Autonomous Drone Camera Control for Dynamic Multi-View Capture
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current drone control systems require extensive user practice to operate effectively and limit image or video quality, and auto-follow features are restrictive, capturing only single views of individuals rather than groups or dynamic scenes.
Innovation Solution
An aerial system with a processing system that establishes a desired flight trajectory, detects targets, and controls the drone and camera to capture images or videos, allowing for autonomous operation without manual remote control interaction, enabling dynamic camera movements and group or scene capture.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If manual remote control is used to operate the drone, then the user can control the drone and camera, but the user requires extensive practice to become proficient and the image quality is limited by user skill
Solution Approach 1:
The system enables autonomous operation where the drone and camera control themselves without requiring user expertise. The processing system automatically manages flight trajectory, camera positioning, and capture timing, allowing the system to serve itself and eliminating the need for user practice while maintaining high image quality
Solution Approach 2:
The system pre-establishes flight trajectories and camera control parameters before operation. By planning the flight path and camera movements in advance, the system ensures professional-quality results without requiring the user to have expertise in real-time control
2Ease of operation
If auto-follow feature is used to automatically capture pictures and video, then the drone automatically follows the user, but the resulting pictures and video are limited to single views and fixed distances
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically adjusts flight trajectory and camera positioning during operation. Instead of fixed follow-mode parameters, the drone continuously adapts its position, altitude, and camera angle to capture diverse perspectives including aerial views, tracking shots, and group formations, transforming static auto-follow into dynamic multi-view photography
Solution Approach 2:
The system adds vertical and diagonal dimensions to the capture geometry by utilizing aerial flight capabilities. The drone captures images from above, below, and at various angles, creating three-dimensional viewing perspectives that ground-based cameras cannot achieve, thereby expanding from single-view to multi-dimensional photography
3Reliability
If auto-follow feature is used, then the drone locks onto one person, but it does not work well for capturing images of groups of people or dynamic scenes
Solution Approach 1:
The system is designed to perform multiple functions: it can track individual subjects, capture groups, follow moving objects, and adapt to various scene types. The processing system automatically detects and switches between different capture modes based on the scene, making the drone universally applicable for both portrait and landscape photography without requiring manual reconfiguration
Data Source
AI summary
An aerial system, including a processing system, an optical system, an actuation system and a lift mechanism, includes an autonomous photography and/or videography system 70, implemented, at least in part, by the processing system 22, the optical system 26, the actuation system 28 and the lift mechanism 32. The autonomous photograph and/or videography system performs the steps of establishing a desired flight trajectory, detecting a target, controlling the flight of the aerial system as a function of the desired flight trajectory relative to the target using the lift mechanism and controlling the camera to capture pictures and/or video.