Autonomous Drone Charging via Onboard Power Source Detection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing drone systems lack the ability to autonomously detect and connect to various power sources within a property for recharging, limiting their operational range and reliability without additional user or installer effort.
Innovation Solution
A base station-less drone equipped with onboard sensors and memory recall capabilities to identify and connect to power sources like outlets, current-carrying wires, or sunlight, using visual data and environmental factors to determine stable charging locations and prioritize power sources based on user-configurable rules and availability.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a drone uses a base station for charging, then charging reliability is improved, but device complexity and user effort increase
Solution Approach 1:
The drone autonomously detects power sources using onboard sensors, navigates to them, and establishes charging connections without requiring a base station or user intervention. The system performs self-service by independently identifying outlets, analyzing their availability through image processing, and executing charging operations autonomously
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the mechanical base station charging system with an automated sensing and navigation system. The drone uses cameras, image processing algorithms, and autonomous flight control to substitute the physical infrastructure of a base station with intelligent software-based detection and decision-making capabilities
2Adaptability or versatility
If a drone autonomously detects power sources using onboard sensors, then adaptability is improved, but measurement precision and detection difficulty increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an image processing system as an intermediary between the drone's camera and the power source detection. The system captures images of outlets, processes them through algorithmic analysis to identify availability and characteristics, and uses this processed information to guide charging decisions, thereby simplifying the detection task
Solution Approach 2:
The system creates a digital representation or copy of the physical outlet through image capture and processing. This virtual model allows the drone to analyze outlet characteristics, determine availability, and plan charging operations without directly interacting with the physical outlet until the final connection phase
3Adaptability or versatility
If the drone lands on walls or surfaces for charging, then adaptability is improved, but stability and safety requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies different attachment mechanisms tailored to specific surface types. The drone equips itself with suction cups for smooth vertical surfaces like walls, friction-increasing pads for various textures, and adjusts its attachment strategy based on the local characteristics of the surface it encounters, thereby ensuring reliable charging on diverse locations
Data Source
AI summary
Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on computer-storage media, for drones. In some implementations, a method may include obtaining an image of an electrical device; determining a power source of the electrical device based on the image of the electrical device; determining whether the power source of the electrical device is capable of charging a drone based on the image of the electrical device; and based on determining that the power source of the electrical device is capable of charging the drone based on the image of the electrical device, charging the drone with the power source.