Autonomous Execution of Cinematographic Shots With Multiple Drones

Abstract

This paper presents a system for the execution of autonomous cinematography missions with a team of drones. The system allows media directors to design missions involving different types of shots with one or multiple cameras, running sequentially or concurrently. We introduce the complete architecture, which includes components for mission design, planning and execution. Then, we focus on the components related to autonomous mission execution. First, we propose a novel parametric description for shots, considering different types of camera motion and tracked targets; and we use it to implement a set of canonical shots. Second, for multi-drone shot execution, we propose distributed schedulers that activate different shot controllers on board the drones. Moreover, an event-based mechanism is used to synchronize shot execution among the drones and to account for inaccuracies during shot planning. Finally, we showcase the system with field experiments filming sport activities, including a real regatta event. We report on system integration and lessons learnt during our experimental campaigns. INDEX TERMS Autonomous cinematography, Multi-robot system, Unmanned aerial vehicles.

InDrone: a 2D-based drone flight behavior visualization platform for indoor building inspection

“…This average score in this investigation is above the 68% average that was found in a meta-analysis for usability studies (Sauro, 2011). Moreover, this average score is higher that prior studies that evaluated the creation of platforms to visualize humandrone maneuvering behaviors within photography applications (Kang et al, 2018;Alc antara et al, 2020). Differently from prior studies (Kang et al, 2018;Alc antara et al, 2020), the InDrone platform provides interactive method to visualize data after pilots have performed drone maneuvers.…”

“…Moreover, this average score is higher that prior studies that evaluated the creation of platforms to visualize humandrone maneuvering behaviors within photography applications (Kang et al, 2018;Alc antara et al, 2020). Differently from prior studies (Kang et al, 2018;Alc antara et al, 2020), the InDrone platform provides interactive method to visualize data after pilots have performed drone maneuvers. By offering such interactive method, new pilots can easily understand the manipulation of the drone on the indoor space to successfully perform future operations.…”

Unmanned Aerial Traffic Management System Architecture for U-Space In-Flight Services

“…However, there exist efficient solutions for these issues. Multi-master architectures have already been used for applications with multiple UAS [6]; and the adoption of ROS 2 is growing fast among the community, with a smooth transition from primary ROS. ROS 2 proposes a fully distributed scheme, where each node has the capacity to discover other nodes, without the need for a central master.…”

“…There are studies [1] estimating that up to 400,000 drones will be providing services in the airspace by 2050, with a total market value of 10 billion euros per year by 2035. Last-mile delivery [2], surveillance [3], infrastructure inspection [4], traffic monitoring [5], media production [6], or managing health emergency situations [7] are just a few examples of the wide spectrum of drone applications. Indeed, the integration of UAS in the civil airspace is probably one of the most revolutionary events for Air Traffic Management (ATM) since the beginning of its implementation.…”

Drone Detection Sensor With Continuous 2.4 GHz ISM Band Coverage Based on Cost-Effective SDR Platform

“…However, within a few years, the growing popularity of smartphones, widespread navigation systems availability, technological advancements in communication and imaging established a significant growth of commercial drone market size, which is expected to generate a value of EUR 10 billion per year by 2035 [1]. Although giving new possibilities in various sectors such as precision agriculture [2], energy [3], cinematography [4], construction inspection [5], and even package delivery [6], the rising demand for aerial services affects not only the safety but also the privacy of people. Apart from highly hazardous events like drone incursions into nuclear power plants [7], aerodrome operations holdups [8], or public service disruptions [9], everyday minor accidents associated with drones also occur.…”