Intuitive Drone Control using Motion Matching between a Controller and a Drone

Background In recent times, drones have been widely utilized for various purposes. In particular, drone control from a first-person view (FPV), in which the pilot controls the drone as if riding in the drone’s cockpit by using a display device or a head-mounted display, is becoming increasingly popular. Therefore, a controller for safe and convenient FPV drone control is necessary. Methods This study investigates the effectiveness of a motion controller that manipulates drone movements based on its own movements as compared to that of a conventional joystick controller. We designed and developed the motion-matching controller and drone for experimental evaluation. In the experiment, participants perform the task of maneuvering a drone from origin to destination on a given course with the developed motion and joystick controllers. Results The experimental results showed that the motion-matching controller was superior to the joystick controller in terms of task success rate, number of collisions, task completion time, number of failed attempts, and subjective evaluation, particularly in the FPV mode. Notably, participants could perform complex manipulations that require controlling two or more axes simultaneously. Conclusions The motion controller can be employed to enable improved intuitiveness and usability for personal or industrial applications that require drones to be operated in the FPV mode.