Electronics for manned or unmanned vehicles

• US 20070252029A1
• Filed: 08/18/2006
• Published: 11/01/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 09/06/2005
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Abe Karem
• Original Assignee: Abe Karem
• Inventors: Karem, Abe
• Application Number:
  US11/506,571
• Publication Number:
  US 20070252029A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 244/1.R
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/00 Control of position, course, altitude or attitude of land, water, air or space vehicles, e.g. using automatic pilots drive control systems specially adapted for autonomous road vehicles B60W60/00
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0021 located in the aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0069 specially adapted for an unmanned aircraft

Abstract

A new generation of simplified vehicle electronic systems can be operated by either an onboard (manned) or off-board (remote controlled) operator, or automatically from an on-board system without any human operator. In the latter case, preferred embodiments can provide security against operation by unauthorized personnel and/or operation in an unauthorized travel path, without a need for a flight crew operated panic button or for a remote guidance facility. In another aspect, the operating controls of an aircraft or other highly complex vehicle are sufficiently simplified that the vehicle can be operated by a flight controller interface that is located outside the flight crew station. In yet another aspect, the communications system of a vehicle is sufficiently simplified such that the vehicle can be operated using substantially only a single long-range frequency band, and a second, short-range frequency band.

Claims

1. An aircraft having a communication system that comprises:

multiple transceivers operating within a single frequency band;

first and second antennas;

at least one of the transceivers switchable between the first and second antennas; and

the communication system using only the single frequency band to achieve at least two of

the following functionalities;

(a) voice communication;

(b) transmission and reception of imagery data;

(c) identification friend or foe;

(d) communication via satellite;

(e) providing a communication relay;

(f) transponder communication; and

(g) anti-collision communication.

2. The aircraft of claim 1, wherein the communication system uses only the single frequency band to achieve at least three of the functionalities.

3. The aircraft of claim 2, wherein the single frequency band comprises a long-range frequency band.

4. The aircraft of claim 3, wherein the long-range frequency band comprises an X band.

5. The aircraft of claim 2, wherein the single frequency band comprises a short-range frequency band.

6. The aircraft of claim 5, wherein the short-range frequency band comprises a Ku band.

7. The aircraft of claim 5, wherein the communication system uses the short-range frequency band to communicate directly with a satellite.

8. The aircraft of claim 5, wherein the communication system uses the short-range frequency band to relay communications between others.

9. The aircraft of claim 2, wherein the aircraft uses both a long-range frequency band and a short-range frequency band, at least one of which composes the single frequency band.

10. An aircraft with an airfoil lifting surface having a flight crew station with a first on-board human operable flight interface capable of controlling the aircraft, and a second, on-board human operable flight interface capable of controlling the aircraft, which is located outside the flight crew station.

11. The aircraft of claim 10, wherein the second flight controller interface is located in a tail section of the aircraft.

12. The aircraft of claim 10, wherein the second flight controller interface is located in a passenger cabin section of the aircraft.

13. The aircraft of claim 10, wherein the second flight controller interface is located in a compartment of the aircraft other than a tail section and a passenger cabin section.

14. The aircraft of claim 10, wherein the interface comprises at least one of a mouse, a display screen, and a joystick.

15. The aircraft of claim 10, wherein the interface comprises a microphone.

16. A complex aircraft having with no more than 20 non-redundant Line Replaceable Flight Units.

17. The aircraft of claim 16, wherein the number of non-redundant Line Replaceable Flight Units is no more than 10.

18. The aircraft of claim 16, wherein the number of non-redundant Line Replaceable Flight Units is no more than 5.

19. The aircraft of claim 16, wherein the number of non-redundant Line Replaceable Flight Units is no more than 4.

20. A aircraft having at least a triple-redundancy (two extras) in at least one of a communication system and a human operable flight interface.

21. The aircraft of claim 20, at least two of the triple redundancies comprise identical hardware.

22. An aircraft comprising:

electronics that can provide operational flight control from either an onboard (manned) or off-board (remote controlled) operator, or be operated automatically from an on-board system without any human operator; and

an on-board arbitrator that uses a logical protocol to determine whether the aircraft will be controlled by the on-board operator, the off-board operator, or automatically by the on-board system without any human operator.

23. The aircraft of claim 22, wherein the on-board system operates the aircraft according to a flight plan installed after an immediately preceding flight.

24. The aircraft of claim 22, wherein the on-board system includes a functionality for crosscheck of the flight plan by both on-board and off-board personnel.

25. The aircraft of claim 22, wherein the on-board system operates the aircraft according to a protocol that is embodied entirely on-board the aircraft.

26. The aircraft of claim 22, wherein the arbitrator utilizes a latching irreversible logic.

27. The aircraft of claim 22, wherein the arbitrator utilizes a logic that can be inhibited from outside the aircraft.

28. The aircraft of claim 22, wherein the arbitrator utilizes a logic that can be reversed from outside the aircraft.

29. The aircraft of claim 22, wherein the electronics provides for flight management functions in addition to flight control functions.

30. The aircraft of claim 29, wherein one of the flight management functions is selected from the group consisting of control of operation, routing and transmission of on-board sensor data selected from the group consisting of cameras, telemetry, cockpit voice, cabin voice, cabin lights, control of door locks, and deployment of oxygen masks.

31. The aircraft of claim 22, further comprising a subsystem that can be configured to preclude an authorized operator, whether onboard or off-board, from guiding the aircraft on a flight path that has been previously determined to be disallowed.