阅读说明：本技术 控制装置、控制方法和程序 (Control device, control method, and program ) 是由 鹤见辰吾 于 2020-02-19 设计创作，主要内容包括：控制装置包括：接收单元,其接收任意风速矢量,该矢量由至少一个外部风速计测量；风力预测单元,其基于所接收到的风速矢量来预测要在预定时间之后施加在移动体上的风力；以及控制单元,其基于所预测的风力来控制对移动体的驱动。(The control device includes: a receiving unit receiving an arbitrary wind speed vector, the vector being measured by at least one external anemometer; a wind power prediction unit that predicts a wind power to be exerted on the moving body after a predetermined time based on the received wind speed vector; and a control unit that controls driving of the mobile body based on the predicted wind power.)

1. A control device, comprising:

a receiving part that receives a wind speed vector measured by at least one external anemometer at any point in time;

a wind power predicting part that predicts a wind power to be applied to the moving body after a predetermined period of time has elapsed, based on the received wind speed vector; and

and a control unit that controls driving of the mobile body based on the predicted wind power.

2. The control device according to claim 1,

the control unit controls driving of the moving body so as to cancel out wind force.

3. The control device according to claim 1,

the wind power predicting part also predicts a wind power to be applied to the moving body after a predetermined period of time has elapsed, based on a wind speed vector measured by an internal anemometer provided on the moving body.

4. The control device according to claim 1,

the wind power prediction section also predicts a wind power to be applied to the mobile body after a predetermined period of time has elapsed, based on environmental information of the surroundings of the mobile body.

5. The control device according to claim 1,

the wind predicting part predicts wind to be applied to the moving body after a predetermined period of time has elapsed, based on wind speed vectors measured by a plurality of external anemometers placed at different positions.

6. The control device according to claim 5,

the wind power prediction section predicts a wind power to be applied to the mobile body after a predetermined period of time has elapsed, based on a wind speed vector measured by an external anemometer on a downwind side of a position where the mobile body is located.

7. The control device according to claim 5,

the wind power prediction section predicts a wind power to be applied to the mobile body after a predetermined period of time has elapsed, based on a wind speed vector measured by the external anemometer present within a predetermined distance from the mobile body.

8. The control device according to claim 1,

the external anemometer is provided in another mobile body different from the mobile body.

9. The control device according to claim 8,

controlling the other moving body so that the moving body exists in a downwind direction of the other moving body.

10. The control device according to claim 8,

a plurality of the other moving bodies including an external anemometer are provided, and

the other moving bodies are controlled to be located at positions opposite to each other with the moving bodies interposed therebetween.

11. The control device according to claim 10,

the other moving body is controlled to be located in each of an upwind direction of the moving body and a downwind direction of the moving body.

12. The control device according to claim 1,

the moving body is a flying body flying with rotating blades.

13. The control device according to claim 1,

the moving body includes an imaging device.

14. A control method, comprising:

receiving a wind speed vector measured by at least one external anemometer at any point in time;

predicting, by an arithmetic device, a wind force to be applied to the moving body after a predetermined period of time elapses, based on the received wind speed vector; and

controlling driving of the moving body based on the predicted wind force.

15. A program for causing a computer to function as:

a receiving part that receives a wind speed vector measured by at least one external anemometer at any point in time;

a wind power predicting part that predicts a wind power to be applied to the moving body after a predetermined period of time has elapsed, based on the received wind speed vector; and

and a control unit that controls driving of the mobile body based on the predicted wind power.

Technical Field

The present disclosure relates to a control device, a control method, and a program.

Background

In recent years, it is being studied how to efficiently perform work over a wide range of areas from a position in the air by using a compact flying body such as an unmanned aerial vehicle.

For example, patent document 1 mentioned below discloses a technique of spreading fertilizer or the like to a field by using an aircraft body. Further, an image of a wide area from a position in the air is generally captured by using a drone or the like mounted with an imaging device.

In the case of performing work using a flying body, it is important to stably hold the flying body at a predetermined position during work or to stably fly the flying body along a predetermined trajectory. Therefore, a technique has been developed which, in the case where the position of a hovering flying body changes due to a strong wind, automatically moves the flying body back to the position where the flying body existed before the strong wind was blown, for example, by using a GNSS (global navigation satellite system) sensor or the like.

CITATION LIST

Patent document

Patent document 1: japanese patent laid-open publication No. 2018-127076

Disclosure of Invention

Technical problem

However, with the aforementioned technology, when strong wind blows, it is difficult to prevent the position and posture of the flying body from temporarily becoming unstable. For this reason, a technique for maintaining the position and posture of the flying body as stably as possible even in the case where a sudden strong wind blows is required.

Solution to the problem

The present disclosure provides a control device including: a receiving part that receives a wind speed vector measured by at least one external anemometer at any point in time; a wind power (wind power) predicting section that predicts a wind power to be applied to the moving body after a predetermined period of time has elapsed, based on the received wind speed vector; and a control unit that controls driving of the mobile body based on the predicted wind power.

Further, the present disclosure provides a control method including: receiving a wind speed vector measured by at least one external anemometer at any point in time; predicting, by an arithmetic device, a wind force to be applied to the moving body after a predetermined period of time elapses, based on the received wind speed vector; and controlling driving of the mobile body based on the predicted wind force.

Further, the present disclosure provides a program for causing a computer to function as: a receiving part that receives a wind speed vector measured by at least one external anemometer at any point in time; a wind power predicting part that predicts a wind power to be applied to the moving body after a predetermined period of time has elapsed, based on the received wind speed vector; and a control unit that controls driving of the mobile body based on the predicted wind power.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is an explanatory view depicting one example of a moving body under the control of a control device according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

Fig. 2 is a block diagram for explaining a functional configuration of a control device according to an embodiment.

Fig. 3 is a schematic diagram depicting one example of a heat map indicating wind speed vectors at various locations in a predetermined environment.

Fig. 4 is an explanatory view for explaining a method of predicting a wind speed vector at a first moving body from a wind speed vector at a second moving body.

Fig. 5 is a flowchart for explaining the operation flow of the control device according to the embodiment.

Fig. 6A is an explanatory view depicting an example in which a plurality of second moving bodies each including an anemometer are used to make a first moving body including an imaging device fly stably.

Fig. 6B is an explanatory view depicting an example of making a plurality of first moving bodies each including an anemometer and an imaging device fly stably to each other.

Fig. 7A is an explanatory view depicting an example of arrangement of a first moving body and a second moving body.

Fig. 7B is an explanatory view depicting an arrangement example of a first moving body and a plurality of second moving bodies.

Fig. 8 is an explanatory diagram for explaining an observation machine including an anemometer that measures a wind speed vector.

Fig. 9 is a block diagram showing one example of a hardware configuration of a control apparatus according to the embodiment.

Detailed Description

Preferred embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. It is to be noted that throughout the present specification and the drawings, components having substantially the same functional configuration will be denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description thereof will be omitted.

Note that the description will be given in the following order.

1. Overview of the control device

2. Arrangement of control devices

3. Operation of the control device

4. Variants

5. Hardware configuration

<1. overview of control apparatus >

First, an overview of a control apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure will be explained with reference to fig. 1. Fig. 1 is an explanatory diagram depicting one example of a moving body under the control of a control device according to the present embodiment.

Note that in the following description, a flying object is described as one example of a moving body, but the moving body under the control of the control device according to the present embodiment is not limited to such an example. The moving body under the control of the control device does not need to fly.

As shown in fig. 1, the control apparatus according to the present embodiment controls the position and posture of a flying first mobile body 10. Specifically, the control device according to the present embodiment controls the position and the posture of the first mobile body 10, which performs work over a wide range of regions from the position in the air, based on the wind speed vector measured by the second mobile body 20 including the anemometer. Note that the control device according to the present embodiment can also control the position and posture of the second mobile body 20 including the anemometer.

For example, the first mobile body 10 is a flying body such as a helicopter or a multi-rotor aircraft (multicopter) that includes the imaging device 30 and flies with rotating blades. For example, the first mobile body 10 can capture an image of a wide range of regions from a position in the air by using the imaging device 30.

However, the first mobile body 10 may include any device other than the imaging device 30 as long as the device performs work over a wide range of areas from a position in the air. For example, the first mobile body 10 may include a measuring device that measures a wide range of topographic features from an airborne location, or a spreading device that spreads a liquid or solid object toward a wide range of areas from an airborne location.

Since the first mobile body 10 performs work over a wide range of regions from the position in the air, it is important that the position and posture of the first mobile body 10 are stable. Specifically, it is important for the first mobile body 10 that the first mobile body 10 flies while keeping the position and posture of the first mobile body 10 as undisturbed as possible even in the case of receiving a sudden strong wind or the like.

For example, the second mobile body 20 includes an anemometer. Similarly to the first mobile body 10, the second mobile body 20 is a flying body such as a helicopter or a multi-rotor aircraft flying with rotating blades. By using an anemometer, the second mobile body 20 measures a wind speed vector at the position of the second mobile body 20.

The control device according to the present embodiment predicts the wind force to be applied to the first mobile body 10 after the elapse of the predetermined time period based on the wind speed vector measured at the second mobile body 20, and controls the first mobile body 10 based on the predicted wind force. Therefore, the control device can cause the first mobile body 10 to generate thrust for canceling out the wind force to be applied to the first mobile body 10. Therefore, it is possible to suppress the position and the posture of the first mobile body 10 from being disturbed by disturbance such as strong wind.

The control device according to the present embodiment may be a control unit provided on the first mobile body 10. Alternatively, the control device according to the present embodiment may be an information processing device capable of wireless communication with the first mobile body 10 and the second mobile body 20.

<2. arrangement of control device >

Next, the configuration of the control device according to the present embodiment will be specifically explained with reference to fig. 2 to 4, and the outline of the control device according to the present embodiment has been explained above. Hereinafter, a description will be given assuming that the control device according to the present embodiment is provided on the first mobile body 10 and configured to control the overall driving of the first mobile body 10. Fig. 2 is a block diagram for explaining a functional configuration of the control device according to the present embodiment.

As depicted in fig. 2, the control device 100 according to the present embodiment includes a target value generation section 110, a position control section 121, an attitude control section 123, a drive control section 130, a sensor section 141, a position and attitude estimation section 143, a wind speed sensor section 151, a receiving section 153, a wind power prediction section 155, and an FF control section 157.

The target value generation unit 110 generates target values of the position and orientation of the first mobile body 10. Specifically, the target value generation section 110 generates the target values of the position and orientation of the first mobile body 10 based on a movement command transmitted from a transmitter operating the first mobile body 10 by radio waves or a motion plan internally generated in the first mobile body 10. For example, the target value generation section 110 may generate target values of x, y, and z coordinates (i.e., positions) of the first mobile body 10 at a predetermined point in time and a target value of a yaw angle (i.e., a posture) of the first mobile body 10 at a predetermined point in time.

The position control section 121 generates a command value for controlling the position of the first mobile body 10, and also generates a target value of the attitude angle of the first mobile body 10. Specifically, the position control section 121 calculates an error between a target value of the position and orientation of the first mobile body 10 and an estimated value of the position and orientation of the first mobile body 10, generates a command value for controlling the position and orientation to correct the calculated error, and generates a target value of the orientation angle. For example, the position control section 121 may generate command values for a driving section (not shown) to control the x, y, and z coordinates (i.e., position) and yaw angle (i.e., attitude) of the first mobile body 10 and target values of the roll angle and pitch angle (i.e., attitude angle) of the first mobile body 10.

The attitude control section 123 generates command values for controlling the attitude angle and the attitude angular velocity of the first mobile body 10. Specifically, the attitude control section 123 calculates an error between a target value of the attitude angle of the first mobile body 10 and an estimated value of the attitude angle of the first mobile body 10, and generates a command value for controlling the attitude angle to correct the calculated error. Further, in a manner similar to that for the attitude angle, the attitude control section 123 calculates an error between the target value of the attitude angular velocity of the first mobile body 10 and the estimated value of the attitude angular velocity of the first mobile body 10, and generates a command value for controlling the attitude angular velocity to correct the calculated error. For example, the attitude control section 123 may generate command values for a driving section (not shown) for controlling the roll angle and the pitch angle (i.e., attitude angle) of the first mobile body 10 and command values for a driving section (not shown) for controlling the roll angle velocity and the pitch angle velocity (i.e., attitude angular velocity).

The sensor section 141 senses the state of the first mobile body 10. Specifically, the sensor section 141 senses information about the position and posture of the first mobile body 10. For example, the sensor section 141 may include various image pickup devices including an RGB image pickup device, a grayscale image pickup device, a stereo image pickup device, a depth image pickup device, an infrared image pickup device, and a ToF (time of flight) image pickup device and an IMU (inertial measurement unit), an atmosphere sensor, a magnetic sensor, or a GNSS (global navigation satellite system) sensor. It is to be noted that the sensor section 141 may include a plurality of such sensors.

The position and orientation estimation section 143 estimates the position and orientation of the first mobile body 10 based on information on the position and orientation of the first mobile body 10 obtained by sensing performed by the sensor section 141. Specifically, the position and orientation estimation section 143 estimates the position, orientation, velocity, and angular velocity of the first mobile body 10 by integrating the observation values obtained by the plurality of sensors included in the sensor section 141. For example, the position and orientation estimation section 143 may estimate the position, orientation, velocity, and angular velocity of the first mobile body 10 by using a kalman filter.

The wind speed sensor unit 151 measures a wind speed vector at the first mobile body 10. Specifically, the wind speed sensor part 151 may measure the intensity and direction of wind at the first mobile body 10. For example, the wind speed sensor unit 151 may be an anemometer mounted on the first mobile body 10.

The receiving section 153 receives at least one information set on a wind speed vector observed by an anemometer outside the first mobile body 10. Specifically, the receiving section 153 receives at least one information set on the wind speed vector measured by the anemometer from the anemometer provided on the second mobile body 20 or the observation machine located around the first mobile body 10. For example, the receiving section 153 may receive, from the second mobile body 20, information on the wind intensity and wind direction measured by an anemometer provided on the second mobile body 20, information on the position and orientation of the second mobile body 20, and information on the measurement time point of the wind speed vector. For example, the receiving unit 153 may receive information on the wind velocity vector from an anemometer provided on the second mobile body 20 or the observation machine by wireless communication based on a known method. Further, the receiving part 153 may receive information on wind speed vectors measured by a plurality of anemometers located at different positions, respectively.

The wind power predicting part 155 predicts the wind power to be applied to the first mobile body 10 after the predetermined period of time elapses, based on the wind speed vector observed by the anemometer outside the first mobile body 10. Specifically, the wind power predicting part 155 predicts the wind power to be applied to the first mobile body 10 after the predetermined period of time has elapsed, based on the wind speed vector measured by the anemometer of the second mobile body 20.

For example, by performing fluid simulation using wind velocity vectors measured by a plurality of anemometers outside the first mobile body 10, the wind power predicting part 155 may predict the wind power to be applied to the first mobile body 10 after a predetermined period of time has elapsed. The fluid simulation may be performed by numerically solving simultaneous equations, including equations that are continuous with Navier-Stokes equations, any other energy equations, maxwell equations, and the like.

In this case, the wind predicting part 155 may create a heat map in which the magnitude and direction of the wind speed vector in the surrounding area of the first moving body 10 are plotted, as depicted in fig. 3, by further using information on the environmental structure around the first moving body 10. FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram depicting one example of a heat map indicating wind speed vectors at various locations in a predetermined environment. Based on the map, the wind power predicting part 155 can accurately predict the wind speed vector at the position of the first mobile body 10 after the predetermined period of time has elapsed. Therefore, the wind power predicting part 155 can accurately predict the wind power to be applied to the first mobile body 10 after the predetermined period of time has elapsed.

Alternatively, the wind power predicting part 155 may predict the wind power to be applied to the first mobile body 10 after a predetermined time elapses, assuming that the wind corresponding to the wind speed vector measured by the anemometer on the downwind side of the position where the first mobile body 10 is located propagates to the first mobile body 10. In this case, even in the case where there are a small number of calculation sources and observation results of the wind speed vector, the wind power predicting part 155 can predict the wind power to be applied to the first mobile body 10 after the predetermined period of time has elapsed in a simpler manner than the fluid simulation.

Hereinafter, such a simple method of predicting wind power by means of the wind power predicting part 155 will be explained with reference to fig. 4. Fig. 4 is an explanatory view for explaining a method of predicting a wind speed vector at the first mobile body 10 from a wind speed vector at the second mobile body 20.

As depicted in fig. 4, the wind power predicting part 155 may predict the wind speed vector at the first moving body 10 after the predetermined period of time elapses, on the assumption that the wind speed vector at the second moving body 20 on the downwind side of the position where the first moving body 10 is located propagates to the first moving body 10 after the predetermined period of time.

Specifically, the wind predicting part 155 calculates an angle θ formed between a vector Vr connecting the first moving body 10 and the second moving body 20 and a wind speed vector Vs observed at the second moving body 20. Next, the wind power predicting part 155 may predict the wind speed vector at the first moving body 10 after the predetermined period of time elapses, by using the wind speed vector at the second moving body 20 among the second moving bodies 20 which obtain the minimum angle θ and are located at a distance within a predetermined range with respect to the first moving body 10. Alternatively, the wind predicting part 155 may predict the wind speed vector at the first moving body 10 after the predetermined period of time elapses by using the wind speed vector at the second moving body 20 that obtains the minimum angle θ.

In still another case, the wind power predicting part 155 may predict the wind speed vector at the first moving body 10 after the predetermined period of time elapses by using the wind speed vector at the second moving body 20 located at the shortest distance from the first moving body 10. In another case, the wind power predicting part 155 may predict the wind speed vector at the first moving body 10 after the predetermined period of time elapses by using the wind speed vector at the second moving body 20 located at the shortest distance from the first moving body 10 and among the second moving bodies 20 obtaining the angle θ falling within the predetermined range.

For example, it is assumed that the distance Dr between a plane Pm that is perpendicular to the wind speed vector Vm at the first mobile body 10 and includes the first mobile body 10 in that plane and a plane Ps that is perpendicular to the speed vector Vs at the second mobile body 20 and includes the second mobile body 20 in that plane is 5 m. Further, it is assumed that the wind speed of the wind speed vector Vs at the second mobile body 20 is 10 m/s.

In this case, it may be assumed that the time T taken for the wind speed vector Vs at the second mobile body 20 to propagate to the first mobile body 10 is 5(m)/10(m/s) 0.5(s). Therefore, the wind speed vector Vm at the first moving body 10 after the predetermined period t has elapsed can be predicted by summing the wind speed vector Vm and the wind speed vector Vs at the second moving body 20 according to expression 1.

VM ═ VM × (1-T/T) + Vs × T/T (where T ≦ T)

Therefore, for example, if t is 0.1, the wind power predicting unit 155 may predict that the wind speed vector VM at the first mobile object 10 after 0.1 second has elapsed is VM 0.8VM +0.2 Vs.

Therefore, the wind power predicting part 155 may predict the wind speed vector at the first mobile body 10 after the predetermined period of time has elapsed by a simpler method without performing a complicated fluid simulation, and may predict the wind power to be applied to the first mobile body 10 after the predetermined period of time has elapsed.

The FF control section 157 generates a command value for causing a drive section (not depicted) of the first mobile body 10 to generate thrust for canceling out wind force to be applied to the first mobile body 10 after a predetermined period of time has elapsed. Specifically, the FF control section 157 generates a command value for causing the drive section to generate a thrust for canceling the wind force to be applied to the first mobile body 10 predicted by the wind force prediction section 155 and maintaining the position and orientation of the first mobile body 10. That is, the FF control unit 157 performs feed-forward control on the drive unit to cancel out the wind force predicted to be applied to the first mobile body 10 in advance.

The drive control unit 130 controls a drive unit (not depicted) that drives the first mobile body 10. Specifically, the drive control section 130 controls the position and orientation of the first mobile body 10 by controlling the drive section based on the command values transmitted from the FF control section 157, the position control section 121, and the orientation control section 123. For example, the drive control section 130 may control the position and attitude of the first mobile body 10 by controlling a motor, an actuator, or the like based on a command value obtained by adding a command value for canceling wind power to be applied after a predetermined period of time has elapsed and a command value for controlling x, y, and z coordinates, a yaw angle, a roll angle, a pitch angle, a roll angle velocity, and a pitch angle velocity.

With the control device 100 having the foregoing configuration, the wind force to be applied to the first mobile body 10 can be predicted in advance. Therefore, feed-forward control of the drive of the first mobile body 10 can be performed in a manner that suppresses the wind force from changing the position and orientation.

<3. operation of the control device >

Next, the operation of the control device 100 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to fig. 5. Fig. 5 is a flowchart for explaining the flow of operation of the control device 100 according to the present embodiment.

As depicted in fig. 5, the control apparatus 100 first estimates the position and orientation of the first mobile body 10 based on information obtained by sensing performed by the sensor section 141 (S101). Next, the control device 100 determines whether wind speed information including a wind speed vector at the second moving body 20 has been received from the second moving body 20 via the receiving section 153 (S103). Having received the wind speed information from the second mobile body 20 (yes in S103), the control device 100 measures the wind speed information including the wind speed vector at the first mobile body 10 by means of the wind speed sensor section 151 (S105).

Next, the control device 100 calculates the wind force to be applied to the first mobile body 10 after the predetermined period of time has elapsed, by means of the wind force predicting part 155, based on the wind speed vector at the first mobile body 10, the wind speed vector at the second mobile body 20, the information on the position and orientation of the first mobile body 10, and the information on the position and orientation of the second mobile body 20 (S107). Next, the control device 100 calculates a thrust force for canceling the disturbance to the first mobile body 10 caused by the wind power after the predetermined period of time has elapsed, by means of the FF control section 157 (S109). On the other hand, in the case where the wind speed information is not received from the second mobile body 20 (no in S103), the control device 100 sets the thrust for canceling the disturbance to the first mobile body 10 caused by the wind force after the elapse of the predetermined time period to zero by means of the FF control section 157 (S111).

Thereafter, the control device 100 controls the driving section of the first mobile body 10 by means of the drive control section 130 based on a command value obtained by adding a command value for generating thrust for canceling wind force to be applied after a predetermined period of time has elapsed to a command value for controlling the position and orientation of the first mobile body 10 (S113).

According to the aforementioned operation flow, the control apparatus 100 can predict the wind force to be applied to the first mobile body 10 after the predetermined period of time has elapsed, based on the wind speed vector measured at the second mobile body 20. Therefore, the control device 100 can control the drive of the first mobile body 10 in such a manner as to maintain the position and posture of the first mobile body 10 against the wind force to be applied.

<4. modification >

Next, a modification of the control performed by the control device 100 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to fig. 6A to 8.

First, a modification of the relationship between the first mobile body 10 driven under the control of the control apparatus 100 of the present embodiment and the second mobile body 20 including an anemometer that observes a wind speed vector to be used for the control performed by the control apparatus 100 will be described with reference to fig. 6A and 6B. Fig. 6A is an explanatory view showing an example in which a plurality of second mobile bodies 20 each including an anemometer are used to stably fly the first mobile body 10 including the imaging device 30. Fig. 6B is an explanatory diagram showing an example in which a plurality of first mobile bodies 10 each including an anemometer and an imaging device 30 are caused to stably fly with each other.

As depicted in fig. 6A, the control apparatus 100 may arrange a plurality of second moving bodies 20 each including an anemometer around the first moving body 10 including the imaging apparatus 30, and may measure wind speed vectors at the plurality of second moving bodies 20 to stabilize the position and posture of the first moving body 10.

Since the first mobile body 10 performs a work of capturing an image from a position in the air, it is important for the first mobile body 10 to stably maintain its position and posture against a sudden strong wind or the like. Therefore, the control apparatus 100 arranges the plurality of second mobile bodies 20 each including the anemometer in such a manner that the plurality of second mobile bodies 20 surround the first mobile body 10, so that the first mobile body 10 can always exist on the leeward side of any one of the second mobile bodies 20 even in the case where the wind direction changes with time. Therefore, the control apparatus 100 can measure the wind speed vector of the wind blowing in any wind direction by using the second mobile body 20 located on the upwind side of the first mobile body 10. Therefore, the control device 100 can predict, with high accuracy, the wind force to be applied to the first mobile body 10 after the predetermined period of time has elapsed.

As depicted in fig. 6B, the control apparatus 100 may measure wind velocity vectors at a plurality of first moving bodies 10 each including the imaging apparatus 30 and the anemometer, and may share the measured wind velocity vectors among the first moving bodies 10 to stabilize the position and posture of the first moving bodies 10.

Each of the first mobile bodies 10 may include an anemometer in order to control the position and posture. Therefore, the measured wind speed vector is shared by the plurality of first mobile bodies 10, so that the control apparatus 100 can stably control the position and orientation of the first mobile body 10 without using any second mobile body 20 that measures a wind speed vector. Therefore, the control apparatus 100 can improve the energy consumption efficiency at the first mobile body 10 and the second mobile body 20.

Next, a modification of arrangement control of the first mobile body 10 and the second mobile body 20 by the control device 100 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to fig. 7A and 7B. Fig. 7A is an explanatory view depicting an arrangement example of the first mobile body 10 and the second mobile body 20. Fig. 7B is an explanatory view depicting an arrangement example of the first mobile body 10 and the plurality of second mobile bodies 20.

As depicted in fig. 7A, the control device 100 may perform arrangement control of the second mobile body 20 such that the first mobile body 10 always exists on the leeward side of the second mobile body 20. Specifically, the control device 100 may perform arrangement control of the second mobile body 20 such that the first mobile body 10 always exists in the direction of the wind speed vector Vw measured at the second mobile body 20. Therefore, the control apparatus 100 can predict, with high accuracy, the wind force to be applied to the first mobile body 10 after the predetermined period of time has elapsed, based on the wind speed vector Vw measured at the second mobile body 20.

As depicted in fig. 7B, the control apparatus 100 may perform arrangement control of the plurality of second mobile bodies 20 such that the second mobile bodies 20 are located at positions opposite to each other with the first mobile body 10 interposed therebetween. Specifically, the control device 100 may perform arrangement control of the second mobile body 20 such that the second mobile body 20 always exists on each of the upwind side and the downwind side of the first mobile body 10.

For example, the control device 100 may perform arrangement control of the second mobile bodies 20A and 20B such that the second mobile body 20A is always present on the upwind side of the first mobile body 10 while the second mobile body 20B is always present on the downwind side of the first mobile body 10 with respect to the direction of the wind speed vector Vw measured at the first mobile body 10. Therefore, even in the case where the wind direction is suddenly changed, the control device 100 can cause any one of the second mobile bodies 20 to always exist on the upwind side of the first mobile body 10. Therefore, the control apparatus 100 can more smoothly perform the arrangement control of the second mobile body 20 with respect to the first mobile body 10.

It is to be noted that, by further using information on the position, the image capturing direction, the angle of view, and the like of the first mobile body 10, the control device 100 can perform arrangement control of the second mobile body 20 to suppress the second mobile body 20 from entering the angle of view of the imaging device 30 of the first mobile body 10. Further, the position of the second mobile body 20 may not be controlled by the control device 100 but by the second mobile body 20 itself.

Next, a modification of an anemometer that obtains a wind speed vector used by the control apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment to predict wind force to be applied to the first mobile body 10 will be described with reference to fig. 8. Fig. 8 is an explanatory diagram for explaining an observation machine including an anemometer that measures a wind speed vector.

As depicted in fig. 8, the control apparatus 100 may predict the wind force to be applied to the first mobile body 10 after the predetermined period of time has elapsed, based on the wind velocity vector measured by the anemometer provided on the fixed-position observation machine 40. That is, the wind speed vector used by the control apparatus 100 to predict the wind force to be applied to the first mobile body 10 may be measured by an anemometer provided on a mobile apparatus such as the second mobile body 20, or may be measured by an anemometer provided on a fixed-position apparatus such as the observation machine 40. When predicting the wind force to be applied to the first mobile body 10, the control device 100 may use any wind speed vector as long as the measurement position and the measurement timing of the wind speed vector are identified.

<5. hardware configuration example >

Next, a hardware configuration of the control device 100 according to the present embodiment will be explained with reference to fig. 9. Fig. 9 is a block diagram depicting one example of the hardware configuration of the control apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment.

As depicted in fig. 9, the control apparatus 100 includes a CPU (central processing unit) 901, a ROM (read only memory) 902, a RAM (random access memory) 903, a host bus 905, a bridge 907, an external bus 906, an interface 908, an input device 911, an output device 912, a storage device 913, a drive 914, a connection port 915, and a communication device 916. The control apparatus 100 may include a processing circuit such as a circuit, a DSP (digital signal processor), or an ASIC (application specific integrated circuit) instead of or in addition to the CPU 901.

The CPU 901 functions as an arithmetic processing device and a control device to control all operations of the control apparatus 100 according to various programs. Further, the CPU 901 may be a microprocessor. The ROM 902 stores programs, calculation parameters, and the like used by the CPU 901. For example, the RAM 903 temporarily stores programs to be used during execution in the CPU 901, parameters appropriately changing during execution, and the like. For example, the CPU 901 may execute the functions of the target value generation section 110, the position control section 121, the attitude control section 123, the drive control section 130, the position and attitude estimation section 143, the wind power prediction section 155, and the FF control section 157.

The CPU 901, the ROM 902, and the RAM 903 are connected to each other via a host bus 905 including a CPU bus and the like. The host bus 905 is connected to the external bus 906 via the bridge 907, and the external bus 906 is a PCI (peripheral component interconnect/interface) bus or the like. Note that it is not necessarily required to form the host bus 905, the bridge 907, and the external bus 906 separately, and the functions of the host bus 905, the bridge 907, and the external bus 906 may be mounted on one bus.

The input device 911 is, for example, a mouse, a keyboard, a touch panel, a button, a microphone, a switch, or a joystick, through which a user inputs information. Further, for example, the input device 911 may include an input control circuit or the like for generating an input signal based on information input by a user using the aforementioned input means. Further, the input device 911 may include a sensor and a circuit for observing the state of the environment or the moving body and generating a detection signal based on the observation result. For example, the input device 911 may perform the functions of the sensor section 141 and the wind speed sensor section 151.

Output device 912 can notify the user of the information visually or audibly. For example, the output device 912 may be a display device such as a CRT (cathode ray tube) display device, a liquid crystal display device, a plasma display device, an EL (electro luminescence) display device, a laser projector, an LED (light emitting diode) projector or lamp, a sound output device such as a speaker or an earphone, or the like.

For example, the output device 912 may output results obtained by various processes performed in the control apparatus 100. Specifically, the output device 912 may visually display results obtained by various processes performed in the control apparatus 100 using various forms such as text, images, tables, and graphics. Alternatively, the output device 912 may convert an audio signal of sound data or acoustic data into an analog signal and audibly output the analog signal.

The storage device 913 is a data storage device formed as one example of a storage section of the control apparatus 100. The storage device 913 may be implemented by, for example, a magnetic storage device such as an HDD (hard disk drive), a semiconductor storage device, an optical storage device, or a magneto-optical storage device. For example, the storage device 913 may include a storage medium, a recording unit that records data in the storage medium, a reading unit that reads out data from the storage medium, a deleting unit that deletes data recorded in the storage medium, and the like. The storage device 913 can store programs to be executed by the CPU 901, various types of data acquired from the outside, and the like.

The drive 914 is a reader/writer for a storage medium, and is provided inside or outside the control apparatus 100. While a removable recording medium is attached to the drive 914, the drive 914 reads out information recorded in a removable storage medium (for example, a magnetic disk, an optical disk, a magneto-optical disk, or a semiconductor memory), and the drive 914 outputs the read information to the RAM 903. In addition, the drive 914 can write information to a removable storage medium.

The connection port 915 is an interface for connecting to an external device. The connection port 915 is a connection port through which data can be exchanged with an external device. For example, the connection port 915 may be a USB (universal serial bus).

The communication device 916 is, for example, an interface including a communication device for establishing a connection with the network 920, for example. For example, the communication device 916 may be a wired or wireless LAN (local area network) or a communication card for LTE (long term evolution), bluetooth (registered trademark), or WUSB (wireless USB). Further, the communication device 916 may be a router for optical communication, a router for ADSL (asymmetric digital subscriber line), a modem for various types of communication. For example, the communication device 916 can exchange signals or the like with the internet or another communication apparatus according to a predetermined protocol such as TCP/IP. For example, the communication device 916 may perform the function of the receiving part 153.

Note that the network 920 is a wired or wireless information transmission path. For example, the network 920 may include the internet, a public line network such as a telephone line or a satellite communication network, various types of LANs (local area networks) including ethernet (registered trademark), a WAN (wide area network), and the like. Further, network 920 may include a private network, such as an IP-VPN (Internet protocol-virtual private network).

Note that it is even possible to produce a computer program for causing hardware including a CPU, a ROM, and a RAM internally provided in the control apparatus 100 to realize functions equivalent to those of the foregoing parts of the control apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment. Further, a storage medium in which such a computer program is stored may be provided.

The preferred embodiments of the present disclosure have been described above in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, but the technical scope of the present disclosure is not limited to such embodiments. It is apparent that those skilled in the art of the present disclosure can conceive various changes or modifications within the scope of the technical idea set forth in the claims. It should be understood that such changes and modifications naturally fall within the technical scope of the present disclosure.

Further, it is to be noted that the effects described in the present specification are merely illustrative or exemplary effects, and thus are not restrictive. That is, the techniques according to the present disclosure may provide any other effects apparent to those skilled in the art from the description in the present specification, in addition to or instead of the aforementioned effects.

It is to be noted that the technical scope of the present disclosure also includes the following configurations.

(1) A control device, comprising:

a receiving part that receives a wind speed vector measured by at least one external anemometer at any point in time;

a wind power predicting part that predicts a wind power to be applied to the moving body after a predetermined period of time has elapsed, based on the received wind speed vector; and

and a control unit that controls driving of the mobile body based on the predicted wind power.

(2) The control device according to (1), wherein,

the control unit controls driving of the moving body so as to cancel out wind force.

(3) The control device according to (1) or (2), wherein,

the wind power predicting part also predicts a wind power to be applied to the moving body after a predetermined period of time has elapsed, based on a wind speed vector measured by an internal anemometer mounted on the moving body.

(4) The control device according to any one of (1) to (3), wherein,

the wind power prediction section also predicts a wind power to be applied to the mobile body after a predetermined period of time has elapsed, based on environmental information of the surroundings of the mobile body.

(5) The control device according to any one of (1) to (4), wherein,

the wind predicting part predicts wind to be applied to the moving body after a predetermined period of time has elapsed, based on wind speed vectors measured by a plurality of external anemometers placed at different positions.

(6) The control device according to (5), wherein,

the wind power prediction section predicts a wind power to be applied to the mobile body after a predetermined period of time has elapsed, based on a wind speed vector measured by an external anemometer on a downwind side of a position where the mobile body is located.

(7) The control device according to (5) or (6), wherein,

the wind power prediction section predicts a wind power to be applied to the mobile body after a predetermined period of time has elapsed, based on a wind speed vector measured by the external anemometer present within a predetermined distance from the mobile body.

(8) The control device according to any one of (1) to (7), wherein,

the external anemometer is provided in another mobile body different from the mobile body.

(9) The control device according to (8), wherein,

controlling the other moving body so that the moving body exists in a downwind direction.

(10) The control device according to (8), wherein,

the other mobile bodies including the external anemometers are provided in plural numbers, and

the other moving bodies are controlled to be located at positions opposite to each other with the moving bodies interposed therebetween.

(11) The control device according to (10), wherein,

the other moving body is controlled to be located in each of an upwind direction of the moving body and a downwind direction of the moving body.

(12) The control device according to any one of (1) to (11), wherein,

the moving body is a flying body flying with rotating blades.

(13) The control device according to any one of (1) to (12), wherein,

the moving body includes an imaging device.

(14) A control method, comprising:

receiving a wind speed vector measured by at least one external anemometer at any point in time;

predicting, by an arithmetic device, a wind force to be applied to the moving body after a predetermined period of time elapses, based on the received wind speed vector; and

controlling driving of the moving body based on the predicted wind force.

(15) A program for causing a computer to function as:

a receiving part that receives a wind speed vector measured by at least one external anemometer at any point in time;

a wind power predicting part that predicts a wind power to be applied to the moving body after a predetermined period of time has elapsed, based on the received wind speed vector; and

and a control unit that controls driving of the mobile body based on the predicted wind power.

List of reference numerals

10: first moving body

20: second moving body

30: image forming apparatus with a plurality of image forming units

40: observation machine

100: control device

110: target value generation unit

121: position control unit

123: attitude control unit

130: drive control unit

141: sensor unit

143: position and orientation estimation unit

151: wind speed sensor unit

153: receiving part

155: wind power prediction unit

157: FF control unit