TRAJECTORY BASED SENSE AND AVOID

• US 20120158219A1
• Filed: 12/21/2010
• Published: 06/21/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 12/21/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: General Electric Company, Leidos Innovations Technology, Inc.
• Original Assignee: General Electric Company, Lockheed Martin Corporation (Martin Marietta Corporation)
• Inventors: Durling, Michael Richard, Tomlinson, Harold Woodruff Jr., Visnevski, Nikita, Forman, Glenn Alan, Hoover, Craig Alan, Sebastian, Thomas Baby, Castillo-Effen, Mauricio, Hansen, Steven Richard, Abernathy, Douglas Stuart
• Granted Patent: US 9,014,880 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/4
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/933 of aircraft or spacecraft
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/0072 Transmission between mobile stations, e.g. anti-collision systems
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0008 with other aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0013 with a ground station
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/045 Navigation or guidance aids, e.g. determination of anti-collision manoeuvers radar or analogous systems specially adapted for anti-collision between aircraft G01S13/933

Abstract

A trajectory-based sense-and-avoid system for use on an aircraft is provided that utilizes 4-D constructs, such as 4-D trajectories or 4-D polytopes, to maintain separation from other aircraft and/or to avoid collisions with other aircraft. In certain embodiments the trajectory-based sense-and-avoid system utilizes 4-D trajectories provided from an external source and/or 4-D trajectories estimated based on a variety of data sources during operation.

Claims

1. A sense-and-avoid system, comprising:

a conflict detection module configured to receive a four-dimensional (4-D) trajectory of an aircraft and 4-D constructs representing trajectories of other aircraft or regions from which the aircraft is to maintain separation, wherein the conflict detection module determines if a conflict exists between the 4-D trajectory of the aircraft and the 4-D constructs; and

a conflict resolution module configured to receive information from a conflict detection module, wherein the conflict resolution module generates a change to the 4-D trajectory of the aircraft to avoid the conflict.

2. The sense-and-avoid system of claim 1, wherein the 4-D trajectory of the aircraft is provided to the conflict detection module by a flight management system of the aircraft.

3. The sense-and-avoid system of claim 1, wherein some or all of the 4-D constructs are provided by a source external to the aircraft.

4. The sense-and-avoid system of claim 3, wherein the source external to the aircraft comprises an air traffic control system.

5. The sense-and-avoid system of claim 1, comprising a trajectory predictor module that generates some or all of the 4-D constructs.

6. The sense-and-avoid system of claim 4, wherein the trajectory predictor module generates some or all of the 4-D constructs using one or more of information provided by an air traffic control system, information provided by other aircraft, information provided by a ground control station, or information provided by a sensor suite.

7. The sense-and-avoid system of claim 1, wherein the conflict resolution module communicate the change to a flight management system to modify the 4-D trajectory of the aircraft.

8. The sense-and-avoid system of claim 1, comprising:

a collision detection module configured to detect a potential collision of the aircraft based on data provided at least by a sensor suite of the aircraft; and

a collision resolution module configured to receive notification of the potential collision from the collision detection module and to issue instructions directly to a flight control system to avoid the potential collision.

9. The sense-and-avoid system of claim 8, wherein the operation of the conflict detection module, the conflict resolution module, the collision detection module, and the collision resolution module depend on a time frame identified for the conflict or potential collision.

10. The sense-and-avoid system of claim 9, wherein conflicts or potential collisions determined to be outside an emergency time frame out are handled by the conflict detection module and the conflict resolution module and wherein conflicts or potential collisions determined to be within the emergency time frame are handled by the collision detection module and the collision resolution module.

11. A sense-and-avoid system installed on an aircraft, the sense-and-avoid system comprising:

one or more communication links configured to communicate with one or more of a ground control station, an air traffic control system, or other aircraft;

a sensor suite;

a trajectory predictor module configured to generate four-dimensional (4-D) constructs based on the data received from the one or more communication links or the sensor suite;

a flight management system comprising a trajectory planning module and a trajectory prediction module, wherein the trajectory prediction module generates a 4-D trajectory for the aircraft;

a flight control system in communication with the flight management system and configured to execute instructions from the flight management system to cause the aircraft to fly along the 4-D trajectory;

a conflict detection module configured to evaluate the 4-D trajectory for the aircraft and the 4-D constructs generated by the trajectory predictor module or 4-D constructs provided by one or more of the ground control station or the air traffic control system to determine the presence of a conflict between the 4-D trajectory and one or more of the 4-D constructs; and

a conflict resolution module configured to generate a change to the 4-D trajectory in the event of a conflict and to communicate the change to the flight management system to update the 4-D trajectory to alleviate the conflict.

12. The sense-and-avoid system of claim 11, wherein one of the one or more communication links communicates with other aircraft to exchange Traffic Collision Avoidance System (TCAS) or Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) information.

13. The sense-and-avoid system of claim 11, wherein the aircraft is an unmanned aerial system.

14. The sense-and-avoid system of claim 11, wherein the sensor suite comprises one or more of a radar, a ladar, an infrared system, a video system, or navigation and guidance sensors.

15. The sense-and-avoid system of claim 11, wherein the 4-D constructs comprise one or more of 4-D trajectories of other aircraft, 4-D polytopes of restricted airspace, 4-D polytopes representing a weather condition, or 4-D polytopes representing communication quality.

16. The sense-and-avoid system of claim 11, comprising:

a collision detection module configured to receive data from the sensor suite and to generate a collision notification if a potential collision is expected within a threshold time period; and

a collision resolution module configured to receive the collision notification and to directly control the flight control system to avoid the potential collision.

17. The sense-and-avoid system of claim 11, wherein information generated by one or more of the trajectory predictor module, the flight management system, the conflict detection module, or the conflict resolution module is communicated to the ground control station or the air traffic control system.

18. An aircraft, comprising:

a trajectory-based sense-and-avoid system configured to detect potential conflicts or collisions based on 4-D trajectories or constructs;

wherein potential conflicts or collisions estimated to occur in a strategic time frame are identified using a 4-D trajectory of the aircraft generated by a flight management system of the aircraft and 4-D constructs provided by a source external to the aircraft;

wherein potential conflicts or collisions estimated to occur in a tactical time frame are identified using the 4-D trajectory of the aircraft generated by the flight management system of the aircraft and 4-D constructs, some of which are generated at least in part by a predictor module on-board the aircraft; and

wherein potential conflicts or collisions estimated to occur in a critical time frame are identified based at least in part on data generated by an on-board sensor suite.

19. The aircraft of claim 18, wherein the strategic time frame is ten minutes or great, the tactical time frame is between one and ten minutes, and the critical time frame is one minute or less.

20. The aircraft of claim 18, wherein potential conflicts or collisions estimated to occur in the strategic time frame or the tactical time frame are avoided by determining a change to the 4-D trajectory of the aircraft and implementing the change to the 4-D trajectory using the flight management system.

21. The aircraft of claim 18, wherein potential conflicts or collisions estimated to occur in the critical time frame are avoided by a collision resolution module taking direct control of a flight control system so as to avoid the potential conflicts or collisions.

22. The aircraft of claim 18, wherein the aircraft comprise an unmanned vehicle or a reduced crew aircraft.