JP7058083B2 - Flight plan support program - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a flight planning support program.

Unmanned aircraft are used to photograph and survey rivers, terrain, and structures, and to spray pesticides and fertilizers. In such applications, it may be required to keep the vertical distance (above ground level) from the ground surface to the unmanned aircraft within a predetermined range. In addition, unmanned aircraft often have the function of autonomous flight, which flies on a designated route before flight.

Regarding the autonomous flight of an unmanned aircraft, in Patent Document 1, route candidates are created in advance and stored in a database, a route considered appropriate for the survey range given by the user is selected, and the route is displayed on a map. At the same time, a surveying system for autonomously flying an unmanned vehicle along a route is disclosed.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2016-85100

According to the surveying system disclosed in Patent Document 1, it is possible to set a path for autonomous flight of an unmanned aircraft, but since there is a change in altitude on the ground surface, the route is spaced from the ground surface. Is not always properly maintained.

An object of the present invention is to support the preparation of a flight plan based on the elevation of a changing ground surface.

A typical flight plan support program according to the present invention is a flight plan support program stored in a memory of a computer and executed by a processor, and the processor has a first waypoint and the first waypoint. When the aircraft passes next to, the input of information of two or more waypoints including the ordered second waypoint is accepted, and the line connecting the first waypoint and the second waypoint. , Calculate the ground distance to the point on the ground surface, compare the calculated ground distance with the preset value, and calculate the ground altitude of the point where the ground distance was calculated according to the result of the comparison. It is characterized in that a third waypoint is set at the calculated ground altitude on the point where the ground distance is calculated.

According to the present invention, it is possible to support the creation of a flight plan based on the elevation of the ground surface that changes.

It is a block diagram which shows the example of the configuration of the flight plan support system. It is a block diagram which shows the example of the structure of an unmanned flying object. It is a sequence diagram which shows the example of the process executed by a PC. It is a sequence diagram which shows the example of the processing performed by an unmanned aircraft. It is a figure which shows the example of the GUI of the waypoint input. It is a figure which shows the example of the display of the route data. It is a figure which shows the example of the display of the route and the topographical cross section in Example 1. FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the example of the route generation processing in Example 1. FIG. It is a figure which shows the example of the display of the route created by the flight plan support program in Example 1. FIG. It is a figure which shows the example of the display of the route and the terrain cross section in Example 2. FIG. It is a figure which shows the example of the display of the route created by the flight plan support program in Example 2. FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the example of the route generation processing in Example 2. It is a figure which shows the example of the waypoint insertion of the route generation processing in Example 2. It is a figure which shows the example of the display of the route in Example 3. FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the example of the route generation processing in Example 3. FIG. It is a figure which shows the example of the waypoint insertion of the route generation processing in Example 3. FIG. It is a figure which shows the example of the relationship between a route and a map. It is a figure which shows the example of the path which flies at the altitude to the ground specified by two points, and the topographical cross section. It is a figure which shows the example of the path which flies at the specified altitude above ground level, and the topographical cross section.

First, the relationship between the flight path of the unmanned vehicle and the terrain will be described with reference to FIGS. 17 to 19. FIG. 17 is a diagram showing an example of the relationship between the information set for creating the route and the map. Two or more waypoints (waypoints) are set in order to create a route, and the set waypoints are input to the flight plan support program.

Map 1701 includes information such as rivers or mountains, and includes information on contour lines, but the information contained is not limited thereto. In the example of FIG. 17, two waypoints, that is, waypoints A1711 and waypoint B1712 are set in the map 1701.

FIG. 18 is a diagram showing an example of a route and a topographical cross section for flying at an altitude above ground level specified by a user at a waypoint. The horizontal axis of the topographical cross section is the horizontal distance along the path 1802 connecting the waypoint A1811 and the waypoint B1812, and the vertical axis is the altitude. The waypoint A1811 and the waypoint B1812 may be the waypoint A1711 and the waypoint B1712 shown in FIG. 17, respectively.

In the topographical cross section, the elevation 1801 of the ground surface along the route 1802 is shown like a line graph. Here, when the straight line passing through the waypoint A1811 and the waypoint B1812 is set as the route 1802, the waypoint A1811 flies at the altitude 1821 specified by the user, but the section between the waypoint A1811 and the waypoint B1812. In, it may not fly at the altitude specified by the user.

For example, in concave terrain, it flies at a position 1822 higher than the altitude specified by the user, and in convex terrain, it flies at a position 1823 lower than the altitude specified by the user. In this way, when a waypoint such as the waypoint A1821 is designated to fly at the altitude above ground level, a problem that a route that does not fly at the specified altitude above ground level can be created between the waypoints (first issue). ).

This problem can be solved by designating to fly at a predetermined altitude above ground level between waypoints in addition to the waypoints. However, another challenge arises.

FIG. 19 is a diagram showing an example of a route and a topographical cross section for flying at a user-specified altitude above ground level between waypoints and waypoints. Also in FIG. 19, in the topographical cross-sectional view, the altitude 1801 of the ground surface is shown by a solid line. Then, it flies at an altitude of 1821 specified by the user.

In this case, the route may be very close to the ground surface in places where the topography changes drastically. For example, in the convex terrain shown in FIG. 19, the path is very close to the ground surface in 1921. As described above, there is a problem (second problem) that the route may be very close to the ground surface when the altitude above ground level is used as a reference.

Further, in the route shown in FIG. 19, the route finely moves up and down according to the fine unevenness of the topography (ground surface). Since the air vehicle requires a lot of energy to move (ascend) in the upward direction, the fuel consumption of the air vehicle deteriorates on such a route. As described above, there is a problem (third problem) that if the flight is specified to fly at the altitude between the waypoints in addition to the waypoints, an inefficient route is created in the fuel of the flying object.

Hereinafter, embodiments of support using the flight plan support program of the present invention will be described with reference to three examples. In any example of the embodiment, that is, the embodiment, the route specified by the user is changed by executing the flight planning support program. Here, the route designated by the user is, for example, the route 1802 shown in FIG. 18, which is a straight line passing through the waypoint.

The first embodiment is an example of changing the route in the vertical direction. Since the route specified by the user is a straight line, the route obtained by the change is the shortest horizontal travel distance passing through the waypoint. The second embodiment is an example of changing the route in the horizontal direction and the vertical direction. The route obtained by the change is a route in which the change in the vertical direction increases or decreases monotonically, and unnecessary vertical movement does not occur.

Example 3 is an example of changing to an intermediate route between the route obtained by the change of Example 1 and the route obtained by the change of Example 2. The route obtained by the change is a route that can be easily adjusted by the user who sees the map and route candidates displayed in order to be able to respond to conditions that are difficult to imagine in advance for the route of the flight plan. Will be.

Hereinafter, Example 1 will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a flight plan support system. The computer system used for the flight plan support system is composed of a PC (Personal Computer) 140, an input / output unit 150, and an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) 180.

The input / output unit 150 includes an input unit including a keyboard 151 and a mouse 152, and an output unit including a display 153 and an SD card slot 154 into which a general SD (Secure Digital) card (registered trademark) is inserted. , Connected to PC140.

The user can input a command from the keyboard 151 of the input unit or the mouse 152 and visually confirm the result on the display 153 of the output unit. Further, by inserting the SD card 191 into the SD card slot 154, the route data can be output via the SD card 191. Further, an SD card other than the SD card 191 may be inserted into the SD card slot 154 and used for loading programs and data.

The PC 140 includes a memory 160 and a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 170. The flight plan support program 161 is stored in the memory 160. This flight plan support program 161 is composed of instructions to the CPU 170. The CPU 170 executes an instruction of the flight plan support program 161 to perform calculations, access the HDD 180, and exchange information with the input / output unit 150.

The description that the flight plan support program 161 processes in the following description is actually the process of the CPU 170 that executes the instruction described in the flight plan support program 161. In addition to the flight plan support program 161, the memory 160 may store a program executed by the CPU 170, or may store data used in executing the program.

Map data 181 and altitude data 182 are stored in the HDD 180, and the flight plan support program 161 reads these data. The HDD 180 may be built in the PC 140, may be connected to the outside of the PC 140, or may be connected to another device accessible from the PC 140 via a network.

The map data 181 may be any information that makes the user understand the geographical location. Information suitable for map data 181 is place names, administrative boundaries, roads, railroads, satellite images, coastlines, and the like. The contour line information may be included in the map data 181 or the contour line information may not be included in the map data 181 and may be generated from the elevation data 182 described below. Further, information indicating topographical features such as valley lines and ridge lines may be included. Latitude and longitude information is associated with this information.

The elevation data 182 is data generally called a DEM (Digital Elevation Model). That is, it is information that describes the position of the cell where the ground surface is divided and the representative elevation of the ground surface inside the cell. A typical DEM is an elevation value in square cells arranged at equal intervals on the ground surface.

The unmanned aircraft 200 has a function of flying according to a designated route. The unmanned aircraft 200 includes an SD card slot 211. By inserting the SD card 191 into the SD card slot 211, the unmanned aircraft 200 can acquire the route data stored in the SD card 191.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of the unmanned aircraft 200. The unmanned aircraft 200 includes an input unit 210. The input unit 210 has an SD card slot 211 as described above, and an SD card 191 is inserted.

Further, the unmanned aircraft 200 includes a memory 220 and a CPU 230. The flight control program 221 is stored in the memory 220. This flight control program 221 is composed of instructions to the CPU 230. The CPU 230 executes the instructions of the flight control program 221 to perform calculations, control the motor 240, access the sensor 250 and the SD card 191 and the like.

The sensor 250 includes a gyro that acquires attitude information (roll, pitch, yaw) of the unmanned aircraft 200, a GPS (Global Positioning System) that acquires position information (latitude, longitude, altitude), and a barometric altimeter. The altitude here is an altitude calculated from the ellipsoidal height acquired from GPS, but may be an altitude calculated from a relative altitude acquired from a barometric altimeter.

The unmanned vehicle 200 flies by controlling the motor 240 based on the information acquired from these sensors 250 by the CPU 230. The motor 240 is connected to the propeller to generate propulsive force. By controlling the motor 240, the unmanned flying object 200 ascends and descends and moves in a horizontal plane. For this purpose, the motor 240 may be composed of a plurality of motors.

FIG. 3 is a sequence diagram showing an example of processing executed by the PC 140. The flight plan support program 161 (CPU170) reads the map data 181 and the altitude data 182 from the HDD 180 (step 301).

When the flight plan support program 161 controls the input / output unit 150 to display the map data 181 and the altitude data 182 acquired in step 301 (step 302), the input / output unit 150 displays the window 500 (shown in FIG. 5) on the display 153. Details will be described later).

The input / output unit 150 receives input of waypoint information from the user through the keyboard 151 and the mouse 152 and sends it to the flight plan support program 161. The flight plan support program 161 obtains the waypoint information (step 303). ..

The flight plan support program 161 performs a route generation process described in detail later (step 304), controls the route obtained by the route generation process to be displayed on the input / output unit 150 (step 305), and displays the route data. The input / output unit 150 is controlled so as to output to the SD card 191 (step 306). The display in step 305 will be described with reference to FIG. 9, but may be combined with the display described with reference to FIGS. 6 and 7.

FIG. 4 is a sequence diagram showing an example of processing executed by the unmanned aircraft 200. The input unit 210 reads the route data from the SD card 191 and sends it to the flight control program 221 (CPU 230), and the flight control program 221 obtains the route data (step 401). Here, the route data to be read is, for example, the data output in step 306.

The flight control program 221 acquires attitude information and position information from the sensor 250 (step 402), and controls the motor 240 to fly according to the acquired position information and the read route data (step 403). These steps 402 and 403 are repeated during the flight from the first waypoint to the last waypoint whose route data contains information.

When the unmanned aircraft 200 passes through the first waypoint, that is, after the acquired position information enters and exits within a predetermined range from the position of the first waypoint, and then passes next in the route data. Up to a defined second waypoint, the flight control program 221 may control the motor 240 so that the acquired position is on a straight line passing through the first and second waypoints.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a GUI (Graphical User Interface) for waypoint input provided by the flight plan support program 161. The window 500 shown in FIG. 5 is a window displayed on the display 153 of the input / output unit 150, and is displayed under the control of the flight plan support program 161 that executes step 303.

The window 500 displays contour lines 510a to 510c from 100 m to 120 m included in the map data 181. The contour lines 510a to 510c may be generated from the elevation data 182. Further, the display is not limited to the contour lines 510a to 510c, and other information included in the map data 181 may be displayed.

As described in step 303, the user inputs two or more waypoints through the keyboard 151 and the mouse 152. For example, the mouse 152 detects the movement of the mouse 152, the display of the mouse cursor 501 moves in the window 500 in response to the detected movement, and when the mouse 152 detects a click, the position is acquired. ..

Here, the position of the display of the contour lines 510a to 510c in the window 500, the latitude and longitude information of the contour line of the map data 181 which is the basis of the display of the contour lines 510a to 510c, and the mouse cursor 501 where the mouse 152 detects a click. The latitude and longitude of the waypoint may be specified from the position of the display in the window 500 of the above, and may be used as the input of the waypoint.

The example of FIG. 5 shows a state in which a user inputs waypoints A and B and displays icons 521 and icons 522, respectively. According to the input of the user, a provisional route 531 connecting the icon 521 of the waypoint A and the icon 522 of the waypoint B by a line segment is displayed. When the mouse 152 is double-clicked, the waypoint input acceptance ends.

Further, when either the window 600 shown in FIG. 6 or the window 700 shown in FIG. 7 is displayed, the window 500 may be displayed in combination with these windows. For example, both window 600 and window 500 may be displayed in step 303.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of displaying route data. When the input acceptance of the waypoint is completed in the window 500, the window 600 is displayed. The route data displayed in the window 600 is composed of waypoints input in the window 500.

For example, in FIG. 6, the route data is composed of waypoint A and waypoint B, and the waypoints are named “A” and “B”, respectively. Each waypoint is composed of information of name 601, latitude 602, longitude 603, flight altitude 604, altitude above ground level 605, altitude above ground level 606, and motion 607, and these information are displayed.

The waypoint name 601 may be automatically assigned alphabets such as "A", "B", and "C" in the order of input by the user, or may be automatically assigned numbers. Latitude 602 and longitude 603 are the latitude and longitude of the waypoint entered by the user in window 500.

The surface elevation 605 is the elevation value of the elevation data 182 at the positions specified by latitude 602 and longitude 603. The altitude above ground level 606 is, for example, "10 m", which is a preset predetermined value. Further, the flight altitude 604 is a value obtained by adding the value of the altitude above ground level 606 to the value of the altitude above ground 605.

The motion 607 is set to the motion to be performed when the unmanned aircraft 200 reaches the waypoint. In the example of FIG. 6, for example, "passing" which is a specified value is set. The input / output unit 150 and the flight plan support program 161 may accept correction of each information of the route data shown in FIG. 6 in response to input from the keyboard 151 and the mouse 152 by the user as a part of step 303. ..

When the pressing of the OK button 610 is detected, the route data is confirmed, and the flight plan support program 161 proceeds to step 304. When the press of the cancel button 611 is detected, the flight planning support program 161 may return to step 302 to display the window 500 again, or may end the process without executing steps 304 to 306. ..

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of display of a route and a topographical cross section in the first embodiment. The information displayed in the window 700 shown in FIG. 7 is generated by the process of step 304. When the user presses the OK button 610 in the window 600, the flight plan support program 161 controls the input / output unit 150 to display the window 700.

A route and a topographic cross section are displayed in the window 700. The horizontal axis of the topographic rail is the horizontal distance along the path. The route consists of lines connecting waypoints. The horizontal axis in the example of FIG. 7 shows a horizontal distance along a line segment starting from waypoint A and ending at waypoint B.

The vertical axis of the topographical cross section is the altitude. In the topographical cross section, the elevation 720 of the ground surface along the route is displayed, for example, in cell units. In the example of FIG. 7, since one cell is associated with one elevation value, one cell is displayed as a horizontal plane, the terrain cross section is displayed like a columnar graph, and the ground surface is the upper end of the columnar graph. Is displayed as.

Further, in the window 700, an icon 701 indicating a waypoint A and an icon 702 indicating a waypoint B are displayed in response to the input of the waypoint described with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6, with the waypoint A as the starting point. A line segment 711 connecting the icon 701 and the icon 702 is displayed corresponding to the line segment having the waypoint B as the end point.

Hereinafter, the details of the route generation process in step 304 will be described with reference to FIGS. 7 and 8. FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing an example of the route generation process in the first embodiment, and is a detailed example of step 304. When the flight plan support program 161 starts the route generation process, it first calculates the minimum value hag_min of the distance between the line segment and the ground surface along the line segment constituting the route (step 801).

Here, the distance between the line segment and the ground surface is the length of the shortest line segment connecting one point of the line segment and the ground surface along the line segment, and one point of the line segment. It is not the length of the vertical line that descends from the ground toward the ground surface. The shortest line segment connecting one point of the line segment and the ground surface may be a line segment in any direction, and is the shortest line segment among the line segments in any direction.

Further, in FIG. 7, an example in which the ground surface is displayed as the upper end of the columnar graph is shown, but here, in order to make the explanation easier to understand, the ground surface in one cell is the cell when the cell is a horizontal plane. The central point is the central point, and the ground surface is a set of such points. Therefore, the distance from the ground surface is the distance from any point on the ground surface.

Here, for example, the length of the shortest line segment connecting the first point of the line segment and an arbitrary point on the ground surface is one distance, and the second point different from the first point of the line segment. There are multiple distances between a line segment and the ground surface, such that the length of the shortest line segment connecting any point on the ground surface is one distance.

In this way, in the example of FIG. 7, the line segment connecting the waypoint A and the waypoint B is displayed as the line segment 711, and the line segment 711 and the ground surface represented by the altitude 720 or the like are closest to each other. At point 730, the line segment 711 and the ground surface at point 730 are at a distance of 713. The distance 713 may be referred to as the ground distance.

Therefore, the distance 713 is calculated as hag_min. The flight plan support program 161 determines whether or not hag_min is equal to or greater than a predetermined lower limit hag_lower (hag_min ≧ hag_lower) (step 802), and if it is determined to be greater than or equal to the lower limit, proceeds to step 804 and lower limit. If it is determined that the value is not greater than or equal to the value, the process proceeds to step 803.

In step 803, the flight planning support program 161 inserts a new waypoint at this point (step 803). In the example of FIG. 7, the waypoint C is inserted with respect to the point 730. The altitude above ground level of the inserted waypoint is calculated by interpolating the altitude above and below the waypoint.

The altitude above ground level wp_c.hag of waypoint C (wp_c) inserted between the i-th waypoint wp [i] and the i + 1th waypoint wp [i + 1] is calculated as follows.
wp_c.hag = (wp [i + 1] .hag --wp [i] .hag) / length (wp [i + 1], wp [i]) * length (wp_c, wp [i]) + wp [i] ] .hag.

However, wp [i] .hag is the ground altitude of wp [i], and length (wp [i + 1], wp [i]) is along the path from wp [i] to wp [i + 1]. The length (wp_c, wp [i]) is the horizontal length along the path from wp [i] to wp_c. In the example of Fig. 7, the ground altitude wp_c with respect to the point 730. The icon 703 of the waypoint C is displayed in .hag, the line segment 712 connecting the icon 701 and the icon 703 is displayed, and the line segment 714 connecting the icon 702 and the icon 703 is displayed.

The flight plan support program 161 returns to step 801 after step 803, and repeats steps 801 to 803 described above until it is determined in step 802 that the value is equal to or greater than the lower limit.

Subsequent steps 804 to 806 are steps 801 to 803 for inserting waypoints so that the line segment and the ground surface do not come too close to each other, whereas the line segment and the ground surface are separated from each other. It is a process for inserting a waypoint so that it does not pass. Since the flow of these processes is similar, the differences will be mainly explained.

The flight plan support program 161 calculates the maximum value hag_max of the distance between the line segment and the ground surface along the line segment constituting the route (step 804), and hag_max is equal to or less than the predetermined upper limit value hag_upper (hag_max ≤). It is determined whether or not it is hag_upper) (step 805).

The flight plan support program 161 ends the process when it is determined that the value is equal to or less than the upper limit value, proceeds to step 806 when it is determined that the value is not equal to or less than the upper limit value, and inserts a new waypoint on this point. The altitude above ground level of the inserted waypoint is calculated by interpolating the altitude above ground of the waypoints before and after, and the calculation is as described in step 803.

The flight plan support program 161 returns to step 804 after step 806, and repeats steps 804 to 806 described above until it is determined in step 805 that the value is equal to or less than the upper limit.

The window 700 may be displayed when the input acceptance of the waypoint is completed, and the icon 703 of the waypoint C may be additionally displayed as the process of step 304 progresses, or the process of step 304 is completed. After that, it may be displayed in step 305 as the final result of the process.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of display of a route created by the flight plan support program 161 in the first embodiment. The window 900 shown in FIG. 9 is displayed by step 305 described with reference to FIG. 3 and accepts inputs for step 306.

Further, the window 900 may be a display in which the window 500 shown in FIG. 5 is changed by the processes of steps 304 and 305. For example, the display of the window 500 may be continued, and the display of the window 500 may be modified to become the window 900. Further, the window 900 may be displayed in combination with the window 700 shown in FIG.

In the window 900, the icon 901 of the waypoint C is additionally displayed in addition to the display contents of the window 500. When the item "File" is selected from the menu of the window 900, the "Export" of the item 910 is displayed. When the item 910 "Export" is selected in this display state, the flight planning support program 161 executes step 306.

The flight plan support program 161 executes step 306 and controls the input / output unit 150 so as to output the route data described with reference to FIG. 6 to the SD card 191 as, for example, a CSV (Comma-Separated Values) format file. ..

Although two examples of waypoint A and waypoint B have been described in FIGS. 5 to 7 and 9, the number may be 3 or more. The example of the route generation process described with reference to FIG. 8 is not limited to two waypoints, and may have three or more waypoints, that is, two or more line segments.

When the number of line segments is 2 or more, in step 801 and step 804, the distance between each point over the 2 or more line segments and the ground surface is calculated without distinguishing between the 2 or more line segments, and the minimum among them. The value or the maximum value may be calculated.

As described above, even in the flight plan on the uneven terrain described with reference to FIGS. 17 and 18, it is possible to insert waypoints according to the altitude of the ground surface. Since the inserted waypoint can be used as a flight plan for the flight altitude according to the altitude of the ground surface, it is possible to prevent the flight at the position 1823 lower than the altitude specified by the user shown in FIG.

Further, since the waypoint of the flight altitude corresponding to the altitude of the ground surface is inserted based on the altitude of the ground surface and the distance to the ground, the approach 1921 shown in FIG. 19 can be prevented.

Hereinafter, Example 2 will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, since the description of the second embodiment is the same except for the description using FIGS. 1 to 6 in the first embodiment and the process of step 304 in FIG. 3, the same description as that of the first embodiment is omitted. The difference from Example 1 will be described with reference to FIGS. 10 to 13.

FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of display of a route and a terrain cross section in the second embodiment. The information displayed in the window 1010 shown in FIG. 10 is generated by the process of step 304. When the user presses the OK button 610 in the window 600, the flight plan support program 161 controls the input / output unit 150 to display the window 1010.

A route and a topographic cross section are displayed in the window 1010. The horizontal axis of the topographic rail is the horizontal distance along the path. The route consists of lines passing through waypoints. The horizontal axis in the example of FIG. 7 indicates a distance along a path passing through a plurality of waypoints, starting from waypoint A and ending at waypoint B.

The vertical axis of the topographical cross section is the altitude. The topographical cross-sectional view shows the elevation 1020 of the ground surface along the route, but the change in elevation between the waypoints in Example 2 is a monotonous increase or a monotonous decrease, and the example of FIG. 10 is FIG. 7. Unlike, it is a display in which the altitude increases monotonically.

Further, an icon 1001 indicating a waypoint A and an icon 1002 indicating a waypoint B are displayed, and an icon 1003 indicating a waypoint C, an icon 1004 indicating a waypoint D, and a way are displayed between the waypoint A and the waypoint B. The icon 1005 indicating the point E is displayed.

FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of display of a route created by the flight plan support program 161 in the second embodiment. The window 1100 shown in FIG. 11 is displayed by step 305 described with reference to FIG. 3 and accepts inputs for step 306.

Further, the window 1100 may be a display in which the window 500 shown in FIG. 5 is changed by the processes of steps 304 and 305. In the window 1100, in addition to the display contents of the window 500, the icon 1101 indicating the waypoint C, the icon 1104 indicating the waypoint D, and the icon 1105 indicating the waypoint E are additionally displayed.

However, the route 531 connecting the waypoint A and the waypoint B as shown in FIG. 5 is not displayed, and the position not on the line connecting the waypoint A and the waypoint B, that is, the icon 1101 and the icon 1102 are connected. Icon 1103, icon 1104, and icon 1105 are displayed at positions not on the line segment, and the line segment connecting each icon is displayed.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing an example of the route generation process in the second embodiment, and is a detailed example of the step 304 in the second embodiment. The flight plan support program 161 steps from step 1202 as a loop in which the value of the variable i increases by 1 from 0 to the value obtained by subtracting 2 from the number of waypoints WpN (WpN-2) when the route generation process is started. Repeat up to 1204 (step 1201).

The flight plan support program 161 generates a contour line cl [i] passing through the i-th waypoint wp [i] (step 1202). The starting point of the generated contour line cl [i] is wp [i], and the ending point is the point where the distance from the i + 1th waypoint wp [i + 1] is the shortest.

The information constituting the generated contour lines may be information on a set of points as long as the latitude, longitude and altitude of any position of the contour lines can be obtained, or is an expression representing a line. May be good. wp [i + 1] is the waypoint that passes next to wp [i].

The flight plan support program 161 also generates contour lines cl [i + 1] passing through wp [i + 1] (step 1203). The starting point of the generated contour line cl [i + 1] is wp [i + 1], and the ending point is the point where the distance from wp [i] is the shortest.

Next, the flight plan support program 161 repeats steps 1205 to 1208 as a loop in which the value of the variable r increases from 0 to 1 by a constant dr (step 1204). Here, the constant dr is a value larger than 0 and smaller than 1, and is preset.

The flight plan support program 161 finds a point c1p that is separated by a length r * length (cl [i]) from wp [i] along cl [i] (step 1205). Here, length (cl [i]) is a function that returns the length from the start point to the end point of the contour line cl [i], and the information of the obtained point c1p is, for example, the latitude, longitude, and elevation of the point c1p.

The flight plan support program 161 finds a point c2p that is separated by the length (1-r) * length (cl [i + 1]) from wp [i + 1] along cl [i + 1] (step 1206). ), Find the point c3p on the line segment connecting the points c1p and c2p, the distance from the point c1p by r * length (c1p, c2p) (step 1207). Here, length (c1p, c2p) is a function that returns the distance between the points c1p and c2p.

Then, the flight plan support program 161 inserts the point c3p as a waypoint between wp [i] and wp [i + 1] (step 1208). In this way, the loop of step 1204 inserts a waypoint for each dr between wp [i] and wp [i + 1], and the loop of step 1201 inserts a waypoint from wp [0] to wp [WpN-1]. ], Insert a waypoint.

Although the contour lines are set to cl [i], the contour line information other than cl [i] and cl [i + 1] is not used in one repetition of the loop in step 1201, and the next repetition of the loop. Then, cl [i] and cl [i + 1] are newly generated, so cl [i] and cl [i + 1] are two other variables that do not depend on i. It may be reused for each loop.

FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of waypoint insertion in the route generation process in the second embodiment. In the example of FIG. 13, WpN is 2, waypoint A is wp [0], waypoint B is wp [1], and waypoint C inserted on the route from waypoint A to waypoint B. A specific explanation will be given on how to obtain a certain point c3p.

First, in FIG. 13, wp [0] is a point 1301 and wp [1] is a point 1302. Since the point 1304 is the shortest distance to the point 1302 in the contour line 1311 passing through the point 1301, the contour line 1311 from the point 1301 to the point 1304 is set as the contour line cl [0] passing through wp [0] by the step 1202. Generated.

Further, since the point where the distance to the point 1301 is the shortest in the contour line 1312 passing through the point 1302 is the point 1303, the contour line 1312 from the point 1302 to the point 1303 passes through the wp [1] by the step 1203. ] Is generated.

Then, in step 1204, the value of the variable r becomes a constant dr in the first repetition, and in step 1205, the variable r, that is, dr is multiplied as the value by multiplying the length from the point 1301 to the point 1304 along the contour line 1311. Then, a point 1305 that becomes a point c1p is obtained.

Similar to step 1205, in step 1206, the length from the point 1302 to the point 1303 along the contour line 1312 is multiplied by 1-r calculated from the value of the variable r to obtain the point 1306 which becomes the point c2p. The length from the point 1303 to the point 1302 may be multiplied by the value of the variable r by reversing the direction of the contour line 1312.

In step 1207, the length of the line segment connecting the point 1305 and the point 1306 is calculated, the calculated length is multiplied by the value of the variable r to obtain the point 1307 which becomes the point c3p, and the point 1307 is obtained by the step 1208. The latitude, longitude and altitude of are registered in the route data as waypoint C.

In the above, the point 1307 that becomes the point c3p has been described. However, in step 1204, the constant dr is added to the value of the variable r, a new point c3p is obtained, and the waypoint is repeatedly inserted to reach the point 1301. A path connecting points 1302 is generated.

The path generation described in Example 2 is applicable when there is a path in which the change in elevation between the waypoint and the waypoint passing next to the waypoint is monotonically increasing or monotonically decreasing.

Applicability may be determined whether or not a specific condition is satisfied. This particular condition is, for example, that the waypoint B is inside the contour line passing through the waypoint A, or the waypoint A is inside the contour line passing through the waypoint B. If this condition is not met, the route generation described in Example 1 may be performed.

As described above, the flight path does not have the shortest horizontal travel distance, but it can be monotonically increased or decreased in the vertical direction, that is, at the flight altitude. This makes it possible to minimize the ascent of the unmanned aircraft 200, which requires a large amount of energy, such as once ascending and then descending, or once descending and then ascending. And you can save the fuel required for flight. In addition, even in the monotonous increase in flight altitude, it is possible to avoid a large partial increase, so that an energy-efficient increase can be realized.

Hereinafter, Example 3 will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, the description of Example 3 is the same as that of Examples 1 and 2 except for the description using FIGS. 1 to 13 and the process of step 304 of FIG. 3, so the same description as in Examples 1 and 2 is given. Omitted, the differences from Examples 1 and 2 will be described with reference to FIGS. 14 to 16.

FIG. 14 is a diagram showing an example of displaying a route in the third embodiment. The window 1400 shown in FIG. 14 may be a display in which the window 500 shown in FIG. 5 is changed by the processes of steps 304 and 305.

In the window 1400, the route 1401 is displayed as an auxiliary line instead of the route 531 of the window 500, and in addition to the display contents of the window 500, the route 1402 is displayed as an auxiliary line, the route 1403 is displayed, and the slider 1404 is displayed. ing.

The example of FIG. 14 shows a state in which the slider 1404 is operated by the user with the mouse cursor 1405 and the ratio is set to 50%. When the ratio of the slider 1404 is 0%, the route 1403 is displayed to match the route 1401, and when the ratio of the slider 1404 is 100%, the route 1403 is displayed to match the route 1402. In the example of FIG. 14, since the ratio is 50%, the route 1403 is displayed as an intermediate route between the route 1401 and the route 1402.

FIG. 15 is a flowchart showing an example of the route generation process in the third embodiment, and is a detailed example of the step 304 in the third embodiment. The flight plan support program 161 steps from step 1502 as a loop in which the value of the variable i increases by 1 from 0 to the value obtained by subtracting 2 from the number of waypoints WpN (WpN-2) when the route generation process is started. Repeat up to 1504 (step 1501).

The flight plan support program 161 inserts a waypoint between the i-th waypoint wp [i] and the i + 1th waypoint wp [i + 1] by the process described in FIG. 8 of the first embodiment. To generate the path hsl (step 1502). The route hsl is the route that has the shortest horizontal movement distance.

Further, the flight plan support program 161 inserts a waypoint between wp [i] and wp [i + 1] by the process described with reference to FIG. 12 of the second embodiment to generate a route vsl (step 1503). ). The route vsl is a route in which the flight altitude increases or decreases monotonically.

Next, the flight plan support program 161 repeats steps 1505 to 1508 as a loop in which the value of the variable r is incremented by a constant dr from 0 to 1 (step 1504). Here, the constant dr is a value larger than 0 and smaller than 1, and is preset.

The flight planning support program 161 finds a point c1p separated by length r * length (hsl) from wp [i] along hsl (step 1505) and length r * length along vsl from wp [i]. Find the point c2p separated by (vsl) (step 1506), and find the point c3p on the line segment connecting the points c1p and c2p, the distance from the point c1p by r_mix * length (c1p, c2p) (step). 1507), the point c3p is inserted between wp [i] and wp [i + 1] (step 1508).

Here, the value of r_mix is a value preset by the user with the slider 1404, and is a value from 0 to 1 (ratio is 0% to 100%). From step 1505 to step 1508 are repeated by the loop of step 1504, and a waypoint corresponding to the value of r_mix is inserted between wp [i] and wp [i + 1] for each dr.

FIG. 16 is a diagram showing an example of waypoint insertion in the route generation process in the third embodiment. The example of FIG. 16 also has the same WpN, wp [0], and wp [1] as the example of FIG. 13, and the method of obtaining the point c3p will be specifically described. First, wp [0] is the point 1601 and wp [1] is the point 1602.

By step 1502, the route 1611 from the point 1601 to the point 1602 is generated as the route hsl, and by step 1503, the route 1612 from the point 1601 to the point 1602 is generated as the route vsl.

Then, in step 1504, the value of the variable r becomes a constant dr in the first repetition, and in step 1505, the length of the path 1611 is multiplied by the value of the variable r to obtain the point 1603 which becomes the point c1p. By 1506, the length of the path 1612 is multiplied by the value of the variable r to obtain the point 1604 which becomes the point c2p.

In step 1507, the length of the line segment connecting the points 1603 and 1604 is calculated, and the calculated length is multiplied by the value of r_mix to obtain the point 1605 which becomes the point c3p. In step 1508, the point 1508 is obtained. 1605 is registered in the route data as waypoint C.

In the above, the point 1605 that becomes the point c3p has been described. However, in step 1504, the constant dr is added to the value of the variable r, a new point c3p is obtained, and the waypoint is repeatedly inserted to reach the point 1601. A path connecting points 1602 is generated.

As also described in Example 2, the route 1612 is applicable only when there is a route in which the change in elevation between waypoints is monotonically increasing or monotonically decreasing. Therefore, if the condition to which the route 1612 can be applied is not satisfied, the ratio of the slider 1404 may be fixed to 0% so that the user's operation cannot be accepted, or the route 1402 corresponding to the route 1612 is the window 1400. It may not be displayed with.

As described above, the user can select a flight route according to the terrain in which the flight is planned, the amount of fuel that can be used for the flight, and the like.

140 PC
161 Flight Plan Support Program 200 Unmanned Aircraft

Claims (6)

A flight planning support program that is stored in computer memory and executed by a processor.
To the processor
Accepts input of information on a first waypoint and two or more waypoints, including a second waypoint ordered when an air vehicle passes after the first waypoint.
The minimum value of the distance between the first line segment connecting the first waypoint and the second waypoint and the ground surface is calculated as the ground distance.
Compare the calculated ground distance with the preset lower limit ,
When the ground distance is equal to or less than the lower limit, a third waypoint having a predetermined ground level is set at a point on the ground surface where the ground distance is calculated .
Route data including a second line segment connecting the first waypoint and the third waypoint and a third line segment connecting the second waypoint and the third waypoint. A flight planning support program characterized by generating. The flight planning support program according to claim 1.
To the processor
To calculate the ground distance by calculating the minimum distance between one point of the line segment connecting the first waypoint and the second waypoint and an arbitrary point on the ground surface. A flight planning support program featuring. The flight planning support program according to claim 2 .
To the processor
The maximum value of the distance between the first line segment and the ground surface is calculated.
When it is determined that the calculated maximum value is equal to or higher than the upper limit value, the third waypoint or the fourth waypoint having a predetermined altitude above ground level is set at the point on the ground surface exceeding the upper limit value. A flight planning support program featuring. The flight planning support program according to claim 3 .
To the processor
A flight planning support program characterized by acquiring information on points on the ground surface from elevation data of a digital elevation model. The flight planning support program according to claim 4 .
To the processor
Contour lines are displayed as a GUI on the display based on the acquired elevation data.
Using the GUI on which the map data and the elevation data are displayed on the display, the input of the information of the first waypoint and the second waypoint based on the display positional relationship with the displayed contour lines is accepted.
A flight planning support program characterized by displaying the icon of the first waypoint, the icon of the second waypoint, and the icon of the third waypoint on the contour line displayed on the GUI. The flight planning support program according to claim 5 .
To the processor
A flight planning support program characterized in that information on the first waypoint, information on the second waypoint, and information on the third waypoint are stored in a portable storage medium.

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