Unmanned aerial vehicle inspection system of pumped storage power station

Abstract

The invention relates to the technical field of transformer substation inspection, and discloses an unmanned aerial vehicle inspection system of a pumped storage power station, which is characterized in that compared with manual inspection, the operation efficiency of pumped storage power station inspection can be improved by using the unmanned aerial vehicle inspection system to inspect the pumped storage power station; in addition, the probability that the construction area cannot be inspected in time due to the influence of hard terrains and severe weather can be effectively reduced, and meanwhile, the situation that the inspection personnel may have dangerous accidents can be avoided; furthermore, the upper computer constructs a three-dimensional model of the target area by receiving the reflected signal data and the construction process image data sent by the unmanned aerial vehicle aircraft, and the field construction condition of the target area can be displayed to workers through a display device of the upper computer. A worker can observe a target area through a clear three-dimensional image, and then accurately monitors and supervises a construction site.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to the technical field of substation inspection, and in particular to a drone inspection system for a pumped-storage power station. Background Art

[0002] Pumped-storage power stations are mostly located in complex environments with high mountains and ridges. The construction area is large, the height difference between areas is large, the construction time is long, and the disturbance area is wide. These characteristics bring tremendous pressure to the on-site construction inspection.

[0003] In the related art, the inspection of pumped storage power stations is generally carried out on site by knowledgeable and experienced inspectors, who mainly observe with the naked eye and telescopes. However, the operating efficiency of the inspection of pumped storage power stations in the related art needs to be improved to meet the needs of accurate monitoring and supervision. Summary of the invention

[0004] The present application provides a UAV inspection system for a water storage power station, which solves the technical problem in the related art that the accuracy of observation of the construction status of a pumped storage power station needs to be improved, and achieves the technical effect of accurately monitoring and supervising the construction site.

[0005] In order to achieve the above objectives, the main technical solutions adopted in this application include:

[0006] The present application embodiment provides a UAV inspection system for a pumped storage power station, the UAV inspection system comprising a UAV aircraft and a host computer, the UAV aircraft is communicatively connected with the host computer, and the UAV aircraft is equipped with a TOF sensor, an image acquisition unit and a control unit; wherein:

[0007] The control unit is used to control the UAV aircraft to fly along a planned path between a current position and a target position of the pumped-storage power station.

[0008] The TOF sensor is used to emit light to a target area of ​​the pumped-storage power station, receive light reflected from the target area, and generate reflection signal data of the target area.

[0009] The image acquisition unit is used to acquire images of the construction status of the target area of ​​the pumped-storage power station during the flight of the UAV aircraft, so as to obtain image data of the construction process of the pumped-storage power station.

[0010] The host computer is used to receive the reflection signal data and the construction process image data, and construct a three-dimensional stereo model of the target area according to the reflection signal data and the construction process image data, wherein the three-dimensional stereo model is used to characterize the on-site construction conditions of the target area.

[0011] Optionally, the UAV inspection system also includes a remote controller, through which the UAV aircraft is communicatively connected to the host computer; the remote controller is used to receive the reflection signal data and the image data, and send the reflection signal data and the image data to the host computer.

[0012] Optionally, the UAV is also equipped with a first positioning unit and a second positioning unit, and the positioning accuracy of the second positioning unit is higher than that of the first positioning unit. The first positioning unit and the second positioning unit are used to determine the positioning information of the UAV; the control unit is also used to perform autonomous cruise positioning of the UAV according to the positioning information and the planned path.

[0013] Optionally, the flight area of ​​the UAV aircraft is discretized into nodes representing the flight position; the control unit is also used to determine, for any node in the surrounding nodes of the UAV aircraft, a first estimated value data between the any node and the starting node of the UAV aircraft, and a second estimated value data between the any node and the target node of the UAV aircraft if there are multiple autonomous avoidance paths, and determine the optimal node among the surrounding nodes based on the first estimated value data and the second estimated value data.

[0014] Optionally, the control unit is further configured to sum the first estimated value data and the second estimated value data to obtain the estimated value data of any node, and determine the node with the smallest estimated value data as the optimal node.

[0015] Optionally, the flight area of ​​the UAV aircraft is discretized into nodes representing the flight position; the node has a marking attribute, and the marking attribute is used to describe whether there is an obstacle at the node; the control unit is also used to advance from the starting node of the UAV aircraft to the target node of the UAV aircraft, and during the advancement process, path search is performed according to the marking attribute of the node to construct the optimal path.

[0016] Optionally, the control unit is also used to move forward if there is no obstacle at the front node, and if there is an obstacle at the front node, plan a first branch path and a second branch path based on the front node to bypass the obstacle, and after bypassing the obstacle, continue to determine whether there is an obstacle.

[0017] Optionally, the control unit is further configured to determine that the optimal path is successfully found when it is determined that the current node is the target node.

[0018] Optionally, pumped storage power station inspection software is deployed in the host computer, and the pumped storage power station inspection software includes a presentation layer, a business logic layer, a data access layer and a Socket communication layer.

[0019] Optionally, the pumped-storage power station patrol software is used for at least one of creating new patrol missions, real-time display of video images, instant video operation, drone map positioning display, drone status data display, drone aircraft control, drone cruise parameter setting, data storage and reading, and time management.

[0020] In the embodiment of the present application, by using an unmanned aerial vehicle inspection system to inspect the pumped-storage power station, compared with manual inspection, not only can the inspection efficiency of the pumped-storage power station be improved, but also the probability of not being able to inspect the construction area in a timely manner due to the influence of rugged terrain and bad weather can be relatively effectively reduced, and it can also avoid dangerous accidents that may occur to the inspection personnel; further, the host computer receives the reflection signal data and construction process image data sent by the unmanned aerial vehicle, and then constructs a three-dimensional model of the target area. The on-site construction status of the target area can be displayed to the staff through the display device of the host computer. The staff can observe the target area through clear three-dimensional images, and then make more accurate monitoring and supervision of the construction site. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0021] In order to more clearly illustrate the specific implementation methods of the present application or the technical solutions in the prior art, the drawings required for use in the specific implementation methods or the description of the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are some implementation methods of the present application. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without paying any creative work.

[0022] Figure 1 A diagram of a UAV inspection system for a pumped storage power station provided in an embodiment of this specification;

[0023] Figure 2 A diagram of a UAV inspection system for a pumped storage power station provided in an embodiment of this specification;

[0024] Figure 3 A rendering of a real-time path planning method for a UAV in a pumped-storage power station provided in an embodiment of this specification;

[0025] Figure 4 This is a general design diagram of the inspection system of a pumped-storage power station provided in the embodiments of this specification. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0026] In order to make the purpose, technical solution and advantages of the embodiments of the present application clearer, the technical solution in the embodiments of the present application will be clearly and completely described below in conjunction with the drawings in the embodiments of the present application. Obviously, the described embodiments are part of the embodiments of the present application, not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments in the present application, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative work are within the scope of protection of the present application.

[0027] In the relevant technology, pumped-storage power stations generally use manual inspections, with knowledgeable and experienced personnel going to the construction site to observe and judge. On the one hand, this method consumes a lot of manpower and material resources, and on the other hand, the integrity and timeliness of the inspection are difficult to guarantee, making water conservation supervision difficult. For example, the construction sites of pumped-storage power stations are mostly mountainous areas and deep mountain canyons. In the early stages of the project, some construction areas have inaccessible roads, making it inconvenient for water conservation supervisors to reach the site and difficult to obtain information from these stations. For another example, severe weather such as heavy rain and strong winds makes inspections impossible, and even inspectors encounter danger during the inspection process.

[0028] Furthermore, manual inspections are mainly conducted through observations with the naked eye and telescopes. Due to the large scale of the environment and the complex terrain, manual observations may not be able to see clearly sometimes, resulting in large errors. Some places are even difficult to observe, resulting in blind spots in monitoring and supervision. In addition, bad weather can significantly reduce the accuracy of manual inspection results.

[0029] Therefore, the present application provides an embodiment of a UAV inspection system for a pumped storage power station. Figure 1 is a framework diagram of the UAV inspection system of the pumped storage power station in the embodiment of the present application, such as Figure 1 As shown, the drone inspection system includes a drone aircraft 110 and a host computer 120. The drone aircraft 110 is in communication connection with the host computer 120, and the drone aircraft 110 is equipped with a TOF sensor 130, an image acquisition unit 140 and a control unit 150.

[0030] The control unit 150 is used to control the UAV aircraft 110 to fly along a planned path between a current position and a target position of the pumped-storage power station 160 .

[0031] The TOF sensor 130 is used to emit light to a target area where a target position is located, and receive light reflected by the target area to generate reflection signal data of the target area.

[0032] The image acquisition unit 140 is used to acquire images of the construction status of the pumped-storage power station 160 during the flight of the UAV 110 to obtain image data of the construction process of the pumped-storage power station.

[0033] The host computer 120 is used to receive the reflection signal data and the construction process image data, and construct a three-dimensional stereo model of the target area according to the reflection signal data and the construction process image data, wherein the three-dimensional stereo model is used to represent the on-site construction situation of the target area.

[0034] Among them, the unmanned aerial vehicle 110 can be some small unmanned aerial vehicles that the inspection personnel can carry with them; it can also be a slightly larger unmanned aerial vehicle that can be transported by a vehicle. The host computer 120 can be a PC or a laptop. The TOF sensor 130 can be a sensor using an infrared laser or LED light source. The image acquisition unit 140 can be an ordinary RGB camera, or an infrared camera or a multi-camera system. The control unit 150 can be the airborne control software of the unmanned aerial vehicle, and its functions mainly include two aspects. On the one hand, it realizes the coordination between the hardware modules of the unmanned aerial vehicle inspection system, and on the other hand, it controls the unmanned aerial vehicle to perform tasks such as autonomous cruise positioning, autonomous obstacle avoidance, autonomous landing, image or video data acquisition, and socket communication.

[0035] It is understandable that the UAV aircraft 110 and the host computer 120 in the UAV inspection system can communicate wirelessly. After the communication link is successfully established, the UAV aircraft 110 can report its own status information and data collected during the operation to the host computer 120 through the communication link, and the host computer 120 can also send control instructions or configuration parameters to the UAV aircraft 110 through the communication link.

[0036] It is understandable that when planning a path for the UAV aircraft 110, it is necessary to determine its starting position and target position. The starting position can be determined by taking the UAV to a designated location or remotely controlling it to fly over a designated location, and then obtaining the GPS information (such as longitude and latitude) of the location through a map coordinate picker as the current position. The target position of the UAV aircraft can be the geographical location of an area in the pumped-storage power station 160 that needs to be inspected or the construction site conditions need to be determined. Since the UAV aircraft 110 needs to fly from the current position to the target position, path planning is performed based on the current position and the target position of the pumped-storage power station 160 to obtain a planned path between the current position and the target position of the pumped-storage power station. The control unit 150 controls the UAV aircraft 110 to fly according to the planned path.

[0037] Please continue to see Figure 1Since the unmanned aerial vehicle 110 is equipped with a TOF sensor 130 and an image acquisition unit 140, the TOF sensor 130 and the image acquisition unit 140 are used to perform inspections during the flight of the unmanned aerial vehicle. On the one hand, the TOF sensor 130 emits light to the target area where the target position is located, and the target area reflects the emitted light. The TOF sensor 130 receives the light reflected by the target area and generates reflection signal data of the target area. The distance from the target area to the camera can be calculated based on the reflection signal data. On the other hand, during the flight of the unmanned aerial vehicle 110, the image acquisition unit 140 is used to shoot the construction status of the pumped-storage power station 160 to obtain image data of the construction process of the pumped-storage power station 160.

[0038] Further, since there is a communication connection between the UAV aircraft 110 and the host computer 120, the reflected signal data of the target area and the image data of the construction process of the pumped storage power station can be transmitted to the host computer 120. The host computer 120 receives the reflected signal data and the image data of the construction process, and constructs a three-dimensional model of the target area according to the reflected signal data and the image data of the construction process. The three-dimensional model of the target area can be displayed by the display device of the host computer 120 for the staff to view the on-site construction of the target area. It should be noted that the depth information of the scene can be obtained based on the reflected signal data, and the distance between objects can be accurately measured, so as to achieve more accurate environmental perception and recognition. The image acquisition unit can be a plurality of camera modules, such as RGB cameras, infrared cameras and depth sensors, so as to capture two-dimensional images. These sensor combinations can provide multi-level and multi-angle visual data, so as to better understand the three-dimensional structure of the construction of the pumped storage power station. The above data are transmitted to the host computer. Each frame of the image has a shooting time. The arrival time of the UAV to the target position is determined. Based on the arrival time, the image data of the target area is obtained from the image data of the pumped storage power station. The image data of the target area and the reflected signal data are composed to obtain a three-dimensional model of the target area.

[0039] In the above embodiment, the use of a drone inspection system to inspect the pumped-storage power station can effectively reduce the impact of rugged terrain and severe weather on the inspection work, improve the timeliness of inspections in the construction area, and reduce the probability of dangerous accidents involving inspection personnel; in addition, the host computer can construct a three-dimensional model of the target area based on the reflection signal data and construction process image data sent by the received drone aircraft, and the staff can use the three-dimensional model to monitor the target area more accurately.

[0040] In some embodiments, see Figure 2The UAV inspection system further includes a remote controller 210, through which the UAV aircraft 110 is connected to the host computer 120 for communication. The remote controller 210 is used to receive the reflection signal data and the image data, and send the reflection signal data and the image data to the host computer 120.

[0041] The remote controller 210 may be wirelessly connected to the host computer 120. The remote controller 210 may also be wired to the host computer 120. For example, a wired communication connection may be established between the remote controller 210 and the host computer 120 using an HDMI2VGA data cable and a VGA2USB video capture card.

[0042] Specifically, the UAV 110 is connected to the host computer 120 through the remote controller 210. The reflected signal data of the target area and the image data of the construction process of the pumped storage power station can be first transmitted to the remote controller 210, and the remote controller 210 then sends the reflected signal data of the target area and the image data of the construction process of the pumped storage power station to the host computer 120.

[0043] It is understandable that the remote control also has the function of controlling the unmanned aerial vehicle 110. For example, through the remote control 210, the operator can assist in controlling the flight direction, altitude, speed and other parameters of the unmanned aerial vehicle. In addition, the remote control 210 can also be used to set and execute tasks, such as presetting waypoints, automatic take-off and landing, and performing aerial photography.

[0044] In the above embodiment, the UAV inspection system is used to inspect the pumped storage power station. The host computer can receive the reflection signal data and construction process image data sent by the UAV aircraft through the remote control, and then construct a three-dimensional model of the target area. The on-site construction status of the target area can be displayed to the staff through the display device of the host computer. The operator can also send instructions to the UAV aircraft through the remote control, which plays a more flexible auxiliary or adjustment role in its inspection process.

[0045] In some embodiments, the UAV aircraft is also equipped with a first positioning unit and a second positioning unit, and the positioning accuracy of the second positioning unit is higher than that of the first positioning unit; the first positioning unit and the second positioning unit are used to determine the positioning information of the UAV aircraft; the control unit is also used to perform autonomous cruise positioning of the UAV aircraft based on the positioning information and the planned path.

[0046] Among them, the first positioning unit can be a GPS module. While achieving precise positioning, the GPS module can also receive navigation positioning signals sent by navigation satellites, and use navigation satellites as dynamic knowledge points to measure the in-flight position and speed of the unmanned aerial vehicle 110 in real time, thereby completing navigation. The GPS module is mainly used for general precision positioning of the pumped storage power station environment, with a positioning accuracy of meters. The second positioning unit can be an RTK module, which provides centimeter-level or even sub-centimeter-level high-precision positioning capabilities for the unmanned aerial vehicle 110 through real-time differential data transmission between the base station and the unmanned aerial vehicle 110.

[0047] It is understandable that different positioning modules can be used in different tasks. For example, when the UAV aircraft 110 is in a relatively open area in a pumped storage power station, the control unit 150 carried thereon can use the positioning function provided by the GPS module to perform autonomous cruise positioning according to the positioning information and the planned path. After reaching the target location, when it is necessary to conduct precise inspection and aerial photography of the target area, the control unit 150 can use the positioning function provided by the RTK module for high-precision positioning to achieve the required observation of the target from different angles and distances.

[0048] In the above embodiment, the UAV aircraft can provide more flexible positioning options by being equipped with two different positioning modules, especially using a high-precision second positioning unit when inspecting the target area, which can enhance the accuracy of the UAV's positioning during the inspection process and further ensure the accuracy of the target inspection.

[0049] In some embodiments, the flight area of ​​the UAV aircraft is discretized into nodes representing the flight position; the control unit is also used to determine, for any node in the surrounding nodes of the UAV aircraft, a first estimated value data between any node and the starting node of the UAV aircraft, and a second estimated value data between any node and the target node of the UAV aircraft if there are multiple autonomous avoidance paths, and determine the optimal node among the surrounding nodes based on the first estimated value data and the second estimated value data.

[0050] It is understandable that the first valuation data is used to evaluate the relationship between any node in the surrounding area and the starting node of the unmanned aerial vehicle 110. The second valuation data is used to evaluate the relationship between any node in the surrounding area and the target node of the unmanned aerial vehicle 110. Exemplarily, when there are multiple autonomous avoidance paths, the control unit 150 carried by the unmanned aerial vehicle performs weighted processing on the first valuation data and the second valuation data to obtain weighted post-valuation data, and determines the optimal node among the surrounding nodes based on the weighted post-valuation data. It should be noted that the weights of the first valuation data and the second valuation data may be equal or unequal.

[0051] In some embodiments, the control unit is further used to sum the first estimated value data and the second estimated value data to obtain the estimated value data of any node, and determine the node with the smallest estimated value data as the optimal node.

[0052] The control unit 150 may use the B* algorithm when evaluating the node. The B* algorithm is a heuristic path search algorithm. The B* path finding algorithm can provide multiple real-time path planning for the UAV to achieve autonomous avoidance in the air. The valuation function used is as follows:

[0053] F(n)=G(n)+H(n)

[0054] G(n) represents the actual distance from the starting node to any node, and H(n) represents the estimated value of the distance from any node to the target node. The estimated value of the surrounding nodes that can be selected in the next step is calculated through the function F(n). After comparison, the node with the smallest estimated value is selected. This node is the node to be taken in the next step, that is, the optimal node.

[0055] It should be noted that the B* pathfinding algorithm is also called the "Branch Star" pathfinding algorithm. Compared with the A* algorithm (A Star algorithm, a very commonly used path finding and graph traversal algorithm), the B* algorithm can plan multiple paths and can be regarded as an upgraded and optimized version of the A* algorithm. By introducing the B* algorithm in computer programs, the problem that the server side of a specific program cannot perform effective pathfinding has been solved to a certain extent. Unless the server side has its own independent processing route, it is impossible to allow a large amount of time to be used for pathfinding exploration on the server side, even the A* algorithm, which is generally considered by the industry to be the best pathfinding algorithm. After testing and comparison, the efficiency of the B* algorithm is much higher than that of the A* algorithm, which is dozens or even hundreds of times that of the ordinary A* algorithm.

[0056] In the above embodiment, the UAV aircraft adopts the B* algorithm when planning the path. Since the B* algorithm can perform multiple path planning with high efficiency, it can enable the UAV aircraft to perform real-time path planning and adjust the cruise path relatively quickly when encountering complex environmental influences such as obstacles during the inspection of the pumped storage power station.

[0057] In some embodiments, the flight area of ​​the UAV aircraft is discretized into nodes representing the flight position; the nodes have a marking attribute, which is used to describe whether there are obstacles at the node; the control unit is also used to move from the starting node of the UAV aircraft to the target node of the UAV aircraft. During the moving process, path search is performed according to the marking attributes of the nodes to construct the optimal path.

[0058] It is understandable that when the UAV aircraft 110 needs to perform real-time path planning, the control unit 150 will search for the optimal node among the surrounding nodes and needs to evaluate it according to the node's marking attributes. For example, if the attributes of a node are marked with the presence of an obstacle, the node will not be considered to be the optimal node, and no other evaluation will be made on the node; if the attributes of a node are marked with the absence of an obstacle, other evaluations will be made on whether the node can become the optimal node. For example, the control unit determines the node where the obstacle exists based on the node's marking attributes, plans N paths in the flight area that can avoid the obstacle area, and determines the optimal path among the N paths based on the number of nodes passed by each path in the N paths.

[0059] In some embodiments, the control unit is also used to move forward if there is no obstacle at the front node, and if there is an obstacle at the front node, plan a first branch path and a second branch path based on the front node to bypass the obstacle, and after bypassing the obstacle, continue to determine whether there is an obstacle.

[0060] Exemplarily, when the UAV aircraft 110 needs to perform real-time path planning, the control unit 150 uses the B* algorithm to search for surrounding nodes.

[0061] like Figure 3 As shown, the UAV aircraft 110 takes off from the starting node 0. When judging the next grid at nodes 0, 1, and 2, there is no obstacle, so it can move forward one grid; at node 3, it is judged that there is an obstacle in the next grid, so two branch paths are planned in the left and right directions, that is, the first branch path 4->5->6->7 and the second branch path 4->5->6->7->8->9->10 can bypass the obstacle. After bypassing the obstacle, continue to judge whether there is an obstacle according to the above method.

[0062] In some embodiments, the control unit is further used to determine that the optimal path is successfully found when it is determined that the current node is the target node.

[0063] Exemplarily, if the control unit 150 determines that the current node is the target node, it can be determined that the optimal path is found successfully, and then the path composed of all optimal nodes determined during the search process is determined as a complete optimal path, and the UAV aircraft 110 is controlled to fly to the target location along the complete optimal path.

[0064] In some embodiments, pumped storage power station inspection software is deployed in the host computer, and the pumped storage power station inspection software includes a presentation layer, a business logic layer, a data access layer and a Socket communication layer.

[0065] like Figure 4As shown, the role of the presentation layer of the pumped storage power station patrol software is mainly to realize the human-computer interaction of the system, so that users can operate the functions in the software on the interface. The role of the business logic layer is mainly to perform map positioning, such as locating the patrol area or the position of the unmanned aerial vehicle 110 on the map according to the latitude and longitude information. The role of the data access layer is mainly to process system-related data, such as data related to each cruise mission. Newly generated data can be stored in the database through the data access layer, and historical data can also be queried through the data access layer. The socket communication layer, that is, the socket communication layer, is used for data transmission between the host computer 120 and the unmanned aerial vehicle 110. For example, the data transmission from the host computer 120 to the unmanned aerial vehicle 110 adopts TCP sockets, and the data transmission from the unmanned aerial vehicle 110 to the host computer 120 adopts UDP sockets.

[0066] In some embodiments, the pumped-storage power station patrol software is used for at least one of creating new patrol missions, real-time display of video images, instant video operation, drone map positioning display, drone status data display, drone aircraft control, drone cruise parameter setting, data storage and reading, and time management.

[0067] It is understandable that the inspection software of the pumped storage power station in the upper computer can manage the inspection tasks of the pumped storage power station, including the addition, modification and deletion of the patrol tasks; when the unmanned aerial vehicle 110 performs the patrol task, the user can view the captured images or videos in real time in the patrol software, and can also perform some immediate operations, such as saving or marking important information; the real-time position of the unmanned aerial vehicle 110 can be displayed on the map of the patrol software, so that the user can view the progress of the patrol task; the status data of the unmanned aerial vehicle can be displayed in the system, such as altitude, speed, heading, etc.; the user can control the flight of the unmanned aerial vehicle or set the cruise parameters through the patrol software, so as to assist or adjust the autonomous flight of the unmanned aerial vehicle to a certain extent according to the real-time information in the cruise; the image data and other patrol information captured during the patrol can be stored, and the historical data can be read. In addition, there is a time management module that allows users to formulate and arrange a schedule for patrol tasks.

[0068] In the above embodiment, the pumped storage power station inspection software provides a series of functions, which can facilitate users to manage the inspection tasks of drones through the software. Furthermore, during the drone inspection process, users can monitor the on-site conditions of the construction area in real time and adjust the drone tasks, parameters, etc. when necessary. Through the software, the flight path, flight parameters and video image data of the drone inspection can be saved for subsequent analysis and reference by the user. The software enables users to greatly improve the quality and efficiency of performing inspection tasks.

[0069] The systems, devices, modules or units described in the above embodiments may be implemented by computer chips or entities, or by products with certain functions. A typical implementation device is a computer. Specifically, the computer may be, for example, a personal computer, a laptop computer, a cellular phone, a camera phone, a smart phone, a personal digital assistant, a media player, a navigation device, an email device, a game console, a tablet computer, a wearable device, or a combination of any of these devices.

[0070] For the convenience of description, the above device is described in various units according to their functions. Of course, when implementing the present application, the functions of each unit can be implemented in the same or multiple software and / or hardware.

[0071] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the embodiments of the present application may be provided as methods, systems, or computer program products. Therefore, the present application may adopt the form of a complete hardware embodiment, a complete software embodiment, or an embodiment in combination with software and hardware. Moreover, the present application may adopt the form of a computer program product implemented in one or more computer-usable storage media (including but not limited to disk storage, CD-ROM, optical storage, etc.) that include computer-usable program code.

[0072] The present application is described with reference to the flowcharts and / or block diagrams of the methods, devices (systems), and computer program products according to the embodiments of the present application. It should be understood that each process and / or box in the flowchart and / or block diagram, as well as the combination of the processes and / or boxes in the flowchart and / or block diagram, can be implemented by computer program instructions. These computer program instructions can be provided to a processor of a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, an embedded processor, or other programmable data processing device to generate a machine, so that the instructions executed by the processor of the computer or other programmable data processing device generate instructions for implementing the processes in the flowchart and / or block diagram. Figure 1 A process or multiple processes and / or boxes Figure 1 A device that provides the functions specified in a block or multiple blocks.

[0073] These computer program instructions may also be stored in a computer-readable memory capable of directing a computer or other programmable data processing device to operate in a specific manner, so that the instructions stored in the computer-readable memory produce an article of manufacture comprising an instruction device, which implements the process Figure 1 A process or multiple processes and / or boxes Figure 1 A function specified in one or more boxes.

[0074] These computer program instructions can also be loaded onto a computer or other programmable data processing device so that a series of operating steps are executed on the computer or other programmable device to produce a computer-implemented process, thereby providing instructions for implementing the process. Figure 1 A process or multiple processes and / or boxes Figure 1 The steps for the functions specified in one or more boxes.

[0075] It should also be noted that the terms "include", "comprises" or any other variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, so that a process, method, commodity or device including a series of elements includes not only those elements, but also other elements not explicitly listed, or also includes elements inherent to such process, method, commodity or device. In the absence of more restrictions, the elements defined by the sentence "comprises a ..." do not exclude the existence of other identical elements in the process, method, commodity or device including the elements.

[0076] Each embodiment in this specification is described in a progressive manner, and the same or similar parts between the embodiments can be referred to each other, and each embodiment focuses on the differences from other embodiments. In particular, for the system embodiment, since it is basically similar to the method embodiment, the description is relatively simple, and the relevant parts can be referred to the partial description of the method embodiment.

[0077] The above is only an embodiment of the present application and is not intended to limit the present application. For those skilled in the art, the present application may have various changes and variations. Any modification, equivalent replacement, improvement, etc. made within the spirit and principle of the present application should be included in the scope of the claims of the present application.

[0078] Although the embodiments of the present application have been described in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, those skilled in the art may make various modifications and variations without departing from the spirit and scope of the present application, and such modifications and variations are all within the scope defined by the appended claims.

Claims

1. A UAV inspection system for a pumped storage power station, characterized in that: The unmanned aerial vehicle inspection system comprises an unmanned aerial vehicle and a host computer, wherein the unmanned aerial vehicle is communicatively connected with the host computer, and the unmanned aerial vehicle is equipped with a TOF sensor, an image acquisition unit and a control unit; wherein: The control unit is used to control the UAV aircraft to fly along a planned path between a current position and a target position of the pumped-storage power station; The TOF sensor is used to transmit light to a target area of ​​the pumped-storage power station, receive light reflected from the target area, and generate reflection signal data of the target area; The image acquisition unit is used to acquire images of the construction status of the target area of ​​the pumped-storage power station during the flight of the UAV aircraft, so as to obtain image data of the construction process of the pumped-storage power station; The host computer is used to receive the reflection signal data and the construction process image data, and construct a three-dimensional stereo model of the target area according to the reflection signal data and the construction process image data, wherein the three-dimensional stereo model is used to characterize the on-site construction conditions of the target area.

2. The system according to claim 1, characterized in that The UAV inspection system further includes a remote controller, through which the UAV aircraft is communicatively connected to the host computer; The remote controller is used to receive the reflection signal data and the image data, and send the reflection signal data and the image data to the host computer.

3. The system according to claim 1, characterized in that The UAV aircraft is also equipped with a first positioning unit and a second positioning unit, and the positioning accuracy of the second positioning unit is higher than the positioning accuracy of the first positioning unit; The first positioning unit and the second positioning unit are used to determine the positioning information of the UAV aircraft; The control unit is also used to perform autonomous cruising positioning on the UAV aircraft according to the positioning information and the planned path.

4. The system according to claim 1, characterized in that The flight area of ​​the UAV aircraft is discretized into nodes representing the flight position; the control unit is also used to determine, for any node in the surrounding nodes of the UAV aircraft, a first estimated value data between the any node and the starting node of the UAV aircraft, and a second estimated value data between the any node and the target node of the UAV aircraft if there are multiple autonomous avoidance paths, and determine the optimal node among the surrounding nodes based on the first estimated value data and the second estimated value data.

5. The system according to claim 4, characterized in that The control unit is further configured to sum the first estimated value data and the second estimated value data to obtain the estimated value data of any node, and determine the node with the smallest estimated value data as the optimal node.

6. The system according to claim 1, characterized in that The flight area of ​​the UAV aircraft is discretized into nodes representing the flight position; the nodes have a tag attribute, and the tag attribute is used to describe whether there is an obstacle at the node; The control unit is also used to advance from the starting node of the UAV aircraft to the target node of the UAV aircraft. During the advancement process, path search is performed according to the marking attributes of the nodes to construct an optimal path.

7. The system according to claim 6, characterized in that The control unit is also used to move forward if there is no obstacle at the front node, and if there is an obstacle at the front node, plan a first branch path and a second branch path based on the front node to bypass the obstacle, and after bypassing the obstacle, continue to determine whether there is an obstacle.

8. The system according to claim 6, characterized in that The control unit is further configured to determine that the optimal path is successfully found when it is determined that the current node is the target node.

9. The system according to any one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that: The upper computer is deployed with pumped storage power station inspection software, and the pumped storage power station inspection software includes a presentation layer, a business logic layer, a data access layer and a Socket communication layer.

10. The system according to claim 9, characterized in that The pumped storage power station patrol software is used for at least one of creating new patrol missions, real-time display of video images, instant video operation, drone map positioning display, drone status data display, drone aircraft control, drone patrol parameter setting, data storage and reading, and time management.

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