WO2021166101A1

WO2021166101A1 - Operation device and drone operation program

Info

Publication number: WO2021166101A1
Application number: PCT/JP2020/006437
Authority: WO
Inventors: 俊一郎渡辺; 了宮城; 千大和氣; 宏記加藤
Original assignee: 株式会社ナイルワークス
Priority date: 2020-02-19
Filing date: 2020-02-19
Publication date: 2021-08-26
Also published as: JPWO2021166101A1; JP7457409B2

Abstract

[Problem] To prevent erroneous inputting during an emergency operation in a drone operation.　[Solution] An operation device 401 for controlling a drone 100 which flies by a lift generation unit 102 is provided with: a display that displays a plurality of types of processes for instructing motions of the drone; and detection regions K1-K4 which are for detecting an operator's input on the display and in which the plurality of types of processes is associated with mutually different ranges. At least one of the processes is a lift generation unit stoppage process for stopping the lift generation unit in emergency, and clearance distances D1 between the detection region K4 with which the lift generation stoppage process is associated and the other detection regions K1-K3 are larger than distances D10, D11 between the detection regions with which the other processes are associated.

Description

Operator and drone operation program

The invention of the present application relates to an operating device and a program for operating a drone.

The application of small helicopters (multicopters) generally called drones is advancing. One of the important application fields is spraying chemicals such as pesticides and liquid fertilizers on agricultural land (fields) (for example, Patent Document 1). In relatively small farmlands, it is often appropriate to use drones rather than manned planes and helicopters.

Technologies such as the Quasi-Zenith Satellite System and RTK-GPS (Real Time Kinematic-Global Positioning System) have made it possible for drones to accurately know the absolute position of their aircraft in centimeters during flight. Even in the typical narrow and complicated terrain of agricultural land, it is possible to fly autonomously with minimal manual maneuvering and to spray chemicals efficiently and accurately.

There are cases where manual operation is performed by intervening in a drone that performs autonomous flight. However, if there is an erroneous input in the manual operation, an appropriate intervention operation cannot be performed. In particular, if an emergency stop operation involving damage to the drone's body is performed unintentionally, it takes time to restore the work, and there is a risk that the field may be damaged.

Patent Document 2 discloses an agricultural product cultivation support system in which an operation button and an emergency stop button are displayed on a touch panel. Patent Document 3 describes that the drone is stopped by pressing the physical operation stop button. Patent Document 4 discloses a portable operation device including a basic operation button on a touch screen display. Patent Document 5 discloses a system that controls resources by performing a touch operation or a swipe operation on a display in a game environment or a simulation environment.

Republished gazette Republished 2017/175804 JP-A-2019-95937 Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2017-21445 Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2014-99858 Special Table 2015-511829

In the operation of the drone, prevent erroneous input during emergency operation.

The operator according to one aspect of the present invention is an operator for controlling a drone flying by a lift generating unit, and is a display displaying a plurality of types of processes for giving an operation instruction to the drone, and the display. In the above, an area for detecting an operator's input, which includes a detection area in which the plurality of types of processes are associated with different ranges, and at least one of the processes urgently sets the lift generating unit. It is a lift generation unit stop process for stopping, and the separation distance between the detection area to which the lift generation unit stop process is associated and the other detection areas is the distance between the detection areas to which the other processes are associated. Greater than.

The separation distance between the detection area to which the lift generation unit stop processing is associated and the outer edge of the actuator is larger than the separation distance between the detection area to which the lift generation unit stop processing is associated and the other detection area. It may be a thing.

The display further has an emergency operation input area for receiving an instruction to transition to a screen capable of inputting the plurality of types of processes, and the emergency operation input area and a detection area to which the lift generation unit stop process is associated. The separation distance may be larger than the distance between the other detection regions.

The operator according to claim 3, wherein when the emergency operation input area receives an input, the screen transitions to a screen capable of inputting the plurality of types of processes and a hovering instruction is output to the drone.

The input operation received by the emergency operation input area may be an operation that requires more time for input than a single tap operation.

The input operation received by the emergency operation input area may include at least one of a swipe operation, a plurality of tap operations, and a long press operation.

The other detection area may include a detection area to which at least one of a resumption process for resuming the operation of the drone, a return process for returning to the takeoff and landing point, and a landing process for landing below the hovering point is associated. good.

The process includes a restart process for resuming the operation of the drone and a landing process for landing the drone below the hovering point, and the detection area to which the restart process is associated is associated with the landing process. The detection area and the detection area to which the lift generation unit stop processing is associated may be arranged in parallel on the display in this order.

The drone operation program according to another aspect of the present invention is a drone operation program that flies by a lift generating unit, and is a plurality of types of processes that give an operation instruction to the drone on the display of the drone operator. And an instruction that defines a detection area for detecting an operator's input on the display and associates the plurality of types of processes with different ranges, and causes a computer to execute at least one of the processes. , The lift generation unit stop process for urgently stopping the lift generation unit, and the separation distance between the detection area to which the lift generation unit stop process is associated and the other detection area is associated with another process. It is larger than the distance between the detection areas.
The computer program can be provided by downloading via a network such as the Internet, or can be recorded and provided on various computer-readable recording media such as a CD-ROM.

In the operation of the drone, it is possible to prevent erroneous input during emergency operation.

It is a top view of the drone which concerns on this invention. It is a front view of the said drone. It is a right side view of the above drone. It is a rear view of the said drone. It is a perspective view of the said drone. It is an overall conceptual diagram of the flight control system of the above-mentioned drone. It is a functional block diagram which the said drone has. It is a schematic diagram which shows the example of the main screen displayed on the operation device connected to the said drone. It is a schematic diagram which shows the example of the emergency menu screen which transitions when a predetermined operation is input to the said main screen. It is a schematic diagram which shows the example of the emergency menu screen in the 2nd Embodiment of the drone which concerns on this invention. It is a schematic diagram which shows the example of the emergency menu screen in the 3rd Embodiment of the drone which concerns on this invention.

Hereinafter, a mode for carrying out the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. All figures are illustrations. In the following detailed description, certain details are given for illustration purposes and to facilitate a complete understanding of the disclosed embodiments. However, embodiments are not limited to these particular details. Also, to simplify the drawings, well-known structures and devices are outlined.

First, the configuration of the drone according to the present invention will be described. In the specification of the present application, the drone is regardless of the power means (electric power, prime mover, etc.) and the maneuvering method (wireless or wired, autonomous flight type, manual maneuvering type, etc.). It refers to all air vehicles with multiple rotor blades.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 5, the rotor blades 101-1a, 101-1b, 101-2a, 101-2b, 101-3a, 101-3b, 101-4a, 101-4b (also referred to as rotors) are It is a means for flying the Drone 100, and is equipped with eight aircraft (four sets of two-stage rotor blades) in consideration of the balance between flight stability, aircraft size, and power consumption. Each rotor 101 is arranged on all sides of the housing 110 by an arm protruding from the housing 110 of the drone 100. That is, the rotors 101-1a and 101-1b are on the left rear side in the direction of travel, the rotor blades 101-2a and 101-2b are on the left front side, the rotor blades 101-3a and 101-3b are on the right rear side, and the rotor blades 101- are on the right front side. 4a and 101-4b are arranged respectively. In addition, the drone 100 has the traveling direction facing downward on the paper in FIG.

A grid-shaped propeller guard 115-1,115-2,115-3,115-4 forming a substantially cylindrical shape is provided on the outer circumference of each set of the rotor blade 101 to prevent the rotor blade 101 from interfering with foreign matter. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the radial members for supporting the propeller guards 115-1,115-2,115-3,115-4 have a wobbling structure rather than a horizontal structure. This is to encourage the member to buckle outside the rotor in the event of a collision and prevent it from interfering with the rotor.

Rod-shaped legs 107-1, 107-2, 107-3, 107-4 extend downward from the rotation axis of the rotor 101, respectively.

Motors 102-1a, 102-1b, 102-2a, 102-2b, 102-3a, 102-3b, 102-4a, 102-4b are rotor blades 101-1a, 101-1b, 101-2a, 101- It is a means to rotate 2b, 101-3a, 101-3b, 101-4a, 101-4b (typically an electric motor, but it may also be a motor, etc.), and one rotor is provided for each rotor. Has been done. Motor 102 is an example of a propulsion device. The upper and lower rotors (eg, 101-1a and 101-1b) in one set, and their corresponding motors (eg, 102-1a and 102-1b), are used for drone flight stability, etc. The axes are on the same straight line and rotate in opposite directions.

Nozzles 103-1, 103-2, 103-3, 103-4 are means for spraying the sprayed material downward and are equipped with four nozzles. In the specification of the present application, the sprayed material generally refers to a liquid or powder sprayed on a field such as a pesticide, a herbicide, a liquid fertilizer, an insecticide, a seed, and water.

The tank 104 is a tank for storing the sprayed material, and is provided at a position close to the center of gravity of the drone 100 and at a position lower than the center of gravity from the viewpoint of weight balance. The hoses 105-1, 105-2, 1053, 105-4 are means for connecting the tank 104 and the nozzles 103-1, 103-2, 103-3, 103-4, and are made of a hard material. Therefore, it may also serve as a support for the nozzle. The pump 106 is a means for discharging the sprayed material from the nozzle.

FIG. 6 shows an overall conceptual diagram of the flight control system of the drone 100 according to the present invention. This figure is a schematic view, and the scale is not accurate. In the figure, the drone 100, the actuator 401, the base station 404, and the server 405 are connected to each other via the mobile communication network 400. These connections may be wireless communication by Wi-Fi instead of the mobile communication network 400, or may be partially or wholly connected by wire. Further, the components may have a configuration in which they are directly connected to each other in place of or in addition to the mobile communication network 400.

Drone 100 and base station 404 communicate with GNSS positioning satellite 410 such as GPS to acquire drone 100 and base station 404 coordinates. There may be a plurality of positioning satellites 410 with which the drone 100 and the base station 404 communicate.

The operator 401 transmits a command to the drone 100 by the operation of the user, and also displays information received from the drone 100 (for example, position, amount of sprayed material, battery level, camera image, etc.). It is a means and may be realized by a portable information device such as a general tablet terminal that runs a computer program. The actuator 401 includes an input unit and a display unit as a user interface device. The drone 100 according to the present invention is controlled to perform autonomous flight, but may be capable of manual operation during basic operations such as takeoff and return, and in an emergency. In addition to the portable information device, an emergency operation device (not shown) having a function dedicated to emergency stop may be used. The emergency operation device may be a dedicated device provided with a large emergency stop button or the like so that an emergency response can be taken quickly. Further, apart from the operating device 401, the system may include a small mobile terminal capable of displaying a part or all of the information displayed on the operating device 401, for example, a smart phone. The small mobile terminal is connected to, for example, the base station 404, and can receive information and the like from the server 405 via the base station 404.

Field 403 is a rice field, field, etc. that is the target of spraying with the drone 100. In reality, the terrain of the field 403 is complicated, and the topographic map may not be available in advance, or the topographic map and the situation at the site may be inconsistent. Field 403 is usually adjacent to houses, hospitals, schools, other crop fields, roads, railroads, etc. In addition, there may be intruders such as buildings and electric wires in the field 403.

Base station 404 functions as an RTK-GNSS base station and can provide the exact location of the drone 100. Further, it may be a device that provides a master unit function of Wi-Fi communication. The base unit function of Wi-Fi communication and the RTK-GNSS base station may be independent devices. Further, the base station 404 may be able to communicate with the server 405 by using a mobile communication system such as 3G, 4G, and LTE. The base station 404 and the server 405 constitute a farming cloud.

The server 405 is typically a group of computers operated on a cloud service and related software, and may be wirelessly connected to the actuator 401 by a mobile phone line or the like. The server 405 may be configured by a hardware device. The server 405 may analyze the image of the field 403 taken by the drone 100, grasp the growing condition of the crop, and perform a process for determining the flight route. In addition, the topographical information of the stored field 403 may be provided to the drone 100. In addition, the history of the flight and captured images of the drone 100 may be accumulated and various analysis processes may be performed.

The small mobile terminal is, for example, a smart phone. On the display of the small mobile terminal, information on the expected operation of the drone 100, more specifically, the scheduled time when the drone 100 will return to the departure / arrival point 406, the content of the work to be performed by the user at the time of return, etc. Information is displayed as appropriate. Further, the operation of the drone 100 may be changed based on the input from the small mobile terminal.

Normally, the drone 100 takes off from the departure / arrival point outside the field 403 and returns to the departure / arrival point after spraying the sprayed material on the field 403 or when it becomes necessary to replenish or charge the sprayed material. The flight route (invasion route) from the departure / arrival point to the target field 403 may be stored in advance on the server 405 or the like, or may be input by the user before the start of takeoff. The departure / arrival point may be a virtual point defined by the coordinates stored in the drone 100, or may have a physical departure / arrival point.

FIG. 7 shows a block diagram showing a control function of an embodiment of the spraying drone according to the present invention. The flight controller 501 is a component that controls the entire drone, and may be an embedded computer including a CPU, memory, related software, and the like. The flight controller 501 uses motors 102-1a and 102-1b via control means such as ESC (Electronic Speed Control) based on the input information received from the controller 401 and the input information obtained from various sensors described later. , 102-2a, 102-2b, 102-3a, 102-3b, 104-a, 104-b to control the flight of the drone 100. The actual rotation speeds of the motors 102-1a, 102-1b, 102-2a, 102-2b, 102-3a, 102-3b, 104-a, 104-b are fed back to the flight controller 501, and normal rotation is performed. It is configured so that it can be monitored. Alternatively, the rotary blade 101 may be provided with an optical sensor or the like so that the rotation of the rotary blade 101 is fed back to the flight controller 501.

The software used by the flight controller 501 can be rewritten through a storage medium for function expansion / change, problem correction, etc., or through communication means such as Wi-Fi communication or USB. In this case, protection is performed by encryption, checksum, electronic signature, virus check software, etc. so that rewriting by malicious software is not performed. In addition, a part of the calculation process used by the flight controller 501 for control may be executed by another computer located on the controller 401, the server 405, or somewhere else. Due to the high importance of the flight controller 501, some or all of its components may be duplicated.

The flight controller 501 communicates with the actuator 401 via the communication device 530 and further via the mobile communication network 400, receives necessary commands from the actuator 401, and transmits necessary information to the actuator 401. Can be sent. In this case, the communication may be encrypted so as to prevent fraudulent acts such as interception, spoofing, and device hijacking. The base station 404 also has an RTK-GPS base station function in addition to a communication function via the mobile communication network 400. By combining the signal of the RTK base station 404 and the signal from the positioning satellite 410 such as GPS, the flight controller 501 can measure the absolute position of the drone 100 with an accuracy of about several centimeters. Flight controllers 501 are so important that they may be duplicated and multiplexed, and each redundant flight controller 501 should use a different satellite to handle the failure of a particular GPS satellite. It may be controlled.

The 6-axis gyro sensor 505 is a means for measuring the acceleration of the drone body in three directions orthogonal to each other, and further, a means for calculating the velocity by integrating the acceleration. The 6-axis gyro sensor 505 is a means for measuring the change in the attitude angle of the drone aircraft in the above-mentioned three directions, that is, the angular velocity. The geomagnetic sensor 506 is a means for measuring the direction of the drone body by measuring the geomagnetism. The barometric pressure sensor 507 is a means for measuring barometric pressure, and can also indirectly measure the altitude of the drone. The laser sensor 508 is a means for measuring the distance between the drone body and the ground surface by utilizing the reflection of the laser light, and may be an IR (infrared) laser. The sonar 509 is a means for measuring the distance between the drone aircraft and the ground surface by utilizing the reflection of sound waves such as ultrasonic waves. These sensors may be selected according to the cost target and performance requirements of the drone. In addition, a gyro sensor (angular velocity sensor) for measuring the inclination of the aircraft, a wind power sensor for measuring wind power, and the like may be added. Further, these sensors may be duplicated or multiplexed. If there are multiple sensors for the same purpose, the flight controller 501 may use only one of them, and if it fails, it may switch to an alternative sensor for use. Alternatively, a plurality of sensors may be used at the same time, and if the measurement results do not match, it may be considered that a failure has occurred.

The flow rate sensor 510 is a means for measuring the flow rate of the sprayed material, and is provided at a plurality of locations on the path from the tank 104 to the nozzle 103. The liquid drainage sensor 511 is a sensor that detects that the amount of sprayed material has fallen below a predetermined amount.

The growth diagnosis camera 512a is a means for photographing the field 403 and acquiring data for the growth diagnosis. The growth diagnostic camera 512a is, for example, a multispectral camera and receives a plurality of light rays having different wavelengths from each other. The plurality of light rays are, for example, red light (wavelength of about 650 nm) and near-infrared light (wavelength of about 774 nm). Further, the growth diagnosis camera 512a may be a camera that receives visible light.

The pathological diagnosis camera 512b is a means for photographing the crops growing in the field 403 and acquiring the data for the pathological diagnosis. The pathological diagnosis camera 512b is, for example, a red light camera. The red light camera is a camera that detects the amount of light in the frequency band corresponding to the absorption spectrum of chlorophyll contained in the plant, and detects, for example, the amount of light in the band around 650 nm. The pathological diagnosis camera 512b may detect the amount of light in the frequency bands of red light and near infrared light. Further, the pathological diagnosis camera 512b may include both a red light camera and a visible light camera such as an RGB camera that detects light amounts of at least three wavelengths in the visible light band. The pathological diagnosis camera 512b may be a multispectral camera, and may detect the amount of light in the band having a wavelength of 650 nm to 680 nm.

The growth diagnosis camera 512a and the pathology diagnosis camera 512b may be realized by one hardware configuration.

The obstacle detection camera 513 is a camera for detecting a drone intruder, and since the image characteristics and the orientation of the lens are different from the growth diagnosis camera 512a and the pathological diagnosis camera 512b, what are the growth diagnosis camera 512a and the pathological diagnosis camera 512b? Another device. The switch 514 is a means for the user 402 of the drone 100 to make various settings. The obstacle contact sensor 515 is a sensor for detecting that the drone 100, in particular, its rotor or propeller guard part, has come into contact with an intruder such as an electric wire, a building, a human body, a standing tree, a bird, or another drone. .. The obstacle contact sensor 515 may be replaced by a 6-axis gyro sensor 505. The cover sensor 516 is a sensor that detects that the operation panel of the drone 100 and the cover for internal maintenance are in the open state. The inlet sensor 517 is a sensor that detects that the inlet of the tank 104 is in an open state.

These sensors may be selected according to the cost target and performance requirements of the drone, and may be duplicated / multiplexed. Further, a sensor may be provided at the base station 404, the actuator 401, or some other place outside the drone 100, and the read information may be transmitted to the drone. For example, the base station 404 may be provided with a wind sensor to transmit information on wind power and wind direction to the drone 100 via the mobile communication network 400 or Wi-Fi communication.

The flight controller 501 sends a control signal to the pump 106 to adjust the discharge amount and stop the discharge. The current status of the pump 106 (for example, the number of revolutions) is fed back to the flight controller 501.

LED107 is a display means for notifying the drone operator of the drone status. Display means such as a liquid crystal display may be used in place of or in addition to the LED. The buzzer is an output means for notifying the state of the drone (particularly the error state) by an audio signal. The communication device 530 is connected to a mobile communication network 400 such as 3G, 4G, and LTE, and can communicate with a farming cloud composed of a base station and a server and an operator via the mobile communication network 400. Will be done. In place of or in addition to the communication device, other wireless communication means such as Wi-Fi, infrared communication, Bluetooth (registered trademark), ZigBee (registered trademark), NFC, or wired communication means such as USB connection. You may use it. The speaker 520 is an output means for notifying the state of the drone (particularly the error state) by means of recorded human voice, synthetic voice, or the like. Depending on the weather conditions, it may be difficult to see the visual display of the drone 100 in flight. In such cases, voice communication is effective. The warning light 521 is a display means such as a strobe light for notifying the state of the drone (particularly the error state). These input / output means may be selected according to the cost target and performance requirements of the drone, and may be duplicated or multiplexed.

● Screen configuration of actuator (1)
FIG. 8 shows an embodiment of the main screen G1 displayed on the display 4011 of the actuator 401 according to the present invention. The drone maneuver according to the present invention is realized by a computer program running on a smart phone or a tablet terminal. An image of a specific field is displayed on the main screen G1, but a menu screen for selecting a plurality of fields under the control of the user may be displayed before the screen is displayed.

Peripheral device status display area 801, flight status display area 802, aircraft status display area 803, altitude adjustment input area 804, map display area 805, detailed status display area 806, and emergency operation input area 807 on the main screen G1. Is provided. The function corresponding to the control stick is not displayed on the main screen G1. According to this configuration, it is possible to prevent an operation error from affecting the work plan of the drone 100. The map display area 805 is displayed in the entire area of the main screen G1. Peripheral device status display area 801, flight status display area 802, aircraft status display area 803, altitude adjustment input area 804, detailed status display area 806, and emergency operation input area 807 are composed of semi-transparently filled areas. , It is displayed on the front of the map display area 805 so as to be superimposed on the map display area 805.

The peripheral device status display area 801 is arranged at the upper right of the main screen G1 and displays the remaining battery level of the drone 100, the remaining battery level of the base station 404, the remaining battery level of the actuator 401, and the like. The drone 100, the base station 404, and the actuator 401 are each displayed in pictograms. The remaining battery level is represented by numerical values and schematic diagrams. The schematic diagram of the remaining battery level may be displayed in different colors depending on the remaining battery level. If any of the drone 100, the base station 404, and the actuator 401 has an error, that fact is displayed in the display area related to the configuration in which the error has occurred. The error display may be displayed in a mode different from the normal display, for example, in a different color. According to this configuration, the operator can surely convey the information that the error occurs.

The flight status display area 802 is arranged in a band shape over the upper part of the main screen G1 and displays the flight time, flight speed, altitude, etc. of the drone 100. In addition, a progress bar (not shown) may be displayed to indicate the completion status of the drug application.

The aircraft status display area 803 is located at the upper left of the main screen G1 and displays the current status of the drone 100, for example, during flight preparation, drug replenishment, takeoff, flight, emergency evacuation, etc. In addition, notification of the next task or action request to the user (for example, "Prepare for drug replenishment") may be displayed.

The altitude adjustment input area 804 is an area that accepts inputs that increase or decrease the current altitude of the drone 100. In principle, the drone 100 according to the present invention flies autonomously, and the altitude is automatically adjusted by a computer program. For example, the operator wants to fine-tune the altitude according to the height of the crop. This is because cases can occur. The altitude adjustment input area 804 is composed of an altitude ascending button 804a and an altitude descending button 804b, which may be arranged apart from each other. Specifically, the altitude ascending button 804a and the altitude descending button 804b may be arranged at the right and left edges of the screen so that the thumb can reach when the actuator 401 is gripped by the left and right hands. According to this configuration, input can be performed while holding the actuator 401 with both hands.

The map display area 805 is a map including the fields to be sprayed with chemicals, and may be an aerial photograph, a topographic map, or a superposed display thereof. The scale and position may be adjustable by gesture operation or the like. In the map display area 805, pin 810 indicating the current position of the drone 100 is displayed in real time. The image of the field 403 taken by the cameras 512 and 513 of the drone 100 may be displayed by switching to the map display or together with the map display. The planned flight route of the drone 100 may be displayed on an aerial photograph or a map.

The detailed status display area 806 is located on the right side of the main screen G1. The detailed status display area 806 displays the status of the drone 100 and its surroundings in more detail, such as the pump status, the remaining amount of the drug, the communication status, and the GPS reception status.

The emergency operation input area 807 is an area for receiving commands in the event of an emergency such as a failure or collision of the drone 100. The emergency operation input area 807 occupies a larger area on the main screen G1 than other display areas and input areas so that the operator can easily operate it in an emergency. The emergency buttons are well separated from the edges of the screen. According to this configuration, it is possible to prevent erroneous operation due to the finger of the operator holding the actuator 401 touching the input area.

On the emergency operation input area 807, the operations to be performed in an emergency are displayed in characters. The emergency operation is an operation that requires a long time for the input operation as compared with the single tap operation. The emergency operation is, for example, a lateral swipe operation. Further, the operation in an emergency may be an operation of tapping a plurality of times. Further, the emergency operation may be a long press operation. According to such a configuration, it is a simple operation that does not make a mistake even when the operator is upset, and an erroneous operation is unlikely to be performed. By this operation, the drone 100 interrupts the autonomous flight and starts hovering. In other words, when the emergency operation input area 807 receives the input of the emergency operation, it transitions to the screen where multiple types of processing can be input, that is, the emergency menu screen G2 shown in FIG. 9, and outputs the hovering instruction to the drone 100. do.

FIG. 9 shows an emergency menu screen G2 displayed when a predetermined operation is input to the emergency operation input area 807 on the main screen G1. The emergency menu screen G2 is superposed so as to cover a part of the main screen G1. As shown in the figure, the emergency menu screen G2 displays a plurality of types of processes for instructing the operation of the drone 100. On the emergency menu screen G2, the "Resume flight" button B1, the "Return to takeoff and landing point" button B2, the "Soft landing on the spot" button B3, and the "Emergency motor stop" button B4 are displayed side by side in this order. .. On each of the buttons B1 to B4, different schematic diagrams according to the contents of the process are displayed together with the characters.

Detection areas K1, K2, K3, and K4 for detecting the input of the operator are defined on the display 4011 of the actuator 401. Different types of processing are associated with the detection areas K1, K2, K3, and K4. In the present embodiment, each detection area is associated with a display range of characters and symbols displayed on the display 4011 indicating the processing content. That is, in the display range of the "restart flight" button B1, the restart processing detection area K1 that accepts the restart processing for restarting the operation of the drone 100 is defined. The "return to takeoff and landing point" button B2 and the "soft landing on the spot" button B3 define landing processing detection areas K2 and K3 that accept the landing processing for landing the drone 100, respectively. More specifically, the landing process detection area K2 corresponding to the "return to takeoff / landing point" button B2 is associated with the return process of returning to the takeoff / landing point. The landing processing detection area K3 corresponding to the "soft landing on the spot" button B3 is associated with the landing processing for landing below the hovering point.

The "emergency motor stop" button B4 defines a stop processing detection area K4 that accepts the lift generation unit stop processing for urgently stopping the motor 102, which is an example of the lift generation unit. The emergency stop is a process of immediately stopping the motor 102 without performing other flight control, and the drone 100 is dropped by this process. The lift generator stop process is the process that can stop the flight fastest, although the drone 100 may be damaged. The display range of characters and symbols and the detection area may be defined at different positions.

In this embodiment, buttons B1 to B4 are displayed in this order from left to right. Button B1 is the process selected when the urgency is the lowest, and button B4 is the process which is selected when the urgency is the highest. Since the traffic signal also has a display indicating "progress" at the left end and a highly urgent "stop" at the right end, the operator 401 also displays in the same order to perform a sensuous input operation. Cheap. By displaying button B1 in blue or green, buttons B2 and B3 in yellow or a color close to it, and button B4 in red, the display becomes closer to a traffic signal and is easy for an operator who is unfamiliar with the operation to understand. As a result, erroneous input can be prevented.

Buttons B1 to B4 may be displayed in this order from right to left.

The separation distance D1 between the stop processing detection area K4 and the other detection areas K1 to K3 is larger than the distances D10 and D11 between the other detection areas K1 to K3. According to this configuration, it is possible to prevent erroneous input due to accidentally touching another detection area K1 to K3 when tapping the stop processing detection area K4. Further, since the other buttons B1 to B3 are not displayed around the stop processing detection area K4, there is an effect that the stop processing detection area K4 is emphasized and displayed. The separation distance D1 between the stop processing detection region K4 and the other detection regions K1 to K3 can be determined with reference to, for example, the statistical value of the width of the index finger of an adult. As an example, the separation distance D1 can be 13.8 mm or more, which is the average value of the distal joint width of the index finger of an adult female. Alternatively, it may be 15.6 mm or more, which is the average value of the distal joint width of the index finger of an adult male. According to this configuration, erroneous input is unlikely to occur even when the input operation is performed with the index finger. The above dimensions are based on AIST Japanese hand dimensional data (2012).

The separation distance D2 between the stop processing detection area K4 and the display 4011 end of the actuator 401 is larger than the separation distance D1 between the stop processing detection area K4 and the other detection areas K1 to K3. Further, the separation distance D3 between the stop processing detection area K4 and the outer edge of the actuator 401 is larger than the separation distance D1 between the stop processing detection area K4 and the other detection areas K1 to K3. The separation distance D2 between the stop processing detection region K4 and the outer edge of the actuator 401 is longer than, for example, the length from the base of the thumb of an adult to the pressing surface of the thumb. According to this configuration, it is possible to prevent a finger from touching the stop processing detection area K4 when gripping the actuator 401.

The distance D4 between the emergency operation input area 807 and the stop processing detection area K4 is larger than the distances D10 and D11 between the other detection areas K1 to K3. When inputting an emergency operation, if the operation entered in the emergency operation input area 807 is input to the emergency menu screen G2 when the emergency operation is input continuously without noticing the transition to the emergency menu screen G2, a malfunction occurs. Connect. Therefore, the emergency menu screen G2 is displayed at a position separated from the emergency operation input area 807 by a predetermined value or more.

● Screen configuration of actuator (2)
On the emergency menu screen G21 of the actuator 401 according to the second embodiment shown in FIG. 10, there are a "restart flight" button B1, a "return to takeoff and landing point" button B2, a "soft landing on the spot" button B3, and an "emergency motor". The Stop button B4 is displayed side by side in this order from top to bottom. The separation distance D21 between the stop processing detection area K4 and the other detection areas K1 to K3 is larger than the distances D20a and D20b between the other detection areas K1 to K3. The separation distance D22 between the stop processing detection area K4 and the display 4011 end of the actuator 401 is larger than the separation distance D1 between the stop processing detection area K4 and the other detection areas K1 to K3. The separation distance D23 between the stop processing detection area K4 and the outer edge of the actuator 401 is larger than the separation distance D21 between the stop processing detection area K4 and the other detection areas K1 to K3. In the present embodiment, the left and right outer edges of the stop processing detection area K4 are at the same distance from the end of the display 4011, and the left and right outer edges of the display 4011 are at the same distance from the end of the actuator 401. May be different from each other. The distance D24 between the emergency operation input area 807 and the stop processing detection area K4 is larger than the distances D20a and D20b between the other detection areas K1 to K3.

● Screen configuration of actuator (3)
On the emergency menu screen G22 of the actuator 401 according to the third embodiment shown in FIG. 11, the "restart flight" button B1 is on the upper left, the "return to takeoff and landing point" button B2 is on the lower left, and the "soft landing on the spot" button B3. Is displayed in the upper right, and the "Emergency Motor Stop" button B4 is displayed in the lower right. The separation distances D31a and D31b between the stop processing detection area K4 and the other detection areas K1 to K3 are larger than the distances D30a and D30b between the other detection areas K1 to K3. Here, since the "return to takeoff and landing point" button B2 is used more frequently than the "soft landing on the spot" button B3, in particular, the separation distance D31a between the detection areas K2 and K4 is set for the detection areas K3 and K4. By making the distance larger than D31b, the risk of accidentally pressing the "emergency motor stop" button B4 can be reduced. The separation distance D32 between the stop processing detection area K4 and the display 4011 end of the actuator 401 is larger than the separation distance D31 between the stop processing detection area K4 and the other detection areas K1 to K3. The separation distance D32 between the stop processing detection area K4 and the outer edge of the actuator 401 is larger than the separation distances D31a and D31b between the stop processing detection area K4 and the other detection areas K1 to K3. The distance D33 between the emergency operation input area 807 and the stop processing detection area K4 is larger than the distances D30a and D30b between the other detection areas K1 to K3. Furthermore, since soft landing on the spot may damage the crops in the field, it is desirable to prevent accidentally pressing the "soft landing on the spot" button B3. Therefore, it is desirable that the separation distance D30b between the frequently used "restart flight" button B1 and the "soft landing on the spot" button B3 be larger than the separation distance D30a.

(Technically remarkable effect of the present invention)
Prevents erroneous input during emergency operations when operating the drone.

Claims

A manipulator for controlling a drone that flies by a lift generator.
A display that displays multiple types of processing that gives operation instructions to the drone, and
An area for detecting an operator's input on the display, and a detection area in which the plurality of types of processes are associated with different ranges.
With
At least one of the above-mentioned processes is a lift-generating part stop process for urgently stopping the lift-generating part.
The distance between the detection area to which the lift generating unit stop process is associated and the other detection areas is larger than the distance between the detection areas to which the other processes are associated.
Manipulator.
The separation distance between the detection area to which the lift generation unit stop processing is associated and the outer edge of the actuator is larger than the separation distance between the detection area to which the lift generation unit stop processing is associated and the other detection area. ,
The actuator according to claim 1.
The display further has an emergency operation input area for receiving an instruction to transition to a screen capable of inputting the plurality of types of processes.
The distance between the emergency operation input area and the detection area to which the lift generation unit stop processing is associated is larger than the distance between the other detection areas.
The actuator according to claim 1 or 2.
The operating device according to claim 3, wherein when the emergency operation input area receives an input, the screen transitions to a screen capable of inputting the plurality of types of processing, and a hovering instruction is output to the drone.
The input operation received by the emergency operation input area is an operation that requires more time to input than a single tap operation.
The actuator according to claim 3 or 4.
The input operation received by the emergency operation input area includes at least one of a swipe operation, a plurality of tap operations, and a long press operation.
The actuator according to claim 5.
The other detection area includes a detection area to which at least one of a resumption process for resuming the operation of the drone, a return process for returning to the takeoff and landing point, and a landing process for landing below the hovering point is associated with the other detection area. The operator according to any one of 6 to 6.
The process includes a restart process for resuming the operation of the drone and a landing process for landing the drone below the hovering point.
A detection area to which the restart process is associated, a detection area to which the landing process is associated, and a detection area to which the lift generation unit stop process is associated are arranged in parallel on the display in this order.
The actuator according to any one of claims 1 to 7.
It is a program for operating a drone that flies by a lift generator.
An instruction to display a plurality of types of processes for instructing the operation of the drone on the display of the operator of the drone, and
An instruction that defines a detection area for detecting an operator's input on the display and associates the plurality of types of processing with different ranges.
Let the computer run
At least one of the above-mentioned processes is a lift-generating part stop process for urgently stopping the lift-generating part.
The distance between the detection area to which the lift generating unit stop process is associated and the other detection areas is larger than the distance between the detection areas to which the other processes are associated.
A program for operating drones.