US 10,761,525 B2Granted

Unmanned aerial vehicle inspection system

AssigneeSkydio, Inc.

InventorsBrett Michael Bethke, Hui Li, Bernard J. Michini

Life of this patent

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Abstract

Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on computer storage media, for an unmanned aerial system inspection system. One of the methods is performed by a UAV and includes obtaining, from a user device, flight operation information describing an inspection of a vertical structure to be performed, the flight operation information including locations of one or more safe locations for vertical inspection. A location of the UAV is determined to correspond to a first safe location for vertical inspection. A first inspection of the structure is performed is performed at the first safe location, the first inspection including activating cameras. A second safe location is traveled to, and a second inspection of the structure is performed. Information associated with the inspection is provided to the user device.

Claims30

Dependent claims

A system comprising one or more processors and a computer storage media storing instructions, that when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform operations associated with inspecting vertical structures, the operations performed prior to inspections of the vertical structures, and the operations comprising:

displaying, via a user interface, a representation of a vertical structure to be inspected by an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV);
determining vertical inspection locations around the vertical structure to be inspected, the vertical inspection locations representing proposed vertical columns of flight by the UAV;
displaying, via the user interface, the vertical inspection locations being positioned about the vertical structure at which the UAV is to obtain sensor information;
generating a flight pattern based on the vertical inspection locations, the flight pattern, upon implementation by the UAV, causing the UAV to navigate around the vertical structure to a plurality of positions and orient one or more sensors of the UAV towards the vertical structure and obtain sensor information describing the vertical structure;
and
transmitting, to the UAV for implementation, flight information including the flight pattern via a wireless or wired connection.

3 more elements

A method implemented by a system comprising one or more processors, the method comprising:

displaying, via a user interface, a representation of a vertical structure to be inspected by an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV);
determining vertical inspection locations around the vertical structure to be inspected, the vertical inspection locations representing proposed vertical columns of flight by the UAV;
displaying, via the user interface, the vertical inspection locations being positioned about the vertical structure at which the UAV is to obtain sensor information;
generating a flight pattern based on the vertical inspection locations, the flight pattern, upon implementation by the UAV, causing the UAV to navigate around the vertical structure to a plurality of positions and orient one or more sensors of the UAV towards the vertical structure and obtain sensor information describing the vertical structure;
and
transmitting, to the UAV for implementation, flight information including the flight pattern via a wireless or wired connection.

3 more elements

A non-transitory computer storage medium storing instructions that when executed by a system of one or more processors cause the system to perform operations comprising:

displaying, via a user interface, a representation of a vertical structure to be inspected by an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV);
determining vertical inspection locations around the vertical structure to be inspected, the vertical inspection locations representing proposed vertical columns of flight by the UAV;
displaying, via the user interface, the vertical inspection locations being positioned about the vertical structure at which the UAV is to obtain sensor information;
generating a flight pattern based on the vertical inspection locations, the flight pattern, upon implementation by the UAV, causing the UAV to navigate around the vertical structure to a plurality of positions and orient one or more sensors of the UAV towards the vertical structure and obtain sensor information describing the vertical structure;
and
transmitting, to the UAV for implementation, flight information including the flight pattern via a wireless or wired connection.

3 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 15/672,764Filed 9 Aug 2017 · continuation
Priority: 30 Dec 2015
Published: US 2018/0188721 A15 Jul 2018
Granted: 1 Sep 2020
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification28 codes

G05D 1/0011
Control of position, course, altitude or attitude of land, water, air or space vehicles, e.g. using automatic pilots: associated with a remote…
B64D 47/00
Equipment not otherwise provided for
B64F 5/60
Designing, manufacturing, assembling, cleaning, maintaining or repairing aircraft, not otherwise provided for; Handling, transporting, testing…
B64U 10/13
Rotorcrafts: flying platforms

Family

Application62/273,222Us provisional application · filed 30 Dec 2015
Application62/294,805Us provisional application · filed 12 Feb 2016
Application15/059,154Parent of this continuation · filed 2 Mar 2016
Application15/268,241Parent of this continuation · filed 16 Sep 2016
US 9,513,635 B1Parent of this continuation · filed 6 Dec 2016
US 2018/0188721 A1Pre-grant publication · published 5 Jul 2018
US 9,740,200 B2Parent of this continuation
US 2017/0192418 A1Published application
US 10,761,525 B2This patent

From the US filing history. Foreign family members aren’t listed.