Method and apparatus for surveying remote sites via guided wave communications

• US 10,340,983 B2
• Filed: 12/09/2016
• Issued: 07/02/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 12/09/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Liu, Ken, Bennett, Robert, Bogdan, Pamela A. M., Barzegar, Farhad, Barnickel, Donald J., Gerszberg, Irwin
• Primary Examiner(s): Worden, Thomas E
• Application Number:
  US15/373,663
• Publication Number:
  US 20180167131A1
• Time in Patent Office: 935 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B64C 39/024 of the remote controlled vehicle type, i.e. RPV
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 2101/35 for science, e.g. meteorology
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 2201/104 using satellite radio beacon positioning systems, e.g. GPS
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 2203/5425 improving S/N by matching impedance, noise reduction, gain control
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 2203/5441 Wireless systems or telephone
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 2203/5445 Local network
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 2203/5479 using repeaters
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 3/21 using a set of bandfilters
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 3/36 Repeater circuits H04B3/58 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 3/46 Monitoring; Testing
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 3/50 Systems for transmission between fixed stations via two-conductor transmission lines H04B3/54 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 3/52 Systems for transmission between fixed stations via waveguides
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 3/542 the information being in digital form
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 3/58 Repeater circuits

Abstract

Aspects of the subject disclosure may include, for example, a surveying system operable to receive a plurality of electromagnetic waves via a guided wave transceiver that include environmental data collected via a plurality of sensors at a plurality of remote sites. Weather pattern data is generated based on the environmental data. Other embodiments are disclosed.

Claims

1. A surveying system comprising:

a processing system that includes a processor;

a guided wave transceiver that transmits and receives communications by electromagnetic waves at a physical interface of a transmission medium, wherein the electromagnetic waves are guided by the transmission medium and propagate without requiring an electrical return path; and

a memory that stores executable instructions that, when executed by the processing system, facilitate performance of operations, the operations comprising;

receiving a first plurality of the electromagnetic waves via the guided wave transceiver that include first environmental data collected via a plurality of sensors at a plurality of remote sites; and

generating weather pattern data based on the first environmental data;

receiving a second plurality of the electromagnetic waves via the guided wave transceiver that includes first Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) data collected via a plurality of UAV sensors at the plurality of remote sites; and

generating UAV traffic pattern data based on the first UAV data.

2. The surveying system of claim 1, wherein at least one of the plurality of remote sites is associated with at least one utility pole, wherein at least one of the plurality of sensors is mounted on the at least one utility pole, and wherein the first plurality of electromagnetic waves is guided along a power line of the at least one utility pole.

3. The surveying system of claim 1, wherein the first environmental data includes at least one of:

wind velocity data, atmospheric pressure data, temperature data, humidity data, or rainfall data.

4. The surveying system of claim 1, wherein the generating the weather pattern data includes identifying a storm.

5. The surveying system of claim 4, wherein identifying the storm includes identifying an affected region associated with the storm.

6. The surveying system of claim 4, wherein the first environmental data is associated with a first time interval, wherein the second plurality of the electromagnetic waves received via the guided wave transceiver further includes second environmental data associated with a second time interval, and wherein the generating the weather pattern data includes identifying a direction of travel of the storm based on the first environmental data and the second environmental data.

7. The surveying system of claim 1, wherein the weather pattern data includes storm prediction data that identifies an endangered region based on the first environmental data.

8. The surveying system of claim 7, wherein the operations further comprise:

identifying a subset of the plurality of remote sites located within the endangered region;

generating a third plurality of the electromagnetic waves that includes a storm warning notification; and

transmitting the third plurality of the electromagnetic waves to the subset of the plurality of remote sites via the guided wave transceiver.

9. The surveying system of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise:

generating a notification for display by at least one user interface that includes the weather pattern data.

10. The surveying system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of UAV sensors includes a plurality of UAV signal receivers at the plurality of remote sites, wherein the first UAV data includes a plurality of UAV signals collected by the plurality of UAV signal receivers, and wherein the UAV traffic pattern data includes identifying a location distribution of UAVs across the plurality of remote sites based on the plurality of UAV signals.

11. The surveying system of claim 1, the operations further comprising:

generating UAV traffic control data based on the UAV traffic pattern data; and

transmitting the UAV traffic control data to the plurality of remote sites;

wherein the plurality of remote sites includes a plurality of UAV traffic beacons, and wherein one of the plurality of UAV traffic beacons transmits a traffic control signal to a first UAV in proximity to a corresponding one of the plurality of remote sites.

12. The surveying system of claim 11, wherein the traffic control signal includes navigation data, and wherein the first UAV executes the navigation data to change from a first flight velocity to a second flight velocity in response to receiving the traffic control signal.

13. The surveying system of claim 11, wherein the traffic control signal is a short range broadcast signal, wherein the traffic control signal is received by the first UAV and is further received by a second UAV, wherein the first UAV executes a first flight maneuver based on the traffic control signal, wherein the second UAV executes a second flight maneuver that is different from the first flight maneuver based on the traffic control signal.

14. A method comprising:

receiving, by a surveying system that includes a processor, a first plurality of electromagnetic waves via a guided wave transceiver that is guided by a transmission medium and propagates without utilizing an electrical return path, wherein the first plurality of electromagnetic waves includes environmental data collected via a plurality of sensors at a plurality of remote sites;

generating weather pattern data based on the environmental data;

receiving a second plurality of electromagnetic waves via the guided wave transceiver that is guided by the transmission medium and propagates without utilizing the electrical return path, wherein the second plurality of electromagnetic waves includes Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) data collected via a plurality of UAV sensors at the plurality of remote sites; and

generating UAV traffic pattern data based on the UAV data.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein at least one of the plurality of remote sites is associated with at least one utility pole, wherein at least one of the plurality of sensors is mounted on the at least one utility pole, and wherein the first plurality of electromagnetic waves is guided along a power line of the at least one utility pole.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein the generating the weather pattern data includes identifying a storm.

17. A surveying system, comprising:

means for receiving a first plurality of electromagnetic waves that is guided by a transmission medium and propagates without utilizing an electrical return path, wherein the first plurality of electromagnetic waves includes environmental data collected via a plurality of sensors at a plurality of remote sites;

means for generating weather pattern data based on the environmental data;

means for receiving a second plurality of electromagnetic waves that is guided by the transmission medium and propagates without utilizing the electrical return path, wherein the second plurality of electromagnetic waves includes Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) data collected via a plurality of UAV sensors at the plurality of remote sites; and

means for generating UAV traffic pattern data based on the UAV data.

18. The surveying system of claim 17, wherein at least one of the plurality of remote sites is associated with at least one utility pole, wherein at least one of the plurality of sensors is mounted on the at least one utility pole, and wherein the first plurality of electromagnetic waves is guided along a power line of the at least one utility pole.

19. The surveying system of claim 17, wherein the environmental data includes at least one of:

wind velocity data, atmospheric pressure data, temperature data, humidity data, or rainfall data.