VTOL Flight Path Planning for Accurate Area Imaging
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Manual flight control of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) is prone to accuracy and timing issues, leading to reduced quality, efficiency, and speed of operation.
Innovation Solution
A method involving a processor that determines straight-line segments and waypoints for a UAV to cover a geographical area, with turnarounds connecting these segments to ensure efficient and accurate imaging.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If manual flight control is used by a remote operator, then the UAV can be operated with flexibility, but the accuracy and timing of control are reduced leading to lower quality and efficiency
Solution Approach 1:
The UAV performs flight planning and navigation autonomously using onboard processors that automatically determine straight-line segments, waypoints, and turnarounds. The system serves itself by eliminating the need for manual control input during flight execution, thereby achieving both operational simplicity and high precision simultaneously.
2Ease of operation
If manual flight control is used by a remote operator, then the UAV can be operated with flexibility, but the speed of operation is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical manual control system with an automated computational system. The processor automatically calculates optimal flight paths, determines waypoints, and executes navigation without human intervention, thereby eliminating the speed limitations inherent in manual operation while maintaining operational flexibility through programmable parameters.
3Area of stationary object
If straight-line segments are determined to cover the geographical area, then imaging coverage is improved, but energy consumption increases without optimization
Solution Approach 1:
The system optimizes energy consumption by dynamically adjusting flight parameters including altitude, speed, and segment spacing. The processor calculates the most energy-efficient combination of these parameters while ensuring complete geographical area coverage, thereby resolving the contradiction between comprehensive coverage and energy conservation.
4Manufacturing precision
If multiple straight-line segments are determined for complete coverage, then imaging quality is improved, but the complexity of flight planning increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the geographical area into multiple straight-line segments that can be independently planned and executed. Each segment is defined by simple parameters (start point, end point, altitude) rather than complex continuous paths. This segmentation approach maintains high imaging quality through systematic coverage while reducing overall flight plan complexity through modular, repeatable segment structures.
Data Source
AI summary
Systems, devices, and methods for receiving, by a processor having addressable memory, data representing a geographical area for imaging by one or more sensors of an aerial vehicle; determining one or more straight-line segments covering the geographical area; determining one or more waypoints located at an end of each determined straight-line segment, where each waypoint comprises a geographical location, an altitude, and a direction of travel; determining one or more turnarounds connecting each of the straight-line segments, where each turnaround comprises one or more connecting segments; and generating, by the processor, a flight plan for the aerial vehicle comprising: the determined one or more straight-line segments and the determined one or more turnarounds connecting each straight-line segment.