Unmanned Vehicle Control Station

• US 20090112387A1
• Filed: 10/30/2007
• Published: 04/30/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 10/30/2007
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Raytheon Company (Rtx Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Raytheon Company (Rtx Corporation)
• Inventors: Hupke, Alan G., Kabalkin, Darin G.
• Application Number:
  US11/929,456
• Publication Number:
  US 20090112387A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/23
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0038 by providing the operator with simple or augmented images from one or more cameras located onboard the vehicle, e.g. tele-operation images analyzed by a computer and used for automatic navigation G05D1/0246
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0044 by providing the operator with a computer generated representation of the environment of the vehicle, e.g. virtual reality, maps maps used for automatic navigation G05D1/0274; flight directors G01C23/005

Abstract

According to one embodiment, a control station includes a heads-down display and at least heads-up display that may be viewed from a single position. The heads-down display is coupled to an unmanned vehicle control system that is operable to control an unmanned vehicle. The at least one heads-up display is adjacent to the heads-down display and operable to operable to display a composite image of the unmanned vehicle'"'"'s environment. The composite image comprising a rendered image that is generated by a terrain rendering engine.

Claims

1. A control station comprising:

an unmanned vehicle control system operable to control an unmanned vehicle, the unmanned vehicle control system having a heads-down display operable to display a plurality of operating characteristics of the unmanned vehicle;

a plurality of heads-up displays that are adjacent to each other in a side-by-side configuration, the plurality of heads-up displays being adjacent the heads-down display such that a user may view the plurality of heads-up displays and the heads-down display from a single position, the plurality of heads-up displays operable to display a corresponding plurality of composite images of the unmanned vehicle'"'"'s environment, the heads-up display being operable to display an overlaid image on the plurality of composite images; and

a communication system having a communication display that is adjacent to the heads-down display in a side-by-side configuration such that the user may view the at least one heads-down display and the communication display from a single position.

2. The control system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of heads-up displays comprises three heads-up displays, the three heads-up displays comprises a center display and two outer displays, the two outer displays disposed at an angle relative to the center display such that the three heads-up displays form a generally concave-shaped viewing surface.

3. The control station of claim 1, wherein the unmanned vehicle control system is a Core unmanned aerial vehicle control station (CUCS) that communicates with the unmanned vehicle using a standardization agreement 4586 messaging protocol.

4. The control station of claim 1, wherein the communication system has a common operational picture (COP) communication service.

5. A control station comprising:

an unmanned vehicle control system operable to control an unmanned vehicle, the unmanned vehicle control system having a heads-down display operable to display a plurality of operating characteristics of the unmanned vehicle; and

at least one heads-up display being adjacent to the heads-down display such that a user may view the at least one heads-up display and the heads-down display from a single position, the at least one heads-up display operable to display a composite image of the unmanned vehicle'"'"'s environment, the composite image comprising a rendered image.

6. The control station of claim 5, wherein the at least one heads-up display comprises three heads-up displays that are adjacent to each other in a side-by-side configuration, the three heads-up displays operable to display the composite image in a panoramic view.

7. The control station of claim 6, wherein each of the three heads-up displays comprises a center display and two outer displays, the two outer displays disposed at an angle relative to the center display such that the three heads-up displays form a generally concave-shaped viewing surface.

8. The control station of claim 5, wherein the unmanned vehicle control system is a core unmanned aerial vehicle control station (CUCS) that communicates with the unmanned vehicle using a standardization agreement 4586 messaging protocol.

9. The control station of claim 5, wherein the heads-up display is further operable to display an overlaid image on the composite image, the overlaid image selected from the group consisting of a three-dimensional annotation, a geospatially rendered image, and a heads-up annotation.

10. The control station of claim 5, further comprising a communication system for communication of the user with other people, the communication system having a communication display adjacent to the heads-down display in a side-by-side configuration such that the user may view the communication display and the heads-down display from a single position.

11. The control station of claim 10, wherein the communication system has a common operational picture (COP) communication service.

12. The control station of claim 5, wherein the unmanned vehicle control system includes at least one dedicated function knob that is configured to control a function of the unmanned vehicle, the dedicated function knob being selected from the group consisting of a “

check-6”

function, a push-to-talk function, a weapons release function, a laser function, an engine throttle function, a cursor pointer function, an autopilot break function, one or more mouse movement functions, a zoom function, a track grow function, and a control surface of the unmanned vehicle.

13. The control station of claim 12, wherein the at least dedicated function knob is configured on a joystick controller.

14. A method for using an unmanned vehicle control station comprising:

viewing, on a heads-down display, a plurality of control system characteristics associated with operation of an unmanned vehicle; and

viewing, from essentially the same position from which the heads-down display is viewed, a composite image on a heads-up display that is adjacent the heads-down display, the composite image comprising a rendered image that is an environmental view of the unmanned vehicle.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein viewing a composite image on a heads-up display further comprises viewing three composite images on three heads-up displays, the three composite images comprising a panoramic view of the unmanned vehicle.

16. The method of claim 14, further comprising receiving the plurality of control system characteristics from the unmanned vehicle using a standardization agreement 4586 messaging protocol.

17. The method of claim 14, further comprising viewing an overlaid image on the composite image, the overlaid image selected from the group consisting of a three-dimensional annotation, a geospatially rendered image, and a heads-up annotation.

18. The method of claim 14, further comprising viewing a communication display from essentially the same position from which the heads-down display is viewed.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein viewing a communication display from essentially the same position from which the heads-down display is viewed further comprises viewing a common operational picture (COP) communication system from essentially the same position from which the heads-down display is viewed.

20. The method of claim 14, further comprising actuating at least one dedicated control knob that is dedicated to control a single function that is selected from the group consisting of a “

check-6”

function, a push-to-talk function, a weapons release function, a laser function, an engine throttle function, a cursor pointer function, an autopilot break function, one or more mouse movement functions, a zoom function, a track grow function, and a control surface of the unmanned vehicle.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein actuating the at least one dedicated control knob further comprises actuating the at least one control knob that is disposed on a joystick.