System and method for cooperative operation of piloted and optionally piloted aircraft

• US 10,558,209 B1
• Filed: 06/13/2017
• Issued: 02/11/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 06/13/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Rockwell Collins, Inc. (Rtx Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Rockwell Collins, Inc. (Rtx Corporation)
• Inventors: Hardin, David S., Davis, Jennifer A., Liu, Jing, Marek, James A., Littler, Ryan P.
• Primary Examiner(s): Butler, Rodney A
• Application Number:
  US15/621,872
• Time in Patent Office: 973 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 2201/10 autonomous, i.e. by navigating independently from ground or air stations, e.g. by using inertial navigation systems [INS]
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 2201/20 Remote controls
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0027 involving a plurality of vehicles, e.g. fleet or convoy travelling fleet control of land vehicles from a control room G05D1/0297; traffic control systems for road vehicles G08G1/00; for marine craft G08G3/00; for aircraft G08G5/00
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/104 involving a plurality of aircrafts, e.g. formation flying traffic control systems for aircraft G08G5/00
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0008 with other aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0021 located in the aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0034 Assembly of a flight plan
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0069 specially adapted for an unmanned aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/04 Anti-collision systems

Abstract

A system for controlling the flight of aircraft includes an aircraft operated by a human pilot, one or more optionally piloted aircraft controlled by a processor, and a communication link between the aircraft. The optionally piloted aircraft receives data indicative of the position and flight path of the piloted aircraft, and is automatically controlled to maintain a predetermined range of separation distances from the piloted aircraft. Control of the optionally piloted aircraft may include machine reasoning computing functions based on a classification of data received by the communication link, data indicative of the current positions and three-dimensional flight paths of the aircraft, stored data from previously calculated positions and three-dimensional flight paths of the aircraft, and stored data from previously executed flight plans associated with the optionally piloted aircraft.

Claims

1. A system for controlling aircraft, comprising:

a first aircraft configured to be operated by a human pilot and having a first current position and a first current three-dimensional flight path;

at least one second aircraft having at least one processor coupled with a non-transitory processor-readable medium storing processor-executable code for causing the at least one processor to control a current second three-dimensional flight path of the at least one second aircraft;

a data link associated with each of the first aircraft and the at least one second aircraft configured for exchanging data indicative of a first spatial position of the first aircraft and a second spatial position of the at least one second aircraft relative to one another;

the at least one processor associated with the at least one second aircraft configured for;

accessing data from a plurality of previous second positions and second three-dimensional flight paths of the at least one second aircraft;

accessing data from at least one previously executed flight plan associated with a previously observed second position and a second three-dimensional flight path of the at least one second aircraft;

controlling at least one flight control surface of the at least one second aircraft causing the at least one second aircraft to follow the first current three-dimensional flight path of the first aircraft, the control based on a classification of;

data indicative of the first spatial position of the first aircraft received via the data link;

data indicative of the second spatial position of the at least one second aircraft;

data from a plurality of previous second positions and second three-dimensional flight paths of the at least one second aircraft; and

data from at least one previously executed flight plan associated with a previously observed second position and a second three-dimensional flight path of the at least one second aircraft.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the at least one processor associated with the at least one second aircraft is further configured to control the current second three-dimensional flight path of the at least one second aircraft based on an output of an autonomous computation unit associated with the at least one second aircraft to a controller associated with the at least one second aircraft, the autonomous computation unit including an inference engine.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the at least one processor associated with the at least one second aircraft is further configured to control the second three-dimensional flight path of the at least one second aircraft so that the second current position of the at least one second aircraft is within a predetermined range of distances from the first current position of the first aircraft.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein the predetermined range of distances comprise a minimum separation distance between the first aircraft and the at least one second aircraft.

5. The system of claim 3, wherein the at least one processor associated with the at least one second aircraft is further configured to:

determine loss of communication with the first aircraft within a predetermined period of time; and

initiate a safe mode for the at least one second aircraft such that the second current position of the at least one second aircraft is within a safe distance larger than the predetermined range of distances from the first current position of the first aircraft.

6. The system of claim 2, wherein the at least one processor associated with the at least one second aircraft is further configured to provide, via the communication link, a re-route recommendation, a hazardous condition response, and an equipment fault recovery to the first aircraft.

7. The system of claim 2, wherein the at least one processor associated with the at least one second aircraft is further configured to control the at least one second aircraft by determining whether control of the second aircraft is within a predetermined range of control limits.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the first aircraft is further configured with at least one second processor coupled with a non-transitory processor-readable medium storing processor-executable code for causing the at least one second processor to:

access data indicative of the first current position and the first current three-dimensional flight path of the first aircraft;

receive data, via the communication link, from the at least one second aircraft indicative of the second current position and the second current three-dimensional flight path of the at least one second aircraft; and

control the first aircraft via an output of an inference engine within the at least one second processor based on a classification of;

the data indicative of the first current position and the first current three-dimensional flight path;

the data indicative of the second current position and the second current three-dimensional flight path of the at least one second aircraft;

stored data indicative of a plurality of previous first positions and first three-dimensional flight paths of the first aircraft; and

stored data from at least one previously executed flight plan associated with a previously observed first position and a first three-dimensional flight path of the first aircraft.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the first aircraft at least one second processor is further configured to:

monitor a control of the at least one second aircraft; and

confirm that the control of the at least one second aircraft is applied within a predetermined minimum and maximum control limit.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the at least one processor associated with the at least one second aircraft is further configured to generate a flight plan for the at least one second aircraft different from a flight plan of the first aircraft.

11. A method of controlling aircraft comprising:

exchanging, via a data link, data indicative of a first spatial position of a first aircraft and a second spatial position of at least one second aircraft relative to one another;

accessing, by at least one processor associated with the at least one second aircraft, data from a plurality of previous second positions and second three-dimensional flight paths of the at least one second aircraft;

accessing, by the at least one processor, data from at least one previously executed flight plan associated with a previously observed second position and a second three-dimensional flight path of the at least one second aircraft;

executing, by the at least one processor, executable code for causing the at least one processor associated with the at least one second aircraft to control at least one flight control surface of the at least one second aircraft causing the at least one second aircraft to follow the current three-dimensional flight path of the first aircraft, the control based on a classification of;

data indicative of the first spatial position of the first aircraft;

data indicative of the second spatial position of the at least one second aircraft;

data from a plurality of previous second positions and second three-dimensional flight paths of the at least one second aircraft; and

data from at least one previously executed flight plan associated with a previously observed second position and a second three-dimensional flight path of the at least one second aircraft.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the at least one second aircraft is unpiloted.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein the at least one second processor is further configured with an autonomous computation unit including an inference engine.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein the at least one first processor is further configured for control of the second three-dimensional flight path of the at least one second aircraft so that the second spatial position of the at least one second aircraft is within a predetermined range of distances from the first spatial position of the first aircraft.