JP2021094890A - Flying object and control method - Google Patents

Abstract

To solve the problem that variations in illuminance measured by an illuminance sensor may occur due to difference in an angle formed between an incident direction of sunlight and a flight direction of a flying object, when the illuminance sensor measures during flight of the flying object having the illuminance sensor.SOLUTION: A determining device may determine a flight path of a flying body comprising an illuminance sensor. The determining device may comprise a circuit configured to: acquire a date and time and a location of flight of the flying body measuring illuminance by the illuminance sensor; and determining a flight path of the flying body, such that an angle formed between a direction of the sun and a flight direction of the flying body based on the date and time and the location is included within a preset angle range.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 8

Description

The present invention relates to a determination device, an air vehicle, a determination method, and a program.

Patent Document 1 discloses an unmanned aerial vehicle including a multi-band sensor and an illuminance sensor.
[Prior art literature]
[Patent Document]
[Patent Document 1] U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2017/0356799

When an illuminance sensor measures illuminance while an air vehicle equipped with an illuminance sensor is in flight, the illuminance measured by the illuminance sensor varies depending on the difference in the angle between the incident direction of sunlight and the flight direction of the air vehicle. May occur.

The determination device according to one aspect of the present invention may determine the flight path of an air vehicle including an illuminance sensor. The determination device may include a circuit configured to acquire the date and time and position of flight of the flying object while measuring the illuminance with an illuminance sensor. The circuit is configured to determine the flight path of the vehicle so that the angle formed by the direction of the sun and the flight direction of the vehicle based on the date and time and position is within a predetermined angle range.

The predetermined angle range may include 90 degrees.

The date and time may be the first time point within the measurement period during which the flying object flies while measuring the illuminance with the illuminance sensor.

The first time point may be an intermediate time point of the measurement period.

The flying object according to one aspect of the present invention may be provided with the above-mentioned determination device and an illuminance sensor, and may fly along a flight path.

The illuminance sensor includes a first light receiving element that detects the illuminance in the first wavelength region, a second light receiving element that detects the illuminance in the second wavelength region, and a third light receiving element that detects the illuminance in the third wavelength region. And may be included.

The illuminance sensor may be provided on the ceiling of the flying object.

The air vehicle may further include an imaging device.

The air vehicle may further include a support mechanism that supports the image pickup device so that the attitude of the image pickup device can be controlled. The support mechanism may be provided in the area opposite to the ceiling of the flying object.

The image pickup apparatus may be a multispectral camera that captures a subject in each of a plurality of wavelength bands.

The air vehicle may include a plurality of rotor blades.

The determination method according to one aspect of the present invention may determine the flight path of an air vehicle including an illuminance sensor. The determination method may include a step of acquiring the date and time and position at which the flying object flies while measuring the illuminance with the illuminance sensor. The determination method may include a step of determining the flight path of the air vehicle so that the angle formed by the direction of the sun and the flight direction of the air vehicle based on the date and time and position is included in a predetermined angle range.

The program according to one aspect of the present invention may be a program for operating a computer as the determination device.

According to one aspect of the present invention, since the flight path of the flying object is determined in consideration of the direction of the sun, the variation in illuminance measured by the illuminance sensor can be suppressed.

The outline of the above invention does not list all the necessary features of the present invention. Sub-combinations of these feature groups can also be inventions.

It is a figure which shows an example of the appearance of an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) and a remote control device. It is a figure which shows an example of the appearance of the image pickup system mounted on a UAV. It is a figure which shows another example of the appearance of the image pickup system mounted on a UAV. It is a figure which shows an example of the functional block of a UAV. It is a figure for demonstrating the relationship between the attitude of a UAV and the direction of the sun. It is a figure for demonstrating the relationship between the attitude of a UAV and the direction of the sun. It is a figure which shows an example of the image which shows the NDVI including the striped pattern along the flight direction of a UAV. It is a figure for demonstrating the relationship between the flight direction of a UAV and the direction of the sun. It is a figure for demonstrating the relationship between the flight direction of a UAV and the direction of the sun. It is a flowchart which shows an example of the procedure for determining a flight path of a UAV. It is a figure which shows an example of a hardware configuration.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described through embodiments of the invention, but the following embodiments do not limit the invention according to the claims. Also, not all combinations of features described in the embodiments are essential to the means of solving the invention. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes or improvements can be made to the following embodiments. It is clear from the description of the claims that such modified or improved forms may also be included in the technical scope of the present invention.

The claims, description, drawings, and abstracts include matters that are subject to copyright protection. The copyright holder will not object to any person's reproduction of these documents as long as they appear in the Patent Office files or records. However, in other cases, all copyrights are reserved.

Various embodiments of the present invention may be described with reference to flowcharts and block diagrams, wherein the block is (1) a stage of the process in which the operation is performed or (2) a device having a role of performing the operation. May represent the "part" of. Specific stages and "parts" may be implemented by programmable circuits and / or processors. Dedicated circuits may include digital and / or analog hardware circuits. It may include integrated circuits (ICs) and / or discrete circuits. Programmable circuits may include reconfigurable hardware circuits. Reconfigurable hardware circuits include logical AND, logical OR, logical XOR, logical NAND, logical NOR, and other logical operations, flip-flops, registers, field programmable gate arrays (FPGA), programmable logic arrays (PLA), etc. It may include a memory element such as.

The computer-readable medium may include any tangible device capable of storing instructions executed by the appropriate device. As a result, the computer-readable medium having the instructions stored therein will include the product, including instructions that can be executed to create means for performing the operation specified in the flowchart or block diagram. Examples of computer-readable media may include electronic storage media, magnetic storage media, optical storage media, electromagnetic storage media, semiconductor storage media, and the like. More specific examples of computer-readable media include floppy (registered trademark) disks, diskettes, hard disks, random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or flash memory), Electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM®), static random access memory (SRAM), compact disk read-only memory (CD-ROM), digital versatile disc (DVD), Blu-ray (RTM) disc, Memory sticks, integrated circuit cards, etc. may be included.

Computer-readable instructions may include either source code or object code written in any combination of one or more programming languages. Source code or object code includes traditional procedural programming languages. Traditional procedural programming languages include assembler instructions, instruction set architecture (ISA) instructions, machine instructions, machine-dependent instructions, microcode, firmware instructions, state-setting data, or Smalltalk, JAVA®, C ++, etc. It may be an object-oriented programming language, and a "C" programming language or a similar programming language. Computer-readable instructions are used locally or on a local area network (LAN), wide area network (WAN) such as the Internet, to the processor or programmable circuit of a general purpose computer, special purpose computer, or other programmable data processing unit. ) May be provided. The processor or programmable circuit may execute computer-readable instructions to create means for performing the operations specified in the flowchart or block diagram. Examples of processors include computer processors, processing units, microprocessors, digital signal processors, controllers, microcontrollers and the like.

FIG. 1 shows an example of the appearance of the unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) 10 and the remote control device 300. The UAV 10 includes a UAV main body 20, a gimbal 50, a plurality of imaging devices 60, an imaging system 100, and a sensor unit 600. UAV10 is an example of a mobile body. A moving body is a concept including an air vehicle moving in the air, a vehicle moving on the ground, a ship moving on the water, and the like. An airship that moves in the air is a concept that includes UAVs, other aircraft that move in the air, airships, helicopters, and the like.

The UAV main body 20 includes a plurality of rotor blades. The plurality of rotor blades are an example of a propulsion unit. The UAV main body 20 flies the UAV 10 by controlling the rotation of a plurality of rotor blades. The UAV body 20 flies the UAV 10 using, for example, four rotor blades. The number of rotor blades is not limited to four. Further, the UAV 10 may be a fixed-wing aircraft having no rotor blades.

The sensor unit 600 includes an illuminance sensor and an RTK. The sensor unit 600 may be provided on the ceiling of the UAV main body 20. The ceiling portion indicates a region of the UAV main body 20 on the side where the rotary blades of the UAV main body 20 are provided. It's not just the top of the UAV body 20. The imaging system 100 is a multispectral camera for imaging that captures an object included in a desired imaging range for each of a plurality of wavelength bands. The image pickup system 100 is an example of an image pickup device. The gimbal 50 rotatably supports the imaging system 100. The gimbal 50 is an example of a support mechanism. The gimbal 50 may be provided on the bottom portion (region) of the UAV main body 20 on the opposite side to the ceiling portion. For example, the gimbal 50 rotatably supports the imaging system 100 on a pitch axis using an actuator. The gimbal 50 further rotatably supports the imaging system 100 about each of the roll axis and the yaw axis by using an actuator. The gimbal 50 may change the posture of the image pickup system 100 by rotating the image pickup system 100 around at least one of the yaw axis, the pitch axis, and the roll axis.

The plurality of image pickup devices 60 are sensing cameras that image the surroundings of the UAV 10 in order to control the flight of the UAV 10. Two imaging devices 60 may be provided on the front surface, which is the nose of the UAV 10. Yet two other imaging devices 60 may be provided on the bottom surface of the UAV 10. The two image pickup devices 60 on the front side may form a pair and function as a so-called stereo camera. The two image pickup devices 60 on the bottom side may also be paired and function as a stereo camera. The image pickup apparatus 60 may measure the existence of an object included in the imaging range of the image pickup apparatus 60 and the distance to the object. The image pickup device 60 is an example of a measurement device that measures an object existing in the image pickup direction of the image pickup system 100. The measuring device may be another sensor such as an infrared sensor or an ultrasonic sensor that measures an object existing in the imaging direction of the imaging system 100. Three-dimensional spatial data around the UAV 10 may be generated based on the images captured by the plurality of imaging devices 60. The number of image pickup devices 60 included in the UAV 10 is not limited to four. The UAV 10 may include at least one imaging device 60. The UAV 10 may be provided with at least one imaging device 60 on each of the nose, nose, side surface, bottom surface, and ceiling surface of the UAV 10. The angle of view that can be set by the image pickup apparatus 60 may be wider than the angle of view that can be set by the image pickup system 100. The image pickup apparatus 60 may have a single focus lens or a fisheye lens.

The remote control device 300 communicates with the UAV 10 to remotely control the UAV 10. The remote control device 300 may communicate wirelessly with the UAV 10. The remote control device 300 transmits to the UAV 10 instruction information indicating various commands related to the movement of the UAV 10, such as ascending, descending, accelerating, decelerating, advancing, reversing, and rotating. The instruction information includes, for example, instruction information for raising the altitude of the UAV 10. The instruction information may indicate the altitude at which the UAV 10 should be located. The UAV 10 moves so as to be located at an altitude indicated by the instruction information received from the remote control device 300. The instruction information may include an ascending instruction to ascend the UAV 10. The UAV10 rises while accepting the rise order. Even if the UAV10 accepts the ascending command, the ascending may be restricted if the altitude of the UAV10 has reached the upper limit altitude.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of the appearance of the imaging system 100 mounted on the UAV 10. The imaging system 100 is a multispectral camera that captures image data for each of a plurality of predetermined wavelength bands. The imaging system 100 includes an imaging device 110 for R, an imaging device 120 for G, an imaging device 130 for B, an imaging device 140 for RE, and an imaging device 150 for NIR. The image pickup system 100 records each image data captured by the image pickup device 110 for R, the image pickup device 120 for G, the image pickup device 130 for B, the image pickup device 140 for RE, and the image pickup device 150 for NIR as a multispectral image. be able to. Multispectral images may be used, for example, to make predictions about the health and vitality of crops.

Multispectral images are used, for example, to calculate the Normalized Difference Vegetation (NDVI). NDVI is expressed by the following formula.

IR indicates the reflectance in the near-infrared region, and R indicates the reflectance in the visible region.

The R image pickup device 110 has a filter that transmits light in the wavelength band of the red region, and outputs an R image signal that is an image signal in the wavelength band of the red region. The wavelength band in the red region is, for example, 620 nm to 750 nm. The wavelength band in the red region may be a specific wavelength band in the red region, for example, 663 nm to 673 nm.

The G image pickup device 120 has a filter that transmits light in the wavelength band of the green region, and outputs a G image signal that is an image signal in the wavelength band of the green region. The wavelength band in the green region is, for example, 500 nm to 570 nm. The wavelength band in the green region may be a specific wavelength band in the green region, for example, 550 nm to 570 nm.

The image pickup device 130 for B has a filter that transmits light in the wavelength band of the blue region, and outputs a B image signal that is an image signal in the wavelength band of the blue region. The wavelength band in the blue region is, for example, 450 nm to 500 nm. The wavelength band in the blue region may be a specific wavelength band in the blue region, for example, 465 nm to 485 nm.

The RE imaging device 140 has a filter that transmits light in the wavelength band of the red edge region, and outputs a RE image signal that is an image signal in the wavelength band of the red edge region. The wavelength band in the red edge region is, for example, 705 nm to 745 nm. The wavelength band in the red edge region may be 712 nm to 722 nm.

The NIR imaging device 150 has a filter that transmits light in a wavelength band in the near infrared region, and outputs a NIR image signal that is an image signal in the wavelength band in the near infrared region. The wavelength band in the near infrared region is, for example, 800 nm to 2500 nm. The wavelength band in the near infrared region may be 800 nm to 900 nm.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing another example of the appearance of the imaging system 100 mounted on the UAV 10. The imaging system 100 includes an RGB imaging device 160 in addition to the G imaging device 120, the B imaging device 130, the RE imaging device 140, and the NIR imaging device 150. Different from. The RGB image pickup apparatus 160 may be similar to a normal camera, and includes an optical system and an image sensor. The image sensor has a filter that transmits light in the wavelength band in the red region, a filter that transmits light in the wavelength band in the green region, and a filter that transmits light in the wavelength band in the blue region, which are arranged in a bayer arrangement. You can. The RGB image pickup apparatus 160 may output an RGB image. The wavelength band in the red region may be, for example, 620 nm to 750 nm. The wavelength band in the green region may be, for example, 500 nm to 570 nm. The wavelength band in the blue region is, for example, 450 nm to 500 nm.

FIG. 4 shows an example of the functional block of the UAV 10. The UAV 10 includes a UAV control unit 30, a memory 32, a communication interface 36, a propulsion unit 40, a GPS receiver 41, an inertial measurement unit 42, a magnetic compass 43, a barometric altimeter 44, a temperature sensor 45, a humidity sensor 46, a gimbal 50, and an imaging device. The 60 and the imaging system 100 are provided.

The communication interface 36 communicates with another device such as the remote control device 300. The communication interface 36 may receive instruction information including various commands from the remote control device 300 to the UAV control unit 30. In the memory 32, the UAV control unit 30 has a propulsion unit 40, a GPS receiver 41, an inertial measurement unit (IMU) 42, a magnetic compass 43, a barometric altimeter 44, a temperature sensor 45, a humidity sensor 46, a gimbal 50, an image pickup device 60, and the like. And a program and the like necessary for controlling the image pickup system 100 are stored. The memory 32 may be a computer-readable recording medium and may include at least one of flash memories such as SRAM, DRAM, EPROM, EEPROM, and USB memory. The memory 32 may be provided inside the UAV main body 20. It may be provided so as to be removable from the UAV main body 20.

The UAV control unit 30 controls the flight and imaging of the UAV 10 according to the program stored in the memory 32. The UAV control unit 30 may be composed of a CPU, a microprocessor such as an MPU, a microcontroller such as an MCU, or the like. The UAV control unit 30 controls the flight and imaging of the UAV 10 according to a command received from the remote control device 300 via the communication interface 36. The propulsion unit 40 promotes the UAV 10. The propulsion unit 40 has a plurality of rotary blades and a plurality of drive motors for rotating the plurality of rotary blades. The propulsion unit 40 rotates a plurality of rotor blades via a plurality of drive motors in accordance with a command from the UAV control unit 30 to fly the UAV 10.

The GPS receiver 41 receives a plurality of signals indicating the time transmitted from the plurality of GPS satellites. The GPS receiver 41 calculates the position (latitude and longitude) of the GPS receiver 41, that is, the position (latitude and longitude) of the UAV 10 based on the plurality of received signals. The IMU 42 detects the posture of the UAV 10. The IMU 42 detects the acceleration in the three axial directions of the front and rear, the left and right, and the up and down of the UAV 10 and the angular velocity in the three axial directions of pitch, roll, and yaw as the posture of the UAV 10. The magnetic compass 43 detects the nose orientation of the UAV 10. The barometric altimeter 44 detects the altitude at which the UAV 10 flies. The barometric altimeter 44 detects the barometric pressure around the UAV 10, converts the detected barometric pressure into an altitude, and detects the altitude. The temperature sensor 45 detects the ambient temperature of the UAV 10. The humidity sensor 46 detects the humidity around the UAV 10.

The UAV 10 further includes a sensor unit 600. The sensor unit 600 may be provided on the ceiling of the UAV main body 20. The sensor unit 600 includes an MCU 70, an RTK 80, and an illuminance sensor 500. The MCU 70 is a control circuit that controls the RTK 80 and the illuminance sensor 500. The RTK80 is a real-time kinematic GPS. The RTK80 positions the UAV 10 by RTK positioning based on the position information of a base station installed at a predetermined position.

The illuminance sensor 500 measures the ambient illuminance. The illuminance sensor 500 includes a plurality of light receiving elements arranged on the substrate. The illuminance sensor 500 includes a first light receiving element, a second light receiving element, and a third light receiving element. The first light receiving element may receive a wavelength in the range of 400 nm or more and 700 nm or less. The second light receiving element may receive wavelengths in the range of 700 nm or more and 900 nm or less. The third light receiving element may receive a wavelength in the range of 900 nm or more and 1500 nm or less.

Here, the reflectance used when deriving NDVI or the like can be approximated by k × N / L, where the coefficient k, the pixel value in the desired wavelength region is N, and the illuminance (solar intensity) is L. .. k is a coefficient for aligning the unit of the pixel value and the unit of the illuminance.

Even if the posture of the UAV 10 changes, the imaging system 100 is controlled via the gimbal 50 so that a predetermined imaging direction such as a vertical downward direction is maintained. Therefore, even if the posture of the UAV 10 changes, the pixel values of the images in each wavelength region captured by the imaging system 100 do not change. However, in the illuminance sensor 500, when the posture of the UAV 10 changes, the posture of the illuminance sensor 500 also changes. When the posture of the illuminance sensor 500 changes, the amount of light received by the light receiving surface of the illuminance sensor 500 may change. When the illuminance sensor 500 includes a plurality of light receiving sensors for each of a plurality of wavelength regions, the posture of the illuminance sensor 500 changes due to the difference in the position where the plurality of light receiving sensors are arranged, so that the light receiving surface of the illuminance sensor 500 changes. The amount of light received may change. That is, when the posture of the UAV 10 changes, the illuminance measured by the illuminance sensor 500 may change. In this case, since the ratio of the pixel value and the illuminance changes, the index such as NDVI may change.

For example, as shown in FIG. 5, the flight path 1 in which the UAV 10 flies in the first direction 701 along the direction (direction) of the sun and the flight path in which the UAV 10 flies in the second direction opposite to the first direction 701. The incident angle of the sunlight incident on the illuminance sensor 500 is different from that of the case 2. As a result, the ratio of the pixel value to the illuminance changes, and the index such as NDVI varies depending on the direction in which the UAV 10 flies.

The spectrum of sunlight received by the illuminance sensor 500 changes depending on the time zone. For example, as shown in FIG. 6, in the evening, the proportion of light of the red component increases. The ratio of the illuminance measured by the illuminance sensor 500 for each color component becomes uneven. Illuminance sensor 500 in the case of the flight path 1 in which the UAV 10 flies in the first direction 701 along the direction (direction) of the sun and in the case of the flight path 2 in which the UAV 10 flies in the second direction opposite to the first direction 701. The angle of incidence of sunlight incident on is different. In this case, the posture of the UAV 10 changes, and the ratio of each color component measured by the illuminance sensor 500 changes. As a result, the ratio of the pixel value to the illuminance changes, and the index such as NDVI varies depending on the direction in which the UAV 10 flies.

FIG. 7 is an example of an image showing NDVI. When the direction in which the UAV 10 flies is along the direction of the sun, the magnitude of the illuminance measured by the illuminance sensor 500 changes depending on the direction in which the UAV 10 flies with respect to the sun. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 7, the image showing NVDI has a striped pattern along the flight direction of the UAV 10.

Therefore, in the present embodiment, the UAV control unit 30 determines the flight path of the UAV 10 so that the angle formed by the direction of the sun and the flight direction of the UAV 10 is included in a predetermined angle range. The predetermined angle range includes 90 degrees. The UAV control unit 30 may determine the flight path of the UAV 10 so that the direction of the sun and the flight direction of the UAV 10 intersect. As shown in FIG. 8, the UAV control unit 30 is not a flight path in which the direction of the sun and the flight direction 703 of the UAV 10 are in the same direction, but a flight path in which the direction of the sun and the flight direction of the UAV 10 intersect vertically. The flight path of the UAV 10 may be determined so as to be 704.

The UAV control unit 30 may acquire the date and time and position (latitude / longitude) of the UAV 10 flying while measuring the illuminance with the illuminance sensor 500. The date and time may be the first time within a predetermined measurement period during which the UAV 10 flies while measuring the illuminance by the illuminance sensor 500. The first time point may be, for example, an intermediate time point of the measurement period. The intermediate time point does not mean only the time point in the middle of the start time to the end time of the measurement period. The intermediate time point may be any time between the start time and the end time of the measurement period. The first time point may be the first time point or the last time point. The UAV control unit 30 may specify the azimuth angle 801 of the sun 800 as shown in FIG. 9 based on the date and time and the position. The UAV control unit 30 may determine the flight path of the UAV 10 so that the direction perpendicular to the direction indicated by the azimuth angle 801 is the flight direction of the UAV 10.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing an example of a procedure in which the UAV control unit 30 determines the flight path of the UAV 10.

The UAV control unit 30 edits the flight path of the UAV 10 (S100). The UAV control unit 30 receives the area to be measured on the map and edits the flight path so that the reflectance of the entire area can be measured. Next, the UAV control unit 30 receives the date and time and position (latitude / longitude) at which the UAV 10 flies while measuring the illuminance with the illuminance sensor 500. The UAV control unit 30 calculates the azimuth angle of the sun based on the date and time and the position. The UAV control unit 30 specifies the direction of the sun at the time of flight based on the azimuth angle (S104). The UAV control unit 30 may acquire the azimuth angle of the sun from an external server via the network based on the date and time and the position.

The UAV control unit 30 determines whether or not the angle formed by the flight direction of the UAV 10 and the direction of the sun on the flight path is within a predetermined angle range (S106). If the angle formed by the flight direction of the UAV 10 and the direction of the sun is within a predetermined angle range, the UAV control unit 30 flies the UAV 10 according to the flight path without modifying the flight path, and the imaging system Imaging by 100 and measurement of illuminance by the illuminance sensor 500 are executed (S106). On the other hand, if the angle formed by the flight direction of the UAV 10 and the direction of the sun is outside the predetermined angle range, the UAV control unit 30 determines in advance the angle formed by the flight direction of the UAV 10 and the direction of the sun. The flight path is modified so that it is within the angle range (S108). Then, the UAV control unit 30 flies the UAV 10 according to the modified flight path, performs imaging by the imaging system 100, and measures the illuminance by the illuminance sensor 500 (S106).

The memory 32 may store in advance information relating the date and time and the position to the direction perpendicular to the direction of the sun. The UAV control unit 30 does not calculate the direction of the sun, but refers to the memory 32, and the angle formed by the flight direction of the UAV 10 and the direction of the sun is within a predetermined angle range directly from the date and time and position. The flight direction of the UAV 10 may be determined.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, the UAV control unit 30 includes the angle formed by the direction of the sun and the flight direction of the UAV 10 based on the date and time and position of the measurement target within a predetermined angle range. , Determine the flight path of the UAV10. The UAV control unit 30 executes imaging by the imaging system 100 and measurement of illuminance by the illuminance sensor 500 while flying the UAV 10 along the flight path. As a result, it is possible to prevent the illuminance measured by the illuminance sensor 500 from fluctuating as the posture of the UAV 10 changes. Therefore, it is possible to suppress variations in indexes such as NVDI derived by using the illuminance measured by the illuminance sensor 500.

FIG. 11 shows an example of a computer 1200 in which a plurality of aspects of the present invention may be embodied in whole or in part. The program installed on the computer 1200 can cause the computer 1200 to function as an operation associated with the device according to an embodiment of the present invention or as one or more "parts" of the device. Alternatively, the program may cause the computer 1200 to perform the operation or the one or more "parts". The program can cause a computer 1200 to perform a process or a step of the process according to an embodiment of the present invention. Such a program may be run by the CPU 1212 to cause the computer 1200 to perform certain operations associated with some or all of the blocks in the flowcharts and block diagrams described herein.

The computer 1200 according to this embodiment includes a CPU 1212 and a RAM 1214, which are connected to each other by a host controller 1210. The computer 1200 also includes a communication interface 1222, an input / output unit, which are connected to the host controller 1210 via an input / output controller 1220. The computer 1200 also includes a ROM 1230. The CPU 1212 operates according to the programs stored in the ROM 1230 and the RAM 1214, thereby controlling each unit.

Communication interface 1222 communicates with other electronic devices via a network. The hard disk drive may store programs and data used by the CPU 1212 in the computer 1200. The ROM 1230 stores in it a boot program or the like executed by the computer 1200 at the time of activation and / or a program depending on the hardware of the computer 1200. The program is provided via a computer-readable recording medium such as a CR-ROM, USB memory or IC card or network. The program is installed in RAM 1214 or ROM 1230, which is also an example of a computer-readable recording medium, and is executed by CPU 1212. The information processing described in these programs is read by the computer 1200 and provides a link between the program and the various types of hardware resources described above. The device or method may be configured to implement the operation or processing of information according to the use of the computer 1200.

For example, when communication is executed between the computer 1200 and an external device, the CPU 1212 executes a communication program loaded in the RAM 1214, and performs communication processing on the communication interface 1222 based on the processing described in the communication program. You may order. Under the control of the CPU 1212, the communication interface 1222 reads the transmission data stored in the transmission buffer area provided in the RAM 1214 or a recording medium such as a USB memory, transmits the read transmission data to the network, or The received data received from the network is written to the reception buffer area or the like provided on the recording medium.

Further, the CPU 1212 makes the RAM 1214 read all or necessary parts of a file or a database stored in an external recording medium such as a USB memory, and executes various types of processing on the data on the RAM 1214. Good. The CPU 1212 may then write back the processed data to an external recording medium.

Various types of information such as various types of programs, data, tables, and databases may be stored in recording media and processed. The CPU 1212 describes various types of operations, information processing, conditional judgment, conditional branching, unconditional branching, and information retrieval described in various parts of the present disclosure with respect to the data read from the RAM 1214. Various types of processing may be performed, including / replacement, etc., and the results are written back to the RAM 1214. Further, the CPU 1212 may search for information in a file, a database, or the like in the recording medium. For example, when a plurality of entries each having an attribute value of the first attribute associated with the attribute value of the second attribute are stored in the recording medium, the CPU 1212 specifies the attribute value of the first attribute. Search for an entry that matches the condition from the plurality of entries, read the attribute value of the second attribute stored in the entry, and associate it with the first attribute that satisfies the predetermined condition. The attribute value of the second attribute obtained may be acquired.

The program or software module described above may be stored on a computer 1200 or in a computer readable storage medium near the computer 1200. Also, a recording medium such as a hard disk or RAM provided in a dedicated communication network or a server system connected to the Internet can be used as a computer-readable storage medium, thereby allowing the program to be transferred to the computer 1200 over the network. provide.

Although the present invention has been described above using the embodiments, the technical scope of the present invention is not limited to the scope described in the above embodiments. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes or improvements can be made to the above embodiments. It is clear from the description of the claims that such modified or improved forms may also be included in the technical scope of the present invention.

The order of execution of operations, procedures, steps, steps, etc. in the devices, systems, programs, and methods shown in the claims, specification, and drawings is particularly "before" and "prior to". It should be noted that it can be realized in any order unless the output of the previous process is used in the subsequent process. Even if the scope of claims, the specification, and the operation flow in the drawings are explained using "first", "next", etc. for convenience, it means that it is essential to carry out in this order. It's not a thing.

10 UAV
20 UAV main unit 30 UAV control unit 32 Memory 36 Communication interface 40 Propulsion unit 41 GPS receiver 42 Inertial measurement unit 43 Magnetic compass 44 Atmospheric pressure sensor 45 Temperature sensor 46 Humidity sensor 50 Gimbal 60 Imaging device 100 Imaging system 110 R imaging device 120 G Imaging device 130 B imaging device 140 RE imaging device 150 NIR imaging device 160 RGB imaging device 300 Remote control device 500 Illumination sensor 600 Sensor unit 1200 Computer 1210 Host controller 1212 CPU
1214 RAM
1220 Input / Output Controller 1222 Communication Interface 1230 ROM

Claims (13)

A determinant that determines the flight path of an air vehicle equipped with an illuminance sensor.
While measuring the illuminance with the illuminance sensor, the date and time and position at which the flying object flies are acquired.
A circuit configured to determine the flight path of the flying object so that the angle formed by the direction of the sun and the flight direction of the flying object based on the date and time and the position is included in a predetermined angle range. A decision device to be equipped. The determination device according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined angle range includes 90 degrees. The determination device according to claim 1, wherein the date and time is the first time point within a measurement period in which the flying object flies while measuring the illuminance by the illuminance sensor. The determination device according to claim 3, wherein the first time point is an intermediate time point of the measurement period. The determination device according to any one of claims 1 to 4 and the illuminance sensor are provided.
An air vehicle that flies along the flight path. The illuminance sensor includes a first light receiving element that detects the illuminance in the first wavelength region, a second light receiving element that detects the illuminance in the second wavelength region, and a third light receiving element that detects the illuminance in the third wavelength region. The flying object according to claim 5, which includes an element. The flying object according to claim 5, wherein the illuminance sensor is provided on the ceiling of the flying object. The flying object according to claim 7, further comprising an imaging device. A support mechanism for supporting the image pickup device is further provided so that the posture of the image pickup device can be controlled.
The flying object according to claim 8, wherein the support mechanism is provided in a region of the flying object opposite to the ceiling portion. The flying object according to claim 8, wherein the imaging device is a multispectral camera that images a subject in each of a plurality of wavelength bands. The flying object according to claim 5, further comprising a plurality of rotor blades. It is a determination method for determining the flight path of an air vehicle equipped with an illuminance sensor.
The stage of acquiring the date and time and position of the flight while measuring the illuminance with the illuminance sensor, and
A determination method including a step of determining a flight path of the flying object so that an angle formed by the direction of the sun and the flight direction of the flying object based on the date and time and the position is included in a predetermined angle range. A program for operating a computer as the determination device according to any one of claims 1 to 4.

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