Unmanned aerial vehicle authorization and geofence envelope determination

• US 9,256,225 B2
• Filed: 05/11/2015
• Issued: 02/09/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 05/12/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Skydio, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Unmanned Innovation Inc (Delair SAS)
• Inventors: Downey, Jonathan, Michini, Bernard J., Moster, Joseph, Weigel, Donald Curry, Ogden, James
• Primary Examiner(s): To, Tuan C.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Kan, Yuri
• Application Number:
  US14/709,324
• Publication Number:
  US 20150323930A1
• Time in Patent Office: 274 Days
• Field of Search: 701/2, 701/3, 701/14, 701/436, 701/467, 244/186, 348/144
• US Class Current: 1/1
• 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: B64U 2201/20 Remote controls
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 1/00 Beacons or beacon systems transmitting signals having a characteristic or characteristics capable of being detected by non-directional receivers and defining directions, positions, or position lines fixed relatively to the beacon transmitters; Receivers co-operating therewith position fixing by co-ordinating a plurality of determinations of direction or position lines G01S5/00
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/14 specially adapted for specific applications
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0011 associated with a remote control arrangement
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0022 characterised by the communication link data switching networks in general H04L12/00
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0027 involving a plurality of vehicles, e.g. fleet or convoy travelling fleet control of land vehicles from a control room G05D1/0297; traffic control systems for road vehicles G08G1/00; for marine craft G08G3/00; for aircraft G08G5/00
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0202 specially adapted to aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/101 specially adapted for aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/004 Indicating the operating range of the engine economical driving B60R16/0236, F02B77/084; measuring liquid fuel of an engine G01F9/00
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/008 communicating information to a remotely located station transmission systems for measured values G08C
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/02 Registering or indicating driving, working, idle, or waiting time only apparatus forming part of taximeters G07B13/00
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/0808 Diagnosing performance data testing of vehicles G01M17/00; testing of electrical installation on vehicles G01R31/005
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/0816 Indicating performance data, e.g. occurrence of a malfunction
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0026 located on the ground
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0039 Modification of a flight plan
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0056 in an emergency situation, e.g. hijacking
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/006 in accordance with predefined flight zones, e.g. to avoid prohibited zones
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0069 specially adapted for an unmanned aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0091 : for monitoring atmospheric conditions radar or analogous systems specially adapted for meteorological use G01S13/95; meteorology G01W
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 : specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/06 : Authentication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/021 : Services related to particular areas, e.g. point of interest [POI] services, venue services or geofences
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 : Location-based management or tracking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/02 : Access restriction performed under specific conditions

Abstract

Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on computer storage media, for unmanned aerial vehicle authorization and geofence envelope determination. One of the methods includes determining, by an electronic system in an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV), an estimated fuel remaining in the UAV. An estimated fuel consumption of the UAV is determined. Estimated information associated with wind affecting the UAV is determined using information obtained from sensors included in the UAV. Estimated flights times remaining for a current path, and one or more alternative flight paths, are determined using the determined estimated fuel remaining, determined estimated fuel consumption, determined information associated wind, and information describing each flight path. In response to the electronic system determining that the estimated fuel remaining, after completion of the current flight path, would be below a first threshold, an alternative flight path is selected.

Claims

1. An Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) system, comprising:

one or more sensor interfaces; and

a computing system comprising one or more computing devices, said computing system programmed to implement;

an estimator engine, the estimator engine configured to;

determine an estimated fuel remaining in the UAV;

determine an estimated fuel consumption of the UAV;

determine, using information obtained via the one or more sensor interfaces from sensors included in the UAV, estimated information associated with wind affecting the UAV that indicates a direction of the wind;

determine estimated flight times remaining for a current flight path that includes a plurality of waypoints, and one or more alternative flight paths that each include one or more of the plurality of waypoints, wherein determining an estimated flight time, for each of the current and alternative flight paths, uses;

the determined estimated fuel remaining,

the determined estimated fuel consumption,

the information associated with wind, and information describing the current and alternative flight paths; and

in response to determining that the estimated fuel remaining, after completion of the current flight path, would be below a threshold, select an alternative flight path that excludes one or more of the plurality of waypoints in a direction of travel substantially against the direction of the wind based on;

a hierarchy of the waypoints included in the current flight path,

the determined estimated fuel remaining, the determined estimated fuel consumption, and

the information associated with wind.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the system is further configured to:

obtaining information identifying one or more waypoints included in the current flight path but excluded in the selected alternative flight path; and

providing, to a remote system associated with an operator and for presentation by the remote system, information identifying the excluded waypoints.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the system is further configured to:

transmit, over the air the selected alternative flight path to a cloud system for approval, wherein the cloud system maintains flight path information associated with a plurality of UAVs.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein the system is further configured to:

receive approval from the cloud system identifying a geofence envelope associated with the selected alternative flight path.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the system is further configured to:

determine the one or more alternative flight paths to each include at least one of the waypoints in the current flight path that corresponds to a return landing location of the UAV in the current flight path.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein information describing a particular flight path in the current and alternative flight paths includes respective associated topological information.

7. A method implemented by an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) in flight, the UAV comprising an electronic system comprising hardware, the method comprising:

determining, by the UAV electronic system, an estimated fuel remaining in the UAV;

determining, by the UAV electronic system, an estimated fuel consumption of the UAV;

determining by the UAV electronic system, using information obtained from sensors included in the UAV, estimated information associated with wind affecting the UAV that indicates a direction of the wind;

determine estimated flight times remaining for a current flight path that includes a plurality of waypoints, and one or more alternative flight paths that each include one or more of the plurality of waypoints, wherein determining an estimated flight time, for each of the current and alternative flight paths, uses;

the determined estimated fuel remaining,

the determined estimated fuel consumption,

the information associated with wind, and

information describing the current and alternative flight paths; and

in response to determining that the estimated fuel remaining, after completion of the current flight path, would be below a first threshold, selecting an alternative flight path that excludes one or more of the plurality of waypoints in a direction of travel substantially against the direction of the wind based on;

a hierarchy of the waypoints included in the current flight path,

the determined estimated fuel remaining, the determined estimated fuel consumption, and

the information associated with wind.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

transmitting, by the UAV to a remote system associated with an operator, information identifying the selected alternative flight path.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

obtaining information identifying one or more waypoints included in the current flight path but excluded in the selected alternative flight path; and

providing, to the remote system associated with the operator and for presentation by the remote system, information identifying the excluded waypoints.

10. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

providing information regarding the selected alternative flight path to a remote cloud system for approval, wherein the cloud system maintains flight path information associated with a plurality of UAVs.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

receiving approval of the selected alternative flight path from the cloud system; and

providing information to an autopilot included in the UAV to enforce the selected alternative flight path.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein receiving approval comprises:

receiving information identifying a geofence envelope associated with the selected alternative flight path.

13. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

providing the selected alternative flight path to a remote cloud system for approval, wherein the cloud system maintains flight path information associated with a plurality of UAVs.

14. The method of claim 10, wherein the cloud system is associated with a regulatory authority.

15. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

determining the one or more alternative flight paths, wherein at least one alternative flight path includes at least one of the waypoints in the current flight path that corresponds to a return landing location of the UAV in the current flight path.

16. The method of claim 7, wherein information describing a particular flight path in the current and alternative flight paths includes respective associated topological information.

17. A computer program product, encoded on one or more non-transitory computer storage media, comprising instructions that when executed by one or more processors included in an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) cause the one or more processors to perform operations comprising:

determining an estimated fuel remaining in the UAV;

determining an estimated fuel consumption of the UAV;

determining, using information obtained from sensors included in the UAV, estimated information associated with wind affecting the UAV that indicates a direction of the wind;

determine estimated flight times remaining for a current flight path that includes a plurality of waypoints, and one or more alternative flight paths that each include one or more of the plurality of waypoints, wherein determining an estimated flight time, for each of the current and alternative flight paths, uses;

the determined estimated fuel remaining,

the determined estimated fuel consumption,

the information associated with wind, and

information describing the current and alternative flight paths; and

in response to determining that the estimated fuel remaining, after completion of the current flight path, would be below a first threshold, selecting an alternative flight path that excludes one or more of the plurality of waypoints in a direction of travel substantially against the direction of the wind based on;

a hierarchy of the waypoints included in the current flight path,

the determined estimated fuel remaining, the determined estimated fuel consumption, and

the information associated with wind.

18. The computer program product of claim 17, wherein the operations further comprise:

providing, to a system associated with an operator, information identifying the selected alternative flight path.

19. The computer program product of claim 18, wherein the operations further comprise:

providing, to the system associated with the operator and for presentation by the remote system, information identifying the excluded waypoints.

20. The computer program product of claim 17, wherein the operations further comprise:

providing the selected alternative flight path to a cloud system for approval, wherein the cloud system maintains flight path information associated with a plurality of UAVs.

21. The computer program product of claim 20, wherein the cloud system is associated with a regulatory authority.

22. The computer program product of claim 20, wherein the operations further comprise:

receiving approval of the selected alternative flight path from the cloud system; and

providing information to an autopilot included in the UAV to enforce the selected alternative flight path.

23. The computer program product of claim 22, receiving approval comprises:

receiving information identifying a geofence envelope associated with the selected alternative flight path.

24. The computer program product of claim 17, wherein the operations further comprise:

determining the one or more alternative flight paths, wherein at least one alternative flight path includes a waypoint corresponding to a return landing location of the UAV in the current flight path.