Velocity control for an unmanned aerial vehicle

Abstract

A system for controlling an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) in an environment includes one or more processors configured to receive sensor data from one or more sensors carried by the UAV where the sensor data is indicative of an obstacle density of the environment, select a set of current operating rules for the UAV based on the sensor data, and determine a set of final operating rules to control the UAV based on the set of current operating rules and one or more sets of previously determined operating rules.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A system for controlling an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) in an environment, comprising:
 one or more processors configured to:
 receive sensor data from one or more sensors carried by the UAV, the sensor data being indicative of an obstacle density of the environment; 
 select, based on the sensor data, a set of current operating rules for the UAV; and 
 determine a set of final operating rules to control the UAV based on the set of current operating rules and one or more sets of previously determined operating rules. 
   
     
     
         2 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the set of final operating rules is determined by combining the set of current operating rules and the one or more sets of previously determined operating rules. 
     
     
         3 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the set of final operating rules is determined by a weighted average of the set of current operating rules and the one or more sets of previously determined operating rules, wherein a greater weight is assigned to a more recently determined operating rule. 
     
     
         4 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the one or more sets of previously determined operating rules are retrieved from a first-in-first-out (FIFO) queue. 
     
     
         5 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the set of current operating rules or the one or more sets of previously determined operating rules comprise at least one of:
 one or more velocity rules,   one or more attitude rules,   one or more acceleration rules, or   one or more altitude rules.   
     
     
         6 . The system of  claim 5 , wherein the one or more velocity rules comprise a velocity limit for the UAV, wherein the velocity limit is determined based on a minimum braking distance for the UAV. 
     
     
         7 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the one or more processors are further configured to:
 generate, based on the sensor data, three-dimensional digital representation of the environment to determine the obstacle density of the environment.   
     
     
         8 . The system of  claim 7 , wherein the three-dimensional digital representation comprises a point cloud, a disparity map, or an occupancy grid. 
     
     
         9 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the one or more processors are further configured to:
 effect movement of the UAV in compliance with the set of final operating rules.   
     
     
         10 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the one or more sensors comprise at least one of a vision sensor, a lidar sensor, or an ultrasonic sensor. 
     
     
         11 . A method for controlling an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) in an environment, comprising:
 receiving, via one or more processors, sensor data from one or more sensors carried by the UAV, the sensor data being indicative of an obstacle density of the environment;   selecting, via the one or more processors, a set of current operating rules for the UAV based on the sensor data; and   determining, via the one or more processors, a set of final operating rules to control the UAV based on the set of current operating rules and one or more sets of previously determined operating rules.   
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein the set of final operating rules is determined by combining the set of current operating rules and the one or more sets of previously determined operating rules. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein the set of final operating rules is determined by a weighted average of the set of current operating rules and the one or more sets of previously determined operating rules, wherein a greater weight is assigned to a more recently determined operating rule. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein the one or more sets of previously determined operating rules are retrieved from a first-in-first-out (FIFO) queue. 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein the set of current operating rules or the one or more sets of previously determined operating rules comprise at least one of:
 one or more velocity rules,   one or more attitude rules,   one or more acceleration rules, or   one or more altitude rules.   
     
     
         16 . An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), comprising:
 one or more sensors; and   one or more processors configured to:
 receive sensor data from the one or more sensors, the sensor data being indicative of an obstacle density of an environment of the UAV; 
 select a set of current operating rules for the UAV based on the sensor data; and 
 determine a set of final operating rules to control the UAV based on the set of current operating rules and one or more sets of previously determined operating rules. 
   
     
     
         17 . The UAV of  claim 16 , wherein the set of final operating rules is determined by combining the set of current operating rules and the one or more sets of previously determined operating rules. 
     
     
         18 . The UAV of  claim 16 , wherein the set of final operating rules is determined by a weighted average of the set of current operating rules and the one or more sets of previously determined operating rules, wherein a greater weight is assigned to more recently determined operating rules. 
     
     
         19 . The UAV of  claim 16 , wherein the one or more sets of previously determined operating rules are retrieved from a first-in-first-out (FIFO) queue. 
     
     
         20 . The UAV of  claim 16 , wherein the set of current operating rules or the one or more sets of previously determined operating rules comprise at least one of:
 one or more velocity rules,   one or more attitude rules,   one or more acceleration rules, or   one or more altitude rules.