US 12744866 B2 / Sep 22, 2026

Systems and methods for switching of video streams provided to a ground station from various sources onboard an unmanned aerial vehicle

Systems, methods, and software for operating an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) having one or more camera sensors. A method includes capturing a video stream using the camera sensor(s) of the UAV. The method includes determining a capability of a ground station communicably coupled to the UAV to annotate the video stream. In response to determining that the ground station is capable to annotate the video stream, the method includes transmitting the video stream to the ground station without annotations. Alternatively, in response to determining that the ground station is incapable to annotate the video stream, drawing annotations on the video stream to generate an annotated video stream, and transmitting the annotated video stream to the ground station. Embodiments of the present technology provide enhanced interoperability between UAVs and different types of ground stations to improve streamlining and quality of user experiences as compared to conventional systems and techniques.