JP2017159753A - Unmanned aircraft, control method for the same and program, and unmanned aircraft control system, control method for the same and program - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a mechanism that enables an unmanned aircraft to transmit information on a flight condition of the unmanned aircraft to a communication destination without the need for a user's labor.SOLUTION: Positional information including altitude information indicating the altitude of an unmanned aircraft is acquired in predetermined timing, and it is determined whether or not a change in the two acquired consecutive pieces of altitude information meets predetermined conditions. When it is determined that the predetermined conditions are met, the positional information, which is acquired when the change in the altitude information meets the predetermined conditions, is transmitted to a predetermined communication destination.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

  Unmanned aerial vehicle capable of transmitting information on flight status of unmanned aerial vehicle to communication destination without user effort, control method and program thereof, and unmanned aircraft control system and control method thereof And programs

  There are unmanned aerial vehicles such as airplanes, rotary wing aircraft, gliders, airships, and the like that cannot be carried by humans and that can be operated by remote control or automatic piloting. Specifically, the unmanned aerial vehicle corresponds to a drone (multi-copter), a radio control aircraft, a helicopter for spraying agricultural chemicals, and the like.

  Unmanned aerial vehicles may crash when it becomes difficult to continue flying due to inability to control or equipment failure.

  In the following Patent Document 1, a support portion is installed vertically downward from the center of a rotary wing aircraft (unmanned aerial vehicle), and is connected to a mounting portion installed at a vertically lower end of the support portion and a bottom portion of the mounting portion. A mechanism is disclosed in which the mooring rope is locked to the ground.

JP 2013-79034 A

  Patent Document 1 described above discloses a mechanism that can reduce the risk of a crash or collision by anchoring the ground and an unmanned aerial vehicle with a tethering rope. However, in the mechanism of Patent Document 1, the operator of the unmanned aircraft can fly the unmanned aircraft only within the range of the anchoring rope, and the operator of the unmanned aircraft can fly the unmanned aircraft at a location desired by the user. I can't.

  On the other hand, if an unmanned aerial vehicle crashes for some reason when the unmanned aerial vehicle flies at a location desired by the unmanned aircraft operator, the operator moves to an area where the unmanned aircraft would have been flying. You have to search for the unmanned aircraft that has fallen.

  Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a mechanism that allows an unmanned aerial vehicle to transmit information related to the flight state of the unmanned aerial vehicle to a communication destination without taking the user's trouble.

  In order to achieve the above object, an unmanned aerial vehicle according to the present invention includes an acquisition unit that acquires position information including altitude information indicating an altitude of an unmanned aircraft at a predetermined timing, and two consecutive acquired by the acquisition unit. A determination unit that determines whether or not a change in one altitude information satisfies a predetermined condition; and when the determination unit determines that the predetermined condition is satisfied, a change in the altitude information is performed at a predetermined communication destination. Transmission means for transmitting the position information when a predetermined condition is satisfied.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a mechanism that allows an unmanned aerial vehicle to transmit information related to the flight state of the unmanned aerial vehicle to a communication destination without taking the user's trouble. effective.

It is a figure showing an example of system configuration of an unmanned aerial vehicle control system in this embodiment. 2 is a diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of an unmanned aerial vehicle 101. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of an operation controller 102. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of a mobile terminal 103. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a functional configuration of unmanned aerial vehicle 101. FIG. 5 is a flowchart for setting notification destination information and a notification area table in the unmanned aerial vehicle 101 according to the present invention. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of a screen configuration of a connection destination setting screen 700. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of a screen configuration of a notification destination setting screen 800. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of a screen configuration of a notification area setting screen 900. FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of a table structure of the notification destination information table. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of a table configuration of a notification area table 1100. FIG. 10 is a flowchart for explaining a process of controlling flight when the unmanned aircraft 101 receives an operation by an operation controller 1002. It is a flowchart explaining the flow of the detailed process of a crash determination process. It is a figure which shows an example of a table structure of the flight information table 1400. FIG. It is a flowchart explaining the flow of the detailed process of a crash report process.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a system configuration of an unmanned aerial vehicle control system according to the present embodiment. The unmanned aerial vehicle control system according to the present embodiment includes an unmanned aerial vehicle 101, an operation controller 102, and a portable terminal 103, which can perform data communication with each other via a network such as a wireless communication or a mobile communication network using a specific frequency band. It is connected to the. Note that the system configuration in FIG. 1 is an example, and there are various configuration examples depending on the application and purpose.

  The unmanned aerial vehicle 101 is an unmanned aircraft that can be remotely controlled by the operation controller 102. In response to an instruction from the operation controller 102, the plurality of rotor blades are operated to fly. By increasing or decreasing the rotational speed of the rotor blades, the unmanned aircraft moves forward, backward, turns, hovers, and the like. Although the unmanned aircraft 101 shown in FIG. 1 has four rotor blades, the present invention is not limited to this. There may be three, six, or eight. In addition, the unmanned aerial vehicle of the present embodiment may be an airplane, a rotary wing aircraft, a glider, an airship, or the like that can not be boarded by a person due to its structure.

  The operation controller 102 is a transmitter (remote operation terminal) for operating the unmanned aerial vehicle 101. Since it is a proportional system (proportional control system), the rotational speed of the rotor blades of the unmanned aerial vehicle 101 can be controlled in proportion to the amount of movement of the operation unit of the operation controller 102.

  The mobile terminal 103 is a terminal that can be carried by a user, such as a smartphone or a tablet terminal. An application capable of setting the communication destination and notification area table of the unmanned aerial vehicle 101 can be installed in the portable terminal 103. By starting and operating this application, the notification destination information table of the unmanned aircraft 101 and Communication area table can be set. The portable terminal 103 may be a personal computer or a server regardless of whether it is portable.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of the unmanned aerial vehicle 101. Note that the hardware configuration of the unmanned aerial vehicle 101 shown in FIG. 2 is an example, and there are various configuration examples depending on the application and purpose.

  The flight controller 200 is a microcontroller for performing flight control of the unmanned aerial vehicle 101, and includes a CPU 201, a ROM 202, a RAM 203, and a peripheral bus interface 204 (hereinafter referred to as a peripheral bus I / F 204).

  The CPU 201 comprehensively controls each device connected to the system bus. The external memory 280 connected to the ROM 202 or the peripheral bus I / F 204 stores a basic input / output system (BIOS) that is a control program of the CPU 201 and an operating system program.

  The external memory 280 stores various programs necessary for realizing the functions executed by the unmanned aircraft 101. The RAM 203 functions as a main memory, work area, and the like for the CPU 201.

  The CPU 201 implements various operations by loading a program necessary for execution of processing into the RAM 203 and executing the program.

  The peripheral bus I / F 204 is an interface for connecting to various peripheral devices. Connected to the peripheral bus I / F 204 are a PMU 210, a SIM adapter 220, a wireless communication BB unit 230, a mobile communication BB unit 240, a GPS unit 250, a sensor 260, a GCU 270, and an external memory 280.

  The PMU 210 is a power management unit and can control power supply from the battery included in the unmanned aircraft 101 to the ESC 211. The ESC 211 is an electronic speed controller and can control the rotation speed of the motor 212 connected to the ESC 211. By rotating the motor 212 using the ESC 211, the propeller 213 (rotary blade) connected to the motor 212 is rotated. Note that a plurality of sets of ESCs 211, motors 212, and propellers 213 are provided according to the number of propellers 213. For example, in the case of a quadcopter, the number of propellers 213 is four, so four sets are required.

  The SIM adapter 220 is a card adapter for inserting the SIM card 221. The type of the SIM card 221 is not particularly limited. Any SIM card 221 may be used depending on the carrier that provides the mobile communication network.

  The wireless communication BB unit 230 is a baseband unit for performing wireless communication in a specific frequency band. The wireless communication BB unit 230 can generate a baseband signal from data or a signal to be transmitted and send it to a modem circuit. Furthermore, original data and signals can be obtained from the received baseband signal.

  The radio communication RF unit 231 is an RF (Radio Frequency) unit for performing radio communication in a specific frequency band. The radio communication RF unit 231 can modulate the baseband signal transmitted from the radio communication BB unit 230 into a specific frequency band and transmit it from the antenna. Furthermore, when a signal in a specific frequency band is received, it can be demodulated into a baseband signal.

  The mobile communication BB unit 240 is a baseband unit for performing communication via a mobile communication network. The mobile communication BB unit 240 can generate a baseband signal from data or signals to be transmitted and send it to the modem circuit. Furthermore, original data and signals can be obtained from the received baseband signal.

  The mobile communication RF unit 241 is an RF (Radio Frequency) unit for performing communication via a mobile communication network. The mobile communication RF unit 241 can modulate the baseband signal transmitted from the mobile communication BB unit 240 into the frequency band of the mobile communication network and transmit it from the antenna. Further, when a signal in the frequency band of the mobile communication network is received, it can be demodulated into a baseband signal.

  In the present embodiment, the wireless communication BB unit 230 and the mobile communication BB unit 240 are separate units, but may be the same unit. Similarly, the radio communication RF unit 231 and the mobile communication RF unit 241 may be the same unit.

  The GPS unit 250 is a receiver that can acquire the current position of the unmanned aerial vehicle 101 using a global positioning system. The GPS unit 250 receives a signal from a GPS satellite, can estimate the current position, and can also estimate information on the flying height of the unmanned aircraft 101.

  The sensor 260 is a sensor for measuring the tilt, direction, speed, and surrounding environment of the unmanned aircraft 101. The unmanned aircraft 101 includes a gyro sensor, an acceleration sensor, an atmospheric pressure sensor, a magnetic sensor, an ultrasonic sensor, an impact sensor, and the like as the sensor 260. Based on the data acquired from these sensors, the CPU 201 controls the attitude and movement of the unmanned aerial vehicle 101.

  The GCU 270 is a gimbal control unit and is a unit for controlling the operations of the camera 271 and the gimbal 272. The unmanned aerial vehicle 101 will vibrate or become unstable when the unmanned aerial vehicle 101 flies. Therefore, the gimbal 272 absorbs the vibration of the unmanned aerial vehicle 101 so that the camera 271 does not shake when captured by the camera 271. Maintain level. Further, the camera 271 can be remotely operated by the gimbal 272.

  Various programs and the like used by the unmanned aerial vehicle 101 of the present invention to execute various processes, which will be described later, are recorded in the external memory 280 and are executed by the CPU 201 by being loaded into the RAM 203 as necessary. . Furthermore, definition files and various information tables used by the program according to the present invention are stored in the external memory 280.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of the operation controller 102. Note that the hardware configuration of the operation controller 102 shown in FIG. 3 is an example, and there are various configuration examples depending on the application and purpose.

  The microcomputer 300 is a microcontroller for controlling the operation controller 102, and includes a CPU 301, a ROM 302, a RAM 303, and a peripheral bus interface 304 (hereinafter referred to as a peripheral bus I / F 304).

  The CPU 301 comprehensively controls each device connected to the system bus. Further, the external memory 350 connected to the ROM 302 or the peripheral bus I / F 304 stores a basic input / output system (BIOS) that is a control program of the CPU 301 and an operating system program.

  The external memory 350 (storage means) stores various programs necessary for realizing the functions executed by the operation controller 102. A RAM 303 (storage means) functions as a main memory, work area, and the like for the CPU 301.

  The CPU 301 implements various operations by loading a program or the like necessary for execution of processing into the RAM 303 and executing the program.

  The peripheral bus I / F 304 is an interface for connecting to various peripheral devices. An operation unit 310, a SIM adapter 320, a wireless LAN BB unit 330, a mobile communication BB unit 340, and an external memory 350 are connected to the peripheral bus I / F 304.

  The operation unit 310 is a unit (operation unit) composed of stick-shaped parts for instructing the flight operation to the unmanned aircraft 101. The rotational speed of the rotor blades of the unmanned aerial vehicle 101 can be controlled in proportion to the movement amount of the operation unit 310.

  The SIM adapter 320 is a card adapter for inserting the SIM card 321. The type of the SIM card 321 is not particularly limited. Any SIM card 321 may be used depending on the carrier that provides the mobile communication network.

  The wireless LAN BB unit 330 is a baseband unit for performing communication via a wireless LAN. The wireless LAN BB unit 330 can generate a baseband signal from data or a signal to be transmitted and send it to a modem circuit. Furthermore, original data and signals can be obtained from the received baseband signal.

  The wireless LAN RF unit 331 is an RF (Radio Frequency) unit for performing communication via the wireless LAN. The wireless LAN RF unit 331 can modulate the baseband signal transmitted from the wireless LAN BB unit 330 into a wireless LAN frequency band and transmit it from the antenna. Furthermore, when a signal in the wireless LAN frequency band is received, it can be demodulated into a baseband signal.

  The mobile communication BB unit 340 is a baseband unit for performing communication via a mobile communication network. The mobile communication BB unit 340 can generate a baseband signal from data or a signal to be transmitted and send it to a modem circuit. Furthermore, original data and signals can be obtained from the received baseband signal.

  The mobile communication RF unit 341 is an RF (Radio Frequency) unit for performing communication via a mobile communication network. The mobile communication RF unit 341 can modulate the baseband signal transmitted from the mobile communication BB unit 340 into the frequency band of the mobile communication network and transmit it from the antenna. Further, when a signal in the frequency band of the mobile communication network is received, it can be demodulated into a baseband signal.

  Various programs and the like used for the operation controller 102 of the present invention to execute various processes to be described later are recorded in the external memory 350, and are executed by the CPU 301 by being loaded into the RAM 303 as necessary. . Furthermore, definition files and various information tables used by the program according to the present invention are stored in the external memory 350.

  Next, the hardware configuration of the mobile terminal 103 will be described with reference to FIG.

  The portable terminal 103 is a device that includes a touch panel. In the present embodiment, description will be made assuming a device such as a so-called smartphone or tablet terminal, but the present invention is not limited to this. A personal computer may be used as long as the device includes a touch panel.

  The CPU 401 comprehensively controls the memory and the controller via the system bus. The ROM 402 or the flash memory 414 stores a BIOS (Basic Input / Output System) that is a control program of the CPU 401 and an operating system 33. Furthermore, various programs described below necessary for realizing the functions executed by the mobile terminal 103 are stored.

  The RAM 403 functions as a main memory, work area, and the like for the CPU 401. The CPU 401 implements various operations by loading a program or the like necessary for execution of processing into the RAM 403 and executing the program.

  The display controller 404 controls display on a display device such as the display 410 (display unit). The display 410 is a liquid crystal display, for example. A touch panel 411 is provided on the surface of the display 410. The touch panel controller 405 controls detection of a touch operation on the touch panel 411. The touch panel controller 405 can also detect touch operations (hereinafter referred to as multi-touch) on a plurality of locations on the touch panel 411.

  The camera controller 406 controls photographing with the camera 412. The camera 412 is a digital camera and converts an image photographed under the control of the camera controller 406 into digital data by a photographing element. The camera 412 can capture still images and moving images.

  The sensor controller 407 controls input from a GPS (global positioning system) sensor 413 provided in the mobile terminal 103. GPS information can be acquired via the GPS sensor 413.

  The network controller 408 is connected to and communicates with an external device via the network, and executes communication control processing on the network. For example, Internet communication using TCP / IP is possible.

  The flash memory controller 409 controls access to the flash memory 414 that stores a boot program, browser software, various applications, font data, user files, edit files, various data, and the like. In this embodiment, the flash memory is described, but a storage medium such as a hard disk, a flexible disk, or a card-type memory connected to a PCMCIA card slot via an adapter may be used.

  The CPU 401, each memory, and each controller described above are integrated into one chip 415. The mobile terminal 103 is provided in the form of a so-called SoC (System on Chip).

  Note that the CPU 401 enables display on the display 410 by executing outline font rasterization processing on a display information area in the RAM 403, for example.

  Various programs and the like used for the portable terminal 103 of the present invention to execute various processes described later are recorded in the flash memory 414 and are executed by the CPU 401 by being loaded into the RAM 403 as necessary. . Further, definition files and various information tables used by the program according to the present invention are stored in the flash memory 414. The above is the hardware configuration of the mobile terminal 103 in the present embodiment.

  Next, the functional configuration of the unmanned aerial vehicle 101 will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of a functional configuration of the unmanned aerial vehicle 101. Note that the functional configuration of the unmanned aerial vehicle 101 shown in FIG. 5 is merely an example, and there are various configuration examples depending on applications and purposes.

  The unmanned aircraft 101 includes a flight control unit 151, a radio communication control unit 152, a GPS control unit 153, a sensor control unit 154, an impact level detection unit 155, an acquisition unit 156, a determination unit 157, and a transmission control unit 158 as functional units.

  The flight control unit 151 is a functional unit for controlling the flight of the unmanned aircraft 101. A plurality of rotor blades included in the unmanned aerial vehicle 101 are rotated in accordance with an instruction from the operation controller 102 to perform forward movement, backward movement, turning, hovering, and the like.

  The wireless communication control unit 152 is a functional unit for performing wireless communication with the operation controller 102 in a specific frequency band. The wireless communication control unit 152 controls the wireless communication BB unit 230 and the wireless communication RF unit 231, modulates the signal to a specific frequency band, transmits a signal, and demodulates the signal when a signal of a specific frequency band is received. . Further, the unmanned aircraft 101 functions as a wireless LAN access point by software and receives a connection from the portable terminal 103. In the present embodiment, the unmanned aircraft 101 is used as an access point, but the mobile terminal 103 may be used as an access point. Hereinafter, a function that operates as a wireless LAN access point by software is referred to as a soft AP function.

  The GPS control unit 153 is a functional unit for acquiring the current position of the unmanned aircraft 101. The GPS control unit 153 controls the GPS unit 250 to receive a signal from a GPS satellite, and estimates the current position of the unmanned aircraft 101. The current position includes information on the height at which the unmanned aircraft 101 flies in addition to the latitude and longitude.

  The sensor control unit 154 is a functional unit for acquiring information detected by the sensor 260. Information detected by various sensors such as a gyro sensor, acceleration sensor, barometric sensor, magnetic sensor, ultrasonic sensor, and impact sensor included in the unmanned aircraft 101 is constantly acquired and transmitted to the CPU 201 for flight control of the flight control unit 151. Use.

  The impact level detection unit 155 is a functional unit that transmits to the CPU 201 that has generated impact level information based on the strength and direction of impact received by the impact sensor provided in the unmanned aircraft 101.

  The acquisition unit 156 is a functional unit that acquires position information including altitude information indicating the altitude of the unmanned aircraft at every predetermined timing.

  The determination unit 157 is a functional unit that determines whether or not two consecutive changes in altitude information acquired by the acquisition unit 156 satisfy a predetermined condition.

  The transmission control unit 158 is a functional unit that transmits the position information of the unmanned aircraft when the determination unit 157 determines that two consecutive changes in altitude information satisfy a predetermined condition to a communication destination stored in advance. .

  This is the end of the description of the functional configuration of the unmanned aerial vehicle 101 shown in FIG.

  Next, the detailed processing flow of the embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. The flowchart of FIG. 6 is a flowchart for setting notification destination information and a notification area table in the unmanned aircraft 101.

  In step S610, the CPU 201 of the unmanned aircraft 101 activates the unmanned aircraft control application.

  In step S611, the CPU 201 of the unmanned aircraft 101 operates the unmanned aircraft 101 as an access point for short-range wireless communication (so-called wireless LAN) by the unmanned aircraft control application activated in step S401. As a result, the connection destination is displayed on the connection destination setting screen displayed on the mobile terminal 103.

  In step S <b> 601, the CPU 401 of the mobile terminal 103 activates the setting application for the unmanned aircraft 101.

  In step S602, the CPU 401 of the mobile terminal 103 causes the display 410 to display a connection destination setting screen 700 on which a list of hardware detected as wireless LAN access points is displayed. For example, the connection destination setting screen 700 shown in FIG. The connection destination setting screen 700 displays a list of unmanned aircraft 101 detected as wireless LAN access points so that they can be identified. By accepting selection of the selection item 701 on the connection destination setting screen 700, a connection request is made to the unmanned aircraft 101 corresponding to the selected selection item 701.

  In step S603, the CPU 401 of the mobile terminal 103 determines whether selection of the selection item 701 has been accepted. If it is determined that the selection of the selection item 701 has been received, the process proceeds to step S604. If not, the process waits until the selection of the selection item 701 is received.

  In step S604, the CPU 401 of the mobile terminal 103 transmits a connection request to the unmanned aircraft 101 corresponding to the selection item 701 that has been selected in step S603.

  In step S612, the CPU 201 of the unmanned aircraft 101 determines whether a connection request has been accepted. If it is determined that a connection request has been accepted, the process proceeds to step S613; otherwise, the process waits until a connection request is accepted.

  In step S613, the CPU 201 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 101 performs processing for establishing communication with the transmission source of the connection request determined to have received the connection request in step S612. When communication with one mobile terminal 103 is established, communication with another mobile terminal 103 is not performed. After communication with the connection request transmission source is established, the process proceeds to step S614.

  In step S614, the CPU 201 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 101 transmits a notification that the connection is complete to the connection request transmission source.

  In step S605, the CPU 401 of the mobile terminal 103 determines whether a connection completion notification has been received. If it is determined that a connection completion notification has been received, the process proceeds to step S606; otherwise, the process waits until a connection completion notification is received.

  In step S606, the CPU 401 of the portable terminal 103 displays the notification destination setting screen 800 stored in the flash memory 414. For example, the notification destination setting screen 800 shown in FIG. The notification destination setting screen 800 is provided with a GUI capable of inputting information indicating a notification destination for notifying the position information of the unmanned aircraft 101 when the unmanned aircraft 101 becomes unable to fly (crash). . The notification destination name 801 is an input item indicating the name of the notification destination. A notification destination address 802 is an input item for inputting a mail address of a notification destination. The name 803 is an input item for inputting the name of the user who controls the unmanned aerial vehicle. Insurance No. 804 is an input item in which the identification number of the insurance that the user operating the unmanned aerial vehicle has entered can be input. The serial number 805 is an input item for inputting a serial number for uniquely identifying the unmanned aircraft 101. Note that the input items provided on the notification destination setting screen 800 are merely examples, and the present invention is not limited to this. These pieces of information may be set in the unmanned aircraft 101 in advance. In the present embodiment, the notification destination of the unmanned aircraft 101 is described as an insurance company. However, the mobile terminal 103 of the user who controls the unmanned aircraft 101 may be the notification destination, and is not limited to the insurance company.

  In step S607, the CPU 401 of the mobile terminal 103 accepts input of information (notification destination information) regarding the notification destination via the input item displayed in step S606. The input notification information is stored in the notification destination information table 1000 shown in FIG. The notification destination name 801 corresponds to 1002, the notification destination address 802 corresponds to 1003, the name 803 corresponds to 1004, the insurance No. 804 corresponds to 1005, and the serial No. 805 corresponds to 1006.

  In step S <b> 608, the CPU 401 of the mobile terminal 103 acquires the notification area table 1100 stored in the flash memory 414. A notification area table 1100 illustrated in FIG. 11 is a table in which a range of position information set for notifying the notification destination of the position where the unmanned aircraft 101 has crashed is associated with a communication destination 1104 corresponding to the range. . In the notification area table 1100, No1001, which is a number for identification, and two position coordinates (1102 to 1103) for designating a range (rectangle) are stored in association with each other. The two position coordinates include latitude and longitude information, and a rectangle having the two position coordinates as vertices indicates the above-described range. The range may be not only a rectangle but also other forms such as a circle passing through two points. The range and the communication destination 1104 (notification destination address 802) correspond to each other, so that the communication destination 1104 to be communicated is determined in accordance with the position where the unmanned aircraft 101 has crashed, and communication is performed to the communication destination 1104. It is possible to do.

  A method for acquiring the notification area table 1100 will be specifically described. A notification area setting screen 900 shown in FIG. 9 is displayed, and a GUI (Graphical User Interface, not shown) capable of selecting the notification area table 1100 is displayed by accepting pressing of the selection button 901. After accepting designation of the notification area table 1100 from the user via this GUI, the notification area table 1100 selected by the user via the GUI is received by pressing the registration button 902 on the notification area setting screen 900. The designation is accepted as the notification area table 1100 acquired in S608. Note that the notification area table 1100 to be acquired may be configured to acquire the default notification area table 1100 without accepting designation by the user in this way. Moreover, it is good also as a structure acquired from an external server.

  In step S609, the CPU 401 of the mobile terminal 103 transmits to the unmanned aircraft 101 the notification destination information table 1000 storing information related to the notification destination that has received the input in step S607, and the notification area table 1100.

  In step S615, the CPU 201 of the unmanned aircraft 101 determines whether or not the notification destination information table 1000 and the notification area table 1100 have been received. If the notification destination information table 1000 and the notification area table 1100 are received, the process proceeds to step S616. Otherwise, the process waits until the notification destination information table 1000 and the notification area table 1100 are received.

  In step S <b> 616, the CPU 201 of the unmanned aircraft 101 stores the notification destination information table 1000 and the notification area table 1100 transmitted from the portable terminal 103 in the external memory 280.

  This is the end of the description of the flowchart of FIG.

  Next, a process for controlling the flight when the unmanned aircraft 101 receives an operation instruction from the operation controller 102 will be described with reference to FIG.

  In step S <b> 1201, the CPU 301 of the operation controller 102 determines whether an operation for the operation unit of the operation controller 102 has been received. If it is determined that an operation on the operation unit of the operation controller 102 has been received, the process proceeds to step S1202, and if not, step S1201 is repeatedly executed, and the process waits until an operation is received.

  In step S <b> 1202, the CPU 301 of the operation controller 102 transmits an operation instruction corresponding to the operation received in step S <b> 1201 to the unmanned aircraft 101.

  In step S <b> 1203, the CPU 201 of the unmanned aircraft 101 determines whether an operation instruction has been received from the operation controller 102. If it is determined that an operation instruction has been accepted, the process proceeds to step S1204; otherwise, the process proceeds to step S1206.

  In step S <b> 1204, the CPU 201 of the unmanned aircraft 101 executes flight control according to the operation instruction received from the operation controller 102. Specifically, a plurality of rotor blades included in the unmanned aircraft are rotated in accordance with an operation instruction from the operation controller 102 to perform forward movement, backward movement, turning, hovering, and the like.

  In step S1205, the CPU 201 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 101 performs a crash determination process that is a process for determining whether or not the unmanned aircraft 101 has crashed. A detailed flow of the crash determination process will be described later with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

  In step S1206, the CPU 201 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 101 determines whether an instruction to end the flight control of the unmanned aircraft 101 has been received from the user. If it is determined that an end instruction has been received, the process ends. If not, the process returns to step S1203.

  This is the end of the description of the flowchart shown in FIG.

  Next, the description of the flowchart shown in FIG. 13 is started. FIG. 13 is a flowchart for explaining the detailed processing flow of the crash determination processing.

  In step S1301, the CPU 201 of the unmanned aircraft 101 acquires the flight information table 1400 from the external memory 280. The flight information table 1400 is a data table shown in FIG. 14, for example. The flight information table 1400 includes a No. 1401, position 1402, altitude 1403, impact level 1404, and time 1405 are stored in association with each other. No. Reference numeral 1401 denotes a number that can be uniquely identified. The position 1402 stores latitude and longitude information acquired using the GPS unit 250. The altitude 1403 is a value indicating the altitude. The impact level 1404 is a value indicating the strength of impact. The time 1405 indicates the time when the position 1402 is acquired.

  In step S1302, the CPU 201 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 101 starts timer measurement.

  In step S1303, the CPU 201 of the unmanned aircraft 101 acquires position information (latitude and longitude) of the unmanned aircraft 101 via the GPS unit 250 (corresponding to a position information acquisition unit). Although the latitude and longitude are used in the present embodiment, the present invention is not limited to this as long as the position of the unmanned aircraft 101 can be specified.

  In step S <b> 1304, the CPU 201 of the unmanned aircraft 101 acquires the altitude (elevation) of the unmanned aircraft 101 via the GPS unit 250. The altitude acquisition method is acquired using GPS (Global Positioning System) in this embodiment, but a barometric altimeter or a radio altimeter may be mounted on the unmanned aircraft 101 to acquire the altitude from these altimeters. I do not care. Further, step S1304 may be performed simultaneously with step S1303.

  In step S <b> 1305, the CPU 201 of the unmanned aircraft 101 acquires the impact level information of the unmanned aircraft 101 from the impact sensor of the sensors 260. The impact sensor is a sensor that can transmit impact level information to the CPU 201 based on the strength and direction of impact received by the impact sensor. In this embodiment, the impact level is 5 steps, 1 is the least impact, and 5 is the greatest impact.

  In step S1306, the CPU 201 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 101 determines whether a predetermined time has elapsed for the timer that started measurement in step S1302. If it is determined that the predetermined time has elapsed, the process proceeds to step S1307; otherwise, the process waits until the predetermined time elapses. In the present embodiment, the predetermined time is 0.5 seconds.

  In step S1307, the CPU 201 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 101 adds the information acquired in steps S1303 to S1305 as a record to the flight information table 1400 acquired in step S1301 (corresponding to an acquisition unit). This will be specifically described. The position information (latitude and longitude) acquired in step S1303 is set to the position 1402, the altitude (elevation) of the unmanned aircraft 101 acquired in step S1304 is set to the altitude 1403, the impact level information acquired in step S1305 is set to the impact level 1404, and step S1306. The time for adding a record is added as a record at time 1405, respectively. The flight information table 1400 shown in FIG. 14 is obtained by repeating Steps S1302 to S1307 six times.

  In step S1308, the CPU 201 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 101 refers to the impact level 1404 of the record added in step S1307, and determines whether the impact level is equal to or higher than a predetermined value. If it is determined that the value is equal to or greater than the predetermined value, the process proceeds to step S1309; otherwise, the process proceeds to step S1311. In the present embodiment, the predetermined value is “3”, but is not limited to this and is merely an example. For example, in the record of No. 1401 “6” in the flight information table 1400 of FIG. 14, the impact level 1404 is “3” or higher, so the CPU 201 proceeds to the process of step S1309. In addition, you may make it determine not only the impact level but the presence or absence of the impact.

  In step S1309, the CPU 201 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 101 acquires the altitude 1403 of the record immediately before the record added in step S1308. In the case of FIG. 1401 acquires “10 m” which is the altitude 1403 of the record “5”.

  In step S1310, the CPU 201 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 101 determines whether the unmanned aircraft 101 has plummeted based on the altitude 1403 of the record added in step S1307 and the altitude 1403 acquired in step S1309. If it is determined that the unmanned aircraft has plummeted, the process proceeds to step S1313. If not, the process proceeds to step S1311.

  As a method for specifically determining whether or not a sudden drop has occurred, a difference between the altitude 1403 of the record added in step S1307 and the altitude 1403 acquired in step S1309 is obtained, and the difference (that is, the change in altitude) ) Has decreased by a predetermined value or more (in this embodiment, for example, 9 m), it can be determined that a sudden drop has occurred.

  Alternatively, as another embodiment, an acceleration obtained from an acceleration sensor included in the unmanned aircraft 101 is acquired (corresponding to an acceleration acquisition unit), and an acceleration obtained from the acceleration sensor is equal to or higher than a predetermined acceleration using the acquired acceleration. If it is, it can be determined that it has plummeted. In this case, since acceleration is detected in the negative direction with respect to the direction of gravity, it is determined that a sudden drop has occurred when an acceleration greater than a predetermined value in the negative direction with respect to the direction of gravity is detected. Can do. You may make it combine the amount of change of an altitude, and acceleration.

  In this way, when the impact level is a predetermined value or more and the flight state of the unmanned aerial vehicle 101 immediately before that is a sudden drop, for example, it can be determined that the unmanned aircraft 101 has crashed. There is a high possibility of failure. For this reason, the unmanned aircraft 101 can easily know the position of the unmanned aircraft that the user has crashed by notifying the communication destination stored in advance in the unmanned aircraft 101 of the location information at the time of the impact. In this embodiment, the communication destination is set as an insurance company, and by automatically contacting the insurance company, it is possible to contribute to reducing the trouble of the user contacting the insurance company. On the other hand, even if the impact level is a predetermined value or more, if the flight state of the unmanned aircraft immediately before that is not a sudden descent (for example, if it touches an obstacle and continues to fly), the position information is communicated. Since it is not contacted first, there is an effect that it is possible to reduce communication of useless position information and reduce battery consumption.

  In step S1312, the CPU 201 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 101 determines whether the unmanned aerial vehicle 101 has become unable to fly. If it is determined that the flight is impossible, the process proceeds to step S1313. If not, the process proceeds to step S1311. The determination as to whether or not the flight is impossible is, for example, determined that the flight is impossible when the altitude does not change (cannot be increased) even though the operation controller 102 instructs the ascent. To do. In addition, it may be determined whether or not the unmanned aerial vehicle 101 has become unable to fly using another index, such as determining whether the remaining battery level is equal to or less than a predetermined value. . Note that this processing is not an essential configuration and may be omitted as necessary.

  In step S1313, the CPU 201 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 101 performs a crash communication process. A detailed processing flow of the crash notification processing will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

  FIG. 15 is a flowchart for explaining the detailed processing flow of the crash notification processing.

  In step S1501, the CPU 201 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 101 acquires the notification destination information table 1000 of FIG.

  In step S1502, the CPU 201 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 101 acquires the notification area table 1100 in FIG.

  In step S1503, the CPU 201 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 101 determines that the position 1402 of the record determined in step S1308 that the impact level 1404 is an impact level equal to or higher than a predetermined level is in any range of the notification area table 1100 acquired in step S1502. It is determined whether or not. If it is determined that the position 1402 is within the range of the notification area table 1100, the process proceeds to step S1505. If not, the process ends. Specifically, it is determined whether or not the position 1402: “latitude 35.969311, longitude 139.698112” in FIG. 14 is included in any range of each record in the notification area table 1100. If there is at least one record including the position 1402, the CPU 201 advances the process to step S1505, and if not, ends the process.

  In step S1504, the CPU 201 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 101 determines that the position 1402 of the record determined in step S1308 that the impact level 1404 is equal to or greater than the predetermined impact level is in any range of the notification area table 1100 acquired in step S1502. It is specified whether it is. Specifically, if position 1402: “latitude 35.969311, longitude 139.698112” in FIG. 14, it can be specified that No 1101 in the notification area table 1100 is in the range of “1”.

  In step S1505, the CPU 201 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 101 specifies the position 1402 of the record determined to have suddenly dropped in step S1310. In FIG. 14, the position 1402 corresponding to No. 1401 corresponding to “6” is specified.

  In step S1506, the CPU 201 of the unmanned aircraft 101 transmits the position 1402 specified in step S1505 to the notification destination address of the communication destination 1104 corresponding to the record in the notification area table 1100 specified in step S1504. The transmission method is e-mail, for example. The transmission method may be other than e-mail. For example, if the identified record is a record in which No 1101 is “1”, the communication destination 1104 is “xxx@xxx.xx”.

  By doing so, it is possible to provide a mechanism capable of automatically transmitting the crashed position to a communication destination such as an appropriate insurance company determined according to the crashed position of the unmanned aircraft 101. .

  This is the end of the description of the flowchart shown in FIG.

  As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to provide a mechanism by which an unmanned aerial vehicle can transmit information related to the flight state of the unmanned aerial vehicle to a communication destination without taking the user's trouble. effective.

  The present invention can be implemented as a system, apparatus, method, program, storage medium, or the like, and can be applied to a system including a plurality of devices. You may apply to the apparatus which consists of one apparatus. Note that the present invention includes a software program that implements the functions of the above-described embodiments directly or remotely from a system or apparatus. The present invention also includes a case where the information processing apparatus of the system or apparatus is achieved by reading and executing the supplied program code.

  Therefore, the program code itself installed in the information processing apparatus in order to realize the functional processing of the present invention with the information processing apparatus also realizes the present invention. That is, the present invention also includes a computer program for realizing the functional processing of the present invention.

  In that case, as long as it has the function of a program, it may be in the form of object code, a program executed by an interpreter, script data supplied to the OS, and the like.

  Examples of the recording medium for supplying the program include a flexible disk, hard disk, optical disk, magneto-optical disk, MO, CD-ROM, CD-R, and CD-RW. In addition, there are magnetic tape, nonvolatile memory card, ROM, DVD (DVD-ROM, DVD-R), and the like.

  As another program supply method, a browser on a client computer is used to connect to an Internet home page. The computer program itself of the present invention or a compressed file including an automatic installation function can be downloaded from the homepage by downloading it to a recording medium such as a hard disk.

  It can also be realized by dividing the program code constituting the program of the present invention into a plurality of files and downloading each file from a different homepage. That is, the present invention also includes a WWW server that allows a plurality of users to download a program file for realizing the functional processing of the present invention with an information processing apparatus.

  In addition, the program of the present invention is encrypted, stored in a storage medium such as a CD-ROM, distributed to users, and key information for decryption is downloaded from a homepage via the Internet to users who have cleared predetermined conditions. Let me. The downloaded key information can be used to execute the encrypted program and install it in the information processing apparatus.

  Further, the functions of the above-described embodiment are realized by the information processing apparatus executing the read program. In addition, based on the instructions of the program, the OS or the like operating on the information processing apparatus performs part or all of the actual processing, and the functions of the above-described embodiments can be realized by the processing.

  Further, the program read from the recording medium is written in a memory provided in a function expansion board inserted into the information processing apparatus or a function expansion unit connected to the information processing apparatus. Thereafter, the CPU of the function expansion board or function expansion unit performs part or all of the actual processing based on the instructions of the program, and the functions of the above-described embodiments are realized by the processing.

  The above-described embodiments are merely examples of implementation in carrying out the present invention, and the technical scope of the present invention should not be construed as being limited thereto. That is, the present invention can be implemented in various forms without departing from the technical idea or the main features thereof.

101 unmanned aircraft 102 operation controller

Claims (14)

Acquisition means for acquiring position information including altitude information indicating the altitude of the unmanned aircraft at a predetermined timing;
Determining means for determining whether or not two consecutive changes in altitude information acquired by the acquiring means satisfy a predetermined condition;
A transmission means for transmitting the position information when a change in the altitude information satisfies a predetermined condition to a predetermined communication destination when the determination means determines that the predetermined condition is satisfied. Unmanned aerial vehicle that features.   The unmanned aerial vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined condition is a change indicating a decrease in altitude. A storage unit for storing the range of the position information and the communication destination in association with each other;
The acquisition unit acquires position information of the unmanned aircraft when the determination unit determines that a predetermined condition is satisfied,
The transmission means is a range that includes the position information of the unmanned aircraft that is acquired by the acquisition means and that is determined by the determination means to satisfy a predetermined condition, and that is stored in the storage means The unmanned aerial vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the position information is transmitted to the associated communication destination. Unmanned aircraft
An acquisition step of acquiring position information including altitude information indicating the altitude of the unmanned aircraft at a predetermined timing;
A determination step of determining whether or not two consecutive height information changes acquired in the acquisition step satisfy a predetermined condition;
A transmission step of transmitting the position information when a change in the altitude information satisfies a predetermined condition to a predetermined communication destination when it is determined that the predetermined condition is satisfied in the determination step. A method for controlling an unmanned aerial vehicle. Unmanned aircraft,
Acquisition means for acquiring position information including altitude information indicating the altitude of the unmanned aircraft at a predetermined timing;
Determining means for determining whether or not two consecutive changes in altitude information acquired by the acquiring means satisfy a predetermined condition;
When the determination means determines that the predetermined condition is satisfied, the transmission means functions as a transmission means for transmitting the position information when a change in the altitude information satisfies the predetermined condition to a predetermined communication destination. A program that can be executed on unmanned aerial vehicles. Acquisition means for acquiring position information including altitude information indicating the altitude of the unmanned aircraft at a predetermined timing;
Determining means for determining whether or not two consecutive changes in altitude information acquired by the acquiring means satisfy a predetermined condition;
Transmitting means for transmitting, from the unmanned aircraft, the position information when a change in the altitude information satisfies a predetermined condition at a predetermined communication destination when the determining means determines that the predetermined condition is satisfied; An unmanned aerial vehicle control system comprising: Unmanned aircraft control system
An acquisition step of acquiring position information including altitude information indicating the altitude of the unmanned aircraft at a predetermined timing;
A determination step of determining whether or not two consecutive height information changes acquired in the acquisition step satisfy a predetermined condition;
A transmission step of transmitting, from the unmanned aircraft, the position information when a change in the altitude information satisfies a predetermined condition to a predetermined communication destination when it is determined that the predetermined condition is satisfied in the determination step; A control method for an unmanned aerial vehicle control system. Unmanned aircraft control system,
Acquisition means for acquiring position information including altitude information indicating the altitude of the unmanned aircraft at a predetermined timing;
Determining means for determining whether or not two consecutive changes in altitude information acquired by the acquiring means satisfy a predetermined condition;
Transmitting means for transmitting, from the unmanned aircraft, the position information when a change in the altitude information satisfies a predetermined condition to a predetermined communication destination when the determining means determines that the predetermined condition is satisfied. A program that can be executed by an unmanned aerial vehicle control system characterized by functioning. Acceleration acquisition means for acquiring the acceleration of the unmanned aircraft;
Determination means for determining whether or not the acceleration acquired by the acceleration acquisition means satisfies a predetermined condition;
Position information acquisition means for acquiring position information when the acceleration satisfies a predetermined condition when the determination means determines that the acceleration satisfies a predetermined condition;
An unmanned aerial vehicle comprising: transmission means for transmitting the position information acquired by the position information acquisition means to a predetermined communication destination. Unmanned aircraft
An acceleration acquisition step of acquiring acceleration of the unmanned aircraft;
A determination step of determining whether or not the acceleration acquired in the acceleration acquisition step satisfies a predetermined condition;
A position information acquisition step of acquiring position information when the acceleration satisfies a predetermined condition when the acceleration is determined to satisfy the predetermined condition in the determination step;
A transmission step for transmitting the position information acquired in the position information acquisition step to a predetermined communication destination. Unmanned aircraft,
Acceleration acquisition means for acquiring acceleration of the unmanned aircraft;
Determination means for determining whether or not the acceleration acquired by the acceleration acquisition means satisfies a predetermined condition;
Position information acquisition means for acquiring position information when the acceleration satisfies a predetermined condition when the determination means determines that the acceleration satisfies a predetermined condition;
A program executable by an unmanned aerial vehicle, comprising: transmission means for transmitting the position information acquired by the position information acquisition means to a predetermined communication destination. Acceleration acquisition means for acquiring the acceleration of the unmanned aircraft;
Determination means for determining whether or not the acceleration acquired by the acceleration acquisition means satisfies a predetermined condition;
Position information acquisition means for acquiring position information when the acceleration satisfies a predetermined condition when the determination means determines that the acceleration satisfies a predetermined condition;
An unmanned aerial vehicle control system comprising: transmission means for transmitting the position information acquired by the position information acquisition means to a predetermined communication destination. Unmanned aircraft
An acceleration acquisition step of acquiring acceleration of the unmanned aircraft;
A determination step of determining whether or not the acceleration acquired in the acceleration acquisition step satisfies a predetermined condition;
A position information acquisition step of acquiring position information when the acceleration satisfies a predetermined condition when the acceleration is determined to satisfy the predetermined condition in the determination step;
A control method for an unmanned aircraft control system, comprising: a transmission step of transmitting the position information acquired in the position information acquisition step to a predetermined communication destination. Unmanned aircraft,
Acceleration acquisition means for acquiring acceleration of the unmanned aircraft;
Determination means for determining whether or not the acceleration acquired by the acceleration acquisition means satisfies a predetermined condition;
Position information acquisition means for acquiring position information when the acceleration satisfies a predetermined condition when the determination means determines that the acceleration satisfies a predetermined condition;
A program executable by the unmanned aerial vehicle control system, comprising: a transmission unit configured to transmit the position information acquired by the position information acquisition unit to a predetermined communication destination.

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