UAV Sensor Array Control for Confined-Space Obstacle Navigation
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Solution Overview
Problem
There is a need for a cost-effective and efficient means to control and maneuver unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) within confined aerospace, such as gaps between buildings or within enclosures, and to accurately deliver items to customers' locations, as existing UAVs face challenges with navigation and stability in constrained areas.
Innovation Solution
The system employs sensor arrays mounted on UAVs to determine flight paths, using imaging devices and distance measurement devices to perceive objects and calculate spatial relationships, allowing for navigation around obstacles. This includes a tethered system with a base station for power and data transfer, enabling stable flight and collision avoidance through thrust vectoring and bumper systems, and utilizes onboard processors and external flight management systems for control.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If UAVs use traditional navigation systems, then they can operate in open spaces, but they cannot accurately maneuver within constrained areas or navigate in proximity to objects
Solution Approach 1:
The navigation system is segmented into multiple sensor arrays positioned at different locations on the UAV, each providing a field of view in different directions (at least 3 directions at least 90 degrees apart). This segmentation allows the system to perceive objects in multiple directions simultaneously, enabling accurate navigation in constrained areas while maintaining reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent adds spatial dimensionality to navigation by positioning sensor arrays to provide 360-degree or near-360-degree coverage. Instead of relying on a single forward-facing sensor, the system incorporates sensors viewing in multiple dimensions (front, back, sides), allowing the UAV to detect and avoid obstacles in all directions, thus improving adaptability to constrained environments while maintaining maneuvering accuracy.
2Duration of action of moving object
If UAVs operate without tethered power systems, then they have shorter flight times, but tethered systems enable extended flight durations
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a tether as an intermediary element that connects the UAV to a ground-based power system. This tether serves multiple functions: it provides continuous power supply to extend flight time, and can also serve as a communication channel. The intermediary tether resolves the contradiction by enabling extended duration operation while the ground-based power system handles the complexity of power management.
Solution Approach 2:
The tether system is designed to serve multiple functions simultaneously: it provides electrical power transmission, data communication, and can serve as a physical constraint for safety. This multi-functionality allows the system to achieve extended flight time while managing system complexity through a single integrated component rather than separate systems for each function.
3Reliability
If UAVs use basic collision avoidance systems, then they can avoid major obstacles, but they cannot ensure safety in confined spaces with multiple objects
Solution Approach 1:
The collision avoidance system is segmented into multiple independent sensor arrays positioned to view different directions. Each sensor array independently monitors its field of view and detects objects in its sector. This segmentation allows comprehensive obstacle detection in confined spaces while distributing the computational complexity across multiple simple sensor units rather than requiring a single complex system.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements continuous feedback by constantly monitoring sensor data from all directions and adjusting the UAV's flight path in real-time. When objects are detected in any direction, the control system processes the spatial relationships and generates corrective signals to avoid collisions. This continuous feedback loop ensures high reliability in collision avoidance while the automated nature of the feedback reduces the need for complex manual control systems.
Data Source
AI summary
A method for controlling an unmanned aerial vehicle within a flight operating space. The unmanned aerial vehicle includes one or more sensor arrays on each spar. The method includes determining, using a plurality of sensor arrays, a flight path for the unmanned aerial vehicle. The method also includes receiving, by at least one sensor array of the plurality of sensor arrays, sensor data identifying at least one object in the operating space. The sensor data is transmitted over a communications bus connecting components of the UAV. The method further includes determining, by one or more processors onboard the unmanned aerial vehicle, a flight path around the at least one object. The method also includes generating, by the one or more onboard processors, a first signal to cause the unmanned aerial vehicle to navigate within the operating space around the at least one object.