Yaw-Adjustable Camera Pod for UAV PID During Target Approach
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Solution Overview
Problem
Small unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) face challenges in maintaining a positive identification (PID) of a target while turning and approaching, as existing methods require significant time and expose the aircraft to detection risks, and may result in losing sight of the target during maneuvers.
Innovation Solution
The UAV system incorporates a camera pod that can vary its orientation in yaw, allowing the camera to maintain a PID of the target while the aircraft turns its velocity vector towards the target, using control surfaces to ensure the target remains within the camera's field of view, enabling sharper turns and maintaining PID throughout the approach.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Speed
If the UAV performs traditional outbound-and-inbound maneuvers to approach the target, then the aircraft can reduce altitude and turn velocity vector toward the target, but the aircraft loses sight of the target and must reestablish PID
Solution Approach 1:
The camera pod is made dynamically adjustable in yaw orientation relative to the aircraft body, allowing it to independently rotate to track the target during aircraft maneuvers. This dynamic adjustment enables the camera to maintain PID on the target while the aircraft performs sharp turns and approaches, resolving the contradiction between approach speed and PID maintenance.
Solution Approach 2:
The camera pod acts as an intermediary element between the aircraft and the target, providing independent rotational capability to maintain visual contact. By decoupling the camera's orientation from the aircraft's flight path through this intermediary mechanism, the system can execute aggressive maneuvers while continuously tracking the target.
2Reliability
If the UAV flies in a loitering pattern around the target to maintain PID, then the aircraft can establish legitimacy, but the approach time is extended and exposure to detection increases
Solution Approach 1:
The dynamically adjustable camera pod allows the UAV to transition from conservative loitering patterns to aggressive direct approaches while maintaining PID. The camera's independent yaw rotation capability enables the aircraft to turn sharply toward the target without losing visual contact, significantly reducing approach time while maintaining reliability of target identification.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the operational parameter of camera orientation from fixed to variable, allowing real-time adjustment of the camera's yaw angle. This parameter change enables the UAV to maintain PID during high-speed approaches and sharp turns, eliminating the need for extended loitering and reducing overall mission time.
3Loss of time
If the UAV performs sharp turns to approach the target quickly, then the approach time is reduced, but the aircraft may lose sight of the target in fixed camera configurations
Solution Approach 1:
The camera pod's dynamic yaw adjustment capability allows it to compensate for sharp aircraft turns by rotating independently to keep the target in view. This dynamic tracking enables the UAV to perform aggressive maneuvers for rapid approach while maintaining continuous PID on the target.
Solution Approach 2:
The camera pod serves as an intermediary that decouples the aircraft's maneuvering from the camera's line-of-sight requirements. By providing independent rotational freedom, this intermediary mechanism enables sharp turns without compromising target acquisition or PID maintenance.
4Device complexity
If the UAV uses a fixed camera configuration, then the system complexity is minimized, but the aircraft cannot maintain PID during turns and maneuvers
Solution Approach 1:
The system introduces minimal dynamic complexity by adding a camera pod with yaw rotation capability. This single degree of freedom dynamic adjustment provides significant functional improvement, enabling PID maintenance during maneuvers while adding relatively little complexity compared to full gimbal systems.
Solution Approach 2:
The camera system transitions from a fixed parameter configuration to a variable parameter configuration, where the yaw angle can be adjusted in real-time. This parameter change enables the system to maintain PID during aircraft maneuvers while keeping the overall system relatively simple and cost-effective.
Data Source
AI summary
An aircraft including a wing system, a plurality of control surfaces, a camera mounted on a camera pod, and a control system. The camera pod is configured to vary the orientation of the camera field of view only in yaw, relative to the aircraft, between a directly forward-looking orientation and a side-looking orientation. The control system controls the control surfaces such that they induce a significant aircraft yaw causing an identified target to be within the field of view of the camera with the camera in the directly forward-looking orientation.