UAV Structure Scanning With Facet-Based Flight Planning
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) systems face challenges in performing robust, fully autonomous structure scans, particularly for large structures like roofs and bridges, due to limitations in maintaining consistent distance and orientation, requiring significant human intervention and lacking efficient battery management for prolonged operations.
Innovation Solution
The system employs an UAV equipped with image sensors and a processing apparatus that generates three-dimensional maps, facets, and scan plans, allowing for autonomous flight and image capture at consistent distances, with automated docking and charging, and visual inertial odometry for localization and obstacle avoidance, enabling efficient scanning and extended operation without human intervention.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If automated image capture modes are implemented to reduce human intervention, then productivity is improved, but measurement precision deteriorates due to difficulty in maintaining consistent distance and orientation
Solution Approach 1:
The system continuously captures images and uses processing apparatus to analyze spatial relationships between facets and camera, providing real-time feedback to adjust camera positioning and maintain consistent distance and orientation automatically
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces manual mechanical control with automated image processing and computational algorithms to determine camera poses, substituting human-operated mechanical systems with automated computational methods that calculate precise positioning based on facet geometry
2Measurement precision
If manual control is used to maintain consistent distance and orientation, then measurement precision is improved, but productivity deteriorates due to requiring significant human intervention
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs self-positioning and self-adjustment by automatically analyzing facet geometry and calculating camera poses without human intervention, enabling the system to service itself in maintaining measurement precision
Solution Approach 2:
The system dynamically changes camera positioning parameters (distance, orientation, pose) based on processed image data and facet geometry, automatically adjusting parameters to maintain consistent measurement conditions without manual control
3Productivity
If prolonged operation is required for large structures, then productivity is improved, but use of energy deteriorates due to battery limitations
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the scanning task into segments based on battery capacity, automatically planning mission sequences that cover different portions of large structures across multiple flights, allowing comprehensive coverage of extensive areas without requiring excessive energy in a single operation
Data Source
AI summary
Described herein are systems and methods for structure scan using an unmanned aerial vehicle. For example, some methods include accessing a three-dimensional map of a structure; generating facets based on the three-dimensional map, wherein the facets are respectively a polygon on a plane in three-dimensional space that is fit to a subset of the points in the three-dimensional map; generating a scan plan based on the facets, wherein the scan plan includes a sequence of poses for an unmanned aerial vehicle to assume to enable capture, using image sensors of the unmanned aerial vehicle, of images of the structure; causing the unmanned aerial vehicle to fly to assume a pose corresponding to one of the sequence of poses of the scan plan; and capturing one or more images of the structure from the pose.