Power inspection unmanned aerial vehicle control method, device and equipment

Abstract

The application provides a control method, device and equipment of a power inspection unmanned aerial vehicle, the method comprising: in response to a preset state condition being triggered, controlling the unmanned aerial vehicle to enter an abnormal mode; the abnormal mode comprising a normal abnormal mode or an emergency abnormal mode; based on the type of the abnormal mode, controlling the unmanned aerial vehicle to hover to a current position on a preset path or a safe position corresponding to the preset path, and determining an emergency control strategy of the unmanned aerial vehicle; according to the emergency control strategy, controlling the unmanned aerial vehicle to return from the current position along the original route, or to return in a straight line from the safe position, or to land from the safe position. In this way, a safe position is set in a physical environment in advance, the unmanned aerial vehicle is controlled to hover at the current position or the safe position according to the type of the abnormal mode, and then the unmanned aerial vehicle is controlled to execute an emergency control strategy corresponding to the type of the abnormal mode, thereby ensuring the safety of using the unmanned aerial vehicle for operation in the field of power inspection.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to the technical field of unmanned aerial vehicles, and in particular to a control method, device and equipment of a power inspection unmanned aerial vehicle. BACKGROUND

[0002] In the fields of rail transit, petrochemical industry, power transmission, power transformation and distribution network, it is necessary to patrol the devices, facilities, buildings, personnel and other objects in the field system to ensure the safety and normal operation of the objects. In the related art, a worker can control an unmanned aerial vehicle to perform the patrol; the unmanned aerial vehicle flies to a patrol site according to a preset route, performs a patrol task at the patrol site, and then returns; the unmanned aerial vehicle mayencounter some abnormal situations in the flying process or the patrol process, for example, unstable signal, weather change, insufficient power and the like; due to the lack of a perfect abnormal situation coping manner, when the unmanned aerial vehicle suddenly encounters an abnormal situation, the unmanned aerial vehicle maylose control, even touch a nearby live device, causing damage to the device or the unmanned aerial vehicle, and resulting in a serious accident. SUMMARY

[0003] Therefore, the present application aims to provide a control method, device and equipment of a power inspection unmanned aerial vehicle, which ensures the safety of using the unmanned aerial vehicle for work in the power inspection field and avoids power accidents caused by improper operation of the unmanned aerial vehicle.

[0004] In a first aspect, the present application provides a control method of a power inspection unmanned aerial vehicle, which is applied to a control device; the control device is in communication connection with the unmanned aerial vehicle; the unmanned aerial vehicle is controlled to fly according to a preset path; in response to a preset state condition being triggered, the unmanned aerial vehicle is controlled to enter an abnormal mode; the abnormal mode includes a normal abnormal mode or an emergency abnormal mode; based on the type of the abnormal mode, the unmanned aerial vehicle is controlled to hover to a specified position and determine an emergency control strategy of the unmanned aerial vehicle according to current state information of the unmanned aerial vehicle; wherein in the normal abnormal mode, the specified position is a current position on the preset path, and in the emergency abnormal mode, the specified position is a safety position corresponding to the preset path; according to the emergency control strategy, the unmanned aerial vehicle is controlled to return from the current position along the original path, or return from the safety position in a straight line, or land from the safety position.

[0005] The relative positional relationship between the safety position and the preset path satisfies a preset position condition, and / or the physical environment of the safety position satisfies a preset environment condition.

[0006] The preset path is provided with an auxiliary position; the auxiliary position is used to control the bending radius of the preset path to be less than a preset radius threshold; and the safety position is associated with the auxiliary position.

[0007] The distance between interconnected safe and auxiliary positions is less than a preset threshold; there are no obstacles and / or interference sources on the straight path between the interconnected safe and auxiliary positions; and there are no obstacles and / or interference sources between the ground and the preset height at the safe position.

[0008] The steps for determining the emergency control strategy of the UAV based on its current status information include: acquiring the current status information of the UAV and generating an emergency control strategy for the UAV; wherein, the current status information includes one or more of the following: the UAV's battery level, the number of satellites communicating with the UAV, the wind speed, rainfall, and temperature of the environment in which the UAV is located, and the signal stability between the UAV and the aforementioned control equipment; the emergency control strategy includes: controlling the UAV to return to its original route, controlling the UAV to return in a straight line, and controlling the UAV to land.

[0009] The steps for determining the emergency control strategy of the UAV based on its current status information include: generating an operation query signal based on the current status information of the UAV; wherein, the emergency control strategy includes: controlling the UAV to return to its original route, controlling the UAV to return in a straight line, and controlling the UAV to land.

[0010] The above-mentioned abnormal mode is a normal abnormal mode; the above-mentioned steps of controlling the drone to return from the current position along the original route, or to return in a straight line from a safe position, or to land in a safe position according to the emergency control strategy include: if the emergency control strategy is to control the drone to return along the original route, then control the drone to return from the above-mentioned current position along the original route; if the emergency control strategy is to control the drone to land, then control the drone to fly to a safe position and control the drone to land in a safe position; if the emergency control strategy is to control the drone to return in a straight line, then control the drone to fly to a safe position and control the drone to return in a straight line from the safe position.

[0011] The aforementioned preset path has a preset auxiliary position; the aforementioned auxiliary position is used to control the curvature of the aforementioned preset path to be less than a preset curvature threshold; the aforementioned safe position is associated with the auxiliary position; the aforementioned step of controlling the drone to fly to the safe position includes: controlling the drone to fly to the target auxiliary position closest to the current position; controlling the drone to fly from the target auxiliary position to the safe position associated with the target auxiliary position.

[0012] The above-mentioned abnormal mode is an emergency abnormal mode. The steps of controlling the drone to return from its current location along the original route, or to return in a straight line from a safe location, or to land in a safe location according to the emergency control strategy include: if the emergency control strategy is to control the drone to land, then control the drone to land in a safe location; if the emergency control strategy is to control the drone to return in a straight line, then control the drone to ascend to a preset safe altitude in a safe location, control the drone to return in a straight line from the safe location, and control the drone to stay at a safe altitude during the flight.

[0013] Following the steps of controlling the drone to hover at a designated location based on the type of abnormal mode, the method further includes: if the drone's battery level is lower than the power consumption required to support hovering, controlling the drone to land from the aforementioned safe location; if the drone's battery level is lower than the power consumption required for return, generating a notification signal and controlling the drone to land from the safe location; wherein the notification signal indicates that the drone's battery level is lower than the power consumption required for return and that the drone has landed from the safe location.

[0014] The aforementioned preset path has a preset auxiliary position; the aforementioned auxiliary position is used to control the curvature of the preset path to be less than a preset curvature threshold; the aforementioned safe position is associated with the aforementioned auxiliary position; the aforementioned step of controlling the drone to hover to a specified position based on the type of abnormal mode includes: if the abnormal mode is an emergency abnormal mode, controlling the drone to fly to the target auxiliary position closest to the current position; controlling the drone to fly from the target auxiliary position to the safe position associated with the target auxiliary position, and controlling the drone to hover to the safe position.

[0015] The aforementioned preset state conditions are determined based on one or more of the following: the state signal of the aforementioned UAV, the environmental sensing signal of the aforementioned UAV, or the instruction signal from the staff.

[0016] The steps for controlling the drone to enter an abnormal mode in response to the triggering of preset state conditions include: detecting whether a preset first event has occurred; wherein the preset first event includes at least one of the following: the stability of the drone's control signal is lower than a preset first threshold, the weather in the drone's environment is a first specified weather, the stability of the communication signal between the drone and the control device is lower than a preset second threshold, and the drone's battery level has reached a preset first low battery level; wherein, when the drone's battery level reaches the first low battery level, the drone's battery level satisfies the following: the power consumption required for the drone to return to its starting position along a specified path; if the preset first event occurs, generating an alarm prompt corresponding to the preset first event; and controlling the drone to enter a normal abnormal mode in response to receiving a first instruction signal from the staff.

[0017] The steps of controlling the drone to enter an abnormal mode in response to the triggering of a preset state condition include: detecting whether a preset second event has occurred; wherein the preset second event includes at least one of the following: the attitude stability of the drone is lower than a preset third threshold; the communication signal stability between the drone and the aforementioned control device is lower than a preset fourth threshold; the weather in the environment where the drone is located is a second specified weather; if the preset second event occurs, generating an alarm prompt corresponding to the preset second event; and controlling the drone to enter an emergency abnormal mode in response to receiving a second instruction signal from the staff.

[0018] The above method also includes: in response to the drone's battery level reaching a preset second low battery level, controlling the drone to enter an emergency abnormal mode; wherein, the second low battery level is: when the drone's battery level reaches the second low battery level, the drone's battery level meets the power consumption required for the drone to return to the starting position along a straight path.

[0019] Before the steps described above for controlling the drone to fly along a preset path, the method further includes:

[0020] Obtain a preset map; the preset map includes: a two-dimensional map corresponding to the work area, or a three-dimensional model map corresponding to the work area; set inspection positions and auxiliary positions on the preset map; at the inspection position, the drone performs inspection tasks according to preset inspection parameters. The inspection parameters are used to control: the movement position of the drone at the inspection position and the shooting mode of the camera on the drone; generate a preset path based on the inspection position and auxiliary position.

[0021] After the steps of generating a preset path based on the inspection location and auxiliary location, the method further includes: setting the return altitude of the UAV to return to the departure location; wherein, at the return altitude, the path of the UAV returning in a straight line from the aforementioned safe location does not have obstacles and / or interference sources.

[0022] After the above steps of generating a preset path based on the inspection location and auxiliary location, the method further includes: setting a safety location based on the association of auxiliary locations; wherein the distance between the mutually associated safety locations and auxiliary locations is less than a preset threshold; there are no obstacles and / or interference sources on the straight path between the associated safety locations and auxiliary locations; and there are no obstacles and / or interference sources between the ground and the preset height at the safety location.

[0023] Secondly, embodiments of the present invention provide a control device for a power line inspection drone. This device is installed in a control device, which is communicatively connected to the drone. The device includes: a first control module for controlling the drone to fly along a preset path; a second control module for controlling the drone to enter an abnormal mode in response to a preset state condition being triggered; the abnormal mode includes a regular abnormal mode or an emergency abnormal mode; a first determination module for controlling the drone to hover to a designated location based on the type of the abnormal mode, and determining an emergency control strategy for the drone; wherein, in the regular abnormal mode, the designated location is the current location on the preset path, and in the emergency abnormal mode, the designated location is a safe location corresponding to the preset path; and a third control module for controlling the drone to return from the current location along the original route, or return in a straight line from the safe location, or land from the safe location, according to the emergency control strategy.

[0024] Thirdly, embodiments of the present invention provide a control device for a power inspection drone. The device includes a processor and a memory. The memory stores machine-executable instructions that can be executed by the processor. The processor executes the machine-executable instructions to implement the aforementioned control method for the power inspection drone.

[0025] Fourthly, embodiments of the present invention provide a machine-readable storage medium storing machine-executable instructions. When the machine-executable instructions are invoked and executed by a processor, the machine-executable instructions cause the processor to implement the aforementioned control method for the power line inspection drone.

[0026] The embodiments of the present invention bring the following beneficial effects:

[0027] The above provides a control method, device, and equipment for a power line inspection drone. The method controls the drone to fly along a preset path; in response to the triggering of preset state conditions, it controls the drone to enter an abnormal mode; the abnormal mode includes a regular abnormal mode or an emergency abnormal mode; based on the type of abnormal mode, it controls the drone to hover at a designated location and determines an emergency control strategy for the drone; wherein, in the regular abnormal mode, the designated location is the current location on the preset path, and in the emergency abnormal mode, the designated location is the safe location corresponding to the preset path; according to the emergency control strategy, it controls the drone to return from the current location along the original path, or to return in a straight line from the safe location, or to land at the safe location. In this approach, a safe location is pre-set in the physical environment, the drone is controlled to hover at the current location or a safe location according to the abnormal mode type, and then the drone is controlled to execute the emergency control strategy corresponding to the abnormal mode type, ensuring the safety of using drones in the field of power line inspection.

[0028] Other features and advantages of the invention will be set forth in the description which follows, and will be apparent in part from the description, or may be learned by practicing the invention. The objects and other advantages of the invention are realized and obtained in accordance with the structures particularly pointed out in the description, claims and drawings.

[0029] To make the above-mentioned objects, features and advantages of the present invention more apparent and understandable, preferred embodiments are described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Attached Figure Description

[0030] To more clearly illustrate the specific embodiments of the present invention or the technical solutions in the prior art, the drawings used in the description of the specific embodiments or the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are some embodiments of the present invention. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained from these drawings without creative effort.

[0031] Figure 1 A flowchart illustrating a control method for a power line inspection drone provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0032] Figure 2 A schematic diagram illustrating the flight paths of a comparative drone, provided as an embodiment of the present invention;

[0033] Figure 3 A schematic diagram of a drone control process under normal abnormal mode provided by an embodiment of the present invention;

[0034] Figure 4 A schematic diagram of a drone control process under an emergency abnormal mode provided by an embodiment of the present invention;

[0035] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram illustrating how to obtain the auxiliary position of a target according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0036] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the control device for a power line inspection drone provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0037] Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram of a control device for a power line inspection drone provided in an embodiment of the present invention. Detailed Implementation

[0038] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of the embodiments of the present invention clearer, the technical solutions of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present invention, not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0039] In fields such as rail transit, petrochemicals, power transmission, substations and distribution networks, the protection and safety inspection of equipment in the work area mainly rely on regular manual inspections. Affected by factors such as terrain, controlled areas, weather conditions and time, the inspection work lacks relevant automated detection methods, resulting in a large consumption of manpower. With the development of drone technology, drone-generated data images are clearer, the flight time is longer, and the operation is simpler. Domestically and internationally, drone technology is gradually being used for inspection work.

[0040] The existing technologies for drone flight response in inspection operations have the following shortcomings:

[0041] 1) Return-to-home: During inspection operations, the drone ascends directly to its return-to-home altitude and then performs a point-to-point return. Because drones cannot detect top-mounted equipment during obstacle avoidance, they may touch on-site electrical equipment during the linear ascent to return-to-home process, potentially damaging the equipment or the drone.

[0042] 2) Abnormal response: Currently, drones lack a comprehensive way to deal with abnormal situations. In the event of a sudden abnormal situation, improper handling may cause the drone to go out of control or touch on-site electrical equipment, which may also cause serious accidents.

[0043] Based on this, embodiments of the present invention provide a control method, apparatus, and device for a power line inspection drone. The method is applied to a control device; the control device is communicatively connected to the drone. Here, the control device is the control center of the drone and can be a remote controller, mobile phone, computer, or other device. All control commands for the drone are issued by this control device. For example, the control device can send control commands to the drone via wireless communication to control the drone to perform corresponding operations according to the control commands. It should be noted that this technology can be applied to fields such as rail transit, petrochemicals, power transmission, substations, and distribution networks, mainly involving safe operation processes in these fields.

[0044] To facilitate understanding of this embodiment, the specific process of this embodiment is described below. Please refer to [link / reference]. Figure 1 An embodiment of the control method for a power line inspection drone according to the present invention includes:

[0045] Step S101: Control the drone to fly along the preset path;

[0046] The aforementioned preset path is the flight path of the drone during normal inspection tasks. This preset path is generated from multiple locations, which can be obtained based on the work area map combined with inspection and flight requirements. This preset path can meet both normal inspection needs and drone flight safety requirements.

[0047] In this step, the control device can send control commands to the drone via wireless communication, controlling the drone to fly along a preset path to perform normal inspection work.

[0048] Step S102: In response to the triggering of a preset state condition, control the drone to enter an abnormal mode; the abnormal mode includes a regular abnormal mode or an emergency abnormal mode.

[0049] The aforementioned abnormal modes include regular abnormal modes and emergency abnormal modes. Preset state conditions are pre-set conditions used to determine the type of abnormal mode for the drone. Only when the corresponding preset conditions are met can the type of abnormal mode be determined. In practice, preset state conditions can be determined through one or more of the following: the drone's status signals, the drone's environmental sensor signals, or instruction signals from personnel.

[0050] Here, the drone's status signals include its control signals, communication signals between the drone and its control equipment, and its battery level. The control signals can be RTK (Real-time kinematic) signals, GPS (Global Positioning System) signals, etc. The drone's environmental sensing signals refer to the weather conditions of its environment. Additionally, preset status conditions can also be indications from personnel, such as abnormal indication signals issued by control equipment after personnel have assessed the flight situation based on inspection needs. Generally, the weaker the signal stability, the lower the battery level, the worse the weather, and the higher the severity level of the abnormal indication signal, the more urgent the drone's abnormal mode type.

[0051] When the preset state conditions are triggered, the control device determines the abnormal mode type of the drone and controls the drone to enter the corresponding abnormal mode.

[0052] In this step, once the preset state conditions are triggered, the corresponding abnormal mode type of the drone can be determined, and the control device will start to control the drone to enter the corresponding abnormal mode in order to execute subsequent emergency control strategies.

[0053] Step S103: Based on the type of abnormal mode, control the drone to hover to the designated location and determine the emergency control strategy for the drone; wherein, in the normal abnormal mode, the designated location is the current location on the preset path, and in the emergency abnormal mode, the designated location is the safe location corresponding to the preset path;

[0054] The aforementioned emergency control strategy comprises a series of operations that the drone needs to perform in response to abnormal situations. These include both automatic drone control by the control equipment and actions taken after receiving feedback from personnel. The aforementioned safe location is an emergency position specifically designed to handle emergencies during drone flight. When setting up a safe location, it is necessary to examine its relative position to the preset path and / or the physical environment of the safe location to ensure absolute safety within the work area.

[0055] In this step, when the drone enters an abnormal mode, the control equipment automatically controls the drone to hover at its current position or a safe position on a preset path, depending on the type of abnormal mode. Subsequently, the emergency control strategy for the drone is further determined. Here, the emergency control strategy for the drone is determined through both automatic generation by the control equipment and confirmation after instruction from personnel.

[0056] In this method, depending on the type of abnormal mode, the control device controls the drone to stop the patrol mission and hover at a designated location, avoiding the drone from performing missions with risks. In addition, the design of a safe position within the designated location can maximize the safety of the drone in emergency situations.

[0057] Step S104: According to the emergency control strategy, control the drone to return from its current location along the original route, or return in a straight line from a safe location, or land from a safe location.

[0058] In other words, after determining the emergency control strategy, the control equipment controls the drone to perform operations such as returning from the current location along the original route, returning in a straight line from a safe location, or landing from a safe location, according to the control strategy.

[0059] In this step, the drone is controlled to perform corresponding operations according to the emergency control strategy. This approach ensures that the drone can be handled safely in the event of an anomaly.

[0060] The aforementioned control method for power line inspection drones involves controlling the drone to fly along a preset path; responding to the triggering of preset state conditions, controlling the drone to enter an abnormal mode; the abnormal mode includes a regular abnormal mode or an emergency abnormal mode; based on the type of abnormal mode, controlling the drone to hover at a designated location, and determining the drone's emergency control strategy based on the drone's current state information; wherein, in the regular abnormal mode, the designated location is the current location on the preset path, and in the emergency abnormal mode, the designated location is the safe location corresponding to the preset path; according to the emergency control strategy, controlling the drone to return from the current location along the original route, or to return in a straight line from the safe location, or to land from the safe location. In this method, a safe location is pre-set in the physical environment, the drone is controlled to hover at the current location or a safe location according to the abnormal mode type, and then the corresponding emergency control strategy is executed based on the drone's current state information, ensuring the safety of using drones in the field of power line inspection.

[0061] The following embodiments provide specific implementations for determining safe locations.

[0062] Specifically, the relative positional relationship between the safe location and the preset path satisfies the preset location conditions, and / or the physical environment of the safe location satisfies the preset environmental conditions.

[0063] To ensure the safety of drones flying in designated safe locations, the design of these locations requires consideration of their relative position to the preset path and / or their physical environment. One approach is to ensure the relative position of the safe location to the preset path meets certain conditions. These conditions may be related to the points forming the preset path; for example, the distance between the safe location and these points should be as short as possible and reachable in a straight line, ensuring rapid arrival and stopping in case of emergencies. Another approach is to ensure the safe location's physical environment meets certain conditions to guarantee its absolute safety within the work area. These conditions may include the absence of obstructions from surrounding equipment, electromagnetic interference sources, and a designated safe altitude. It should be noted that a safe location can satisfy one or both of these conditions simultaneously.

[0064] In one embodiment, an auxiliary position is also set along the flight path of the drone. The safe position and the auxiliary position can be associated: specifically, an auxiliary position is preset on the preset path; the auxiliary position is used to control the curvature of the preset path to be less than a preset curvature threshold; the safe position and the auxiliary position are associated.

[0065] Understandably, the inspection location is the waypoint in the actual inspection area of ​​the equipment within the drone's preset path. The auxiliary locations, however, are one or more auxiliary flight points set between the inspection locations to prevent issues such as the gimbal camera getting stuck due to excessively large angles between adjacent inspection locations during the inspection process. These auxiliary locations are used to control the curvature of the preset path, such as... Figure 2 As shown, adding an auxiliary position significantly reduces the curvature of the drone's flight path, effectively preventing issues such as gimbal camera jamming. Furthermore, the auxiliary position allows the drone to avoid dangerous areas, such as areas with electrical equipment or strong electromagnetic fields, preventing it from entering these locations during its flight from one inspection position to the next, thus ensuring flight safety. It's important to note that the auxiliary position does not perform actual inspection functions; it only serves as a flight assistance feature.

[0066] In this method, the safe position and the auxiliary position are linked to ensure that the drone can escape quickly in case of abnormal situations.

[0067] Here, the distance between the interconnected safe and auxiliary positions is less than a preset threshold; there are no obstacles and / or interference sources on the straight path between the interconnected safe and auxiliary positions; and there are no obstacles and / or interference sources between the ground and the preset height at the safe position.

[0068] The aforementioned sources of interference can include strong electromagnetic interference caused by the operation of high-voltage disconnect switches and circuit breakers commonly found in power facilities, as well as high-frequency conducted interference and radiated interference generated by wireless equipment.

[0069] In other words, the conditions that the interrelated auxiliary positions and safety positions must meet are:

[0070] 1) The distance from the auxiliary position to the safe position of the drone is less than a preset threshold so that it can quickly reach the safe position from the auxiliary position;

[0071] 2) There are no obstacles and / or sources of interference on the straight path between the relevant safe location and the auxiliary location; ensuring that the UAV can safely fly directly from the auxiliary location to the safe location;

[0072] 3) At the safe position, there are no obstacles and / or sources of interference between the ground and the preset height. When the drone ascends or descends in a straight line, there is no equipment obstruction or strong electromagnetic interference, which ensures that the drone can safely descend in a straight line when the hovering power is insufficient, thus ensuring the safety of the safe point.

[0073] The above-mentioned method of associating safe and auxiliary positions ensures that the drone can quickly escape to a safe position through the auxiliary position in an emergency. Once the drone reaches the safe position, it can safely perform straight ascent and descent operations, maximizing the safety of the drone in an emergency.

[0074] In existing technologies, when using drones for inspections, staff use handheld drone control devices to view the drone's screen in real time. If the drone malfunctions, they manually maneuver it to a safe area and then either land it or fly it back to base. However, due to the lack of a comprehensive emergency response system, this method has the following shortcomings when a drone suddenly malfunctions:

[0075] 1) When staff manually control the drone to return to home or land throughout the entire process, it consumes manpower;

[0076] 2) When staff manually control the drone to return to home or land, there is a risk of human error that could cause other accidents;

[0077] 3) In emergency situations, the selection of a landing point may be based on inaccurate judgment, resulting in the selection of an unsuitable landing point, such as one with electromagnetic interference, a no-parking zone, or explosive materials nearby, which could lead to unnecessary accidents.

[0078] Based on this, this application uses preset state conditions to divide the abnormal modes of the UAV into normal abnormal modes and emergency abnormal modes. Then, according to the state information of the UAV, a corresponding emergency control strategy is set. When the preset state conditions are triggered, the control device quickly starts the abnormal mode processing procedure based on the current state of the UAV, automatically controls the UAV to enter the corresponding abnormal mode, and executes the corresponding emergency control strategy.

[0079] The following embodiments first provide a specific implementation method for controlling a drone to enter an abnormal mode.

[0080] Here, the preset conditions are determined based on one or more of the following: the drone's status signals, the drone's environmental sensor signals, or instruction signals from personnel. Once the preset conditions are triggered, the drone is controlled to enter an abnormal mode.

[0081] In one scenario, a preset first event is detected; wherein the preset first event includes at least one of the following: the stability of the drone's control signal is lower than a preset first threshold, the weather in the drone's environment is a first specified weather, the stability of the communication signal between the drone and the control device is lower than a preset second threshold, and the drone's battery level reaches a preset first low battery level; wherein, when the drone's battery level reaches the first low battery level, the drone's battery level satisfies the following condition: the power consumption required for the drone to return to its starting position along a specified path; if the preset first event occurs, an alarm prompt corresponding to the preset first event is generated; in response to receiving a first instruction signal from the staff, the drone is controlled to enter a normal abnormal mode.

[0082] The specified weather conditions can be determined based on the physical environment of the work area. In this embodiment, the specified weather conditions are sudden weather changes such as rain, snow, and wind. That is to say, corresponding state thresholds are set for the stability of the UAV's control signal, the weather conditions of the UAV's environment, the stability of the communication signal between the UAV and the control equipment, and the UAV's battery level. After the threshold is triggered, the control equipment automatically generates an alarm prompt to notify the staff of flight abnormalities. After receiving a regular abnormality indication signal from the staff, the control equipment will control the UAV to enter the regular abnormality mode.

[0083] In another scenario, the system detects whether a preset second event has occurred; wherein the preset second event includes at least one of the following: the attitude stability of the drone is lower than a preset third threshold; the communication signal stability between the drone and the control device is lower than a preset fourth threshold; the weather in the environment where the drone is located is a second specified weather; if the preset second event occurs, an alarm prompt corresponding to the preset second event is generated; in response to receiving a second instruction signal from the staff, the system controls the drone to enter an emergency abnormal mode.

[0084] Understandably, the state conditions of the drone are more severe when in emergency abnormal mode compared to the normal abnormal mode. Therefore, attitude stability includes multiple aspects such as position signal stability and GPS / RTK signal stability. The fourth threshold mentioned above is lower than the second threshold. At the same time, the second specified weather can be a situation where the current wind force reaches level 6 or above, or a situation of heavy rain / snow.

[0085] In other words, when the attitude stability of the drone, the weather conditions of the drone's environment, and the communication signal stability between the drone and the control equipment are severely affected to meet the second event, an alarm prompt corresponding to the preset second event is generated. When an emergency abnormality indication signal is received from the staff, the drone is controlled to enter the emergency abnormality mode.

[0086] It should be noted that when the drone's battery level reaches the second lowest level, the drone will be directly controlled to enter an emergency abnormal state. Specifically, in response to the drone's battery level reaching the preset second lowest level, the drone will be controlled to enter an emergency abnormal mode. The second lowest level is defined as the amount of power consumed by the drone to return to its starting position along a straight path when the drone's battery level reaches the second lowest level.

[0087] In other words, when the drone's battery power is only enough to allow it to return to its starting position along a straight path, the control equipment will automatically put the drone into an emergency abnormal mode.

[0088] In the above method, by detecting whether a preset event has occurred, it is determined that the preset state condition has been triggered, and the abnormal mode of the drone is further determined. The control device then begins to control the drone to enter the corresponding abnormal mode in order to execute subsequent emergency control strategies.

[0089] The following embodiments provide specific implementation methods for determining emergency control strategies for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).

[0090] In one approach, without the need for staff intervention, the control equipment automatically generates an emergency control strategy for the drone based on its current status information.

[0091] Specifically, the current status information of the drone is acquired to generate an emergency control strategy for the drone. The current status information includes one or more of the following: the drone's battery level, the number of satellites connected to the drone, the wind direction, rainfall, and temperature of the drone's environment, and the signal stability between the drone and the control equipment. The emergency control strategy includes: controlling the drone to return to its original route, controlling the drone to return in a straight line, and controlling the drone to land.

[0092] The aforementioned current status information of the drone refers to its status during abnormal situations and is crucial for personnel or control equipment to determine emergency control strategies. Here, the drone's current status information can be one or more of the following: the drone's battery level, the number of satellites the drone is connected to, information about the drone's surrounding environment, and the signal status between the drone and control equipment. It should be noted that this information can be searched or directly read using auxiliary equipment such as control devices, anemometers, rain gauges, and thermometers.

[0093] In this method, after obtaining the drone's current status information through auxiliary equipment, the control equipment automatically generates an emergency control strategy for the drone based on the current status information without human intervention. The emergency control strategy includes: controlling the drone to return to its original route, controlling the drone to return in a straight line, and controlling the drone to land. For example, when the control equipment determines from the drone's current information that its battery level is insufficient to allow it to continue hovering in a safe position, it automatically generates an emergency control strategy: controlling the drone to land. After automatically generating an anomaly notification message, the control equipment directly controls the drone to land from a safe location.

[0094] In another approach, the control equipment needs to consult with staff before determining the emergency control strategy for the drone.

[0095] Specifically, an operation query signal is generated; based on the feedback signal of the operation query signal, an emergency control strategy for the UAV is determined; the emergency control strategy includes: controlling the UAV to return to its original route, controlling the UAV to return in a straight line, and controlling the UAV to land.

[0096] The aforementioned operational query signal is generated by the control equipment and contains a request for instructions from the operator regarding the next flight operation of the drone. This can be displayed as a pop-up on the control equipment's interface. To facilitate rapid response from operators in emergencies, the content of the operational query signal can be pre-set options, each corresponding to a specific drone operation, for the operator to choose from. After receiving the operational query signal from the control equipment, the operator makes a selection based on the task execution status and sends it as a feedback signal. Upon receiving the feedback signal, the control equipment determines the drone's emergency control strategy and controls the drone to execute the corresponding operation.

[0097] In this method, the control equipment needs to generate an operation query signal first. The staff needs to respond to the operation query signal issued by the control equipment based on the current status information of the drone or the situation of the mission being performed before the emergency control strategy for the drone can be determined.

[0098] Generally, the corresponding operation query signals are different under different types of exception modes.

[0099] For example, when the abnormal mode is the normal abnormal mode, the drone hovers at its current position and generates a first query signal based on the drone's current status information; the first query signal includes: whether to control the drone to return from the current position along the original route, whether to control the drone to land, or whether to control the drone to return in a straight line.

[0100] Here, it can be understood that there is a corresponding relationship between the current status information and the operation query signal. That is to say, after determining that the abnormal mode is a normal abnormal mode, the control device automatically controls the drone to hover at the current position and sends out the first query signal based on the current status information of the drone. The first query signal includes: whether to control the drone to return from the current position along the original route, whether to control the drone to land, or whether to control the drone to return in a straight line.

[0101] Similarly, when the abnormal mode is emergency abnormal mode, the drone hovers to a safe position; based on the drone's current status information, a second query signal is generated; the second query signal includes: whether to control the drone to land, or whether to control the drone to return in a straight line.

[0102] In other words, once the abnormal mode is determined to be an emergency abnormal mode, the control equipment automatically controls the drone to hover in a safe position and issues a second query signal based on the drone's current status information. The second query signal includes: whether to control the drone to land, or whether to control the drone to return in a straight line.

[0103] Furthermore, upon receiving the operation query signal, the staff selects the content of the first query signal based on the flight situation and feeds back the selection result to the control equipment in the form of a feedback signal. The control equipment determines the selection result as the emergency control strategy and controls the drone to perform the corresponding operation.

[0104] Determine emergency control strategies based on the type of abnormal mode.

[0105] Specifically, in one mode, when the abnormal mode is the normal abnormal mode, if the emergency control strategy is to control the drone to return to its original location, then the drone will be controlled to return to its original location; if the emergency control strategy is to control the drone to land, then the drone will be controlled to fly to a safe location and land from the safe location; if the emergency control strategy is to control the drone to return in a straight line, then the drone will be controlled to fly to a safe location and return in a straight line from the safe location.

[0106] In other words, under normal abnormal mode, when the emergency control strategy is to control the drone to return to its original route, the control equipment needs to control the drone to return from its current position to its original route; when the emergency control strategy is to control the drone to land, the drone is controlled to fly to a safe position first, and then the drone is controlled to land from the safe position; when the emergency control strategy is to control the drone to return in a straight line, the drone is controlled to fly to a safe position, and then the drone is controlled to return in a straight line from the safe position.

[0107] In this method, if there are preset auxiliary positions on the preset path, and the safe position is associated with the auxiliary positions, the safe position can be reached through the auxiliary positions. Specifically, there are preset auxiliary positions on the preset path; the auxiliary positions are used to control the curvature of the preset path to be less than a preset curvature threshold; when the safe position is associated with the auxiliary position, when controlling the drone to fly to the safe position, it is necessary to first control the drone to fly to the target auxiliary position closest to the current position, and then control the drone to fly from the target auxiliary position to the safe position associated with the target auxiliary position.

[0108] In other words, when an auxiliary position is set on the preset path and there is also a associated safe position, the drone can use an algorithm to find the nearest target auxiliary position and then fly to the safe position. Since the safe position has the characteristic that the drone can safely descend in a straight line, it can land safely in a straight line or return in a straight line after reaching the safe position.

[0109] In another scenario, when the abnormal mode is emergency abnormal mode, if the emergency control strategy is to control the drone to land, then the drone will be controlled to land from a safe position; if the emergency control strategy is to control the drone to return in a straight line, then the drone will be controlled to ascend to a preset safe altitude from a safe position, and then the drone will be controlled to return in a straight line from the safe position, while maintaining a safe altitude during flight.

[0110] In other words, when the emergency control strategy is to control the drone to land, the control equipment controls the drone to land from a safe position; when the emergency control strategy is to control the drone to return in a straight line, the drone is controlled to ascend to a preset safe altitude from a safe position, and then the drone is controlled to return in a straight line from the safe position, and the drone is controlled to stay at a safe altitude during the flight.

[0111] In the above approach, different emergency control strategies for different types of abnormal modes are determined, and the drones are controlled to perform corresponding flight operations. This enables the drones to respond and handle situations in the work area in a safe manner, ensuring the safety of using drones in the field of power inspection. While leveraging the advantages of using drones for inspection, it also avoids power accidents caused by improper drone operation.

[0112] It should be noted that after determining the abnormal mode type of the drone, if the abnormal mode is an emergency abnormal mode, the safe hovering position of the drone can be reached through auxiliary positions. Specifically, auxiliary positions are preset on the preset path; the auxiliary positions are used to control the curvature of the preset path to be less than a preset curvature threshold; the safe position is associated with the auxiliary position. If the abnormal mode is an emergency abnormal mode, the drone is controlled to fly to the target auxiliary position closest to the current position; the drone is then controlled to fly from the target auxiliary position to the safe position associated with the target auxiliary position, and finally, the drone is controlled to hover in the safe position.

[0113] Additionally, after the drone hovers in a designated location, if the drone's battery level is lower than the power consumption required to support hovering, the drone will be controlled to land from a safe location; if the drone's battery level is lower than the power consumption required for return, a notification signal will be generated, and the drone will be controlled to land from a safe location. The notification signal indicates that the drone's battery level is lower than the power consumption required for return and that the drone has landed from a safe location.

[0114] In other words, if the drone's battery level is lower than the power consumption required to support hovering, the control device will automatically control the drone to land directly from the current safe position; if the drone's battery level is lower than the power consumption required for return, and it cannot return, the control device will automatically generate a notification signal and control the drone to land in a straight line from the current safe position.

[0115] Planning a flight path that meets the inspection requirements based on the power line inspection task is the core part of UAV inspection task planning. The following embodiments provide a way to generate a preset flight path for UAVs.

[0116] Specifically, a preset map is obtained; the preset map includes: a two-dimensional map corresponding to the work area, or a three-dimensional model map corresponding to the work area; inspection positions and auxiliary positions are set on the preset map; at the inspection position, the drone performs inspection tasks according to preset inspection parameters; the inspection parameters are used to control: the movement position of the drone at the inspection position, and the shooting mode of the camera on the drone; a preset path is generated based on the inspection position and auxiliary position.

[0117] As mentioned earlier, the aforementioned inspection locations are the waypoints for the actual equipment inspection area by the drone. At these locations, the drone performs inspection tasks, such as photographing and documenting the inspected equipment. The aforementioned auxiliary locations do not perform actual inspection functions; they only serve as auxiliary flight controls to ensure the curvature of the preset path is less than a preset threshold. The aforementioned inspection parameters are the specific aerial photography parameters for the drone during inspection work. These include controlling the drone's movement at the inspection location and the camera's shooting mode. The movement includes the drone's latitude, longitude, altitude, and camera shooting direction; the shooting mode includes video recording or photography; and the inspection parameters also include shooting time, etc.

[0118] In practice, a two-dimensional or three-dimensional model map of the work area can be obtained. Multiple inspection locations and auxiliary locations are marked on the electronic map according to the equipment inspection needs. The flight path of the drone is formed by combining the auxiliary locations and inspection locations and stored in the control device. When performing the inspection task, the drone is controlled to fly according to the preset path and perform the inspection task at the inspection location point according to the pre-programmed inspection parameters.

[0119] In the above method, inspection positions and auxiliary positions are set on the model map, and a preset path is generated based on the inspection positions and auxiliary positions to control the UAV to perform flight work according to the preset path. Under this method, by adding auxiliary positions for flight path planning of inspection equipment, accidents such as excessive turning angles during UAV flight and electromagnetic interference affecting flight during straight flight to the next inspection position are avoided.

[0120] In existing technologies, after a drone completes its filming mission, to ensure the safety of the drone's return journey, staff need to manually operate the drone to an open area and then remotely control it for return. This method is labor-intensive, and there is still a risk of improper human operation causing other accidents while staff are controlling the drone for return. Therefore, this application, after planning the preset path, also sets up a return-to-home method:

[0121] Specifically, a return altitude is set for the drone to return to its starting position; at this return altitude, the path along which the drone returns in a straight line from the safe position is free of obstacles and / or sources of interference.

[0122] In other words, a return-to-home altitude is set within the operational area to allow the drone to fly straight back to its starting position. This altitude ensures that there are no obstacles, no equipment passing through, and no electromagnetic interference sources during the return process. In case of emergencies or when returning after completing a mission, the drone can safely fly straight back to its starting point at this altitude. In practice, the return-to-home altitude must comply with local policies and airspace requirements, and is generally set at 120 meters. It should be noted that this return-to-home altitude also meets the physical environmental conditions for a safe location; therefore, any location at this altitude can also be considered a safe location from which the drone can return in a straight line.

[0123] This method also sets a return altitude at which the drone can return in a straight line to its starting point within the work area. After completing the shooting mission, the drone can return in a straight line from a safe position at the return altitude without having to find an open area, thus ensuring the safety of the drone's return and reducing manpower consumption.

[0124] Furthermore, a safe location is set based on the association of auxiliary locations; wherein the distance between the mutually associated safe locations and auxiliary locations is less than a preset threshold; there are no obstacles and / or interference sources on the straight path between the associated safe locations and auxiliary locations; and there are no obstacles and / or interference sources between the ground and a preset height at the safe location.

[0125] In one implementation, a safe location can be set as follows: One or more safe locations are set near auxiliary locations along a preset path. Taking setting a safe location near an auxiliary point as an example, this auxiliary location is associated with a safe location. The safe location associated with the auxiliary location must meet the following conditions:

[0126] 1) The distance from the auxiliary position to the safe position of the drone is less than a preset threshold so that it can quickly reach the safe position from the auxiliary position;

[0127] 2) There are no obstacles and / or sources of interference on the straight path between the relevant safety location and the auxiliary location;

[0128] 3) In a safe position, there are no obstacles and / or sources of interference between the ground and the preset height. When the drone ascends or descends in a straight line, there are no devices to block it, preventing the drone from descending directly when it has insufficient hovering power.

[0129] In other words, once the drone reaches a safe position, it can safely ascend and descend in a straight line. Therefore, the method described above, which uses an auxiliary position to set a safe position, can maximize the safety of the drone in emergency situations.

[0130] In one embodiment, such as Figure 3 As shown, the control process of the drone under normal abnormal mode is described in detail.

[0131] S1: Set the return-to-home altitude. Set the safe return-to-home altitude for the drone. This altitude should allow the drone to return to the starting point in a straight line without interference or obstruction, while also meeting relevant policy requirements.

[0132] S2: Set inspection locations. Select inspection points on a two-dimensional or three-dimensional map according to business needs, and set inspection parameters at the inspection locations, such as waypoint coordinates, actions, yaw angles, etc.

[0133] S3: Set auxiliary position. Based on the "inspection point" set in S2, set an "auxiliary point" as an auxiliary position. The "auxiliary point" does not perform any action. It is only used for the drone to fly over and assist in the generation of the drone's flight path. The flight path combined with the "auxiliary point" makes the drone's flight more reliable and avoids the situation where the gimbal gets stuck due to the drone turning too much.

[0134] S4: Based on the "auxiliary point" set in S3, set a safe position. To reach the safe position, you need to pass through the auxiliary point first.

[0135] S5: Drone flight, performing missions.

[0136] S6: Based on the mission execution, if the staff determines that the drone encountered a common anomaly during flight, such as: control signal (e.g., RTK signal, GPS signal) stability falling below the first threshold, weather changes (rain, snow, wind, etc.), drone-system communication stability falling below the second threshold, or battery level reaching the first threshold, the staff can choose to return via the original route (i.e., return from the current location), land at a safe point (i.e., land at a safe location as mentioned above), or return to a safe point (i.e., return in a straight line from a safe location as mentioned above).

[0137] S7: The drone hovers in the air at its current location and sends the first inquiry signal to ask the staff for the next step.

[0138] S8: The staff selects "return to the starting point along the original route", and the drone flies back to the starting point from the current location along the route.

[0139] S9: The staff selects "safe landing point". The drone uses an algorithm to find the nearest auxiliary position, then flies to the safe position and lands safely in a straight line.

[0140] S10: The staff selects "Safe Point Return". The drone uses an algorithm to find the nearest auxiliary position, then flies to the safe position. After reaching the safe position, it rises to the return altitude set in step S1 and returns in a straight line to the drone's starting point.

[0141] S11: If the staff does not make a choice for an extended period of time, and the drone's battery does not support continued hovering, it will land directly.

[0142] S12: Continuously monitors the drone's battery level. If it cannot return to base, it will notify the staff on the control device to land safely.

[0143] The above methods, by adding safe locations and associating them with auxiliary locations, ensure that the drone can fly to a safe location for a safe return or landing in abnormal situations, thus guaranteeing the safety of on-site drone inspection operations. Simultaneously, by setting up comprehensive abnormal situation response procedures and handling strategies, the drone can safely handle routine abnormal situations encountered during power line inspections, ensuring the safety of drone operations in the power line inspection field. While leveraging the advantages of drone inspections, this approach also avoids power accidents caused by improper drone operation.

[0144] In another embodiment, such as Figure 4 As shown, the control process of the drone under emergency abnormal mode is described in detail.

[0145] S1: Set the return altitude. Set the safe return altitude for the drone. This altitude should allow the drone to return to the starting point in a straight line without interference or obstruction, while also meeting relevant policy requirements.

[0146] S2: Set inspection locations. Select inspection points on a two-dimensional or three-dimensional map according to business needs, and set the coordinates, actions, yaw angles, etc. of waypoints at the inspection locations.

[0147] S3: Set auxiliary position. Set an auxiliary position near the inspection point set in S2. The auxiliary position is only used for the drone to fly over and assist in the generation of the drone's flight path. The flight path combined with the auxiliary position makes the drone's flight more reliable and avoids the situation where the gimbal gets stuck due to the drone turning too much.

[0148] S4: Based on the auxiliary position set in S3, set a safe position. You must pass through the auxiliary position before reaching the safe position.

[0149] S5: Unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) flight to perform missions.

[0150] S6: In the event of an emergency or abnormal situation during flight, such as attitude instability, communication signal stability between the UAV and control equipment falling below the preset fourth threshold, sudden severe weather changes, or the UAV's battery level reaching the preset second low, the UAV will use an algorithm to find the nearest auxiliary position.

[0151] S7: Fly from the auxiliary position to the safe position. If the drone's battery is insufficient to continue flying, the drone will land directly from the safe position.

[0152] S8: If the drone has sufficient battery power, it will either continue flying or return to base. In this case, it will remain hovering in the air, waiting for staff to select the next step.

[0153] S9: If the staff selects "Land at a safe point (i.e., land from a safe location)," the drone will descend safely in a straight line from the safe location.

[0154] S10: If the staff selects "Return Home (i.e., return home in a straight line from the safe position)," the drone will rise from the safe position to the return home height set in step S1 and return in a straight line to the drone's starting point.

[0155] S11: Hover in a safe position. If the staff does not make a choice for an extended period of time and the drone's battery does not support continued hovering, it will land directly.

[0156] S12: Continuously monitors the drone's battery level. If it cannot return to base, it will notify the operator and land safely.

[0157] In the above method, the flight path of the drone in abnormal mode is formed by setting safe positions, auxiliary positions and combining them with the actual inspection positions. By setting up a complete abnormal situation response process and handling strategy, the drone can be dealt with in a safe mechanism when encountering emergency abnormal situations during power inspection. This ensures the safety of using drones in the field of power inspection. While giving advantage to the use of drones for inspection, it avoids power accidents caused by improper operation of drones.

[0158] As mentioned above, the auxiliary position plays a crucial role in the present invention. It not only avoids problems such as gimbal camera jamming due to excessively large angles between adjacent inspection positions during UAV inspections, but also allows the UAV to be controlled to fly to the nearest target auxiliary position when encountering abnormal situations during flight, enabling it to escape to a safe location via the target auxiliary position. The following embodiments provide a method for obtaining the target auxiliary position.

[0159] This embodiment uses a simulated annealing algorithm to find the target auxiliary position. The simulated annealing algorithm is derived from the solid annealing principle and is a probability-based algorithm. The solid is heated to a sufficiently high temperature and then slowly cooled. When heated, the particles inside the solid become disordered as the temperature rises, and the internal energy increases. When slowly cooled, the particles gradually become more ordered and reach an equilibrium state at each temperature. Finally, at room temperature, it reaches the ground state and the internal energy is reduced to the minimum.

[0160] like Figure 5 As shown, the process of obtaining the auxiliary position of the target using the simulated annealing algorithm is introduced.

[0161] 1) Initialization: Set the initial temperature T, the number of iterations K for each T value, the initial solution state x(0), the x update function, the optimal solution best, and the objective function f(best);

[0162] 2) For 1 to K, repeat 3) to 5):

[0163] 3) Generate a new solution by randomly perturbing the current solution, and calculate the objective function value.

[0164] For example, calculate a new parameter x(i) = g(x(i-1)); calculate the objective function increment Δf = f(x(i)) - f(x(i-1));

[0165] 4) Determine if the new solution is better than the current solution: K new solutions are generated from the solution. The Metropolis criterion is used to determine whether to accept the new solution x(i). If not, the temperature is slowly reduced and the iteration count is restarted by K, i.e., x(i) = x(i-1).

[0166] 5) If f(x(i)) <f(best),best=x(i);

[0167] 6) Determine if the output conditions are met. If the output conditions are met, for example, T is small enough or the objective function f(best) reaches the target, output the optimal solution best and end; otherwise, update the temperature T and go to step 2).

[0168] By adding auxiliary positions for route planning of inspection equipment, accidents such as excessive turning angles during drone flight and electromagnetic interference affecting flight during straight flight to the next inspection position are avoided; the auxiliary positions are associated with safety positions, allowing drones to sequentially execute processing mechanisms in abnormal situations.

[0169] For the corresponding method embodiments described above, see [link to relevant documentation]. Figure 6 The diagram shows a control device for a power line inspection drone. The device is installed in a control unit, and the control unit is communicatively connected to the drone. The device includes:

[0170] The first control module 601 is used to control the UAV to fly along a preset path;

[0171] The second control module 602 is used to control the drone to enter an abnormal mode in response to the triggering of a preset state condition; the abnormal mode includes a normal abnormal mode or an emergency abnormal mode.

[0172] The first determining module 603 is used to control the drone to hover to a designated location based on the type of abnormal mode, and to determine the emergency control strategy of the drone; wherein, in the normal abnormal mode, the designated location is the current location on the preset path, and in the emergency abnormal mode, the designated location is the safe location corresponding to the preset path;

[0173] The third control module 604 is used to control the drone to return from its current location along the original route, or to return in a straight line from a safe location, or to land from a safe location, according to the emergency control strategy.

[0174] In this method, a safe location is pre-set in the physical environment. The drone is controlled to hover at the current location or a safe location according to the type of abnormal mode. Then, the corresponding emergency control strategy is executed according to the current status information of the drone, which ensures the safety of using drones in the field of power inspection.

[0175] The relative positional relationship between the aforementioned safe location and the aforementioned preset path satisfies the preset positional conditions, and / or the physical environment of the safe location satisfies the preset environmental conditions.

[0176] The aforementioned preset path has preset auxiliary positions; these auxiliary positions are used to control the curvature of the preset path to be less than a preset curvature threshold; the safety position is set in association with the auxiliary position.

[0177] The distance between interconnected safe and auxiliary positions is less than a preset threshold; there are no obstacles and / or interference sources on the straight path between the interconnected safe and auxiliary positions; and there are no obstacles and / or interference sources between the ground and the preset height at the safe position.

[0178] The aforementioned first determining module is also used to acquire the current status information of the UAV and generate an emergency control strategy for the UAV; wherein, the current status information includes one or more of the following: the UAV's battery level, the number of satellites connected to the UAV, the wind direction information, rainfall information, temperature information, and the signal stability between the UAV and the aforementioned control equipment; the emergency control strategy includes: controlling the UAV to return to its original route, controlling the UAV to return in a straight line, and controlling the UAV to land.

[0179] The aforementioned first determining module is also used to generate an operation query signal; and to determine an emergency control strategy for the UAV based on the feedback signal of the operation query signal; wherein the emergency control strategy includes: controlling the UAV to return to its original route, controlling the UAV to return in a straight line, and controlling the UAV to land.

[0180] The above-mentioned abnormal mode is the normal abnormal mode. The third control module is also used to control the drone to return to its original location if the emergency control strategy is: control the drone to return to its original location; control the drone to fly to a safe location and land from the safe location if the emergency control strategy is: control the drone to land; and control the drone to fly to a safe location and land from the safe location if the emergency control strategy is: control the drone to return in a straight line.

[0181] The aforementioned preset path has a preset auxiliary position; the aforementioned auxiliary position is used to control the curvature of the aforementioned preset path to be less than a preset curvature threshold; the aforementioned safe position is associated with the auxiliary position; the aforementioned first generation module is also used to: control the UAV to fly to the target auxiliary position closest to the current position; control the UAV to fly from the target auxiliary position to the safe position associated with the target auxiliary position.

[0182] The above-mentioned abnormal mode is an emergency abnormal mode. The third control module is also used to control the UAV to land from a safe position if the emergency control strategy is to control the UAV to land; if the emergency control strategy is to control the UAV to return in a straight line, control the UAV to ascend to a preset safe altitude from a safe position, control the UAV to return in a straight line from a safe position, and control the UAV to stay at a safe altitude during flight.

[0183] Based on the aforementioned abnormal mode type, the device further includes a fourth control module, used to control the drone to land from the aforementioned safe position if the drone's battery level is lower than the power consumption required to support hovering; and to generate a notification signal and control the drone to land from the safe position if the drone's battery level is lower than the power consumption required for return. The notification signal indicates that the drone's battery level is lower than the power consumption required for return and that the drone has landed from the safe position.

[0184] The aforementioned preset path has a preset auxiliary position; the aforementioned auxiliary position is used to control the curvature of the preset path to be less than a preset curvature threshold; the aforementioned first determining module is also used to control the UAV to fly to the target auxiliary position closest to the current position if the abnormal mode is an emergency abnormal mode; control the UAV to fly from the target auxiliary position to a safe position associated with the target auxiliary position, and control the UAV to hover to the safe position.

[0185] The aforementioned preset state conditions are determined based on one or more of the following: the state signal of the aforementioned UAV, the environmental sensing signal of the aforementioned UAV, or the instruction signal from the staff.

[0186] The second control module is further configured to detect whether a preset first event has occurred; wherein the preset first event includes at least one of the following: the stability of the drone's control signal is lower than a preset first threshold, the weather in the drone's environment is a first specified weather, the stability of the communication signal between the drone and the control device is lower than a preset second threshold, and the drone's battery level reaches a preset first low battery level; wherein, when the drone's battery level reaches the first low battery level, the drone's battery level satisfies the following: the power consumption required for the drone to return to its starting position along a specified path; if the preset first event occurs, an alarm prompt corresponding to the preset first event is generated; in response to receiving a first instruction signal from the staff, the drone is controlled to enter a normal abnormal mode.

[0187] The second control module is further configured to detect whether a preset second event has occurred; wherein the preset second event includes at least one of the following: the attitude stability of the UAV is lower than a preset third threshold; the communication signal stability between the UAV and the aforementioned control device is lower than a preset fourth threshold; the weather in the environment where the UAV is located is a second specified weather; if the preset second event occurs, an alarm prompt corresponding to the preset second event is generated; in response to receiving a second instruction signal from the staff, the UAV is controlled to enter an emergency abnormal mode.

[0188] The above method also includes: in response to the drone's battery level reaching a preset second low battery level, controlling the drone to enter an emergency abnormal mode; wherein, the second low battery level is: when the drone's battery level reaches the second low battery level, the drone's battery level meets the power consumption required for the drone to return to the starting position along a straight path.

[0189] The aforementioned device further includes a first setting module for acquiring a preset map; wherein the preset map includes: a two-dimensional map corresponding to the work area, or a three-dimensional model map corresponding to the work area; setting inspection positions and auxiliary positions on the preset map; wherein, at the inspection position, the drone performs an inspection task according to preset inspection parameters; the inspection parameters are used to control: the movement position of the drone at the inspection position, and the shooting mode of the camera on the drone; and generating a preset path based on the inspection position and auxiliary position.

[0190] The aforementioned device also includes a second setting module for setting the return altitude of the UAV to the departure position; wherein, at the return altitude, the path of the UAV returning in a straight line from the aforementioned safe position is free of obstacles and / or sources of interference.

[0191] The aforementioned device also includes a third setting module for setting a safe position based on the association of auxiliary positions; wherein the distance between the mutually associated safe positions and auxiliary positions is less than a preset threshold; there are no obstacles and / or interference sources on the straight path between the associated safe positions and auxiliary positions; and there are no obstacles and / or interference sources between the ground and a preset height at the safe position.

[0192] This embodiment also provides a control device for a power line inspection drone, including a processor and a memory. The memory stores machine-executable instructions that can be executed by the processor, and the processor executes the machine-executable instructions to implement the aforementioned control method for the power line inspection drone. This electronic device can be a server or a terminal device.

[0193] See Figure 7 As shown, the electronic device includes a processor 100 and a memory 101. The memory 101 stores machine-executable instructions that can be executed by the processor 100. The processor 100 executes the machine-executable instructions to implement the control method of the power inspection drone described above.

[0194] Furthermore, Figure 7 The electronic device shown also includes a bus 102 and a communication interface 103, with the processor 100, the communication interface 103 and the memory 101 connected via the bus 102.

[0195] The memory 101 may include high-speed random access memory (RAM) or non-volatile memory, such as at least one disk storage device. Communication between this system network element and at least one other network element is achieved through at least one communication interface 103 (which can be wired or wireless), such as the Internet, wide area network, local area network, or metropolitan area network. The bus 102 may be an ISA bus, PCI bus, or EISA bus, etc. The bus can be divided into address bus, data bus, control bus, etc. For ease of representation, Figure 7 The symbol is represented by a single double-headed arrow, but this does not mean that there is only one bus or one type of bus.

[0196] Processor 100 may be an integrated circuit chip with signal processing capabilities. In implementation, each step of the above method can be completed by the integrated logic circuitry in the hardware of processor 100 or by instructions in software form. Processor 100 may be a general-purpose processor, including a Central Processing Unit (CPU), a Network Processor (NP), etc.; it may also be a Digital Signal Processor (DSP), an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), a Field-Programmable Gate Array (FPGA), or other programmable logic devices, discrete gate or transistor logic devices, or discrete hardware components. It can implement or execute the methods, steps, and logic block diagrams disclosed in the embodiments of this invention. The general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor or any conventional processor. The steps of the methods disclosed in the embodiments of this invention can be directly manifested as execution by a hardware decoding processor, or execution by a combination of hardware and software modules in the decoding processor. The software module can reside in a readily available storage medium in the art, such as random access memory, flash memory, read-only memory, programmable read-only memory, electrically erasable programmable memory, or registers. This storage medium is located in memory 101, and the processor 100 reads the information from memory 101 and, in conjunction with its hardware, completes the steps of the method described in the foregoing embodiments.

[0197] This embodiment also provides a machine-readable storage medium storing machine-executable instructions. When the machine-executable instructions are called and executed by a processor, the machine-executable instructions cause the processor to implement the control method of the power inspection drone described above.

[0198] The computer program product of the control method, apparatus, equipment and storage medium for power inspection drones provided in the embodiments of the present invention includes a computer-readable storage medium storing program code. The instructions included in the program code can be used to execute the methods described in the preceding method embodiments. For specific implementation, please refer to the method embodiments, which will not be repeated here.

[0199] Those skilled in the art will clearly understand that, for the sake of convenience and brevity, the specific working process of the system and apparatus described above can be referred to the corresponding process in the foregoing method embodiments, and will not be repeated here.

[0200] Furthermore, in the description of the embodiments of the present invention, unless otherwise explicitly specified and limited, the terms "installation," "connection," and "linking" should be interpreted broadly. For example, they can refer to a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral connection; they can refer to a mechanical connection or an electrical connection; they can refer to a direct connection or an indirect connection through an intermediate medium; and they can refer to the internal connection of two components. Those skilled in the art can understand the specific meaning of the above terms in the present invention based on the specific circumstances.

[0201] If the aforementioned functions are implemented as software functional units and sold or used as independent products, they can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of this invention, essentially, or the part that contributes to the prior art, or a portion of the technical solution, can be embodied in the form of a software product. This computer software product is stored in a storage medium and includes several instructions to cause a computer device (which may be a personal computer, server, or network device, etc.) to execute all or part of the steps of the methods described in the various embodiments of this invention. The aforementioned storage medium includes various media capable of storing program code, such as USB flash drives, portable hard drives, read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), magnetic disks, or optical disks.

[0202] In the description of this invention, it should be noted that the terms "center," "upper," "lower," "left," "right," "vertical," "horizontal," "inner," and "outer," etc., indicate the orientation or positional relationship based on the orientation or positional relationship shown in the accompanying drawings. They are used only for the convenience of describing the invention and for simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, or be constructed and operated in a specific orientation. Therefore, they should not be construed as limitations on the invention. Furthermore, the terms "first," "second," and "third" are used for descriptive purposes only and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance.

[0203] Finally, it should be noted that the above embodiments are merely specific implementations of the present invention, used to illustrate the technical solutions of the present invention, and not to limit it. The scope of protection of the present invention is not limited thereto. Although the present invention has been described in detail with reference to the foregoing embodiments, those skilled in the art should understand that any person skilled in the art can still modify or easily conceive of changes to the technical solutions described in the foregoing embodiments within the technical scope disclosed in the present invention, or make equivalent substitutions for some of the technical features; and these modifications, changes, or substitutions do not cause the essence of the corresponding technical solutions to deviate from the spirit and scope of the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention, and should all be covered within the scope of protection of the present invention. Therefore, the scope of protection of the present invention should be determined by the scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A control method for a power line inspection drone, characterized in that, The method is applied to control equipment; The control device is communicatively connected to the UAV; the method includes: The drone is controlled to fly along a preset path; wherein, an auxiliary position is preset on the preset path; the auxiliary position is used to control the curvature of the preset path to be less than a preset curvature threshold; at least one safe position is set near the auxiliary position; the safe position is associated with the auxiliary position; the distance between the associated safe position and the auxiliary position is less than a preset threshold; there are no obstacles and / or interference sources on the straight path between the associated safe position and the auxiliary position; at the safe position, there are no obstacles and / or interference sources from the ground to a preset height; In response to the triggering of a preset state condition, the drone is controlled to enter an abnormal mode; the abnormal mode includes a normal abnormal mode or an emergency abnormal mode. Based on the type of the abnormal mode, the drone is controlled to hover to a designated location, and an emergency control strategy for the drone is determined; wherein, in the normal abnormal mode, the designated location is the current location on the preset path, and in the emergency abnormal mode, the designated location is the safe location corresponding to the preset path; According to the emergency control strategy, the drone is controlled to return from its current location along the original route, or return in a straight line from the safe location, or land from the safe location; The step of controlling the drone to hover to a designated location based on the type of the abnormal mode includes: If the abnormal mode is an emergency abnormal mode, control the drone to fly to the nearest target auxiliary position to the current position; Control the drone to fly from the target auxiliary position to a safe position associated with the target auxiliary position, and control the drone to hover at the safe position.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The relative positional relationship between the safe location and the preset path satisfies the preset positional conditions, and / or the physical environment of the safe location satisfies the preset environmental conditions.

3. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The steps for determining an emergency control strategy for a drone include: Obtain the current status information of the drone and generate an emergency control strategy for the drone; The current status information includes one or more of the following: the power level of the drone, the number of satellites communicating with the drone, the wind and rainfall information of the drone's environment, and the signal stability between the drone and the control device; the emergency control strategy includes: controlling the drone to return to its original route, controlling the drone to return in a straight line, and controlling the drone to land.

4. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The steps for determining an emergency control strategy for a drone include: Generate an operation query signal; Based on the feedback signal of the operation query signal, an emergency control strategy for the UAV is determined; wherein, the emergency control strategy includes: controlling the UAV to return to its original route, controlling the UAV to return in a straight line, and controlling the UAV to land.

5. The method according to claim 3 or 4, characterized in that, The abnormal mode is a normal abnormal mode; the step of controlling the drone to return from its current location along the original route, or to return in a straight line from the safe location, or to land from the safe location according to the emergency control strategy includes: If the emergency control strategy is to control the drone to return to its original location, then control the drone to return to its original location from its current location. If the emergency control strategy is to control the drone to land, then control the drone to fly to the safe location, and control the drone to land from the safe location; If the emergency control strategy is to control the UAV to return in a straight line, then control the UAV to fly to the safe location and control the UAV to return in a straight line from the safe location.

6. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that, The step of controlling the drone to fly to the safe location includes: Control the drone to fly to the nearest target auxiliary position to its current location; Control the drone to fly from the target auxiliary position to a safe position associated with the target auxiliary position.

7. The method according to claim 3 or 4, characterized in that, The abnormal mode is an emergency abnormal mode; the step of controlling the drone to return from its current location along the original route, or to return in a straight line from the safe location, or to land from the safe location according to the emergency control strategy includes: If the emergency control strategy is to control the drone to land, then control the drone to land from the safe location; If the emergency control strategy is: to control the UAV to return in a straight line, then control the UAV to ascend to a preset safe altitude at the safe position, control the UAV to return in a straight line from the safe position, and control the UAV to remain at the safe altitude during flight.

8. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, After controlling the drone to hover at a designated location based on the type of the abnormal mode, the method further includes: If the drone's battery level is lower than the power consumption required to support hovering, control the drone to land from the safe location; If the drone's battery level is lower than the power consumption required for return, a notification signal is generated, and the drone is controlled to land from the safe location; wherein, the notification signal indicates that the drone's battery level is lower than the power consumption required for return, and the drone is landing from the safe location.

9. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The preset state conditions are determined based on one or more of the following: the state signal of the UAV, the environmental sensing signal of the UAV, or the instruction signal from the staff.

10. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The step of controlling the drone to enter an abnormal mode in response to the triggering of a preset state condition includes: Detect whether a preset first event has occurred; wherein the preset first event includes at least one of the following: the stability of the control signal of the UAV is lower than a preset first threshold, the weather of the environment in which the UAV is located is a first specified weather, the stability of the communication signal between the UAV and the control device is lower than a preset second threshold, and the battery level of the UAV reaches a preset first low battery level; wherein, when the battery level of the UAV reaches the first low battery level, the battery level of the UAV satisfies: the power consumption of the UAV returning to the starting position according to the specified path; If the preset first event occurs, an alarm prompt corresponding to the preset first event will be generated; Upon receiving the first instruction signal from the staff, the drone is controlled to enter a normal abnormal mode.

11. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The step of controlling the drone to enter an abnormal mode in response to the triggering of a preset state condition includes: Detect whether a preset second event has occurred; wherein the preset second event includes at least one of the following: the attitude stability of the UAV is lower than a preset third threshold; the communication signal stability between the UAV and the control device is lower than a preset fourth threshold; the weather in the environment where the UAV is located is a second specified weather; If the preset second event occurs, generate an alarm prompt corresponding to the preset second event; In response to receiving a second instruction signal from the staff, the drone is controlled to enter emergency anomaly mode.

12. The method according to claim 10, characterized in that, The method further includes: In response to the drone's battery level reaching a preset second low battery level, the drone is controlled to enter an emergency abnormal mode; wherein, the second low battery level is defined as the power consumption required for the drone to return to its starting position along a straight path when the drone's battery level reaches the second low battery level.

13. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, Before the step of controlling the drone to fly along a preset path, the method further includes: Obtain a preset map; wherein the preset map includes: a two-dimensional map corresponding to the work area, or a three-dimensional model map corresponding to the work area; Inspection locations and auxiliary locations are set on the preset map; at each inspection location, the drone performs an inspection task according to preset inspection parameters; the inspection parameters are used to control: the movement position of the drone at the inspection location, and the shooting mode of the camera on the drone; A preset path is generated based on the inspection location and the auxiliary location.

14. The method according to claim 13, characterized in that, After the step of generating a preset path based on the inspection location and the auxiliary location, the method further includes: Set the return altitude of the drone to its starting position; At the stated return altitude, the path along which the UAV returns in a straight line from the safe position is free of obstacles and / or sources of interference.

15. The method according to claim 13, characterized in that, After the step of generating a preset path based on the inspection location and the auxiliary location, the method further includes: A safe location is set based on the aforementioned auxiliary location association; Wherein, the distance between the interconnected safe location and the auxiliary location is less than a preset threshold; there are no obstacles on the straight path between the interconnected safe location and the auxiliary location; and there are no obstacles and / or interference sources between the ground and a preset height at the safe location.

16. A control device for a power line inspection drone, characterized in that, The device is installed in a control device, which is communicatively connected to the drone; the device includes: A first control module is used to control the UAV to fly along a preset path; wherein, the preset path has preset auxiliary positions; the auxiliary positions are used to control the curvature of the preset path to be less than a preset curvature threshold; at least one safe position is set near the auxiliary position; the safe position is associated with the auxiliary position; the distance between the associated safe position and the auxiliary position is less than a preset threshold; there are no obstacles and / or interference sources on the straight path between the associated safe position and the auxiliary position; at the safe position, there are no obstacles and / or interference sources from the ground to a preset height; The second control module is used to control the drone to enter an abnormal mode in response to the triggering of a preset state condition; the abnormal mode includes a normal abnormal mode or an emergency abnormal mode. The first determining module is used to control the drone to hover to a designated location based on the type of the abnormal mode, and to determine the emergency control strategy of the drone; wherein, in the normal abnormal mode, the designated location is the current location on the preset path, and in the emergency abnormal mode, the designated location is the safe location corresponding to the preset path; The third control module is used to control the UAV to return from its current location along the original route, or to return in a straight line from the safe location, or to land from the safe location, according to the emergency control strategy. The first determining module is configured to, if the abnormal mode is an emergency abnormal mode, control the UAV to fly to the target auxiliary position closest to the current position; control the UAV to fly from the target auxiliary position to a safe position associated with the target auxiliary position; and control the UAV to hover at the safe position.

17. A control device for a power line inspection drone, characterized in that, The device includes a processor and a memory, the memory storing machine-executable instructions that can be executed by the processor, the processor executing the machine-executable instructions to implement the control method of the power inspection drone according to any one of claims 1-15.

18. A machine-readable storage medium, characterized in that, The machine-readable storage medium stores machine-executable instructions, which, when invoked and executed by a processor, cause the processor to implement the control method for the power line inspection drone according to any one of claims 1-15.

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