UAV Sensor Synchronization via Identifiable Signals
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Solution Overview
Problem
Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) face challenges in synchronizing data from multiple sensors, leading to potential misinterpretation by sense-and-avoid controllers and hindering object avoidance due to non-synchronized data from visual and audio sensors.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a synchronization event that generates identifiable signals simultaneously, allowing sensors to collect and synchronize data in real-time, with a synchronization event component generating audio, visual, or physical outputs, and an event detection component processing these signals to adjust timestamps for synchronization.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If multiple sensors collect data independently with their own timestamps, then each sensor can operate autonomously and collect data continuously, but the data from different sensors becomes non-synchronized leading to misinterpretation by controllers
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a synchronization event component as an intermediary that generates identifiable synchronization signals (such as acoustic, visual, or electromagnetic signals) that are detectable by multiple sensors simultaneously. This mediator enables timestamp correlation across independent sensors without requiring complex inter-sensor communication or coordination systems, thus improving data synchronization while maintaining sensor autonomy.
2Reliability
If sensors operate independently without synchronization, then the system is simpler and easier to operate, but the sense-and-avoid controller cannot reliably interpret data leading to hindered object avoidance
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements self-service synchronization where sensors automatically detect synchronization events and adjust their timestamp references autonomously. The event detection component automatically processes synchronization signals and the system self-calibrates without requiring manual intervention or complex operational procedures from users, thereby improving reliability while maintaining ease of operation.
3Productivity
If a synchronization event component generates multiple output signals simultaneously, then real-time sensor synchronization is achieved, but the device complexity increases due to additional components
Solution Approach 1:
The synchronization event component is designed with multi-functionality, capable of generating multiple types of identifiable signals (acoustic, visual, electromagnetic, or physical) through a single integrated component or system. This universal approach enables real-time synchronization across diverse sensor types without requiring separate synchronization mechanisms for each sensor, thus achieving high productivity while controlling device complexity through functional consolidation.
Data Source
AI summary
Described are methods and apparatuses for synchronizing two or more sensors of an UAV. In the implementations described, a synchronization event is performed such that identifiable signals of the synchronization event can be collected by each sensor of the UAV. The synchronization event may be generated by a synchronization event component that generates multiple output signals (e.g., audio, visual, and physical) at approximately the same time so that different sensors can each collect and store at least one of the output signals. The collected signals are then compared and the sensors are adjusted to align the signals.