, a deflecting direction, and a deflecting angle of the UAV.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the flight limiting range of the UAV is determined by expanding the relative angle with a preset angle based on the relative position and the relative angle.

6. An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) in communication with a control device, the UAV comprising:

an image capturing device and an electronic compass chip;

a storage device and at least one processor; and

one or more modules that are stored in the storage device and executed by the at least one processor, the one or more modules comprising;

an image obtaining module that obtains a digital image captured by the image capturing device;

an object detecting module that detects an object in the digital image, and determining a distance between the detected object and the UAV;

a direction obtaining module that obtains a flight direction of the UAV using the electronic compass chip upon the condition that the distance is less than a preset value;

a direction analyzing module that calculates a relative position and a relative angle between the detected object and the UAV in a coordinate system of the digital image, a position of the UAV being determined as an origin of the coordinate system;

wherein the relative position and the relative angle are calculated by the steps of;

creating the coordinate system for the digital image based on the flight direction of the UAV, and determining the relative position between the detected object and the UAV according to the coordinate system;

obtaining coordinates (x0, y0) of the detected object based on the coordinate system; and

calculating the relative angle between the detected object and the UAV using a formula of)“

(x0×

360°

/W1,”

wherein “

x0”

represents an X-axis coordinate of the detected object and “

W1”

represents a width of the digital image;

the direction analyzing module that determines a flight limiting range of the UAV according to the relative position and the relative angle; and

an UAV control module that controls the flight direction of the UAV according to the flight limiting range.

7. The UAV according to claim 6, wherein the UAV control module further receives a control command from a control device of the UAV, and prevents the UAV from executing the control command upon the condition that a flight direction corresponding to the control command is within the flight limiting range of the UAV.

8. The UAV according to claim 6, wherein the distance between the detected object and the UAV is determined as a distance between the detected object and a lens of the image capturing device.

9. The UAV according to claim 6, wherein the flight direction of the UAV comprises a cardinal direction, a deflecting direction, and a deflecting angle of the UAV.

10. The UAV according to claim 6, wherein the flight limiting range of the UAV is determined by expanding the relative angle with a preset angle based on the relative position and the relative angle.

11. A non-transitory storage medium having stored thereon instructions that, when executed by a processor of an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), causes the processor to perform a method for controlling the UAV, the method comprising:

obtaining a digital image captured by an image capturing device of the UAV;

detecting an object in the digital image, and determining a distance between the detected object and the UAV;

obtaining a flight direction of the UAV using an electronic compass chip of the UAV upon the condition that the distance is less than a preset value;

calculating a relative position and a relative angle between the detected object and the UAV in a coordinate system of the digital image, a position of the UAV being determined as an origin of the coordinate system;

wherein the relative position and the relative angle are calculated by creating the coordinate system for the digital image based on the flight direction of the UAV, and determining the relative position between the detected object and the UAV according to the coordinate system; and

obtaining coordinates (x0, y0) of the detected object based on the coordinate system, and calculating the relative angle between the detected object and the UAV using a formula of)“

(x0×

360°

/W1,”

wherein “

x0”

represents an X-axis coordinate of the detected object and “

W1”

represents a width of the digital image;

determining a flight limiting range of the UAV according to the relative position and the relative angle; and

controlling the flight direction of the UAV according to the flight limiting range.

12. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 11, wherein the method further comprises:

receiving a control command from a control device of the UAV; and

preventing the UAV from executing the control command upon the condition that a flight direction corresponding to the control command is within the flight limiting range of the UAV.

13. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 11, wherein the distance between the detected object and the UAV is determined as a distance between the detected object and a lens of the image capturing device.

14. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 11, wherein the flight direction of the UAV comprises a cardinal direction, a deflecting direction, and a deflecting angle of the UAV.

15. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 11, wherein the flight limiting range of the UAV is determined by expanding the relative angle with a preset angle based on the relative position and the relative angle.

16. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 13, wherein the medium is selected from the group consisting of a hard disk drive, a compact disc, a digital video disc, and a tap drive.