Ground link with on-board security surveillance system for aircraft and other commercial vehicles

• US 6,246,320 B1
• Filed: 02/25/1999
• Issued: 06/12/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 02/25/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: e-Watch, Inc. (Cision Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: David A Monroe
• Inventors: Monroe, David A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Crosland, Donnie L.
• Application Number:
  US09/257,767
• Time in Patent Office: 838 Days
• Field of Search: 340/506, 340/539, 340/531, 340/825.72, 340/825.69, 340/945, 340/937, 340/958, 340/963, 340/971, 340/973, 340/425.5, 340/438, 340/439, 340/459, 340/825.36, 340/825.49, 455/7, 455/431, 701/14, 701/29, 701/213, 701/214, 701/117-120, 701/3, 701/23, 701/24, 702/57, 342/32, 342/36, 342/45, 342/46
• US Class Current: 340/506
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 45/0053 using visual equipment, e.g. cameras
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 45/0059 by communicating emergency situations to ground control or between crew members
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/17 Emergency applications
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2205/002 for traffic control, mobile tracking, guidance, surveillance or anti-collision
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/0054 of actual mobile position, i.e. position calculation on base station
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19621 Portable camera
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19645 Multiple cameras, each having view on one of a plurality of scenes, e.g. multiple cameras for multi-room surveillance or for tracking an object by view hand-over
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/1965 the vehicle being an aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/1966 Wireless systems, other than telephone systems, used to communicate with a camera
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19673 Addition of time stamp, i.e. time metadata, to video stream
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19695 Arrangements wherein non-video detectors start video recording or forwarding but do not generate an alarm themselves
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 25/10 using wireless transmission systems G08B25/009 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0013 with a ground station
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0026 located on the ground
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0082 for monitoring traffic from a ground station radar or analogous systems specially adapted for traffic control G01S13/91
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/065 Navigation or guidance aids, e.g. for taxiing or rolling
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 9/02 Anti-collision systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/18506 Communications with or from aircraft, i.e. aeronautical mobile service

Abstract

A comprehensive surveillance/communication system supports communication of monitored data and/or commands or operational data between the ground or base station and the transport, between the transport and ground or terminal support vehicles and/or equipment, between the transport and various monitoring stations or systems, between transports, between the ground station and the support vehicles, between the monitoring station and support vehicles and between the monitoring stations or systems and the support vehicles. This permits the ground station to monitor and/or determine the identity, location, and heading of any vehicle in its range for tracking and collision avoidance, as well as monitoring sensor information, alarm conditions, emergency conditions, servicing requests, maintenance information, navigational information, requests for information such as flight plans, weather information, route maps, message traffic such as e-mail and the like. Similar information may be transmitted and received between any combination of transports, monitoring stations, personnel, mobile units and support vehicles. Operational commands may also be transmitted utilizing the system of the invention.

Claims

1. A security and surveillance system for ground or in port monitoring and tracking of a commercial transport and for communication of on-board data to the ground and ground data to the commercial transport, the system comprising:

a. at least one ground based sensor having a specific operational zone and adapted for monitoring a selected condition associated with the commercial transport whenever the transport is in the operational zone for generating a unique first data signal representing the specific condition to be monitored;

b. at least one commercial transport based sensor adapted for monitoring a specific on-board based condition on the commercial transport and for generating a unique second data signal;

c. a ground based monitoring station;

d. a communication system on-board the commercial transport for transmitting the unique second data signal to the ground based monitoring station; and

e. a ground-based communication system for transmitting the first and second unique data signals from the sensors to the ground based monitoring station for monitoring the selected condition and for selectively transmitting the first and second unique data signals to the commercial transport.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the ground-based communication system further includes a ground based radio and a packet controller for transmitting and receiving information from the commercial transport.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the commercial transport includes and on-board radio for receiving and transmitting information from and to the ground-based radio.

4. The system claim 3, wherein the commercial transport includes an on-board packet controller in communication with the on-board radio and the on-board sensor.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the ground-based communication system comprises a wireless LAN.

6. The system of claim 5, further including a wireless LAN on-board the transport and in communication with the on-board sensor, whereby the on-board wireless LAN may communicate directly with a ground based wireless LAN.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the ground-based communication system includes a router.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the commercial transport includes an on-board communication system having a router.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein said commercial transport based sensor is a video sensor and wherein at least on ground based sensor is a video sensor, the ground based monitoring station further adapted for transmitting and receiving signals to each of said sensors for defining a ground-to-transport video intercom.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein said commercial transport based sensor is adapted for monitoring a replenishable supply on-board the transport and is adapted for generating a signal to the ground based station for indicating the condition of the supply on-board the commercial transport.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein said replenishable supply sensor is adapted for alerting the fuel supply on-board the transport and is further adapted for generating a signal to initiate delivery of fuel to the transport once the transport enters port.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein said replenishable supply sensor is adapted for generating a signal for generating review of the on-board condition of the replenishable supply once the transport enters port.

13. The system of claim 11, wherein said replenishable supply sensor is adapted for generating a signal go to initiate re-supply of said replenishable supply once the transport enters port.

14. The system of claim 1, wherein said on-board sensor generates a signal to the ground based station indicating a maintenance function.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein said ground based station further includes means for alerting personnel aboard the transport to perform and on-board maintenance function.

16. The system of claim 1, wherein the communication system further comprises:

a. a transceiver associated with the sensor; and

b. a transceiver associated with the monitoring station for wireless transmitting the data signals to the ground based monitoring station.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the transport further includes a comprehensive onboard security and surveillance system and said on-board sensor is an integral component of said on-board system, the system further including an on-board communications system for receiving the second unique data signal directly from the on-board sensor, said on-board communications system adapted for transmitting and receiving data to and from the ground-based monitoring system.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the communication system further comprises a wireless network for transmitting the data signals to from the sensor to the ground based monitoring station.

19. The system of claim 18, further including a plurality of sensors associated with the commercial transport, each adapted for monitoring a unique selected condition for generating a unique data signal representing the specific condition to be monitored.

20. The system of claim 19, further including:

a. collector adapted for collecting the plurality of data signals from the plurality of sensors and generating therefrom a combined signal incorporating each of the plurality of signals into a combined output signal; and

b. a processing system for receiving and processing the combined output signal.

21. The system of claim 20, said collector and processing system further including a self-contained power supply.

22. The system of claim 20, the collector further includes a multiplexing system adapted for accepting a plurality of parallel data signals simultaneously and for generating therefrom a single, combination output signal.

23. The system of claim 22, wherein said multiplexing system is adapted for generating a combination output signal including a component comprising a plurality of the data signals in a split screen configuration wherein all or a selected portion of the plurality of data signals are simultaneously available.

24. The system of claim 1, further including a recorder for capturing the first and second unique data signals as a combined output signal in a retrievable format.

25. The system of claim 1, further including a global position system (GPS) sensor associated with the commercial transport and adapted for generating a position signal to be transmitted to the ground based monitoring station, whereby the position of the commercial transport may be monitored at any time.

26. The system of claim 1, wherein there is further included ground support equipment and ground support vehicles, and wherein each of said ground support equipment and ground vehicles includes location sensors for generating and sending ground support location signals, whereby the position of the commercial transport and relative to the ground support equipment and ground support vehicles may be monitored.

27. The system of claim 26, wherein said location sensor is an on-board GPS system.

28. The system of claim 26, wherein said commercial transport is adapted for directly receiving the ground support location sensor signals and the location sensor signals generated by other commercial transports in the vicinity.

29. The system of claim 1, wherein the transmitting system is adapted for transmitting information from one said commercial transport to another said commercial transport to provide for transport-to-transport monitoring.

30. The system of claim 1, wherein said commercial transport includes a unique identifier which is adapted to be sensed by the ground based sensor, whereby the ground based sensor can generate an identification signal for alerting that the commercial transport is within range of the ground based sensor.

31. The system of claim 1, wherein said ground based sensor is carried on board the transport for deployment in the port whenever the commercial transport is in said port.

32. The system of claim 1, wherein said ground based sensor includes a time stamp for monitoring when said transport is within the operating zone.

33. The system of claim 1, the sensor, transport and ground based station further adapted for permitting communication among each of said components.

34. The system of claim 1, wherein said sensor is adapted for alerting the ground based monitoring station of the situational conditions in the vicinity of the commercial transport when in port.

35. The system of claim 34, wherein said sensor is adapted for generating an alarm whenever specific conditions are present.

36. The system of claim 1, wherein there is further provided support systems in port for supporting the commercial transport and wherein said support systems further include at least one support system sensor adapted for transmitting a signal to the ground based monitoring station, whereby conditions of the commercial transport and the support system may be simultaneously monitored.

37. The system of claim 36, wherein said sensor and said support system sensor are each global positioning system sensors whereby the relative proximity of the commercial transport and the support system may be tracked and monitored.

38. The system of claim 37, further including an alarm generator for generating an alarm whenever the support system is in a excluded region occupied by the commercial transport.

39. The system of claim 38, wherein the ground based monitoring station further includes a mapping capability for generating a map defining the presence of the commercial transport relative to the support system.

40. The system of claim 39, wherein said support system sensor includes a support system identifier for signaling to the ground based monitoring station the identity of the support system.

41. The system of claim 40, wherein said ground based monitoring system includes and alarm device for indicating when an unauthorized support system is in the area.

42. The system of claim 1, further including means for accessing and controlling system on-board the commercial transport from the ground based monitoring station.