Autonomous Subject Tracking Using a Dynamic Virtual Sphere Radius
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing systems for tracking a moving subject using remote controlled vehicles are cumbersome and prone to losing track when the subject moves unexpectedly.
Innovation Solution
A vehicle equipped with a camera, a radius generator, and a vehicle controller interface, which dynamically generates a virtual sphere around the vehicle based on velocity data and camera configuration data, and controls the vehicle to move towards a target position within the sphere.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If user control is used to follow the moving subject, then the vehicle can be controlled to capture images, but the operation becomes cumbersome and the subject may be lost when moving unexpectedly
Solution Approach 1:
The system enables autonomous tracking where the vehicle automatically follows the moving subject without requiring continuous user input. The radius generator and vehicle controller work together to self-adjust the vehicle's position and movement, allowing the subject to be tracked reliably even when moving unexpectedly, while eliminating the cumbersome nature of manual control.
2Reliability
If the vehicle autonomously tracks the subject, then tracking reliability improves, but the system complexity increases due to additional components
Solution Approach 1:
The vehicle controller serves multiple functions: it processes velocity data from sensors, receives camera configuration data, generates the virtual sphere radius, determines target positions, and controls vehicle movement. By making the vehicle controller multi-functional, the patent avoids adding separate dedicated components for each function, thereby maintaining tracking reliability while minimizing system complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent combines the radius generation function and target position determination function within the existing vehicle controller architecture. Instead of adding separate modules for radius calculation and target positioning, these functions are merged into the vehicle controller, which already handles vehicle navigation and control, thus reducing overall system complexity while achieving autonomous tracking.
3Speed
If the vehicle moves quickly to follow the subject, then tracking responsiveness improves, but image quality may deteriorate due to motion blur
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically adjusts the vehicle speed based on real-time conditions. The vehicle controller monitors the subject's movement and adjusts the vehicle's velocity accordingly, allowing faster movement when the subject is stationary or moving slowly, and slower movement when the subject makes abrupt changes in direction. This dynamic speed adjustment maintains tracking responsiveness while minimizing motion blur for better image quality.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the velocity parameter dynamically based on tracking conditions. The vehicle controller adjusts the speed parameter according to the subject's movement patterns and the current tracking situation, optimizing the balance between responsive tracking and image quality by using higher speeds when possible and lower speeds when image quality is critical.
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed is a configuration of an autonomous vehicle for autonomously following a moving subject based on a radius of a virtual sphere surrounding the autonomous vehicle. The autonomous vehicle may be an unmanned ground vehicle or an unmanned aerial vehicle, which autonomously follows the subject (e.g., a device, a live entity, or any object) based on the virtual sphere. The radius of the virtual sphere may be dynamically configured according to a velocity of the autonomous vehicle or configurations of a camera coupled to the autonomous vehicle. Accordingly, the autonomous vehicle can follow the subject along a smooth trajectory, and capture images of abrupt movements of the subject in a cinematically pleasing manner.