Commercial and general aircraft avoidance using multi-spectral wave detection

• US 9,997,079 B2
• Filed: 12/12/2014
• Issued: 06/12/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 12/12/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc. (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc. (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Inventors: Paczan, Nathan Michael, Buchmueller, Daniel
• Primary Examiner(s): Elchanti, Hussein
• Application Number:
  US14/569,233
• Publication Number:
  US 20160247407A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,278 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 2101/30 for imaging, photography or videography
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 2101/60 for transporting passengers; for transporting goods other than weapons
• 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: G01S 2205/03 Airborne
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/16 using electromagnetic waves other than radio waves
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/18 using ultrasonic, sonic, or infrasonic waves
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/106 Change initiated in response to external conditions, e.g. avoidance of elevated terrain or of no-fly zones
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0008 with other aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0013 with a ground station
• 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 5/045 Navigation or guidance aids, e.g. determination of anti-collision manoeuvers radar or analogous systems specially adapted for anti-collision between aircraft G01S13/933

Abstract

This disclosure is directed to a detection and avoidance apparatus for an unmanned aerial vehicle (“UAV”) and systems, devices, and techniques pertaining to automated object detection and avoidance during UAV flight. The system may detect objects within the UAV'"'"'s airspace through acoustic, visual, infrared, multispectral, hyperspectral, or object detectable signal emitted or reflected from an object. The system may identify the source of the object detectable signal by comparing features of the received signal with known sources signals in a database. The features may include, for example, a multispectral signature emitted or reflected by the object. Furthermore, a trajectory envelope for the object may be determined based on characteristic performance parameters for the object such as cursing speed, maneuverability, etc. The UAV may determine an optimized flight plan based on the trajectory envelopes of detected objects within the UAV'"'"'s airspace.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

generating multispectral signals, by one or more multispectral sensors of an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), from a spectrum of electromagnetic waves reflected or emitted from a flying object;

determining, by a signal processor module of the UAV, one or more characteristic features of the multi spectral signals;

identifying at least an identity of the flying object or a class of the flying object based at least in part on a comparison of the one or more characteristic features to a characteristic feature database that includes correlations of known signal features and identities and classes of flying objects;

associating, using a performance parameter database and at least one of the identity of the flying object or the class of the flying object, performance parameters with the flying object, the performance parameter database including unique performance parameters for at least one of a plurality of identities of flying objects or classes of flying objects;

determining an approximate location and an approximate airspeed of the flying object based at least in part on the multispectral signals;

creating a trajectory envelope for the flying object based at least in part on the approximate location, the approximate airspeed and the associated performance parameters, the trajectory envelope indicative of a three-dimensional range of the flying object for a given time period;

updating a flight plan for the UAV based at least in part on the trajectory envelope of the flying object, such that the flight plan of the UAV does not intersect the trajectory envelope of the object; and

causing the UAV to execute the updated flight plan.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the multispectral signals are comprised of a defined band from within the spectrum.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the defined band is determined at least in part on the likelihood of a particular object being present in the UAV'"'"'s airspace, the particular object having a known spectral signature.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the characteristic features include at least one of object composition, one or more object surface coatings, one or more object surface finishes, or a color characteristic.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising processing the multispectral signals using a beamformer to create beamformed multispectral signals prior to determining the approximate location and the approximate airspeed of the flying object, and wherein the determining the approximate location and the approximate airspeed of the flying object is performed using the beamformed multispectral signals.

6. An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), comprising:

one or more processors;

memory to store computer-readable instructions;

one or more multispectral sensors coupled to the unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), the one or more multispectral sensors to generate multispectral signals from electromagnetic energy reflected or emitted by an object within an airspace at least partially surrounding the UAV, the object having a trajectory that includes at least a speed of the object and a direction of travel of the object; and

a flight management component stored within the memory that, when executed, causes the one or more processors to;

detect, from the multispectral signals, an object in the airspace at least partially surrounding the UAV;

determine, based at least in part on an analysis of the multispectral signals, an object type and one or more current operating characteristics associated with the object;

determine, based at least in part on the object type, that one or more performance parameters stored in a database correspond to the object;

determine a trajectory envelope for the object based at least in part on the one or more current operating characteristics and the one or more performance parameters, the trajectory envelope indicative of a three-dimensional range of the flying object for a given time period;

updating a flight plan for the UAV based at least in part on the trajectory envelope of the object, such that the flight plan of the UAV does not intersect the trajectory envelope of the object; and

causing the UAV to execute the updated flight plan.

7. The UAV of claim 6, further comprising an acoustic sensor to capture acoustic energy emitted or reflected by the object, the flight management component causing the one or more processors to:

detect, from a signal representing the captured acoustic energy, the object in the airspace at least partially surrounding the UAV; and

determine, from the signal representing the captured acoustic energy, one or more different operating characteristics associated with the object based at least in part on a fingerprint associated with the signals representing the captured, wherein the determining the trajectory envelope is further based at least in part on the one or more different operating characteristics.

8. The UAV of claim 6, wherein the fight management component, when executed, further causes the one or more processors to:

determine the likelihood of interaction between the UAV and the trajectory envelope associated with the object; and

update a UAV flight plan to avoid interaction between the UAV and the trajectory envelope.

9. The UAV of claim 6, further comprising an optical sensor to capture signals providing a visual representation of at least part of the airspace, and the flight management component causing the one or more processors to:

detect, from the signals, an object present in the airspace;

determine, from the images, one or more additional operating characteristic associated with the object; and

wherein determining a trajectory envelope associated with the object is based at least in part on the one or more additional operating characteristics.

10. The UAV of claim 6, further comprising a communication component to create a peer-to-peer network with one or more nearby UAVs, the communication component configured to exchange at least one of the multispectral signals, an identity of the object, or the trajectory envelope of the object with the one or more nearby UAVs.

11. The UAV of claim 10, where the flight management component is further configured to determine an approximate location and approximate airspeed of the object based at least in part on information exchanged from at least one of the one or more nearby UAVs using triangulation.

12. The UAV of claim 6, wherein the performance parameters include at least a rate of climb, a rate of descent, and a maneuverability parameter associated with each of various objects.

13. The UAV of claim 6, further comprising at least one of an acoustic sensor to produce one or more acoustic signals or an optical sensor to produce one or more image signals and wherein an identity of the object is determined from at least one of the multispectral signals, the acoustic signals, or the optical signals.

14. The UAV of claim 6, further comprising determining, based at least in part on an analysis of the multispectral signals, an identity of the object associated with the multispectral signals.

15. An object detection and avoidance system comprising:

one or more processors; and

memory storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause the one or more processors to perform acts comprising;

determining one or more electromagnetic energy spectrum bands associated with a known spectral signature of an object;

determining one or more current operating characteristics associated with the object;

identifying the object present in an airspace based upon an analysis of the one or more spectrum bands of multispectral signals captured from electromagnetic energy emitted from the object;

determining performance parameters for the object based at least in part on the identifying of the object;

determining a trajectory envelope of the object based at least in part on the performance parameters and the current operating characteristics, the trajectory envelope indicative of a three-dimensional range of the flying object for a given time period;

updating a flight plan for an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) based at least in part on the trajectory envelope of the object, such that the flight plan of the UAV does not intersect the trajectory envelope of the object; and

causing the UAV to execute the updated flight plan.

16. The object detection and avoidance system of claim 15, wherein the acts further comprise updating a flight plan for a UAV based at least in part on a probability of interaction between the UAV and the trajectory envelope of the object.

17. The object detection and avoidance system of claim 15, wherein identifying the object includes matching one or more characteristic features of the multispectral signals with signal features stored in a database that associates individual signal features with respective objects or groups of objects.

18. The object detection and avoidance system of claim 15, further comprising determining an approximate airspeed of the object based at least in part on changes in the multispectral signals over a predetermined period of time.

19. The object detection and avoidance system of claim 18, wherein the trajectory envelope is formed using a scalable volume that is scaled based in least in part on the approximate airspeed and performance parameters of the object.

20. The object detection and avoidance system of claim 15, further comprising one or more optical sensors configured to capture signals of an airspace at least partially surrounding a UAV and identifying one or more characteristic features that define an object signature and include at least one of exterior aircraft lighting systems, or one or more anti-collision lights, and wherein the object is identified at least partly by determining at least one of:

a distance between at least two of the plurality of detected lights to determine physical characteristics of the object, or

a rotational frequency of the detected anti-collision light, the rotational frequency being associated with a particular aircraft type.

21. The object detection and avoidance system of claim 15, wherein the electromagnetic energy emitted from the object corresponds to a coating type or material type of the object.