Aerial vehicle powering off method and device, and aerial vehicle

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11840349-B2
Application number	US-202117314036-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 6, 2021
Priority date	Jul 31, 2014
Publication date	Dec 12, 2023
Grant date	Dec 12, 2023

Abstract

A method for automatically powering off an aerial vehicle includes determining an operating state of the aerial vehicle, and in response to a determination result that the operating state of the aerial vehicle is a landed state, triggering to shut down a propulsion output of the aerial vehicle such that the aerial vehicle completes automatic power off after landing, including, in response to the determination result that the operating state of the aerial vehicle is the landed state, determining whether the propulsion output of the aerial vehicle is currently enabled and determining whether an automatic take-off operation indicated by an automatic take-off instruction is currently being performed, and, in response to the propulsion output being currently enabled and the automatic take-off operation not currently being performed, triggering to shut down the propulsion output of the aerial vehicle.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method for automatically powering off an aerial vehicle comprising:
determining an operating state of the aerial vehicle; and
in response to a determination result that the operating state of the aerial vehicle is a landed state:
determining whether a propulsion output of the aerial vehicle is currently enabled and determining whether an automatic take-off operation indicated by an automatic take-off instruction is currently being performed; and
in response to a triggering condition being satisfied triggering to shut down the propulsion output of the aerial vehicle such that the aerial vehicle completes automatic power off after landing, the triggering condition including determining that the propulsion output is currently enabled and the automatic take-off operation is not currently performed.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein determining the operating state of the aerial vehicle includes:
obtaining flight information of the aerial vehicle and determining whether the flight information satisfies a landed criterion, the flight information including at least one of relative altitude information, absolute altitude information, or movement information; and
determining the aerial vehicle is in the landed state in response to the flight information satisfying the landed criterion.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein determining the operating state of the aerial vehicle includes:
obtaining relative altitude information of the aerial vehicle, the relative altitude information including a landing distance to a landing plane; and
determining the aerial vehicle is in the landed state in response to the relative altitude information satisfying a preset landed criterion, the relative altitude information satisfying the preset landed criterion including that:
a number of times that the landing distance measured within a preset time period is smaller than a distance threshold reaches a threshold number of times.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein determining the operating state of the aerial vehicle includes:
obtaining absolute altitude information of the aerial vehicle during current flight process;
performing calculation on the absolute altitude information to obtain an absolute altitude variance; and
determining that a preset landed criterion is satisfied and the aerial vehicle is in the landed state in response to the variance being smaller than a variance threshold set forth in the preset landed criterion and the current flight process is a descending process.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein determining the operating state of the aerial vehicle includes:
determining an operating state of a distance measuring sensor of the aerial vehicle;
in response to the operating state of the distance measuring sensor being a normal state:
triggering the distance measuring sensor to measure a landing distance from the aerial vehicle to a landing plane; and
determining that a first preset landed criterion is satisfied and the aerial vehicle is in the landed state in response to a number of times the landing distance is measured to be smaller than a distance threshold reaching a threshold number within a preset time period; and

in response to the operating state of the distance measuring sensor being an abnormal state:
obtaining absolute altitude information of the aerial vehicle during current flight process;
performing calculation on the absolute altitude information to obtain an absolute altitude variance; and
determining that a second preset landed criterion is satisfied and the aerial vehicle is in the landed state in response to the variance being smaller than a variance threshold and the current flight process is a descending process.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein determining the operating state of the aerial vehicle includes:
obtaining movement information of the aerial vehicle via an inertial measurement unit;
determining whether the aerial vehicle has landed according to the movement information; and
determining the aerial vehicle is in the landed state in response to determining that the aerial vehicle has landed.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein:
the operating state of the aerial vehicle is detected at least twice; and
triggering to shut down the propulsion output of the aerial vehicle in response to the aerial vehicle being in the landed state includes:
detecting a position of a throttle joystick of a remote controller of the aerial vehicle in response to a number of times that the aerial vehicle is detected as being in the landed state being greater than a preset threshold; and
triggering to shut down the propulsion output of the aerial vehicle in response to the throttle joystick of the remote controller being at a lowest position where the aerial vehicle is required to land.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein triggering to shut down the propulsion output of the aerial vehicle includes:
sending a power off instruction to a propulsion component of the aerial vehicle, such that the propulsion component shuts down the propulsion output in response to the power off instruction.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein triggering to shut down the propulsion output of the aerial vehicle includes:
sending a turning off instruction to a power supply of the aerial vehicle, such that the power supply shuts down powering to a propulsion component of the aerial vehicle to effect a power off operation of the propulsion output in response to the turning off instruction.

10. The method of claim 1 , wherein determining the operating state of the aerial vehicle includes:
obtaining relative altitude information of the aerial vehicle, the relative altitude information including a plurality of landing distances to a landing plane measured periodically measured in a preset time period; and
determining the aerial vehicle is in the landed state in response to the relative altitude information satisfying a preset landed criterion, wherein the relative altitude information satisfying the preset landed criterion includes that a number of distances among the plurality of landing distances smaller than a distance threshold reaches a threshold number within the preset time period set forth in the preset landed criterion, and a starting time of the preset time period is refreshed and restarted in response to determining that two landing distances detected consecutively are greater than the distance threshold.

11. An aerial vehicle, comprising:
a propulsion component; and
a flight controller configured to:
determine an operating state of the aerial vehicle; and
in response to a determination result that the operating state of the aerial vehicle is a landed state:
determine whether a propulsion output of the aerial vehicle is currently enabled and determining whether an automatic take-off operation indicated by an automatic take-off instruction is currently being performed; and
in response to a triggering condition being satisfied, trigger to shut down the propulsion output of the aerial vehicle such that the aerial vehicle completes automatic power off after landing, the triggering condition including determining that the propulsion output is currently enabled and the automatic take-off operation is not currently performed.

12. The aerial vehicle of claim 11 , further comprising:
a flight sensor configured to obtain flight information of the aerial vehicle, the flight information including at least one of relative altitude information, absolute altitude information, or movement information;
wherein the flight controller is further configured to determine whether the flight information satisfies a landed criterion and determine

Assignees

• Sz Dji Technology Co Ltd

Inventors

• Shi Renli
• Pan Xuyang
• Song Jianyu
• Lin Canlong

Classifications

• B64D31/00 Primary

  Power plant control systems; Arrangement of power plant control systems in aircraft · CPC title

• B64U50/19 Primary

  using electrically powered motors · CPC title

• G05D1/654

  Landing (docking at a base station G05D1/661) · CPC title

• B64U2201/20

  Remote controls · CPC title

• B64D31/06

  actuated automatically · CPC title