RAPIDLY-DEPLOYABLE, DRONE-BASED WIRELESS COMMUNICATIONS SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR THE OPERATION THEREOF

• US 20180234164A1
• Filed: 04/05/2018
• Published: 08/16/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 12/28/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Dish Technologies LLC (Echostar Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Dish Technologies LLC (Echostar Corporation)
• Inventors: Hardy, Chris, Bellotti, Paul
• Granted Patent: US 10,439,705 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 10/13 Flying platforms
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 10/14 with four distinct rotor axes, e.g. quadcopters
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 10/25 Fixed-wing aircraft VTOL aircraft B64U10/20
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 2101/20 for use as communications relays, e.g. high-altitude platforms
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/04 Position of source determined by a plurality of spaced direction-finders
• 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: G06V 20/13 Satellite images
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 20/17 taken from planes or by drones
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/18504 Aircraft used as relay or high altitude atmospheric platform
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/18523 Satellite systems for providing broadcast service to terrestrial stations, i.e. broadcast satellite service arrangements specially adapted for satellite broadcast receiving H04H40/90; picture transmission via satellite H04N1/00103; television transmission via satellite H04N7/20
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/181 for receiving images from a plurality of remote sources
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/188 Capturing isolated or intermittent images triggered by the occurrence of a predetermined event, e.g. an object reaching a predetermined position signal generation from motion picture films H04N5/253
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/06 Selective distribution of broadcast services, e.g. multimedia broadcast multicast service [MBMS]; Services to user groups; One-way selective calling services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/005 Moving wireless networks

Abstract

Drone-based wireless communications systems are provided, as are methods carried-out by such wireless communications systems. In one embodiment, the wireless communications system includes a Satellite Signal Transformation (SST) unit and a plurality of aerial network drones, which can be deployed over a designated geographical area to form a multi-drone network thereover. During operation, the SST unit transmits a network source signal, which contains content extracted from a satellite signal. The multi-drone network receives the network source signal, disseminates drone relay signals containing the content through the multi-drone network, and broadcastings user device signals containing the content over the designated geographical area. In embodiments, the multi-drone network may broadcast multiple different types of user device signals for reception by various different types of user devices located within the designated geographical area, such as an arear containing communication infrastructure disabled by a natural disaster, a hostile attack, or other catastrophic event.

Claims

1. A drone-based wireless communications system, comprising:

a satellite signal transformation unit configured to receive a satellite signal from a satellite, to extract content from the satellite signal, and to transmit a network source signal containing the content; and

a plurality of aerial network drones deployable to form a multi-drone network over a designated geographical area, the multi-drone network configured to;

receive the network source signal from the satellite signal transformation unit;

disseminate drone relay signals containing the content through the multi-drone network; and

broadcast user device signals containing the content over the designated geographical area for reception by user devices located therein;

wherein, when forming the multi-drone network, each aerial network drone in the plurality of aerial network drones repeatedly triangulates an ownship drone position and implements corresponding flight adjustments to maintain the ownship drone position within a predetermined proximity of an assigned hover position in the horizontally-spaced drone array.

2. The drone-based wireless communications system of claim 1 wherein the satellite signal transformation unit comprises a fixed wing drone, and wherein the plurality of aerial network drones comprises a plurality of rotary wing drones.

3. The drone-based wireless communications system of claim 2 wherein the fixed wing drone is configured to fly a repeating flight pattern above the plurality of rotary wing drones during operation of drone-based wireless communications system.

4. The drone-based wireless communications system of claim 1 wherein at least a first aerial network drone included in the plurality of aerial network drones comprises:

a wireless receiver;

a first antenna; and

a drone controller architecture coupled to the wireless receiver and to the antenna, the drone controller architecture configured to;

receive the drone relay signals at the wireless receiver as a first signal type;

transform the drone relay signals to a second signal type; and

broadcast the second signal type via the first antenna.

5. The drone-based wireless communications system of claim 4 wherein the first aerial network drone further comprises a second antenna, and wherein the drone controller architecture is further configured to:

transform the drone relay signals to a third signal type; and

broadcast the third signal type via the second antenna, while concurrently boarding the second signal type via the first antenna.

6. The drone-based wireless communications system of claim 5 wherein the drone controller architecture comprises first and second Application Specific Integrated Circuit-containing (ASIC-containing) modules configured to receive the drone relay signal from the wireless receiver and to transform the drone relay signals to the second and third signal types, respectively.

7. The drone-based wireless communications system of claim 1 wherein the plurality of aerial network drones disperses into a horizontally-spaced drone array when deployed over the designated geographical area.

8. The drone-based wireless communications system of claim 1 wherein the satellite signal transformation unit is configured to stow the plurality of drones prior to deployment thereof.

9. The drone-based wireless communications system of claim 1 wherein the plurality of aerial network drones includes at least one aerial network drone equipped with imaging sensors configured to capture image data of a portion of the designated geographical area.

10. The drone-based wireless communications system of claim 1 wherein the plurality of aerial network drones includes at least a first aerial network drone equipped with a cellular antenna configured to receive wireless signals from user devices located within the designated geographical area.

11. The drone-based wireless communications system of claim 10 wherein the first aerial network drone is configured to:

selectively transmit a request to return location data to a specific user device; and

transmit the requested location data to an authority if received from the specific user device.

12. The drone-based wireless communications system of claim 1 wherein each aerial network drone in the plurality of aerial network drones is configured to perform a cyclic redundancy check process utilizing data provided by at least one neighboring aerial network drones prior to broadcasting user device signals across the designated geographical area.

13. A drone-based wireless communications system, comprising:

a satellite signal transformation unit configured to receive a satellite signal from a satellite, to extract content from the satellite signal, and to transmit a network source signal containing the content; and

a plurality of aerial network drones deployable to form a multi-drone network over a designated geographical area, the multi-drone network configured to;

receive a network source signal via at least one of the plurality of aerial network drones;

disseminate drone relay signals containing content extracted from the network source signal through the multi-drone network; and

broadcast user device signals containing the content over the designated geographical area for reception by user devices located therein.

14. The drone-based wireless communications system of claim 13 wherein the plurality of aerial network drones is configured to disperse into a horizontally-spaced drone array in which each drone is assigned a different drone-specific hover position.

15. The drone-based wireless communications system of claim 14 further comprising a fixed wing drone, the fixed wing drone configured to fly a repeating flight pattern at an altitude above the horizontally-spaced drone array, while transmitting the network source signal to the multi-drone network.

16. An aerial network drone, comprising:

a wireless receiver;

an antenna array including at least first and second antennae; and

a drone controller architecture coupled to the wireless receiver and to the antenna array, the drone controller architecture configured to;

receive drone relay signals at the wireless receiver as a first signal type;

transform the drone relay signals to second and third signal types different than the first signal type; and

broadcast the second and third signal types via the first and second antennae, respectively.

17. The aerial network drone of claim 16 wherein the drone controller architecture comprises first and second Application Specific Integrated Circuit-containing (ASIC-containing) modules configured to receive the drone relay signal from the wireless receiver and to transform the drone relay signals to the second and third signal types, respectively.

18. The aerial network drone of claim 16 further comprising a flight system coupled to the drone controller architecture, the drone controller architecture configured to command the flight system to generally maintain the aerial network drone in an assigned hover position in a horizontally-spaced drone array, while broadcasting the second and third signal types.

19. The aerial network drone of claim 18 wherein the drone controller architecture is further configured to:

repeatedly estimate an ownship drone position based, at least in part, on data received from at least one neighboring drone included in the horizontally-spaced drone array; and

implement flight adjustments to maintain the ownship drone position within a predetermined proximity of the assigned hover position.

20. The aerial network drone of claim 16 wherein the drone controller architecture is further configured to repeatedly triangulate an ownship drone position as a function of (i) data received from multiple neighboring aerial network drones in a horizontally-spaced drone array and (ii) data received from at least one of a satellite and a satellite signal transformation unit.