DETERMINING AND PROVIDING VEHICLE CONDITIONS AND CAPABILITIES

• US 20100052948A1
• Filed: 08/27/2008
• Published: 03/04/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 08/27/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: The Boeing Co.
• Original Assignee: The Boeing Co.
• Inventors: Pigg, Paul E., Bieniawski, Stefan R., Vian, John L., Halaas, David J., Saad, Emad W., Clark, Gregory J.
• Granted Patent: US 8,106,753 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/963
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0088 characterized by the autonomous decision making process, e.g. artificial intelligence, predefined behaviours using knowledge based models G06N5/00
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/008 communicating information to a remotely located station transmission systems for measured values G08C
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/0808 Diagnosing performance data testing of vehicles G01M17/00; testing of electrical installation on vehicles G01R31/005
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/01 Detecting movement of traffic to be counted or controlled G08G1/07 - G08G1/14 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/20 Monitoring the location of vehicles belonging to a group, e.g. fleet of vehicles, countable or determined number of vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 3/00 Traffic control systems for marine craft marking of navigational route B63B22/16, B63B51/00
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0013 with a ground station
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0021 located in the aircraft

Abstract

A transponder module for vehicles. The module has a substantially universal vehicle sensor input interface capable of receiving sensor input from different types of vehicle sensors and from different types of vehicles. One or more processors and memory, in real time, receive vehicle sensor input data via the input interface. Based on a vehicle type stored in the memory, the processor(s) use the sensor input data to determine conditions of subsystems the vehicle. Based on the determined conditions, the processor(s) determine performance capabilities of the vehicle. The transponder module outputs information as to the stored vehicle type, determined conditions, and vehicle performance capabilities.

Claims

1. A transponder module for vehicles comprising:

a substantially universal vehicle sensor input interface capable of receiving sensor input from a plurality of different types of vehicle sensors and from a plurality of different types of vehicles; and

one or more processors and memory configured to, in real time;

receive vehicle sensor input data via the input interface;

based on a vehicle type when stored in the memory, use the sensor input data to determine conditions of a plurality of subsystems of a vehicle of the stored vehicle type; and

based on the determined conditions, determine a plurality of performance capabilities of a vehicle of the stored vehicle type;

the transponder module further configured to output information as to the stored vehicle type, determined conditions, and vehicle performance capabilities.

2. The transponder module of claim 1, included in a line replaceable unit (LRU) of a vehicle having a given vehicle type, the given vehicle type stored in the memory.

3. The transponder module of claim 1, the one or more processors further configured to use data from an integrated vehicle health management (IVHM) system of a vehicle of the stored vehicle type to determine the capabilities.

4. The transponder module of claim 1, distributed among two or more vehicle subsystems.

5. The transponder module of claim 1, the one or more processors further configured to determine performance capabilities based on a mission profile.

6. The transponder module of claim 1, wherein configured to determine conditions and performance capabilities comprises configured to determine future conditions and performance capabilities.

7. A system for determining vehicle conditions and capabilities, the system comprising:

a vehicle having a plurality of sensors;

a transponder module connected with the sensors via a substantially universal vehicle sensor input interface of the module, the module having one or more processors and memory configured to, in real time;

receive vehicle sensor input data via the input interface;

based on a type of the vehicle stored in the memory, use the sensor input data to determine conditions of a plurality of subsystems of the vehicle; and

based on the determined conditions, determine a plurality of performance capabilities of the vehicle;

the transponder module further configured to output information as to the stored vehicle type, determined conditions, and vehicle performance capabilities;

the system further comprising one or more control systems configured to perform one or more control functions based on the transponder module output information.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the transponder module is included in one or more subsystems of the vehicle.

9. The system of claim 7, wherein at least some functions performed by the transponder module are performed apart from the vehicle.

10. The system of claim 7, wherein the one or more control systems comprise one more subsystems of the vehicle.

11. The system of claim 7, wherein at least one of the one or more control systems is off-board the vehicle.

12. The system of claim 7, wherein at least one of the one or more control functions performed by the one or more control systems includes controlling one or more subsystems of the vehicle.

13. A vehicle comprising:

a plurality of sensors;

an integrated vehicle health management (IVHM) system; and

a transponder module having;

a vehicle sensor input interface that receives sensor input from a plurality of different sensors of the vehicle; and

one or more processors and memory configured to, in real time;

receive sensor input data from the vehicle via the input interface;

use the sensor input data to determine conditions of a plurality of subsystems of the vehicle; and

based on the determined conditions and on data provided by the IVHM system, determine a plurality of performance capabilities of the vehicle.

14. The vehicle of claim 13, the one or more processors configured to determine the conditions and performance capabilities based on a type of the vehicle stored in the memory.

15. The vehicle of claim 14, the module further comprising an output interface configured to output information as to the stored vehicle type, the determined conditions, and the vehicle performance capabilities.

16. The vehicle of claim 13, reconfigurable, the one or more processors and memory further configured to determine conditions and capabilities for more than one configuration of the vehicle.

17. The vehicle of claim 13, capable of changing shape, the one or more processors and memory further configured to determine conditions and capabilities for the vehicle as the shape is changed.

18. A method of providing conditions and capabilities of a vehicle, the method performed by a transponder module of the vehicle, the method comprising:

receiving sensor information in real time from a plurality of sensors of the vehicle;

based on a type of the vehicle stored in a memory, using the sensor information to determine current and/or projected conditions of a plurality of subsystems of the vehicle;

based on the determined conditions and on data from an integrated vehicle health management (IVHM) system of the vehicle, determining a plurality of current and/or projected capabilities of the vehicle.

19. The method of claim 18, further comprising outputting the determined conditions and capabilities to a system for controlling the vehicle.

20. The method of claim 18, further comprising outputting the determined conditions and capabilities to a mission control system.

21. A method of using one or more vehicles to perform a mission, the method comprising:

receiving, from a transponder module of each of the one or more vehicles, information describing a plurality of current subsystem conditions and a plurality of current capabilities of each vehicle;

using the information in real time to update conditions and capabilities for each vehicle in a mission capabilities matrix;

based on the updated matrix, performing one or more of the following;

controlling at least a component of one of the one or more vehicles;

modifying a task of one of the one or more vehicles; and

modifying the mission.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein a plurality of vehicles are used, the vehicles having different types.

23. The method of claim 21, wherein the mission includes one or more of the following:

air traffic management, maritime traffic management, road vehicle traffic management, and space traffic management.

24. The method of claim 21, comprising including the transponder module in a line replaceable unit (LRU) of one of the one or more vehicles.

25. The method of claim 21, wherein the receiving is performed apart from the one of the one or more vehicles.

26. The method of claim 21, wherein the controlling is performed by the one of the one or more vehicles.

27. A system for performing a mission comprising:

a plurality of vehicles to which one or more tasks of the mission are assigned, each vehicle having a transponder module configured to provide information in real time describing a plurality of current subsystem conditions and a plurality of current capabilities of the vehicle; and

a mission control system having at least one processor and memory configured to receive the information in real time from the vehicle transponder modules, and based on the information, to perform one or more functions in real time to optimize the mission.

28. The system of claim 27, the at least one processor and memory further configured to issue a control command to control one of the vehicles.

29. The system of claim 27, the at least one processor and memory further configured to modify a task of one of the vehicles.

30. The system of claim 27, wherein the vehicles are heterogeneous.