Apparatus and method for communications management

• US 10,193,615 B2
• Filed: 08/10/2016
• Issued: 01/29/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 08/13/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: BAE Systems Plc
• Original Assignee: BAE Systems Plc
• Inventors: Hudson, Peter Noble, Eissa, Rania Hamdi, Al-Ameri, Monadl Al-Abbas Mansour
• Primary Examiner(s): Patel, Nimesh
• Application Number:
  US15/747,686
• Publication Number:
  US 20180219611A1
• Time in Patent Office: 902 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/106 Change initiated in response to external conditions, e.g. avoidance of elevated terrain or of no-fly zones
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/18504 Aircraft used as relay or high altitude atmospheric platform

Abstract

Apparatus for management of communications resources of a moving platform comprising an on-board communications system configured to effect wireless data communication between said moving platform and another node, said communications resources comprising a plurality of wireless communications links and a plurality of antennas associated therewith, the apparatus comprising an antenna analysis and selection module residing with said communications system and configured to: —receive, during a mission from one or more systems/subsystems and/or functions of said moving platform, attribute data representative of said emissions control criteria, said attribute data comprising (i) location data representative of a specified emissions control region, and/or (ii) position and/or attitude and/or velocity data representative of an adversary node defining an emissions control region; —determine, using said attribute data and based on said emissions control criteria, suitability of one or more on-board antennas and/or portions of aperture antenna for supporting said communications requirement; —for each of a plurality of antennas/portions of aperture antenna determined to be suitable for supporting said communications requirement based on said emissions control criteria, determine a quality metric, said quality metric being indicative of a respective performance criterion; and—select one or more of said suitable antennas/portion of aperture antenna having a highest performance criterion, for facilitating said communications requirement.

Claims

1. Apparatus for management of communications resources of a moving platform comprising an on-board communications system configured to effect wireless data communication between said moving platform and another node, said communications resources comprising a plurality of wireless communications links and a plurality of antennas associated therewith, the apparatus comprising an antenna analysis and selection module residing with said communications system and configured to:

receive, during a mission from one or more systems/subsystems and/or functions of said moving platform, attribute data representative of said emissions control criteria, said attribute data comprising (i) location data representative of a specified emissions control region, and (ii) position and/or attitude and/or velocity data representative of an adversary node defining an emissions control region;

determine, using said attribute data and based on said emissions control criteria, suitability of one or more on-board antennas and/or portions of aperture antenna for supporting said communications requirement;

for each of a plurality of antennas/portions of aperture antenna determined to be suitable for supporting said communications requirement based on said emissions control criteria, determine a quality metric, said quality metric being indicative of a respective performance criterion; and

select one or more of said suitable antennas/portion of aperture antenna having a highest performance criterion, for facilitating said communications requirement.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said attribute data includes platform movement data.

3. The apparatus according to claim 2, wherein said platform movement data comprises (i) instantaneous knowledge of a movement of said moving platform, and/or (ii) future known movement of said moving platform and/or (iii) future predicted movement of said moving platform and/or other platforms in the operational environment.

4. The apparatus according to claim 1, configured to obtain (i) data representative of a location of a fixed other node with respect to said moving platform, or (ii) data representative of position and/or attitude and/or velocity of a mobile other node with respect to said moving platform;

and to;

determine a direction of said moving platform relative to said fixed/mobile node;

determine modified antenna pointing data in respect of each said antenna/portion of aperture antenna at said other node and/or said moving platform; and

calculate a quality metric for each said antenna/portion of aperture antenna.

5. The apparatus according to claim 4, configured to determine an antenna pointing metric for each said antenna/portion of aperture antenna, calculate a signal power value for each said antenna/portion of aperture antenna, and determine a signal power metric based on said signal power value and a signal power threshold for each said antenna/portion of aperture antenna, wherein said quality metric is based on said signal power metric.

6. The apparatus according to claim 4, wherein said modified antenna pointing data is determined based on data representative of antenna location, antenna pointing, and platform attitude and/or position for said moving platform.

7. The apparatus according to claim 5, wherein said pointing metric is indicative of whether said antenna/portion of aperture antenna is pointing in the direction of an emissions control region, based on said modified antenna pointing data, direction/orientation of said moving platform relative to said other node, transmitting antenna gain pattern in respect of said moving platform and receiver antenna gain pattern in respect of said other node.

8. The apparatus according to claim 1, configured to calculate said quality metric based on calculations of orientation between said moving platform and said other node.

9. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said quality metric includes antenna availability and/or preference and/or compatibility.

10. The apparatus according to claim 7, wherein a signal power value in respect of a communications link for an antenna/portion of aperture antenna is based on a relative distance between said moving platform and said emissions control region, loss factors, transmitting antenna gain and/or receiving antenna gain.

11. The apparatus according to claim 10, wherein said relative distance is a function of time and velocity of said moving platform and/or adversary node.

12. A management system for a moving platform comprising a plurality of systems/subsystems and/or functions, a plurality of communications resources comprising a plurality of wireless communications links and a plurality of antennas associated therewith, and a communications system configured to effect wireless data communication between said moving platform and another node via said communications resources, wherein said communications system includes apparatus according to claim 1.

13. A method of management of communications resources of a moving platform comprising an on-board communications system configured to effect wireless data communication between said moving platform and another node, said communications resources comprising a plurality of wireless communications links and a plurality of antennas associated therewith, the method comprising using an antenna analysis and selection module residing with said communications system to:

receive, during a mission from one or more systems/subsystems and/or functions of said moving platform, attribute data representative of said emissions control criteria, said attribute data comprising (i) location data representative of a specified emissions control region, and (ii) position and/or attitude and/or velocity data representative of an adversary node defining an emissions control region;

determine, using said attribute data and based on said emissions control criteria, suitability of one or more on-board antennas and/or portions of aperture antenna for supporting said communications requirement;

for each of a plurality of antennas/portions of aperture antenna determined to be suitable for supporting said communications requirement based on said emissions control criteria, determine a quality metric, said quality metric being indicative of a respective performance criterion; and

select one or more of said suitable antennas/portion of aperture antenna having a highest performance criterion, for facilitating said communications requirement.