Unmanned vehicle searches

• US 9,824,596 B2
• Filed: 08/06/2014
• Issued: 11/21/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 08/30/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Insitu Incorporated (The Boeing Co.), University of Washington
• Original Assignee: Insitu Incorporated (The Boeing Co.), University of Washington
• Inventors: Arbeit, Amy Claire, Lum, Christopher W.
• Primary Examiner(s): Black, Thomas G
• Assistant Examiner(s): THOMAS, ANA D
• Application Number:
  US14/453,406
• Publication Number:
  US 20150066248A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,203 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 10/25 Fixed-wing aircraft VTOL aircraft B64U10/20
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 20/87 Mounting of imaging devices, e.g. mounting of gimbals
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 2101/30 for imaging, photography or videography
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 2101/32 for cartography or topography
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 2201/00 UAVs characterised by their flight controls
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/20 Instruments for performing navigational calculations G01C21/24, G01C21/26 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 23/00 Combined instruments indicating more than one navigational value, e.g. for aircraft; Combined measuring devices for measuring two or more variables of movement, e.g. distance, speed or acceleration
• 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 1/0202 specially adapted to aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0013 with a ground station
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0021 located in the aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0026 located on the ground
• 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 5/006 in accordance with predefined flight zones, e.g. to avoid prohibited zones
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0069 specially adapted for an unmanned aircraft

Abstract

A method of planning a flight path for a search can include receiving, by a control system, an indication of a search area boundary; receiving, by the control system, an indication of a selected search pattern; determining, by the control system, a flight path based on the search area boundary and the selected search pattern; and transmitting one or more indications of the flight path to an unmanned aerial vehicle.

Claims

1. A method of planning a flight path for a search, the method comprising:

receiving, by a control system, an indication of a search area boundary;

receiving, by the control system, an indication of a selected search pattern;

determining, by the control system, the flight path based on the search area boundary, the selected search pattern, and an optimization algorithm, the optimization algorithm configured to direct the search to search regions within the search area boundary based on a likelihood that a search target is located within the search regions, wherein the likelihood is based on a number of times the search has been performed in the search regions and terrain of the search regions; and

transmitting one or more indications of the flight path to an unmanned aerial vehicle.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the selected search pattern comprises at least one of a trackline search pattern, a parallel search pattern, a creeping line search pattern, an expanding square search pattern, and a sector search pattern.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a pattern direction;

wherein determining the flight path comprises determining the flight path based further on the pattern direction.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

displaying the flight path on a display of a map.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

receiving, by the control system, an update of one or more of the selected search pattern or track spacing of the selected search pattern; and

updating the displayed flight path on the display of the map.

6. A system for displaying target search probabilities, the system comprising:

a control unit configured to determine, based on an optimization algorithm, a search area to be searched, the optimization algorithm configured to direct a search to search regions within a search area boundary based on a likelihood that a search target is located within the search regions, wherein the likelihood is based on a number of times the search has been performed in the search regions and terrain of the search regions;

a sensor mounted on an air vehicle, the sensor configured to determine a direction and a distance to the search area; and

a camera mounted on the air vehicle, the camera configured to take one or more images of the search area;

wherein the control unit is further configured to;

receive, from the sensor, an indication of the direction and the distance to the search area, and

control an orientation and a zoom of the camera based on the indication of the direction and the distance to the search area received from the sensor.

7. The system of claim 6, further comprising:

a display configured to display the search regions and to display, in one or more of the search regions, an indication of the likelihood that the search target is located in each of the one or more of the search regions.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the indication of the likelihood that the search target is located in each of the search regions comprises one or more of a shading of the one or more of the search regions, a color of the one or more of the search regions, and a numerical indicator in the one or more of the search regions.

9. A method of planning a flight path for a search, the method comprising:

receiving, by a control system, an indication of a search area boundary;

receiving, by the control system, an indication of a selected search pattern;

identifying a no-fly zone, wherein at least a portion of the no-fly zone overlaps at least a portion of the search area boundary;

determining, by the control system, the flight path based on the search area boundary, the selected search pattern, the no-fly zone, an optimization algorithm, and at least one specification of an unmanned aerial vehicle, the optimization algorithm configured to direct the search to search regions within the search area boundary based on a likelihood that a search target is located within the search regions, wherein the likelihood is based on a number of times the search has been performed in the search regions and terrain of the search regions; and

transmitting one or more indications of the flight path to the unmanned aerial vehicle.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

displaying the flight path on a display of a map.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein the no-fly zone is defined as a polygon.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein the flight path is determined such that the unmanned aerial vehicle searches portions of the search area boundary that are outside of the no-fly zone.

13. The method of claim 9, wherein the specification of the unmanned aerial vehicle comprises a minimum turn radius.

14. The method of claim 9, wherein the control system is configured to automatically determine the flight path.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the control system is further configured to automatically determine the flight path at least partially simultaneously while a controller of the unmanned aerial vehicle is controlling another aspect of the unmanned aerial vehicle.

16. A system comprising:

an unmanned aerial vehicle configured to fly over one of a plurality of search areas;

a slewing mechanism mounted on the unmanned aerial vehicle;

a control unit configured to determine one search area from the plurality of search areas to be searched based on an optimization algorithm and to control the slewing mechanism based on the determination of the one search area to be searched, the optimization algorithm configured to a search to search regions within a search area boundary based on a likelihood that a search target is located within the search regions, wherein the likelihood is based on a number of times the search has been performed in the search regions and terrain of the search regions; and

a camera mounted on the slewing mechanism, wherein the camera is configured to take one or more images of the one search area to be searched.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the control unit is further configured to determine the one search area based on a location of the unmanned aerial vehicle.

18. The system of claim 16, wherein the control unit is further configured to determine the one search area based on a location of a no-fly zone with respect to the unmanned aerial vehicle.

19. The system of claim 16, wherein the control unit is further configured to determine the one search area based on at least one specification of the unmanned aerial vehicle.