UAV Return Flight Control with Alternate Landing Selection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) face challenges in safely returning to a preset return point due to limitations in battery power, navigation accuracy, flight control accuracy, or environmental conditions, which can result in unsafe landing locations such as a paddy field or water.
Innovation Solution
A return flight control method and device that evaluates flight conditions and allows the UAV to either return to a preset return point or an alternate landing area based on predefined requirements, ensuring safety and flexibility by using return-flight-evaluation information to determine the appropriate destination.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the UAV returns to the preset return point, then the return flight is simple and direct, but the landing safety cannot be guaranteed due to battery power limitations, navigation accuracy issues, or environmental conditions
Solution Approach 1:
The system pre-calculates and designates alternate landing areas before the return flight begins. When the return point becomes unsafe, the UAV can immediately transition to a pre-planned alternate location, avoiding the need for complex real-time decision-making during the critical landing phase
Solution Approach 2:
The control server acts as an intermediary between the UAV and the landing decision-making process. It receives real-time evaluation information, determines whether the return point is safe, and instructs the UAV to either return to the original point or switch to an alternate area, centralizing the complexity in a dedicated system rather than the UAV itself
2Reliability
If the UAV uses preset return point without evaluation, then the flight control is simple, but the landing location may be unsafe due to changing environmental conditions or resource limitations
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements real-time feedback by continuously monitoring battery power levels, navigation accuracy, and environmental conditions during the return flight. This feedback loop allows the system to dynamically adjust the landing decision, switching to an alternate area only when necessary based on actual resource consumption and safety conditions
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the destination parameter dynamically based on real-time conditions. When battery power is sufficient and conditions are favorable, the return point remains the target. When parameters indicate unsafe conditions (low battery, poor navigation, adverse environment), the system changes the target to an alternate landing area with more favorable parameters
3Reliability
If the UAV implements real-time evaluation and switches to alternate landing area, then the landing safety is improved, but the flight control complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The UAV system performs self-evaluation of its return flight conditions by monitoring its own battery power, navigation status, and sensor data. The control server automatically processes this information and makes landing decisions without requiring manual pilot intervention, making the complex safety evaluation transparent to the operator while maintaining simple operation
Data Source
AI summary
A return flight control method includes obtaining return-flight-evaluation information in a return flight mode, controlling an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) to return to an alternate landing area in response to that the return-flight-evaluation information satisfies a preset requirement, and controlling the UAV to return to a return point in response to that the return-flight-evaluation information does not satisfy the preset requirement.