Dynamic forward error correction bypass in a digital communications system
First Claim
1. A method of improving communications, comprising:
- receiving a first packet at a gateway communicatively coupled to an end terminal through an unmanned air vehicle (UAV), wherein a first wireless link communicatively couples the gateway to the UAV, and a second wireless link communicatively couples the UAV to the end terminal;
determining, with one or more processors, a signal quality on at least the first link between the gateway and the UAV in a first direction;
when the signal quality exceeds a first predetermined threshold;
encoding, at the gateway, the first received packet for processing by the end terminal;
tagging the first received packet with an indicator to bypass forward error correction (FEC) at the UAV;
monitoring, with the one or more processors at the gateway, the signal quality on at least the first link;
comparing the monitored signal quality to a second threshold lower than the first threshold; and
when the monitored signal quality falls below the second threshold lower, encoding, at the gateway, the first received packets for processing by the UAV.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A system and method of improving communications is provided. A gateway is communicatively coupled to an end terminal through an unmanned air vehicle (UAV), wherein a first link communicatively couples the gateway to the UAV, and a second link communicatively couples the UAV to the end terminal. At least one of the gateway and the UAV is configured to determine a signal quality on at least the first link between the gateway and the UAV in a first direction. If the signal quality exceeds a predetermined threshold, a received packet is encoded at the gateway for processing by the end terminal. The packet is further tagged with an indicator that the packet should bypass forward error correction (FEC) at the UAV.
15 Citations
20 Claims
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1. A method of improving communications, comprising:
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receiving a first packet at a gateway communicatively coupled to an end terminal through an unmanned air vehicle (UAV), wherein a first wireless link communicatively couples the gateway to the UAV, and a second wireless link communicatively couples the UAV to the end terminal; determining, with one or more processors, a signal quality on at least the first link between the gateway and the UAV in a first direction; when the signal quality exceeds a first predetermined threshold; encoding, at the gateway, the first received packet for processing by the end terminal; tagging the first received packet with an indicator to bypass forward error correction (FEC) at the UAV; monitoring, with the one or more processors at the gateway, the signal quality on at least the first link; comparing the monitored signal quality to a second threshold lower than the first threshold; and when the monitored signal quality falls below the second threshold lower, encoding, at the gateway, the first received packets for processing by the UAV. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
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7. A gateway, comprising:
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an interface configured to be communicatively coupled with an unmanned air vehicle (UAV) over a first link and with at least one end terminal over a second link between the UAV and the at least one end terminal; at least one forward error correction (FEC) encoder configured to be interfaced with a backhaul and to receive a first packet from the backhaul; a formatting unit coupled to the FEC encoder; and a controller communicatively coupled to the at least one FEC encoder and the formatting unit; wherein the controller is configured to determine whether a signal quality over the first link exceeds a first predetermined threshold; wherein when the signal quality is determined to exceed the first predetermined threshold, the gateway switches from a first mode with the first received packet encoded for decoding by the UAV to a second mode, wherein in the second mode; the at least one FEC encoder is configured to encode the received first packet for processing by the end terminal; and the formatting unit is configured to tag the received first packet with an indicator to bypass FEC at the UAV; and wherein; when the gateway is in the second mode, the gateway monitors whether the signal quality falls below a second threshold lower than the first threshold; and when the signal quality falls below the second threshold, the gateway switches back to the first mode, wherein the first received packet is encoded for decoding by the UAV. - View Dependent Claims (8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. An unmanned air vehicle (UAV), comprising:
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a first interface configured for receiving a first packet from a gateway communicatively coupled to the UAV via a first wireless link; a second interface configured for receiving a second packet from an end terminal communicatively coupled to the UAV via a second wireless link; a forward error correction (FEC) encoder coupled between the first interface and the second interface; a FEC decoder coupled between the first interface and the second interface; a bypass link coupled between the first interface and the second interface and bypassing the FEC encoder and the FEC decoder; and a controller in communication with at least the first interface and the second interface, the controller configured to; determine whether the first packet has been encoded for end terminal processing; and cause the first packet to be sent on the bypass link when it has been determined that the first packet has been encoded for end terminal processing. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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Specification