CONTROL OF AN AERIAL DRONE USING RECOGNIZED GESTURES

• US 20170235308A1
• Filed: 02/11/2016
• Published: 08/17/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 02/11/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: KOZLOSKI, JAMES R., KUNDU, ASHISH, MALKIN, PETER K., PICKOVER, CLIFFORD A., GORDON, MICHAEL S.
• Granted Patent: US 10,168,700 B2
• Time in Patent Office: 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 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: B64U 50/11 using internal combustion piston engines
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 50/19 using electrically powered motors
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0016 characterised by the operator's input device input arrangements for computing systems in general G06F3/00
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0094 involving pointing a payload, e.g. camera, weapon, sensor, towards a fixed or moving target

Abstract

A method, system, and/or computer program product controls movement and adjusts operations of an aerial drone. A drone camera observes an aerial maneuver physical gesture by a user. The aerial drone then performs an aerial maneuver that correlates to the aerial maneuver physical gesture. The drone camera observes the user performing a physical action. One or more processors associate the physical action with a particular type of activity. A drone on-board computer adjusts an operation of an aerial drone based on the particular type of activity.

Claims

1. A method of controlling movement and adjusting operations of an aerial drone, the computer-implemented method comprising:

observing, by a drone camera mounted on an aerial drone, an aerial maneuver physical gesture by a user;

performing, by the aerial drone, an aerial maneuver that correlates to the aerial maneuver physical gesture in response to the drone camera observing the aerial maneuver physical gesture by the user;

observing, by the drone camera, the user performing a physical action;

associating, by one or more processors, the physical action with a particular type of activity; and

adjusting, by a drone on-board computer, an operation of an aerial drone based on the particular type of activity.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

analyzing, by one or more processors, a video feed from the drone camera, wherein said analyzing identifies a type of physical environment occupied by the user; and

determining, by one or more processors, the particular type of activity based on the type of physical environment occupied by the user.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

detecting, by the drone camera, a predefined anomalous physical action by the user; and

in response to detecting the predefined anomalous physical action by the user, adjusting, by the drone on-board computer, a type of monitoring performed by the drone camera.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

detecting, by the drone camera, a predefined anomalous physical action by the user; and

in response to detecting the predefined anomalous physical action by the user, transmitting, by the drone on-board computer, a video feed from the drone camera to an emergency responder.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

detecting, by the drone camera, a physical hazard at a location towards which the user is approaching; and

in response to detecting the physical hazard at the location towards which the user is approaching, transmitting, by a transmitter on the aerial drone, an alert to the user, wherein the alert warns the user of the physical hazard at the location towards which the user is approaching.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the aerial drone is part of a drone swarm of multiple drones, and wherein the method further comprises:

detecting, by drone cameras mounted on the drone swarm, a first physical gesture of the user, wherein the first physical gesture identifies a drone subset of the drone swarm;

detecting, by drone cameras mounted on the drone subset, a second physical gesture of the user, wherein the second physical gesture is specific for an action to be performed by the drone subset; and

performing, by the drone subset, the action in response to said detecting the second physical gesture of the user.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

detecting, by the drone camera, an authorization physical gesture by the user, wherein the authorization physical gesture is a predefined physical gesture that authorizes the user to take control of the aerial drone; and

in response to the drone camera detecting the authorization physical gesture by the user, transferring, by the drone on-board computer on the aerial drone, control of the aerial drone to the user.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

identifying, by one or more sensors, an aerial obstacle to the aerial drone; and

adjusting, by the drone on-board computer, a flight path of the aerial drone in order to avoid the aerial obstacle.

9. A computer program product to control movement and to adjust operations of an aerial drone, the computer program product comprising a non-transitory computer readable storage medium having program code embodied therewith, the program code readable and executable by a processor to perform a method comprising:

observing, by a drone camera mounted on an aerial drone, an aerial maneuver physical gesture by a user;

performing, by the aerial drone, an aerial maneuver that correlates to the aerial maneuver physical gesture in response to the drone camera observing the aerial maneuver physical gesture by the user;

observing, by the drone camera, the user performing a physical action;

associating the physical action with a particular type of activity; and

adjusting, by a drone on-board computer, an operation of an aerial drone based on the particular type of activity.

10. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein the method further comprises:

analyzing a video feed from the drone camera, wherein said analyzing identifies a type of physical environment occupied by the user; and

determining the particular type of activity based on the type of physical environment occupied by the user.

11. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein the method further comprises:

detecting, by the drone camera, a predefined anomalous physical action by the user; and

in response to detecting the predefined anomalous physical action by the user, adjusting, by the drone on-board computer, a type of monitoring performed by the drone camera.

12. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein the method further comprises:

detecting, by the drone camera, a predefined anomalous physical action by the user; and

in response to detecting the predefined anomalous physical action by the user, transmitting, by the drone on-board computer, a video feed from the drone camera to an emergency responder.

13. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein the method further comprises:

detecting, by the drone camera, a physical hazard at a location towards which the user is approaching; and

in response to detecting the physical hazard at the location towards which the user is approaching, transmitting, by a transmitter on the aerial drone, an alert to the user, wherein the alert warns the user of the physical hazard at the location towards which the user is approaching.

14. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein the aerial drone is part of a drone swarm of multiple drones, and wherein the method further comprises:

detecting, by drone cameras mounted on the drone swarm, a first physical gesture of the user, wherein the first physical gesture identifies a drone subset of the drone swarm;

detecting, by drone cameras mounted on the drone subset, a second physical gesture of the user, wherein the second physical gesture is specific for an action to be performed by the drone subset; and

performing, by the drone subset, the action in response to said detecting the second physical gesture of the user.

15. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein the method further comprises:

detecting, by the drone camera, an authorization physical gesture by the user, wherein the authorization physical gesture is a predefined physical gesture that authorizes the user to take control of the aerial drone; and

in response to the drone camera detecting the authorization physical gesture by the user, transferring, by the drone on-board computer on the aerial drone, control of the aerial drone to the user.

16. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein the method further comprises:

identifying, by one or more sensors, an aerial obstacle to the aerial drone; and

adjusting, by the drone on-board computer, a flight path of the aerial drone in order to avoid the aerial obstacle.

17. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein the program code is provided and executed as a service in a cloud environment.

18. A computer system comprising:

a processor, a computer readable memory, and a non-transitory computer readable storage medium;

first program instructions to observe, by a drone camera mounted on an aerial drone, an aerial maneuver physical gesture by a user;

second program instructions to perform, by the aerial drone, an aerial maneuver that correlates to the aerial maneuver physical gesture in response to the drone camera observing the aerial maneuver physical gesture by the user;

third program instructions to observe, by the drone camera, the user performing a physical action;

fourth program instructions to associate the physical action with a particular type of activity; and

fifth program instructions to adjust, by a drone on-board computer, an operation of an aerial drone based on the particular type of activity; and

wherein

the first, second, third, fourth, and fifth program instructions are stored on the non-transitory computer readable storage medium for execution by one or more processors via the computer readable memory.

19. The computer system of claim 18, further comprising:

sixth program instructions to analyze a video feed from the drone camera, wherein said analyzing identifies a type of physical environment occupied by the user; and

seventh program instructions to determine the particular type of activity based on the type of physical environment occupied by the user; and

wherein

the sixth and seventh program instructions are stored on the non-transitory computer readable storage medium for execution by one or more processors via the computer readable memory.

20. The computer system of claim 18, further comprising:

sixth program instructions to detect, by the drone camera, a predefined anomalous physical action by the user; and

seventh program instructions to, in response to detecting the predefined anomalous physical action by the user, adjust, by the drone on-board computer, a type of monitoring performed by the drone camera; and

wherein

the sixth and seventh program instructions are stored on the non-transitory computer readable storage medium for execution by one or more processors via the computer readable memory.