Unmanned aerial vehicle, control method, and recording medium

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12045069-B2
Application number	US-202117316139-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 10, 2021
Priority date	Apr 18, 2019
Publication date	Jul 23, 2024
Grant date	Jul 23, 2024

Abstract

Unmanned aerial vehicle includes a microphone which picks up a sound emitted by a target, an actuator which extends to change a position of the microphone, and a processor. The processor obtains positional relationship information which indicates at least one of a position of the target or a distance from the unmanned aerial vehicle to the target, causes the unmanned aerial vehicle to move to a first position at which the unmanned aerial vehicle and the target have a predetermined positional relationship based on the positional relationship information, and causes actuator to extend toward the target after unmanned aerial vehicle moves to the first position.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An unmanned aerial vehicle, comprising:
a body;
a microphone which picks up a sound emitted by a target;
an actuator which extends in a predetermined direction to change a position of the microphone, wherein an end of the actuator is rotatably mounted to a bottom surface of the body to be changeable in the predetermined direction in a space where the unmanned aerial vehicle flies, and wherein the actuator is positioned so that the predetermined direction is along the bottom surface of the body; and
a processor,
wherein the processor obtains positional relationship information which indicates at least one of a position of the target or a distance from the unmanned aerial vehicle to the target, and
the processor performs (i) control for causing the unmanned aerial vehicle to move to a first position based on the positional relationship information, and extending the actuator after the unmanned aerial vehicle moves to the first position, the first position being a position at which the unmanned aerial vehicle and the target have a predetermined positional relationship, and (ii) control for inclining, toward the target, the actuator positioned so that the predetermined direction is along the bottom surface of the body to change the predetermined direction in the space.

2. The unmanned aerial vehicle according to claim 1 ,
wherein the processor performs control for extending the actuator to an extent that maintains at least a predetermined distance between the target and one of the microphone and the actuator.

3. The unmanned aerial vehicle according to claim 1 ,
wherein the processor causes the unmanned aerial vehicle to move away from the target according to an extension of the actuator.

4. The unmanned aerial vehicle according to claim 1 ,
wherein the processor identifies a sound pickup quality by using sound data indicating the sound emitted by the target and picked up by the microphone, the sound pickup quality being a quality of the sound picked up by the microphone, and
the processor performs control for extending the actuator based on the sound pickup quality identified.

5. The unmanned aerial vehicle according to claim 4 ,
wherein the processor controls an amount of extension of the actuator based on the sound pickup quality identified.

6. The unmanned aerial vehicle according to claim 4 ,
wherein, when the sound pickup quality identified is lower than a goal quality, the processor causes the unmanned aerial vehicle to move to a second position under one of a movement condition and an attitude condition of the unmanned aerial vehicle corresponding to an extension state of the actuator, the second position being a position closer to the target than the first position is.

7. The unmanned aerial vehicle according to claim 4 ,
wherein the target is a person,
wherein the unmanned aerial vehicle further comprises a loudspeaker, and
wherein the processor causes the loudspeaker to output a voice instructing the person to increase a sound volume when the sound pickup quality identified is lower than the goal quality.

8. The unmanned aerial vehicle according to claim 4 ,
wherein the target is a person,
the unmanned aerial vehicle further comprises a monitor, and
the processor causes the monitor to output a message instructing the person to increase a sound volume when the sound pickup quality identified is lower than the goal quality.

9. The unmanned aerial vehicle according to claim 4 ,
wherein the target is a device which emits sound,
the unmanned aerial vehicle further comprises a communication unit, and
the processor causes the communication unit to execute processing of transmitting, to the device, a command prompting the device to increase the sound volume when the sound pickup quality identified is lower than the goal quality.

10. The unmanned aerial vehicle according to claim 1 , further comprising:
an image sensor which captures an image of the target,
wherein the processor obtains the positional relationship information by using image data captured by the image sensor, the image data including the image of the target.

11. The unmanned aerial vehicle according to claim 1 , further comprising:
a ranging sensor which measures a distance to the target,
wherein the processor obtains the positional relationship information by using distance data which indicates the distance to the target measured by the ranging sensor.

12. The unmanned aerial vehicle according to claim 1 ,
wherein the actuator further includes an arm that extends in the predetermined direction,
one end of the arm is mounted rotatably to the bottom surface of the body so that the predetermined direction is changeable,
the other end of the arm is mounted with the microphone,
the arm is positioned lower than the bottom surface of the body so that the predetermined direction is along the bottom surface of the body,
the control for extending is control for extending the arm, and
the control for inclining is control for inclining the arm toward the target.

13. A control method for controlling an unmanned aerial vehicle including
a body,
a microphone which picks up a sound emitted by a target,
an actuator which extends in a predetermined direction to change a position of the microphone, and
a processor,
wherein an end of the actuator is rotatably mounted to a bottom surface of the body to be changeable in the predetermined direction in a space where the unmanned aerial vehicle flies, and wherein the actuator is positioned so that the predetermined direction is along the bottom surface of the body, the microphone picking up a sound emitted by a target, the actuator extending in a predetermined direction to change a position of the microphone, the method being performed by a processor, the method comprising:
obtaining positional relationship information which indicates at least one of a position of the target or a distance from the unmanned aerial vehicle to the target, and
performing (i) control for causing the unmanned aerial vehicle to move to a first position based on the positional relationship information, and extending the actuator after the unmanned aerial vehicle moves to the first position, the first position being a position at which the unmanned aerial vehicle and the target have a predetermined positional relationship, and (ii) control for inclining, toward the target, the actuator positioned so that the predetermined direction is along the bottom surface of the body to change the predetermined direction in the space.

14. A non-transitory computer-readable recording medium having a program recorded thereon for causing the processor to execute the control method according to claim 13 .

Assignees

• Panasonic Ip Man Co Ltd

Inventors

• Asai Katsuhiko
• Inoue Kazuo
• Konishi Kazunobu
• John Stephen William
• Kuhara Shunsuke

Classifications

• B64C39/024

  of the remote controlled vehicle type, i.e. RPV · CPC title

• G05D1/46

  Control of position or course in three dimensions [3D] · CPC title

• G05D1/686

  Maintaining a relative position with respect to moving targets, e.g. following animals or humans (for pointing payloads towards targets G05D1/689; involving controlling the position or course of two or more vehicles G05D1/69) · CPC title

• G05D1/689

  Pointing payloads towards fixed or moving targets (positioning towed, pushed or suspended implements G05D1/672) · CPC title

• B64U20/87

  Mounting of imaging devices, e.g. mounting of gimbals · CPC title