UAV Virtual Wall Mapping With Sliding Modes Near No-Fly Zones
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Solution Overview
Problem
Remote controlled aerial vehicles (UAVs) face challenges in navigating around virtual walls and no-fly zones without explicit user input, as users may not be aware of these boundaries, leading to potential collisions or unauthorized flights.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of a flight controller system that includes a NFZ database, distance evaluation engine, navigation engine, and virtual wall behavior engine, which determines the shortest distances to virtual walls and modifies the UAV's movement to avoid them, using modes like free-sliding, restricted-sliding, and no-sliding to ensure safe navigation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the UAV autonomously navigates around virtual walls using complex calculation engines, then navigation safety is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The navigation system is divided into separate functional modules: a virtual wall behavior engine that handles high-level navigation decisions, a distance evaluation engine that calculates distances to virtual walls, and a flight controller that executes specific flight maneuvers. This segmentation allows each module to specialize in one aspect of the navigation task, improving overall reliability while making the complex system more manageable and maintainable
Solution Approach 2:
The virtual wall behavior engine acts as an intermediary between the user's flight commands and the actual flight control system. It receives the desired flight path, evaluates it against virtual wall constraints, and generates modified flight commands that avoid no-fly zones. This intermediary layer protects the system from conflicts between user intentions and safety constraints without requiring the user to understand complex navigation algorithms
2Adaptability or versatility
If the UAV uses multiple navigation modes (free-sliding, restricted-sliding, no-sliding), then adaptability to different situations is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically switches between three navigation modes based on the UAV's proximity to virtual walls: free-sliding mode when far from walls (normal operation), restricted-sliding mode when approaching walls (moderate intervention), and no-sliding mode when near walls (maximum intervention). This dynamic adaptation allows the system to be simple when possible and complex only when necessary, optimizing the balance between adaptability and complexity
Solution Approach 2:
Different navigation behaviors are applied in different spatial zones relative to virtual walls. The system evaluates the UAV's position and applies appropriate constraints locally based on proximity to no-fly zones, rather than using a single global navigation strategy. This allows the majority of flight space to have simple, unrestricted navigation while applying complex constraint handling only in critical areas near virtual walls
3Reliability
If the system continuously evaluates distance to virtual walls in real-time, then navigation safety is improved, but use of energy increases
Solution Approach 1:
The distance evaluation engine continuously calculates the UAV's distance to virtual walls throughout flight, enabling real-time detection of approach to no-fly zones. This continuous evaluation ensures that the system can respond immediately to potential violations, maintaining high navigation safety by keeping the useful action of boundary detection ongoing without interruption
4Reliability
If the virtual wall behavior engine modifies flight commands to avoid no-fly zones, then compliance with regulations is improved, but ease of operation decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The virtual wall behavior engine enables the UAV to autonomously handle compliance with no-fly zone regulations without requiring user awareness or action. The system automatically detects virtual walls, evaluates flight paths, and modifies commands to maintain compliance, effectively making the UAV self-regulating regarding regulatory constraints while preserving simple user operation
Data Source
AI summary
An unmanned aerial vehicle (“UAV”) receives location information describing geographic boundaries of a polygonal no-fly zone (“NFZ”), the NFZ having a plurality of virtual walls each associated with a geographic line segment. The UAV identifies a closest and a second closest virtual wall of the plurality of virtual walls of the NFZ to a geographic location of the UAV. The UAV determines a first distance from the location of the UAV to a portion of the closest virtual wall nearest to the location of the UAV and a second distance from the location of the UAV to a portion of the second closest virtual wall nearest to the location of the UAV. In response to the first and/or second determined distances being less than a threshold distance, the UAV modifies a velocity and/or a trajectory of the UAV such that the UAV does not cross the virtual walls.