Dynamic drone navigation

• US 10,810,890 B2
• Filed: 01/17/2018
• Issued: 10/20/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 01/17/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Alarm.com Inc. (Alarm.com Holdings, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Alarm.com Inc. (Alarm.com Holdings, Inc.)
• Inventors: Rezvani, Babak, Seyfi, Ahmad
• Primary Examiner(s): Dunn, Alex C
• Application Number:
  US15/873,313
• Publication Number:
  US 20180204470A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,007 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B64C 39/024 of the remote controlled vehicle type, i.e. RPV
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 10/13 Flying platforms
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 2101/30 for imaging, photography or videography
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 2101/31 for surveillance
• 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: G01C 21/206 specially adapted for indoor navigation
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/101 specially adapted for aircraft
• 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: G05D 1/606 Compensating for or utilising external environmental conditions, e.g. wind or water currents station keeping G05D1/611
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/652 Take-off delivering or retrieving payloads G05D1/667
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/692 involving a plurality of disparate vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0034 Assembly of a flight plan
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0069 specially adapted for an unmanned aircraft

Abstract

Techniques are described for enabling a drone device to use a dynamic multi-dimensional spatial representation of an indoor property environment to improve autonomous navigation. In some implementations, an instruction to perform an action at a particular location of a property is received by a drone device. A spatial representation of the property that identifies a dynamic object is obtained by the drone device. The status of the dynamic object impacts an ability of the drone device to navigate near the dynamic object. Sensor data collected by one or more sensors of a monitoring system of the property and that indicates a present status of the dynamic object is obtained by the drone device. A path to the particular location is determined by the drone device. The path to the particular location is finally navigated by the drone device.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving, by a drone device, an instruction to perform an action at a particular location of a property;

obtaining, by the drone device, a spatial representation of the property that identifies a dynamic object, where a status of the dynamic object indicates an ability of the drone device to navigate near the dynamic object;

obtaining, by the drone device and based at least on identification of the dynamic object in the spatial representation of the property, sensor data collected by one or more sensors of a monitoring system of the property that indicates a present status of the dynamic object;

identifying, by the drone device and based on the sensor data, a set of candidate paths for navigating to the particular location;

determining, by the drone device, that (i) the dynamic object is included in a first candidate path within the set of candidate paths and (ii) the present status of the dynamic object indicates that the dynamic object prevents the ability of the drone device to navigate along the first candidate path;

selecting, by the drone device and based on determining that the present status of the dynamic object indicates that the dynamic object restricts the ability of the drone device to navigate along the first candidate path, a second candidate path, from among the set of candidate paths, the second candidate path being different from the first candidate path; and

navigating, by the drone device, the second candidate path to the particular location.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining, based on the sensor data, a change to the status of the dynamic object identified within the spatial representation of the property;

generating a second spatial representation of the property that identifies the present status of the dynamic object, the present status reflecting the change to the status of the dynamic object identified within the spatial representation of the property; and

wherein the second candidate path is selected based on the second spatial representation of the property.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the spatial representation of the property is generated prior to receiving the instruction to perform the action at the particular location of the property.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the dynamic object is a door of the property;

the status of the dynamic object identified in the spatial representation for the property indicates that the door is open;

the present status of the dynamic object indicates that the door has been closed after receiving the instruction to perform the action at the particular location of the property; and

selecting the second candidate path comprises selecting a candidate path, from among the set of candidate paths, that does not include the door.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

collecting, by the drone device, spatial data of a physical environment of the property during an initial registration of the property; and

generating the spatial representation based on the spatial data of the physical environment of the property collected during the initial registration of the property.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the spatial representation of the property is generated in response to receiving a prior instruction to perform an action at the particular location.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining, by the drone device, a present location of the drone device within the property based on the spatial representation; and

wherein the second candidate path is selected based on the present location of the drone device within the property.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein obtaining the sensor data collected by one or more sensors of the monitoring system of the property comprises:

obtaining, from the monitoring system, association data that identifies sensors of the monitoring system as corresponding to physical objects located within the property; and

determining that the one or more sensors from among the sensors of the monitoring system corresponds to a physical object that is represented by the dynamic object within the spatial representation of the property.

9. A system comprising:

one or more computers; and

one or more storage devices storing instructions that, when executed by the one or more computers, cause the one or more computers to perform operations comprising;

receiving, by a drone device, an instruction to perform an action at a particular location of a property;

obtaining, by the drone device, a spatial representation of the property that identifies a dynamic object, where a status of the dynamic object indicates an ability of the drone device to navigate near the dynamic object;

obtaining, by the drone device and based at least on identification of the dynamic object in the spatial representation of the property, sensor data collected by one or more sensors of a monitoring system of the property that indicates a present status of the dynamic object;

identifying, by the drone device and based on the sensor data, a set of candidate paths for navigating to the particular location;

determining, by the drone device, that (i) the dynamic object is included in a first candidate path within the set of candidate paths and (ii) the present status of the dynamic object indicates that the dynamic object restricts the ability of the drone device to navigate along the first candidate path;

selecting, by the drone device and based on determining that the present status of the dynamic object indicates that the dynamic object restricts the ability of the drone device to navigate along the first candidate path, a second candidate path, from among the set of candidate paths, the second candidate path being different from the first candidate path; and

navigating, by the drone device, the second candidate path to the particular location.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the operations further comprise:

determining, based on the sensor data, a change to the status of the dynamic object identified within the spatial representation of the property;

generating a second spatial representation of the property that identifies the present status of the dynamic object, the present status reflecting the change to the status of the dynamic object identified within the spatial representation of the property; and

wherein the second candidate path is selected based on the second spatial representation of the property.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the spatial representation of the property is generated prior to receiving the instruction to perform the action at the particular location of the property.

12. The system of claim 9, wherein:

the dynamic object is a door of the property;

the status of the dynamic object identified in the spatial representation for the property indicates that the door is open;

the present status of the dynamic object indicates that the door has been closed after receiving the instruction to perform the action at the particular location of the property; and

selecting the second candidate path comprises selecting a candidate path, from among the set of candidate paths, that does not include the door.

13. A non-transitory computer-readable storage device encoded with computer program instructions that, when executed by one or more computers, cause the one or more computers to perform operations comprising:

receiving, by a drone device, an instruction to perform an action at a particular location of a property;

obtaining, by the drone device, a spatial representation of the property that identifies a dynamic object, where a status of the dynamic object indicates an ability of the drone device to navigate near the dynamic object;

obtaining, by the drone device and based at least on identification of the dynamic object in the spatial representation of the property, sensor data collected by one or more sensors of a monitoring system of the property that indicates a present status of the dynamic object;

identifying, by the drone device and based on the sensor data, a set of candidate paths for navigating to the particular location;

determining, by the drone device, that (i) the dynamic object is included in a first candidate path within the set of candidate paths and (ii) the present status of the dynamic object indicates that the dynamic object prevents the ability of the drone device to navigate along the first candidate path;

selecting, by the drone device and based on determining that the present status of the dynamic object indicates that the dynamic object restricts the ability of the drone device to navigate along the first candidate path, a second candidate path, from among the set of candidate paths, the second candidate path being different from the first candidate path; and

navigating, by the drone device, the second candidate path to the particular location.

14. The device of claim 13, wherein the operations further comprise:

determining, based on the sensor data, a change to the status of the dynamic object identified within the spatial representation of the property;

generating a second spatial representation of the property that identifies the present status of the dynamic object, the present status reflecting the change to the status of the dynamic object identified within the spatial representation of the property; and

wherein the second candidate path is selected based on the second spatial representation of the property.

15. The device of claim 13, wherein the spatial representation of the property is generated prior to receiving the instruction to perform the action at the particular location of the property.

16. The device of claim 13, wherein:

the dynamic object is a door of the property;

the status of the dynamic object identified in the spatial representation for the property indicates that the door is open;

the present status of the dynamic object indicates that the door has been closed after receiving the instruction to perform the action at the particular location of the property; and

selecting the second candidate path comprises selecting a candidate path, from among the set of candidate paths, that does not include the door.