US 10,472,090 B2 · Environmentally aware status LEDs for use in drones

Abstract

A lighting system for an unmanned autonomous vehicle (UAV) adapts to the environment around the UAV to ensure status notification lights are visible to an operator and/or abide by regulatory lighting requirements. A processor of the UAV may receive information from various sensors regarding environmental conditions and location of the UAV, and adjust a UAV lighting system to ensure visibility under the environmental conditions. Adjustments to the lighting system may include selection of light sources that are illuminated, the illumination intensity of particular light sources, the colors emitted by various light sources and other lighting configurations.

Claims30

Dependent claims

A method of adjusting a lighting system of an unmanned autonomous vehicle (UAV) to maintain visibility, comprising:

obtaining, by a processor in the UAV, information identifying an environmental condition around the UAV;
using, by the processor, the obtained information to determine a visibility impairment factor that identifies an impact of the identified environmental condition on the visibility of a light source on the UAV;
and
adjusting, by the processor, the light source based on the determined visibility impairment factor that identifies the impact of the identified environmental condition on the visibility of the light source.

1 more element

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application

15/498,980Filed 27 Apr 2017

Published

US 2018/0312274 A11 Nov 2018

Granted

12 Nov 2019

Term ends

Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification17 codes

B60Q 1/2603
The devices being primarily intended to indicate the vehicle, or parts thereof, or to give signals, to other traffic: attenuation of the light…
B64D 47/02
Equipment not otherwise provided for: arrangements or adaptations of signal or lighting devices
B64D 47/06
Arrangements or adaptations of signal or lighting devices: for indicating aircraft presence
B64D 47/08
Equipment not otherwise provided for: arrangements of cameras

Environmentally aware status LEDs for use in drones

Life of this patent

Environmentally aware status LEDs for use in drones

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims30