Unmanned aerial vehicle airport

Abstract

The invention discloses an unmanned aerial vehicle airport. An available area for the multiple unmanned aerial vehicles to take off and land is determined according to obstacles, the available area comprises a user activity area and a beacon area which are arranged at intervals, and the multiple unmanned aerial vehicle take-off and landing positions arranged in the beacon area are used for achieving continuous take-off and landing of the unmanned aerial vehicles. Take-off and landing of continuous flight missions allocated to the unmanned aerial vehicle are borne by the same take-off and landing position, the time consumed for carrying the unmanned aerial vehicle due to the fixed beacon function is shortened, and the efficiency of the unmanned aerial vehicle for executing the flight missions is improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of unmanned driving technology, and in particular to an unmanned aerial vehicle airport. Background Art

[0002] At present, with the advancement of technology and the maturity of unmanned driving technology, unmanned driving equipment has been successfully applied in the delivery field and is often used in scenarios such as takeout and express delivery. During the execution of the drone mission, it is usually necessary to control the drone to land accurately to ensure the safety of the staff and the drone.

[0003] In the prior art, since the drone landing is usually achieved by visual guidance, it is necessary to set up a mark for the drone take-off and landing, such as a drone take-off and landing beacon. In addition, in order to facilitate management, the marks used for drone take-off and landing are currently bound to the route, that is, each route corresponds to a take-off beacon and a landing beacon.

[0004] However, in the prior art, when laying out drone airports, on the one hand, the positions of each drone take-off and landing beacon are determined by artificial planning, which has the characteristics of long planning time and high cost, and it is difficult to predict whether the planning is reasonable. On the other hand, only the layout of the drone take-off and landing beacons is considered, which leads to deviations in actual use.

[0005] Based on this, this instruction manual provides a drone airport. Summary of the invention

[0006] This specification provides a drone airport to partially solve the above-mentioned problems existing in the prior art.

[0007] This manual adopts the following technical solutions:

[0008] The drone airport provided in this manual is used for the takeoff and landing of multiple drones, including: available areas and obstacles;

[0009] The available area is determined according to the obstacle, the available area includes a beacon area and a user activity area, and the user activity area is arranged at intervals from the beacon area;

[0010] The beacon area is provided with a plurality of UAV take-off and landing positions, and the take-off and landing of adjacent flight missions of each UAV are undertaken by the same take-off and landing position among the plurality of UAV take-off and landing positions.

[0011] Optionally, there are one or more obstacles, and the available area is determined according to the following method:

[0012] Determining a safety distance corresponding to each obstacle according to the type of each obstacle;

[0013] The available area is determined in the airport according to areas occupied by the one or more obstacles.

[0014] Optionally, the beacon area includes: a drone take-off and landing beacon area and an airport positioning beacon area, wherein the sizes of various beacon areas are consistent and the beacon areas meet preset spacing.

[0015] Optionally, a drone take-off and landing beacon is provided at the drone take-off and landing position, and the drone take-off and landing beacon is used for the drone to identify the landing position.

[0016] Optionally, a liftable platform is provided at the take-off and landing position of the UAV, and the UAV take-off and landing beacon is provided on the upper surface of the liftable platform;

[0017] Among them, when the drone takes off or lands at the drone take-off and landing position, the elevating platform is lifted to a first height to enable the drone to take off and land; when the drone lands on the elevating platform, the elevating platform is lowered to a second height to enable the user to complete the operation of the drone in the user activity area.

[0018] Optionally, the operation of the drone includes: loading and unloading delivery items for the drone, and replacing batteries for the drone.

[0019] Optionally, the airport further includes: a charging cabinet area, and the position of the charging cabinet area is determined according to the distance between the beacon area and the charging cabinet area.

[0020] Optionally, the obstacle includes a smoke exhaust device, and the position of the charging cabinet is also determined based on the distance between an influence area of ​​the smoke exhaust device and the charging cabinet, and the influence area is related to the smoke exhaust range of the smoke exhaust device.

[0021] Optionally, the layout of the beacon area and / or the user activity area is determined by operational indicators for executing the flight mission, and the operational indicators include one or more of the man-to-single ratio, the punctuality rate of the delivery task, the maximum task volume per unit time, and the total task volume.

[0022] Optionally, the operation index is determined based on one or more of the number of users transporting delivered objects, the number of users replacing batteries for the drone, and the number of drones.

[0023] At least one of the above technical solutions adopted in this specification can achieve the following beneficial effects:

[0024] The available area of ​​the drone airport for multiple drone takeoffs and landings is determined based on obstacles. The available area includes user activity areas and beacon areas arranged at intervals, and multiple drone takeoff and landing positions set in the beacon area are used to achieve continuous drone takeoff and landing. The takeoff and landing of consecutive flight missions assigned to drones are undertaken by the same takeoff and landing position, which reduces the time required to move drones due to the fixed beacon function and improves the efficiency of drones in performing flight missions. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0025] The drawings described herein are used to provide a further understanding of this specification and constitute a part of this specification. The illustrative embodiments and descriptions of this specification are used to explain this specification and do not constitute an improper limitation on this specification. In the drawings:

[0026] Figures 1 to 6 A schematic diagram of the layout of the drone airport provided for this manual;

[0027] Figure 7 A schematic diagram of the process of generating a drone airport layout method provided for this specification;

[0028] Figure 8 A schematic diagram of a drone airport layout device provided for this manual;

[0029] Fig. 9 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of an electronic device provided in this manual. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0030] In order to make the purpose, technical solutions and advantages of this specification more clear, the technical solutions of this specification will be clearly and completely described below in combination with the specific embodiments of this specification and the corresponding drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of this specification, not all of them. Based on the embodiments in this specification, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without creative work are within the scope of protection of this specification.

[0031] At present, when setting up a drone airport, the area to be set up can be selected according to needs, and usually an area with less personnel flow is selected. For example, a drone airport is divided out in an open area such as a square, or a drone airport is set up on the top floor of a building. Compared with setting up an airport in an open space, it is difficult to set up beacon areas with high density when setting up an airport on the top floor of a building due to problems such as irregular sites, many obstacles, and the need to maintain a safe distance, which makes it difficult for drone airports to meet business needs (for example, they cannot meet the delivery volume requirements per unit time).

[0032] It can be seen that compared with setting up beacon areas in open areas, where generally only the beacon spacing needs to be considered, setting up drone airports in complex venues such as the top floors of buildings requires more influencing factors to be considered, which further reduces the efficiency of manual layout of airports. It is also difficult to determine whether the manual layout is reasonable and whether there is room for optimization.

[0033] At present, the beacons for drone takeoff and landing are set separately in the drone airport, which means that the drone take-off position and the drone landing position are different, resulting in low space utilization of the drone airport and inability to achieve high-density take-off and landing of drones.

[0034] In addition, the current take-off and landing positions of drones are bound to the flight routes, so that a route requires a take-off beacon to be set at one take-off and landing position of the drone airport, and a landing beacon to be set at another take-off and landing position. The above two take-off and landing positions cannot be reused for other routes, and other take-off and landing positions need to be set up separately. Obviously, the space utilization rate of the drone airport is low, and the above disadvantages are more obvious in complex sites with small available areas or irregular shapes.

[0035] The technical solutions provided by the embodiments of this specification are described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

[0036] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of a drone airport provided for this specification. The airport is used for takeoff and landing of multiple drones. The drone airport includes: an available area 100 and obstacles 101.

[0037] In one or more embodiments of the present specification, the available area 100 is determined according to the obstacle 101. Figure 2 As shown, the area surrounded by the thick line is the ground on the top floor of the building, that is, the area where the drone airport is set, and the area filled with diagonal lines is the obstacle 101 on the top floor. In other words, Figure 2 The area enclosed by the medium thick line, except for the area filled with diagonal lines, is the available area 100.

[0038] In addition, the available area 100 includes: a beacon area 102 and a user activity area 103, and the user activity area 103 is arranged at intervals from the beacon area 102. In a feasible implementation manner, the beacon area 102 and the user activity area 103 are interspersed with each other. Figure 1As shown in . Among them, the beacon area 102 is the take-off and landing position of the drone, which is used to set the drone take-off and landing beacon to locate the drone for landing. In addition, the beacon area 102 is provided with multiple drone take-off and landing positions. In another feasible implementation, only the area covered by the drone take-off and landing beacon (or, the area covered by the drone take-off and landing beacon and the edge area extended from the periphery of the area) is defined as the beacon area 102, and the surrounding area of ​​the drone take-off and landing beacon, such as the interval area between adjacent drone take-off and landing beacons, is defined as the user activity area 103. It can be understood that in this embodiment, each drone take-off and landing beacon is surrounded by a user activity area, that is, the user activity area 103 is arranged at intervals from the beacon area 102. And in the drone airport provided in this specification, the take-off and landing of each drone adjacent flight mission is undertaken by the same take-off and landing position among the multiple drone take-off and landing positions.

[0039] In addition, in this specification, the drone airport can be used for drones to perform delivery tasks, and the flight mission performed by the drone is specifically a delivery task. The user activity area is used for user work to assist the drone in completing the delivery task. For example, it can carry delivery items for the drone or replace the battery for the drone.

[0040] Furthermore, in the present specification, the drone airport is located in a complex site, so there are one or more obstacles, and the available area is determined in the following manner: according to the type of each obstacle, the safety distance corresponding to each obstacle is determined, and the available area is determined according to the area occupied by the one or more obstacles in the airport.

[0041] Specifically, since different obstacles have different effects on drone flight and user activities, the server can specifically determine the types of obstacles in the area of ​​the airport to be set up, and determine the corresponding safety distances of various preset obstacles.

[0042] For example, the columns of a building are usually of a certain height, so they may affect the take-off and landing of a drone. The drone needs to rise to a safe height after take-off before it can fly horizontally. Therefore, the safe distance of the column can be determined based on the translation distance of the drone during the process of rising to a safe height after take-off due to environmental influences (such as wind). Alternatively, various outdoor equipment such as smoke machines, ventilation ducts, air conditioning cooling towers, etc. are usually installed on the top floor of a building. Some of these devices will emit smoke or hot and cold air to the outside world, which will also have a safety impact on the flight of the drone, but the degree of impact varies, so the safety distance can also be set accordingly.

[0043] In this specification, there is no limitation on how to set the safety distance of the different types of obstacles. The safety distance can be set according to manual experience or according to the specific environment as described above.

[0044] like Figure 3 As shown, Figure 3 For Figure 2 Based on the safety distance, the available area is determined. Among them, it can be seen that the building structure marked as a has a corresponding safety distance of m, the flue marked as b has a corresponding safety distance of n, and the smoke outlet marked as c has a corresponding safety distance of q. The area without the diagonal line in the figure is the available area.

[0045] In one or more embodiments of the present specification, the beacon area includes: a drone take-off and landing beacon area and an airport positioning beacon area, wherein the sizes of various beacon areas are consistent and the beacon areas meet preset spacing.

[0046] Specifically, the drone take-off and landing beacon area is used for drone take-off and landing, that is, the drone lands at the end position of the route with the drone take-off and landing beacon area as the route, or takes off from the drone take-off and landing beacon area and flies along the route. The airport positioning beacon area is used for drones to locate the airport. Generally speaking, drones need to locate the airport position first when they are at high altitudes, and then during the descent process, when they can accurately identify the drone take-off and landing beacon area, they will land according to the drone take-off and landing beacon area. Therefore, the airport positioning beacon area needs to be able to provide high-altitude positioning for drones, so multiple airport positioning beacon areas can be set in the airport layout, as a whole, for drone high-altitude identification. Of course, a single airport positioning beacon area can also be used for drones to locate airport positions. In an airport positioning beacon area, one or more airport positioning beacons can be set, and the airport positioning beacon can be in the form of a QR code, which is not limited in this manual.

[0047] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the layout of a drone airport provided in this manual. The user activity area is omitted in the figure. Figure 1 On this basis, the beacon area is divided into: a dot-filled area and a cross-drawn area. The dot-filled area is the airport positioning beacon area 1021, and the cross-filled area is the drone take-off and landing beacon area 1022, that is, the drone take-off and landing position, where a drone take-off and landing beacon is set.

[0048] Of course, in this specification, a drone take-off and landing beacon is provided at the drone take-off and landing position, and the drone take-off and landing beacon is used for the drone to identify the landing position.

[0049] Furthermore, in one or more embodiments of the present specification, a liftable platform may be deployed at the drone take-off and landing position of the beacon area for drone take-off and landing, and a drone take-off and landing beacon may be provided on the upper surface of the liftable platform.

[0050] Among them, when the drone takes off or lands in the beacon area, the liftable platform is lifted to a first height to enable the drone to take off and land. When the drone lands on the liftable platform, the liftable platform is lowered to a second height to enable the user to complete the operation of the drone in the user activity area.

[0051] In this specification, the operation of a drone at least includes: loading and unloading delivery items for the drone, and replacing batteries for the drone.

[0052] The lifting mechanism of the liftable platform may be a scissor-type lifting platform, or a lifting platform with other structures, and this specification does not limit this.

[0053] When a liftable platform is set at the take-off and landing position of the drone in the beacon area, a fence can be set to ensure the safety of the user's operation to prevent the user from mistakenly entering the working area of ​​the liftable platform. The fence also takes up a certain amount of space. Therefore, when the fence is set, the distance between the take-off and landing positions of the drone in the drone airport also needs to take the fence into consideration. That is, the area corresponding to the fence needs to be planned.

[0054] Figure 5 Schematic diagram of the beacon area consisting of the surrounding fence and drone landing and take-off beacons in the airport layout provided for this specification. Figure 4 On this basis, the area filled with vertical lines around the take-off and landing position of the drone is the area occupied by the surrounding fence 104.

[0055] Furthermore, in one or more embodiments of the present specification, the airport further comprises: a charging cabinet area, the location of which is determined according to the distance between the beacon area and the charging cabinet area. The charging cabinet area is used to arrange outdoor charging cabinets for charging the batteries of the drone and providing batteries for the drone.

[0056] Figure 6 The schematic diagram of the airport layout with additional charging cabinet area provided for this manual is in Figure 1 On the basis, the area filled with horizontal lines is the charging cabinet area 105.

[0057] Furthermore, in one or more embodiments of the present specification, the obstacles in the airport also include: smoke exhaust equipment, and the position of the charging cabinet is also determined based on the distance between the influence area of ​​the smoke exhaust equipment and the charging cabinet, and the influence area is related to the smoke exhaust range of the smoke exhaust equipment.

[0058] Since smoke exhaust equipment has an impact on electronic components, it is generally necessary to avoid smoke exhaust areas when arranging electrical appliances. Similarly, the charging cabinet area is used to arrange charging cabinets, and the impact of smoke exhaust on the charging cabinets also needs to be considered. Therefore, it is necessary to determine the smoke exhaust equipment in advance to determine the corresponding impact area of ​​the smoke exhaust equipment.

[0059] The affected area corresponding to the smoke exhaust device can be determined according to the preset smoke exhaust range. Similar to the safety distance in the above process, the server can also determine that the smoke exhaust range is an unsafe area.

[0060] Furthermore, in one or more embodiments of the present specification, the layout of the beacon area and / or the user activity area is determined by the operational indicators for executing the flight mission, and the operational indicators include at least one or more of the man-to-single ratio, the punctuality rate of the delivery mission, the maximum task volume per unit time, and the total task volume.

[0061] In addition, in this specification, the operating indicator is determined based on one or more of the number of users transporting delivered items, the number of users replacing batteries for the drone, and the number of drones.

[0062] Specifically, this specification provides a method for determining the layout of drone airports, which mainly solves the problem of how to carry out high-density beacon layout in complex sites. The above-mentioned operating indicators can be determined by this method, and the target airport layout can be determined from the layouts of various airports.

[0063] The technical solutions provided by the embodiments of this specification are described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

[0064] Figure 7 The following is a flow chart of a method for distributing drone airports in this specification, which specifically includes the following steps:

[0065] S200: Determine the area where the airport is to be set up, and locate the positions of each obstacle in the area.

[0066] In this specification, the drone airport layout method can be executed by a server, or it can also be executed by a terminal device. This specification does not limit this. The following description will take the server executing the method as an example.

[0067] In one or more embodiments of this specification, the server may obtain site information of the area where the airport is to be set up. The site information includes the terrain size of the area where the airport is to be set up, obstacles in the area where the airport is to be set up, and other information. Of course, this specification does not limit what other site information there is, and one of the functions of obtaining this site information is to perform three-dimensional modeling of the airport during simulation in subsequent steps. Therefore, as long as the information is required for three-dimensional modeling of the airport, it can be used as site information. For example, the height of the top floor of the building where the airport is to be set up will also affect the route of the drone during delivery, so it can also be used as site information.

[0068] In addition, it should be noted that in this specification, the server can determine the location of obstacles in the area of ​​the airport to be set up according to the site information of the area of ​​the airport to be set up. Since the drone airport layout method provided in this specification is to solve how to layout drone airports in complex sites, there are obstacles that affect the take-off and landing of drones in the area of ​​the airport to be set up. The server needs to determine the location of each obstacle.

[0069] Furthermore, in the present specification, the server may determine the area occupied by each obstacle according to the location of the obstacle and the size of the obstacle as the area occupied by the obstacle, so as to subsequently determine the airport layout in the area where the airport is to be set up.

[0070] In this specification, the site shape of the area where the airport is to be set up and the location of obstacles are different information. Figure 2 As shown, the area surrounded by thick lines is the ground of the top floor of the building, and the area filled with oblique lines is the obstacle on the top floor.

[0071] Furthermore, in the present specification, since the drone take-off and landing process is carried out in three-dimensional space, the height of the obstacle also affects the airport layout and the drone's execution of business. Therefore, the server can also determine the three-dimensional size and position of each obstacle, and determine the area occupied by the obstacle based on the three-dimensional size and the position, which is an area in the three-dimensional space.

[0072] In addition, since the shape of the obstacle may be irregular, in this specification, the area occupied by the obstacle is determined, and specifically, the minimum circumscribed three-dimensional bounding box of the obstacle may be determined.

[0073] The user referred to in this manual is the staff who assists the drone in performing delivery tasks, such as staff who carry the delivery items for the drone, staff who repair the drone, staff who replace the battery for the drone, etc. This manual does not restrict the work performed by the user. Of course, since the above-mentioned work is professional, it is also possible to restrict the user to perform fixed work. When different users perform different tasks, the difference in airport layout will also affect the user's work efficiency, which will affect the efficiency of drone delivery.

[0074] S202: Determine the layout of each airport to be selected according to the area of ​​the airport to be set up and the obstacles, wherein the airport layout at least includes: a beacon area and a user activity area.

[0075] In one or more embodiments of this specification, after determining the area of ​​the airport to be set up, the server can determine the layout of each airport to be selected in the area of ​​the airport to be set up. In addition, compared with the current situation where the beacons for take-off and landing of drones are set separately, and one route requires corresponding take-off beacons and landing beacons, other routes cannot be reused, resulting in low space utilization, in the method provided in this specification, the airport layout at least includes: a beacon area and a user activity area, and the take-off and landing positions of the beacon area are no longer bound to the route, and the take-off and landing positions of the beacon area are no longer distinguished from the take-off and landing functions.

[0076] Specifically, the server may first determine the safety distance corresponding to each obstacle according to the type of each obstacle in the area of ​​the airport to be set up. Since different obstacles have different effects on drone flight and user activities, the server may specifically determine the type of each obstacle in the area of ​​the airport to be set up, and determine the corresponding safety distances of each type of preset obstacle. Among them, the types of obstacles include at least building structures and outdoor equipment. Building structures are generally obstacles with fixed shapes, while outdoor equipment has been updated, etc., and generally has some functions, and there is a situation where it actively affects the external environment.

[0077] For example, the columns of a building are usually of a certain height, so they may affect the take-off and landing of a drone. The drone needs to rise to a safe height after take-off before it can fly horizontally. Therefore, the safe distance of the column can be determined based on the translation distance of the drone during the process of rising to a safe height after take-off due to environmental influences (such as wind). Alternatively, various outdoor equipment such as smoke machines, ventilation ducts, air conditioning cooling towers, etc. are usually installed on the top floor of a building. Some of these devices will emit smoke or hot and cold air to the outside world, which will also have a safety impact on the flight of the drone, but the degree of impact varies, so the safety distance can also be set accordingly.

[0078] In this specification, there is no limitation on how to set the safety distance of the different types of obstacles. The safety distance can be set according to manual experience or according to the specific environment as described above.

[0079] Secondly, after determining the type of each obstacle, the server can determine the available area in the area of ​​the airport to be set up according to the area occupied by each obstacle in the area of ​​the airport to be set up and the safety distance corresponding to each obstacle. Figure 3 shown.

[0080] In addition, in this specification, the beacon area is generally set on the ground of the airport, so the safety of the take-off and landing paths of the drone needs to be considered. Therefore, the server can also determine the three-dimensional bounding box of the obstacle, and determine the available area in the area of ​​the airport to be set up according to the projection area of ​​the three-dimensional bounding box on the ground and the safety distance corresponding to each obstacle.

[0081] Finally, the server can determine the beacon area and the user activity area in the available area. In addition, in this specification, the number of beacon areas in different airport layouts is not exactly the same. Among them, one beacon area corresponds to a drone take-off and landing beacon for drone take-off and landing, and the drone take-off and landing beacon can be specifically in the form of a QR code.

[0082] In addition, in the present specification, the beacon area also includes: a drone take-off and landing beacon area and an airport positioning beacon area. The sizes of various beacon areas are consistent, and the beacon areas meet the preset spacing. Specifically, the drone take-off and landing beacon area is used for drone take-off and landing, that is, the drone lands with the drone take-off and landing beacon area as the end point of the route, or takes off from the drone take-off and landing beacon area and starts to fly along the route. The airport positioning beacon area is used for drones to locate airports. Generally speaking, drones need to locate the airport position when they are at high altitudes. Then, during the descent, when the drone take-off and landing beacon area can be accurately identified, it will turn to land according to the drone take-off and landing beacon area. Therefore, the airport positioning beacon area needs to be able to provide high-altitude positioning functions for drones, so multiple airport positioning beacon areas can be set in the airport layout, as a whole, for drone high-altitude identification. Of course, a single airport positioning beacon area can also be used for drones to locate airport positions. Reference Figure 4 .

[0083] S204: For each airport layout, in a three-dimensional simulation environment, based on multiple preset airport logistics modes, simulate the process of executing the distribution task under the airport layout, and determine the operating indicators for executing the distribution task under each airport logistics mode corresponding to the airport layout.

[0084] In one or more embodiments of the present specification, after determining the airport layouts to be selected, the server can simulate the process of the drone performing the delivery task under the airport layout in a three-dimensional simulation environment for each airport layout, so as to determine the operating indicators of the airport layout for performing the delivery task. Of course, since the drone delivery process generally still requires user assistance, such as carrying the delivery items or replacing batteries, the number of different airport logistics personnel will also cause differences in operating indicators. Therefore, in the present specification, the server can also determine multiple preset airport logistics modes, and determine different airport layouts in a three-dimensional simulation environment, and the process of performing the delivery task under different airport logistics modes. Determine the operating indicators for performing the delivery task under each airport logistics mode corresponding to the different airport layouts, so as to determine the required airport layout based on the operating indicators.

[0085] Specifically, first, the server can construct a three-dimensional simulation environment corresponding to each airport layout according to the area of ​​the airport to be set up, the obstacles and the airport layout. Since the drone mission is performed in a three-dimensional environment, it needs to take off and land, and the user needs to assist in the delivery business. Therefore, the server can first construct a three-dimensional simulation environment of the airport under the airport layout based on the data determined in the previous steps. In this way, in the three-dimensional simulation environment, the process of actually performing the delivery task according to the airport layout can be simulated, and the operation index can be determined. The operation index represents the efficiency and cost of performing the delivery task under the airport layout.

[0086] Finally, the server can simulate the process of each drone performing delivery tasks under the airport layout in a three-dimensional simulation environment corresponding to the airport layout for each preset airport logistics mode, based on the number of users transporting delivery items, the number of users replacing batteries, and the number of drones in the airport logistics mode.

[0087] Among them, when simulating the process of each drone performing a delivery task under the airport layout, the server generates the delivery items that need to be delivered by drones on time and in quantity according to the preset order scheduling rules. At the same time, according to the pick-up and delivery location of the delivery items, the user delivery path corresponding to each order is planned, and according to the location of the charging cabinet, the user's transportation path for replacing batteries for drones in different beacon areas is determined. When it is necessary to transport the delivery items, the user's transportation and delivery time is simulated according to the preset user walking speed, and the drone waiting time is simulated according to the time it takes for the user to pick up and put the delivery items from the drone.

[0088] In addition, when determining the operation index, the server can simulate the process of each drone performing the delivery task under the airport layout according to the preset duration for each preset airport logistics mode to determine the operation index. The operation index also includes: the on-time rate of the delivery task, the maximum task volume per unit time, and the total task volume.

[0089] When determining the punctuality rate of a delivery task, the server can first determine whether the delivery task has timed out for each delivery task based on the estimated arrival time and overtime duration of the drone delivery simulated in the simulation environment, and determine the punctuality rate of the delivery task based on the ratio of overtime orders to total orders within the preset time period.

[0090] When determining the maximum task volume per unit time, the server can count the number of delivery tasks completed by the drone within the preset time period per unit time, and determine the maximum value as the maximum task volume per unit time. The unit time is set as needed, such as 1 hour, half an hour, etc.

[0091] In addition, since the layout of each airport and the logistics model of each airport are all assigned delivery tasks according to the same order scheduling rules, there may be differences in delivery efficiency between different airport layouts and different airport logistics models, resulting in the situation where orders are not fully delivered. Therefore, the server can also determine the total amount of delivery tasks completed by each drone within the preset time.

[0092]

[0093] Table 1

[0094] Table 1 is a schematic diagram of an operation indicator, in which different airport logistics modes can be seen, and the two rows below indicate beacon areas with different numbers of enabled. All-day meal delivery indicates the number of delivery tasks completed within the preset time (24 hours), the on-time rate is the all-day on-time rate, the maximum number of orders per hour is the maximum task volume per unit time, and the total deliverable orders is the total task volume that can be allocated in the simulation environment. It can be seen that each mode has not completed the total task volume. In addition, the three columns on the far right indicate the number of unmanned vehicles and the number of users corresponding to different modes.

[0095] S206: Determine a target airport layout from the airport layouts according to the determined operation index, and set a beacon area and a user activity area according to the target airport layout.

[0096] In one or more embodiments of the present specification, after determining the operating indicators of each airport layout under different airport logistics modes, the server can determine the airport layout that meets the demand as the target airport layout based on the demand for the airport, and can set a beacon area and a user activity area in the area of ​​the airport to be set up based on the target airport layout.

[0097] Specifically, different airports may have different requirements. For example, if the high-order area has a high requirement for the maximum number of orders per unit time, the airport layout that meets the requirements can be determined based on the operation index as the target airport layout. Alternatively, if the requirement for each person is high, the airport layout with the highest person-to-order ratio can be determined as the target airport layout based on the number of users and the total delivery task completion volume.

[0098] In addition, in this specification, since there is a corresponding airport logistics model when simulating in the simulation environment, the server can also determine the target logistics model according to the airport logistics model adopted by the airport layout whose operation indicators meet the requirements. And configure users, drones, etc. according to the target logistics model.

[0099] based on Figure 7 The drone airport layout method shown in the figure determines the positions of various obstacles in the area where the airport is to be set up, and determines the layouts of various airports to be selected, and the airport layouts at least include: beacon areas and user activity areas. For each airport layout, in a three-dimensional simulation environment, according to multiple preset airport logistics modes, the process of performing distribution tasks under the airport layout is simulated, and the operation indicators corresponding to the airport layout are determined. According to the determined operation indicators, the target airport layout is determined from the various airport layouts.

[0100] By defining the functions of different areas of the airport layout, simulating the execution of distribution tasks in a simulation environment, and determining the operating indicators that characterize the airport operation, the target airport layout is determined. This avoids the problem of inaccurate manual experience, provides quantitative indicators for whether the airport layout is reasonable, and based on different operating indicators, the required target airport layout can be determined according to the needs of different airports, thereby improving the accuracy of determining the airport layout.

[0101] In addition, in one or more embodiments provided in this specification, the airport layout may also include a charging cabinet area, which is used to arrange outdoor charging cabinets for charging batteries of drones and providing batteries for drones.

[0102] First, after determining the layout of the target airport, the server can determine the smoke exhaust equipment in the outdoor equipment. Since the smoke exhaust equipment has an impact on electronic components, it is generally necessary to avoid the smoke exhaust area when arranging electrical appliances. Similarly, the charging cabinet area is used to arrange charging cabinets, and the impact of smoke exhaust on the charging cabinets also needs to be considered. Therefore, it is necessary to determine the smoke exhaust equipment in advance to determine the corresponding impact area of ​​the smoke exhaust equipment.

[0103] Secondly, the server can determine the affected area corresponding to the smoke exhaust device according to the preset smoke exhaust range. Similar to the safety distance in the above process, the server can also determine that the smoke exhaust range is an unsafe area.

[0104] Then, in the area of ​​the airport to be set up, the candidate charging layout of the charging cabinet area is determined. Specifically, the server can determine the charging cabinet area in the user activity area outside the beacon area. Among them, in addition to the different area locations, different candidate charging layouts may also have different numbers of areas. That is, several charging cabinets are placed outdoors, which can be set according to different candidate charging layouts, and the target charging layout is determined through a subsequent simulation process.

[0105] Afterwards, the server may adopt a process similar to step S204, for each candidate charging layout, in a three-dimensional simulation environment, based on the distance between the beacon area and the charging cabinet area in the target airport layout, and the distance between the charging cabinet area and the impact area, simulate the process of performing the delivery task under the airport layout, and redetermine the operation index. The redetermined operation index also includes the average battery replacement distance of users performing the delivery task.

[0106] Finally, the server can determine the target charging layout from various candidate charging layouts according to the re-determined operating indicators, and set up charging cabinets in the area of ​​the airport to be set up according to the target charging layout.

[0107] In addition, in this specification, the server can also determine the target charging layout based on the cable length required for the charging cabinet area. Excessive cable length may increase safety risks. The server can determine the score of each candidate charging layout based on the average battery replacement distance of users and the cable length. For example, the score is determined by weighted summation, and the weight can be set in advance. Finally, the candidate charging layout with the highest score is selected as the target charging layout. Among them, the shorter the cable length, the higher the score, and the shorter the average battery replacement distance of users, the higher the score. Reference Figure 6 , which is a schematic diagram of the airport layout with additional charging cabinet areas provided in this manual.

[0108] Further, in one or more embodiments of the present specification, the beacon area may be deployed with a liftable platform for drone take-off and landing. Specifically, when the beacon area is set according to the target airport layout, a liftable platform is set in the beacon area of ​​the target airport layout according to the target airport layout, and a drone take-off and landing beacon is set on the upper surface of the liftable platform.

[0109] Among them, when the drone takes off or lands in the beacon area, the liftable platform is lifted to a specified height to enable the drone to take off and land. When the drone lands on the liftable platform, the liftable platform is lowered to the user's operating height to allow the user to pick up and place delivered items or replace batteries.

[0110] The lifting mechanism of the liftable platform may be a scissor-type lifting platform, or a lifting platform with other structures, and this specification does not limit this.

[0111] When a liftable platform is set in the beacon area, a surrounding fence can be set to ensure the safety of users' operations to prevent users from accidentally entering the work area of ​​the liftable platform and causing injuries. When planning the layout of the airport to be selected, the beacon area not only needs to include the area occupied by the drone take-off and landing beacons, but also needs to plan the area corresponding to the surrounding fence.

[0112] Figure 5 Schematic diagram of the beacon area consisting of the surrounding fence and drone take-off and landing beacons in the airport layout provided for this specification.

[0113] The above is a method for distributing drone airports provided by one or more embodiments of this specification. Based on the same idea, this specification also provides a corresponding device for distributing drone airports, such as Figure 8 shown.

[0114] Figure 8 A schematic diagram of a drone airport layout device provided in this manual, the device includes:

[0115] A positioning module 300 determines the area where the airport is to be set up and locates the positions of obstacles in the area;

[0116] The layout generation module 302 determines the layout of each airport to be selected according to the area of ​​the airport to be set up and the obstacles, including at least: a beacon area and a user activity area;

[0117] The simulation detection module 304 simulates, for each airport layout, a process of executing a distribution task under the airport layout according to a plurality of preset airport logistics modes in a three-dimensional simulation environment, and determines an operation index for executing a distribution task under each airport logistics mode corresponding to the airport layout, wherein the operation index at least includes a man-to-order ratio;

[0118] The layout selection module 306 determines a target airport layout from various airport layouts according to the determined operation index, so as to set a beacon area and a user activity area according to the target airport layout.

[0119] Optionally, the obstacles include building structures and outdoor equipment, and the positioning module 300 determines the three-dimensional size and the position of each obstacle, and determines the area occupied by the obstacle based on the three-dimensional size and the position.

[0120] Optionally, the layout generation module 302 determines the safety distance corresponding to each obstacle according to the type of each obstacle in the area of ​​the airport to be set up, determines the available area in the area of ​​the airport to be set up according to the area occupied by each obstacle in the area of ​​the airport to be set up and the safety distance corresponding to each obstacle, and determines the beacon area and the user activity area in the available area, wherein the number of beacon areas in different airport layouts is not exactly the same.

[0121] Optionally, the beacon area includes: a drone take-off and landing beacon area and an airport positioning beacon area, wherein the sizes of various beacon areas are consistent and the beacon areas meet preset spacing.

[0122] Optionally, the simulation detection module 304 constructs, for each airport layout, a three-dimensional simulation environment corresponding to the airport layout according to the area of ​​the airport to be set up, the obstacles and the airport layout; for each preset airport logistics mode, based on the number of users transporting delivery items, the number of users replacing batteries and the number of drones in the airport logistics mode, the simulation detection module 304 simulates the process of each drone performing a delivery task under the airport layout in the three-dimensional simulation environment corresponding to the airport layout.

[0123] Optionally, the simulation detection module 304 simulates the process of each drone performing a delivery task under the airport layout for each preset airport logistics mode according to a preset duration, and determines an operating indicator, wherein the operating indicator also includes: one of: the punctuality rate of the delivery task, the maximum task volume per unit time, and the total task volume.

[0124] Optionally, the layout selection module 306, according to the target airport layout, sets a liftable platform in the beacon area of ​​the target airport layout, and a drone take-off and landing beacon is set on the upper surface of the liftable platform, wherein when the drone takes off or lands in the beacon area, the liftable platform is lifted to a specified height to enable the drone to take off and land, and when the drone lands on the liftable platform, the liftable platform is lowered to a user operating height to allow the user to pick up and place deliveries or replace batteries.

[0125] Optionally, the airport layout also includes: a charging cabinet area. The layout selection module 306 is also used to determine the smoke exhaust equipment in the outdoor equipment when determining the target airport layout, and determine the impact area corresponding to the smoke exhaust equipment according to a preset smoke exhaust range. In the area of ​​the airport to be set up, determine the candidate charging layout of the charging cabinet area. For each candidate charging layout, in a three-dimensional simulation environment, based on the distance between the beacon area and the charging cabinet area and the distance between the charging cabinet area and the impact area in the target airport layout, simulate the process of performing the delivery task under the airport layout, and redefine the operating indicators. The redetermined operating indicators also include the average battery replacement distance of users performing the delivery task. According to the redetermined operating indicators, the target charging layout is determined from each candidate charging layout, and according to the target charging layout, a charging cabinet is set in the area of ​​the airport to be set up.

[0126] This specification also provides a computer-readable storage medium, which stores a computer program, which can be used to execute the above Figure 7 Provided drone airport layout method.

[0127] This manual also provides Fig. 9 The schematic diagram of the structure of the electronic equipment shown in FIG. Fig. 9 As shown, at the hardware level, the electronic device includes a processor, an internal bus, a memory, and a non-volatile memory, and may also include other hardware required for the business. The processor reads the corresponding computer program from the non-volatile memory into the memory and then runs it to achieve the above Figure 7 Provided drone airport layout method.

[0128] Of course, in addition to software implementation, this specification does not exclude other implementation methods, such as logic devices or a combination of software and hardware, etc., that is to say, the executor of the following processing flow is not limited to each logic unit, but can also be hardware or logic devices.

[0129] In the 1990s, improvements to a technology could be clearly distinguished as hardware improvements (for example, improvements to the circuit structure of diodes, transistors, switches, etc.) or software improvements (improvements to the method flow). However, with the development of technology, many improvements to the method flow today can be regarded as direct improvements to the hardware circuit structure. Designers almost always obtain the corresponding hardware circuit structure by programming the improved method flow into the hardware circuit. Therefore, it cannot be said that an improvement in a method flow cannot be implemented using a hardware entity module. For example, a programmable logic device (PLD) (such as a field programmable gate array (FPGA)) is such an integrated circuit whose logical function is determined by the user's programming of the device. Designers can "integrate" a digital system on a PLD by programming it themselves, without having to ask a chip manufacturer to design and produce a dedicated integrated circuit chip. Moreover, nowadays, instead of manually making integrated circuit chips, this kind of programming is mostly implemented by "logic compiler" software, which is similar to the software compiler used when developing and writing programs, and the original code before compilation must also be written in a specific programming language, which is called hardware description language (HDL). There is not only one HDL, but many kinds, such as ABEL (Advanced Boolean Expression Language), AHDL (Altera Hardware Description Language), Confluence, CUPL (Cornell University Programming Language), HDCal, JHDL (Java Hardware Description Language), Lava, Lola, MyHDL, PALASM, RHDL (Ruby Hardware Description Language), etc. The most commonly used ones are VHDL (Very-High-Speed ​​Integrated Circuit Hardware Description Language) and Verilog. Those skilled in the art should also know that it is only necessary to program the method flow slightly in the above-mentioned hardware description languages ​​and program it into the integrated circuit, and then it is easy to obtain the hardware circuit that implements the logic method flow.

[0130] The controller can be implemented in any appropriate manner, for example, the controller can take the form of a microprocessor or processor and a computer-readable medium storing a computer-readable program code (such as software or firmware) that can be executed by the (micro)processor, a logic gate, a switch, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a programmable logic controller, and an embedded microcontroller. Examples of controllers include, but are not limited to, the following microcontrollers: ARC 625D, Atmel AT91SAM, Microchip PIC18F26K20, and Silicone Labs C8051F320. The memory controller can also be implemented as part of the control logic of the memory. Those skilled in the art also know that in addition to implementing the controller in a purely computer-readable program code manner, the controller can be implemented in the form of a logic gate, a switch, an application-specific integrated circuit, a programmable logic controller, and an embedded microcontroller by logically programming the method steps. Therefore, this controller can be considered as a hardware component, and the devices included therein for implementing various functions can also be regarded as structures within the hardware component. Or even, the devices for implementing various functions can be regarded as both software modules for implementing the method and structures within the hardware component.

[0131] The systems, devices, modules or units described in the above embodiments may be implemented by computer chips or entities, or by products with certain functions. A typical implementation device is a computer. Specifically, the computer may be, for example, a personal computer, a laptop computer, a cellular phone, a camera phone, a smart phone, a personal digital assistant, a media player, a navigation device, an email device, a game console, a tablet computer, a wearable device, or a combination of any of these devices.

[0132] For the convenience of description, the above device is described in various units according to their functions. Of course, when implementing this specification, the functions of each unit can be implemented in the same or multiple software and / or hardware.

[0133] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that embodiments of the present invention may be provided as methods, systems, or computer program products. Therefore, the present invention may take the form of a complete hardware embodiment, a complete software embodiment, or an embodiment combining software and hardware. Moreover, the present invention may take the form of a computer program product implemented on one or more computer-usable storage media (including but not limited to disk storage, CD-ROM, optical storage, etc.) containing computer-usable program code.

[0134] The present invention is described with reference to flowcharts and / or block diagrams of methods, devices (systems), and computer program products according to embodiments of the present invention. It should be understood that each process and / or block in the flowchart and / or block diagram, as well as the combination of processes and / or blocks in the flowchart and / or block diagram, can be implemented by computer program instructions. These computer program instructions can be provided to a processor of a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, an embedded processor, or other programmable data processing device to produce a machine, so that the instructions executed by the processor of the computer or other programmable data processing device generate instructions for implementing the processes in the flowchart and / or block diagram. Figure 1 A process or multiple processes and / or boxes Figure 1 A device that provides the functions specified in a block or multiple blocks.

[0135] These computer program instructions may also be stored in a computer-readable memory capable of directing a computer or other programmable data processing device to operate in a specific manner, so that the instructions stored in the computer-readable memory produce an article of manufacture comprising an instruction device, which implements the process Figure 1 A process or multiple processes and / or boxes Figure 1 A function specified in one or more boxes.

[0136] These computer program instructions can also be loaded onto a computer or other programmable data processing device so that a series of operating steps are executed on the computer or other programmable device to produce a computer-implemented process, thereby providing instructions for implementing the process. Figure 1 A process or multiple processes and / or boxes Figure 1 A step that specifies a function in one or more boxes.

[0137] In a typical configuration, a computing device includes one or more processors (CPU), input / output interfaces, network interfaces, and memory.

[0138] The memory may include non-permanent storage in a computer-readable medium, random access memory (RAM) and / or non-volatile memory in the form of read-only memory (ROM) or flash RAM. The memory is an example of a computer-readable medium.

[0139] Computer readable media include permanent and non-permanent, removable and non-removable media that can be implemented by any method or technology to store information. Information can be computer readable instructions, data structures, program modules or other data. Examples of computer storage media include, but are not limited to, phase change memory (PRAM), static random access memory (SRAM), dynamic random access memory (DRAM), other types of random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), flash memory or other memory technology, compact disk read-only memory (CD-ROM), digital versatile disk (DVD) or other optical storage, magnetic cassettes, magnetic tape magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices or any other non-transmission media that can be used to store information that can be accessed by a computing device. As defined herein, computer readable media does not include temporary computer readable media (transitory media), such as modulated data signals and carrier waves.

[0140] It should also be noted that the terms "include", "comprises" or any other variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, so that a process, method, commodity or device including a series of elements includes not only those elements, but also other elements not explicitly listed, or also includes elements inherent to such process, method, commodity or device. In the absence of more restrictions, an element defined by the sentence "comprises a ..." does not exclude the existence of other identical elements in the process, method, commodity or device including the element.

[0141] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the embodiments of this specification may be provided as methods, systems or computer program products. Therefore, this specification may take the form of a complete hardware embodiment, a complete software embodiment or an embodiment combining software and hardware. Moreover, this specification may take the form of a computer program product implemented on one or more computer-usable storage media (including but not limited to disk storage, CD-ROM, optical storage, etc.) containing computer-usable program code.

[0142] This specification may be described in the general context of computer-executable instructions executed by a computer, such as program modules. Generally, program modules include routines, programs, objects, components, data structures, etc. that perform specific tasks or implement specific abstract data types. This specification may also be practiced in distributed computing environments where tasks are performed by remote processing devices connected through a communication network. In a distributed computing environment, program modules may be located in local and remote computer storage media, including storage devices.

[0143] Each embodiment in this specification is described in a progressive manner, and the same or similar parts between the embodiments can be referred to each other, and each embodiment focuses on the differences from other embodiments. In particular, for the system embodiment, since it is basically similar to the method embodiment, the description is relatively simple, and the relevant parts can be referred to the partial description of the method embodiment.

[0144] The above are only embodiments of the present invention and are not intended to limit the present invention. For those skilled in the art, the present invention may be modified and varied in various ways. Any modification, equivalent replacement, improvement, etc. made within the spirit and principle of the present invention shall be included in the scope of the claims of the present invention.

Claims

1. A drone airport, characterized in that: The airport is used for takeoff and landing of multiple drones, including: available areas and obstacles; The available area is determined according to the obstacle, the available area includes a beacon area and a user activity area, and the user activity area is arranged at intervals from the beacon area; The beacon area is provided with a plurality of UAV take-off and landing positions, and the take-off and landing of adjacent flight missions of each UAV are undertaken by the same take-off and landing position among the plurality of UAV take-off and landing positions.

2. The airport according to claim 1, characterized in that The obstacle is one or more obstacles, and the available area is determined according to the following method: Determine the safety distance corresponding to each obstacle according to the type of each obstacle; The available area is determined in the airport according to areas occupied by the one or more obstacles.

3. The airport according to claim 1, characterized in that The beacon area includes: a drone take-off and landing beacon area and an airport positioning beacon area, wherein the sizes of various beacon areas are consistent and the beacon areas meet preset spacing.

4. The airport according to claim 1, characterized in that The drone take-off and landing position is provided with a drone take-off and landing beacon, and the drone take-off and landing beacon is used for the drone to identify the landing position.

5. The airport according to claim 4, characterized in that A liftable platform is provided at the take-off and landing position of the UAV, and a UAV take-off and landing beacon is provided on the upper surface of the liftable platform; Among them, when the drone takes off or lands at the drone take-off and landing position, the elevating platform is lifted to a first height to enable the drone to take off and land; when the drone lands on the elevating platform, the elevating platform is lowered to a second height to enable the user to complete the operation of the drone in the user activity area.

6. The airport according to claim 5, characterized in that: The operation of the drone includes: loading and unloading delivery objects for the drone and replacing batteries for the drone.

7. The airport according to claim 1, characterized in that The airport also includes: a charging cabinet area, and the position of the charging cabinet area is determined according to the distance between the beacon area and the charging cabinet area.

8. The airport according to claim 7, characterized in that The obstacle includes a smoke exhaust device, and the position of the charging cabinet is also determined based on the distance between the influence area of ​​the smoke exhaust device and the charging cabinet, and the influence area is related to the smoke exhaust range of the smoke exhaust device.

9. The airport according to claim 1, characterized in that The layout of the beacon area and / or the user activity area is determined by the operational indicators for executing the flight mission, and the operational indicators include one or more of the man-to-single ratio, the punctuality rate of the delivery mission, the maximum task volume per unit time, and the total task volume.

10. The airport according to claim 9, characterized in that The operation index is determined based on one or more of the number of users transporting the delivered objects, the number of users replacing batteries for the drone, and the number of drones.

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