Autonomous mission profile planning

• US 6,672,534 B2
• Filed: 05/02/2001
• Issued: 01/06/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 05/02/2001
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Lockheed Martin Corporation (Martin Marietta Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Lockheed Martin Corporation (Martin Marietta Corporation)
• Inventors: Harding, William V., Zimmerer, Douglas R., Gant, Arlin W.
• Primary Examiner(s): Gregory, Bernarr E.
• Application Number:
  US09/847,225
• Publication Number:
  US 20030209631A1
• Time in Patent Office: 979 Days
• Field of Search: 342/61, 342/62, 342/63, 342/64, 342/65, 342/175, 342/195, 244/3.1, 244/3.11, 244/3-2-, 89/11.1
• US Class Current: 244/3.15
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/723 by using numerical data
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/22 Producing cursor lines and indicia by electronic means
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/12 Target-seeking control

Abstract

The present invention, in its various aspects and embodiments, includes a method for planning a mission profile in real time. The method comprises ascertaining a plurality of target information (including a target location, a target velocity, and a target location error) and autonomously determining a pattern from the ascertained target information. In one particular embodiment, the autonomous determination includes projecting along a target axis a distance of the target location error to establish two intersections of the target axis with the target location error; projecting perpendicularly left and right from the intersections to determine a pair of possible start point pairs; selecting the possible start point pair including a closest single start point; selecting the farthest start point of the selected start point pair; identifying an adjusted start point; mirroring the adjusted start point to obtain an adjusted start point pair; and laying out the front-end and back-end traces from the adjusted start point pair.

Claims

1. A method for planning a mission profile in real time, comprising:

ascertaining a plurality of target information, including a target location, a target velocity, and a target location error; and

autonomously determining a pattern from the ascertained target information.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein ascertaining the target information includes assuming a value for at least one of the target velocity and the target location error.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein ascertaining the plurality of target information includes ascertaining a target location that places the target in the air, on the surface, or submerged underwater.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein ascertaining the plurality of target information includes receiving at least one of the target location, target velocity, and target location error in a transmission.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

dispensing at least a first formation including at least one vehicle; and

implementing the pattern with the vehicle.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein ascertaining the target information includes:

acquiring the target information at a platform from which the first formation is dispensed;

receiving at least the target location from a platform other than the platform from which the first formation is dispensed;

or

acquiring the target information aboard the vehicle.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein dispensing the first formation includes:

launching the first formation from an airborne platform;

or

launching the first formation from a surface-based platform;

or

launching the first formation from an underwater platform.

8. The method of claim 5, wherein the vehicle includes a vehicle selected from the group consisting of a submersible vehicle, a reconnaissance drone, a flying submunition, a cruise missile, and a smart bomb.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein autonomously determining the pattern from the ascertained target information includes autonomously determining a serpentine pattern.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein autonomously determining the pattern from the ascertained target information includes:

projecting along a target axis a distance of the target location error to establish two intersections of the target axis with the target location error;

projecting perpendicularly left and right from the intersections to determine a pair of possible start point pairs;

selecting the possible start point pair including a closest single start point;

selecting the farthest start point of the selected start point pair;

identifying an adjusted start point;

mirroring the adjusted start point to obtain an adjusted start point pair; and

laying out the front-end and back-end traces from the adjusted start point pair.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein identifying an adjusted start point includes:

determining a base time of flight to a base start point;

determining from the target information a potential target movement during the base time of flight;

determining an adjusted target location error from the potential target movement and the target information;

generating an adjusted start point;

ascertaining a total time of flight to a target axis predicated on the adjusted start point;

ascertaining a total time of flight to the adjusted start point;

updating the adjusted target location error from the total time of flight to the adjusted start point; and

iterating the generation of the adjusted start point, the ascertainment of the total time of flight to the target axis, the ascertainment of the total time of flight to the adjusted start point, and the updating of the adjusted target location error until the value for the same converge.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising adjusting the adjusted start point pair by a predetermined distance along a leg of each of the front-end and back-end traces.

13. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

dispensing a first and a second formation, each of the first and second formations including at least one vehicle, at the dispense point defined by the preplanned mission profile; and

implementing the pattern with the first and second formations, the first formation implementing the pattern at a first one of the first or second start point pairs and the second formation implementing the pattern at a second one of the first or second start point pairs.

14. The method of claim 1, further comprising identifying the target.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein identifying the target includes employing an automatic target recognition system.

16. The method of claim 14, further comprising attacking the target.

17. A method for planning a mission profile in real time, comprising:

ascertaining a plurality of target information, including a target location, a target velocity, and a target location error; and

autonomously determining a pattern including a front-end trace and a back-end trace from the ascertained target information, including;

projecting along a target axis a distance of the target location error to establish two intersections of the target axis with the target location error;

projecting perpendicularly left and right from the intersections to determine a pair of possible start point pairs;

selecting the possible start point pair including a closest single start point;

selecting the farthest start point of the selected start point pair;

identifying an adjusted start point;

mirroring the adjusted start point to obtain an adjusted start point pair; and

laying out the front-end and back-end traces from the adjusted start point pair.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein ascertaining the target information includes assuming a value for at least one of the target velocity and the target location error.

19. The method of claim 17, wherein ascertaining the plurality of target information includes ascertaining a target location that places the target in the air, on the surface, or submerged underwater.

20. The method of claim 17, wherein ascertaining the plurality of target information includes receiving at least one of the target location, target velocity, and target location error in a transmission.

21. The method of claim 17, further comprising:

dispensing at least a first formation including at least one vehicle; and

implementing the pattern with the vehicle.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein ascertaining the target information includes:

acquiring the target information at a platform from which the first formation is dispensed;

receiving at least the target location from a platform other than the platform from which the first formation is dispensed;

or

acquiring the target information aboard the vehicle.

23. The method of claim 21, wherein dispensing the first formation includes:

launching the first formation from an airborne platform;

or

launching the first formation from a surface-based platform;

or

launching the first formation from an underwater platform.

24. The method of claim 21, wherein the vehicle includes a vehicle selected from the group consisting of a submersible vehicle, a reconnaissance drone, a flying submunition, a cruise missile, and a smart bomb.

25. The method of claim 17, wherein autonomously determining the pattern from the ascertained target information includes autonomously determining a serpentine pattern.

26. The method of claim 17, wherein identifying an adjusted start point includes:

determining a base time of flight to a base start point;

determining from the target information a potential target movement during the base time of flight;

determining an adjusted target location error from the potential target movement and the target information;

generating an adjusted start point;

ascertaining a total time of flight to a target axis predicated on the adjusted start point;

ascertaining a total time of flight to the adjusted start point;

updating the adjusted target location error from the total time of flight to the adjusted start point; and

iterating the generation of the adjusted start point, the ascertainment of the total time of flight to the target axis, the ascertainment of the total time of flight to the adjusted start point, and the updating of the adjusted target location error until the value for the same converge.

27. The method of claim 26, further comprising adjusting the adjusted start point pair by a predetermined distance along a leg of each of the front-end and back-end patterns.

28. The method of claim 17, further comprising:

dispensing a first and a second formation, each of the first and second formations including at least one vehicle, at the dispense point defined by the preplanned mission profile; and

implementing the pattern with the first and second formations, the first formation implementing the pattern at a first one of the first or second start point pairs and the second formation implementing the pattern at a second one of the first or second start point pairs.

29. The method of claim 17, further comprising identifying the target.

30. The method of claim 29, wherein identifying the target includes employing an automatic target recognition system.

31. The method of claim 29, further comprising attacking the target.

32. An apparatus for use in planning a mission profile in real time, comprising:

a receiver capable of receiving a plurality of target information, the target information including a target location;

a computing device; and

a program storage device encoded with instructions that, when executed by the computing device, perform a method for autonomously determining a pattern from the target information.

33. The apparatus of claim 32, wherein the method for autonomously determining the pattern from the target information includes assuming a value for at least one of a target velocity and a target location error.

34. The apparatus of claim 32, wherein the receiver, the computing device, and the program storage device are distributed across a platform and a vehicle.

35. The apparatus of claim 34, wherein the platform is an airborne platform, a surface platform, or a submerged platform.

36. The apparatus of claim 34, wherein the vehicle includes a vehicle selected from the group consisting of a submersible vehicle, a reconnaissance drone, a flying submunition, a cruise missile, and a smart bomb.

37. The apparatus of claim 32, wherein the receiver, the computing device, and the program storage device comprise a portion of a platform.

38. The apparatus of claim 37, wherein the platform is an airborne platform, a surface platform, or a submerged platform.

39. The apparatus of claim 32, wherein the receiver, the computing device, and the program storage device comprise a portion of a vehicle.

40. The apparatus of claim 39, wherein the vehicle includes a vehicle selected from the group consisting of a submersible vehicle, a reconnaissance drone, a flying submunition, a cruise missile, and a smart bomb.

41. The apparatus of claim 32, wherein the method for autonomously determining the pattern from the ascertained target information includes autonomously determining a serpentine pattern.

42. The apparatus of claim 32, wherein the method for autonomously determining the pattern includes:

projecting along a target axis a distance of the target location error to establish two intersections of the target axis with the target location error;

projecting perpendicularly left and right from the intersections to determine a pair of possible start point pairs;

selecting the possible start point pair including a closest single start point;

selecting the farthest start point of the selected start point pair;

identifying an adjusted start point;

mirroring the adjusted start point to obtain an adjusted start point pair; and

laying out the front-end and back-end traces from the adjusted start point pair.

43. The apparatus of claim 42, wherein identifying an adjusted start point in the method for determining the pattern includes:

determining a base time of flight to a base start point;

determining from the target information a potential target movement during the base time of flight;

determining an adjusted target location error from the potential target movement and the target information;

generating an adjusted start point;

ascertaining a total time of flight to a target axis predicated on the adjusted start point;

ascertaining a total time of flight to the adjusted start point;

updating the adjusted target location error from the total time of flight to the adjusted start point; and

iterating the generation of the adjusted start point, the ascertainment of the total time of flight to the target axis, the ascertainment of the total time of flight to the adjusted start point, and the updating of the adjusted target location error until the value for the same converge.

44. The apparatus of claim 43, wherein the method for autonomously determining the pattern further comprises adjusting the adjusted start point pair by a predetermined distance along a leg of each of the front-end and back-end traces.

45. The apparatus of claim 32, further comprising an automatic target recognition system.

46. The apparatus of claim 45, wherein the method for autonomously determining the pattern further comprises identifying the target.

47. An apparatus for planning a mission profile in real time, comprising:

a receiver capable of receiving a plurality of target information, the target information including a target location;

a computing device; and

a program storage device encoded with instructions that, when executed by the computing device, perform a method for autonomously determining a pattern including a front-end trace and a back-end trace from the ascertained target information, the method including;

projecting along a target axis a distance of the target location error to establish two intersections of the target axis with the target location error;

projecting perpendicularly left and right from the intersections to determine a pair of possible start point pairs;

selecting the possible start point pair including a closest single start point;

selecting the farthest start point of the selected start point pair;

identifying an adjusted start point;

mirroring the adjusted start point to obtain an adjusted start point pair; and

laying out the front-end and back-end traces from the adjusted start point pair.

48. The apparatus of claim 47, wherein the method for autonomously determining the pattern from the target information includes assuming a value for at least one of a target velocity and a target location error.

49. The apparatus of claim 47, wherein the receiver, the computing device, and the program storage device are distributed across a platform and a vehicle.

50. The apparatus of claim 49, wherein the platform is an airborne platform, a surface platform, or a submerged platform.

51. The apparatus of claim 49, wherein the vehicle includes a vehicle selected from the group consisting of a submersible vehicle, a reconnaissance drone, a flying submunition, a cruise missile, and a smart bomb.

52. The apparatus of claim 47, wherein the receiver, the computing device, and the program storage device comprise a portion of a platform.

53. The apparatus of claim 52, wherein the platform is an airborne platform, a surface platform, or a submerged platform.

54. The apparatus of claim 47, wherein the receiver, the computing device, and the program storage device comprise a portion of a vehicle.

55. The apparatus of claim 54, wherein the vehicle includes a vehicle selected from the group consisting of a submersible vehicle, a reconnaissance drone, a flying submunition, a cruise missile, and a smart bomb.

56. The apparatus of claim 47, wherein the method for autonomously determining the pattern from the ascertained target information includes autonomously determining a serpentine pattern.

57. The apparatus of claim 47, wherein identifying an adjusted start point in the method for determining the pattern includes:

determining a base time of flight to a base start point;

determining from the target information a potential target movement during the base time of flight;

determining an adjusted target location error from the potential target movement and the target information;

generating an adjusted start point;

ascertaining a total time of flight to a target axis predicated on the adjusted start point;

ascertaining a total time of flight to the adjusted start point;

updating the adjusted target location error from the total time of flight to the adjusted start point; and

iterating the generation of the adjusted start point, the ascertainment of the total time of flight to the target axis, the ascertainment of the total time of flight to the adjusted start point, and the updating of the adjusted target location error until the value for the same converge.

58. The apparatus of claim 57, wherein the method for autonomously determining the pattern further comprises adjusting the adjusted start point pair by a predetermined distance along a leg of each of the front-end and back-end traces.

59. The apparatus of claim 47, further comprising an automatic target recognition system.

60. The apparatus of claim 59, wherein the method for autonomously determining the pattern further comprises identifying the target.

61. An apparatus capable of planning a mission profile in real time, comprising:

a platform, including

a receiver capable of receiving a plurality of target information, the target information including a target location;

a first computing device; and

a first program storage device encoded with instructions that, when executed by the computing device, perform a method for autonomously determining a pattern including a front-end trace and a back-end trace from the ascertained target information, the method including;

projecting along a target axis a distance of the target location error to establish two intersections of the target axis with the target location error;

projecting perpendicularly left and right from the intersections to determine a pair of possible start point pairs;

selecting the possible start point pair including a closest single start point;

selecting the farthest start point of the selected start point pair;

identifying an adjusted start point;

mirroring the adjusted start point to obtain an adjusted start point pair; and

laying out the front-end and back-end traces from the adjusted start point pair;

a first vehicle, including;

a second program storage device capable of being encoded with the pattern by the first computing device; and

a second computing device capable of implementing the pattern encoded on the second program storage device through control of the vehicle; and

a second vehicle, including;

a third program storage device capable of being encoded with the pattern by the first computing device; and

a third computing device capable of implementing the pattern encoded on the third program storage device through control of the vehicle.

62. The apparatus of claim 61, wherein the method for autonomously determining the pattern from the target information includes assuming a value for at least one of a target velocity and a target location error.

63. The apparatus of claim 61, wherein the platform is an airborne platform, a surface platform, or a submerged platform.

64. The apparatus of claim 61, wherein the first and second vehicles include a vehicle selected from the group consisting of a submersible vehicle, a reconnaissance drone, a flying submunition, a cruise missile, and a smart bomb.

65. The apparatus of claim 61, wherein the method for autonomously determining the pattern from the ascertained target information includes autonomously determining a serpentine pattern.

66. The apparatus of claim 61, wherein identifying an adjusted start point in the method for determining the pattern includes:

determining a base time of flight to a base start point;

determining from the target information a potential target movement during the base time of flight;

determining an adjusted target location error from the potential target movement and the target information;

generating an adjusted start point;

ascertaining a total time of flight to a target axis predicated on the adjusted start point;

ascertaining a total time of flight to the adjusted start point;

updating the adjusted target location error from the total time of flight to the adjusted start point; and

iterating the generation of the adjusted start point, the ascertainment of the total time of flight to the target axis, the ascertainment of the total time of flight to the adjusted start point, and the updating of the adjusted target location error until the value for the same converge.

67. The apparatus of claim 66, wherein the method for autonomously determining the pattern further comprises adjusting the adjusted start point pair by a predetermined distance along a leg of each of the front-end and back-end traces.

68. The apparatus of claim 61, further comprising an automatic target recognition system.

69. The apparatus of claim 68, wherein the method for autonomously determining the pattern further comprises identifying the target.

70. An apparatus for planning a mission profile in real time, comprising:

means for ascertaining a plurality of target information, including a target location, a target velocity, and a target location error; and

means for autonomously determining a pattern from the ascertained target information.

71. An apparatus for planning a mission profile in real time, comprising:

means for ascertaining a plurality of target information, including a target location, a target velocity, and a target location error; and

means for autonomously determining a pattern including a front-end trace and a back-end trace from the ascertained target information, including;

means for projecting along a target axis a distance of the target location error to establish two intersections of the target axis with the target location error;

means for projecting perpendicularly left and right from the intersections to determine a pair of possible start point pairs;

means for selecting the possible start point pair including a closest single start point;

means for selecting the farthest start point of the selected start point pair;

means for identifying an adjusted start point;

means for mirroring the adjusted start point to obtain an adjusted start point pair; and

means for laying out the front-end and back-end traces from the adjusted start point pair.