UAV Spline Flight GUI for Real-Time Keyframe Adjustment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing drones lack the ability for pilots to make real-time adjustments to flight paths or sensor operations during automated flights, limiting creative control and efficiency in capturing dynamic video footage.
Innovation Solution
A graphical user interface (GUI) on a computing device allows pilots to define keyframes, generating a spline flight path, enabling real-time adjustments and modifications during automated flights, including changes in position, direction, speed, and camera operations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Extent of automation
If a drone operates under a programmed set of flight instructions, then the drone can perform repetitive operations and does not require high pilot skill level, but the pilot cannot make real-time adjustments to the flight path or sensor operation
Solution Approach 1:
The system transitions from a static programmed flight path to a dynamic keyframe-based spline system. Pilots can add, remove, or modify keyframes during flight, and the spline automatically recalculates to provide smooth transitions. This dynamic adjustment capability allows real-time modification while maintaining automated operation between keyframes.
Solution Approach 2:
The system pre-calculates smooth spline paths between keyframes before flight execution. This preliminary computation of the flight path ensures that when pilots make adjustments during flight, the drone can smoothly transition along the pre-computed spline without abrupt changes, maintaining operational smoothness while enabling real-time keyframe modifications.
2Ease of operation
If a pilot terminates automated flight operation to make adjustments, then the pilot can modify the flight path, but the pilot loses the opportunity to capture potentially important data during reprogramming
Solution Approach 1:
The system pre-computes the complete spline flight path connecting all keyframes before flight execution. This preliminary calculation of the smooth path between keyframes allows the drone to automatically navigate complex trajectories without requiring continuous pilot intervention, capturing data continuously while still enabling mid-flight keyframe adjustments.
Solution Approach 2:
The keyframe-based system allows dynamic addition or removal of keyframes during flight without terminating the automated operation. The spline automatically recalculates to provide smooth transitions, enabling real-time flight path modification while maintaining continuous data capture and avoiding the time loss associated with full reprogramming.
3Manufacturing precision
If world-class drone pilots create dynamic aerial shots, then highly dynamic smooth single-shot videos can be produced, but the teams are extremely expensive to employ and the shots are time-consuming to capture
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically computes smooth spline paths between keyframes, enabling complex cinematic movements to be programmed and executed automatically. This allows anyone to create Hollywood-style dynamic shots without requiring thousands of hours of pilot experience, dramatically reducing both cost and time while maintaining high video quality through mathematically smooth path interpolation.
Solution Approach 2:
The system replaces the mechanical skill-based control method (requiring expert pilots with thousands of hours of practice) with an automated keyframe-spline system. The computer automatically calculates smooth flight paths between user-defined keyframes, substituting expert manual piloting with algorithmic path generation, thereby reducing dependency on expensive skilled operators while maintaining cinematic quality.
Data Source
AI summary
Technology for generating and displaying a graphical user interface for operating an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) is disclosed herein that generates and updates a representation of a spline flight path. In various implementations, a graphical user interface detects user interactions with a remote control device directing the flight control subsystem of the UAV to record keyframes and to compute a spline based on the keyframes during flight. The graphical user interface displays a real-time perspective of the UAV with a representation of the spline and the keyframes overlaying the view. The graphical user interface continually updates the representation as the UAV flies and when the spline is updated as the keyframes are updated.