UAV Imaging Angle Control for Privacy-Aware Surveillance
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Solution Overview
Problem
Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) often capture unauthorized images or videos of adjacent properties, raising privacy concerns and violating the privacy interests of adjacent property owners.
Innovation Solution
The UAVs are equipped with on-board circuitry and imaging devices that dynamically adjust altitude and viewing angles to exclude adjacent properties from surveillance imagery, using algorithms to calculate new angles and positions to align the field of view below boundary objects, and apply digital masks to obscure or erase captured images of adjacent properties.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Area of stationary object
If the UAV captures wide-area surveillance imagery, then the coverage area is improved, but adjacent properties are inadvertently included causing privacy violations
Solution Approach 1:
The system applies different quality treatments to different regions of the captured image. The primary property area receives full surveillance coverage while adjacent property areas are selectively obscured using digital masking techniques, allowing the same imaging system to serve multiple privacy requirements simultaneously
Solution Approach 2:
The system extracts and isolates the adjacent property regions from the main surveillance area by identifying boundary objects and calculating specific exclusion zones. These extracted regions are then separately processed through obscuration algorithms to remove them from the surveillance output
2Device complexity
If the UAV uses fixed viewing angles, then the device complexity is reduced, but the ability to exclude adjacent properties from imagery is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The system transitions from static, fixed viewing angles to dynamic, adjustable viewing angles that can be modified in real-time based on detected boundary objects and adjacent property locations. The imaging device rotates and adjusts its field of view to align exclusion boundaries with property lines while maintaining surveillance of the primary area
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes key imaging parameters including viewing angle, altitude, and field of view boundaries based on processed image data and detected boundary objects. These parameter adjustments allow the same hardware to adapt to different property configurations and privacy requirements without physical modification
3Measurement precision
If the UAV flies at lower altitude to improve image resolution, then the imaging precision is improved, but the field of view decreases causing more adjacent properties to be captured
Solution Approach 1:
The system solves the resolution-area tradeoff by transitioning from a two-dimensional field of view constraint to a three-dimensional solution using digital masking. Instead of relying solely on geometric field of view limitations, the system captures images at appropriate resolutions and then selectively obscures adjacent property regions through post-processing, effectively adding a digital dimension to boundary control
Data Source
AI summary
Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on a computer storage medium, are described for performing privacy-aware surveillance with a security camera drone. The drone obtains image data using an imaging device and processes the image data to detect an object external to the drone. In response to processing the image data, the drone determines multiple viewing angles indicated in the image data with respect to the object. Based on the image data and the multiple viewing angles, a first section of the area for surveillance and a second, different section of the area to be excluded from surveillance are identified. The drone determines an adjustment to at least one of the multiple viewing angles to cause the second section to be excluded from surveillance. Based on the adjustment, the drone controls the imaging device to exclude the second section from surveillance imagery obtained by the drone.