Automated separation manager

• US 8,060,295 B2
• Filed: 11/12/2007
• Issued: 11/15/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 11/12/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: The Boeing Co.
• Original Assignee: The Boeing Co.
• Inventors: Estkowski, Regina I., Baumeister, Richard, Whitley, Ted D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Black; Thomas
• Assistant Examiner(s): Marc-Coleman; Marthe
• Application Number:
  US11/938,377
• Publication Number:
  US 20090125221A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,464 Days
• Field of Search: 701/120, 701300-302, 701/211, 701/214, 701/3, 340/961
• US Class Current: 701/120
• 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: G08G 5/0013 with a ground station
• 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 5/045 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 separation management system includes a data input module for receiving and filtering aircraft information and airspace information related to a control aircraft and a relevant aircraft, the aircraft information enabling the calculation of a trajectory window for each aircraft. A conflict monitoring module may be included in the system for monitoring the trajectory window for each aircraft with respect to time and probabilistic location, the conflict monitoring module determining when a trajectory overlap occurs resulting from the intersection of the trajectory window for the control aircraft and the relevant aircraft. In addition, the system may include a separation routing module for rerouting the control aircraft when a trajectory overlap for the control aircraft is detected by the conflict monitoring module.

Claims

1. A method for maintaining a safe separation distance between vehicles, comprising:

receiving time-referenced position and state data for vehicles including a control vehicle and a relevant vehicle, the vehicles having initial locations within a time-space zone of interest;

determining maneuver characteristics for the vehicles within the time-space zone of interest;

calculating a probabilistic position zone for each vehicle within the time-space zone of interest for a plurality of time intervals, the probabilistic position zone based on a received time-referenced position, speed and direction data, the vehicle maneuver characteristics, and attitude data;

rerouting the control vehicle when the distance between the probabilistic position zone of the control vehicle is less that a specified distance from the probabilistic position zone of the relevant vehicle;

selecting a reference point for the control vehicle when the control vehicle is rerouted; and

calculating a plurality of homotopically distinct paths between the time-referenced position of the control vehicle and the reference point based on the maneuvering characteristics of the control vehicle and the probabilistic position zone of interest for the vehicles.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving time-referenced position and state data for vehicles, the referenced state data includes speed, direction, and attitude data.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving time-referenced position and state data for vehicles includes at least one of a mission control generated intentions or data from vehicle control surface sensors.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein calculating a plurality homotopically distinct paths between the time-referenced position of the control vehicle and the reference point includes a latency of the time-referenced position.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein a portion of the time referenced position and state data is based on at least one of data from sensors located on one of the vehicles or data from sensor located off-board the vehicles.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising creating one or more four dimensional virtual predictive radar (4D-VPR) to facilitate a reroute of the control aircraft, the 4D-VPR including a number of time rings, each time ring corresponding to a set of probable locations of the control vehicle at the time ring.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the 4D-VPR includes indications of intersections the relevant vehicles on the time rings, the 4D-VPR further including a set of homotopically distinct regions of travel for the control aircraft.

8. A separation management system, comprising:

a data input module for receiving and filtering aircraft information and airspace information related to a control aircraft and a relevant aircraft, the aircraft information enabling the calculation of a trajectory window for each aircraft;

a conflict monitoring module for monitoring the trajectory window for each aircraft with respect to time and probabilistic location, the conflict monitoring module determining when a trajectory overlap occurs resulting from the intersection of the trajectory window for the control aircraft and the relevant aircraft; and

a separation routing module for;

calculating a plurality homotopically distinct paths between the control vehicle and a reference point based on the maneuvering characteristics of the control vehicle and a probabilistic position zone of interest for the control aircraft and the relevant aircraft; and

rerouting the control aircraft along one of the plurality of homotically distinct paths when a trajectory overlap for the control aircraft is detected by the conflict monitoring module.

9. The system of claim 8, further comprising an airspace allocation module receiving input from the airspace information and providing data to the conflict monitoring module, the airspace allocation module dynamically determining time-space zones for aircraft that must not be traversed by other aircraft.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the airspace allocation module analyzes a quality of the aircraft information and the airspace information, the trajectory window modified based on the quality of information.

11. The system of claim 10 where the quality of the aircraft information and the airspace information includes a data sampling rate that is requested for each aircraft, the data sampling rate initiating a refreshment of data used by the data input module.

12. The system of claim 8, wherein the control aircraft is an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV).

13. The system of claim 8, wherein the separation routing module is configured to generate a four dimensional virtual predictive radar (4D-VPR) representation including a plurality of trajectory paths for the control aircraft from an initial point to a destination point, the 4D-VPR including the trajectory paths with reference to altitude, latitude, and longitude, the 4D-VPR having time rings along the plurality of trajectory paths to represent a predicted time for a future location of the control aircraft.

14. The system of claim 13 wherein a computer media 4D-VPR is generated and configured to store method routing information, time ring, and probabilistic predicted trajectory locations.

15. A method, comprising:

generating a virtual predictive radar (VPR) screen including a plurality of trajectory paths for a control vehicle, the plurality of trajectory paths originating at an initial point and ending at a destination point, the VPR including time rings predicting the location of the control vehicle in 3-D space on the VPR;

creating a plurality of constraints on the VPR for the control vehicle based on the maneuverability characteristics and velocity of the control vehicle;

locating at least one relevant vehicle proximate one of the time rings of the VPR, the relevant vehicle creating a conflict along at least one of the plurality of trajectory paths; and

generating a homotopy route along a subset of the plurality of trajectory paths to enable the control aircraft to maintain a safe separation between the control vehicle and the relevant vehicle when the control vehicle traverses from the initial point to the destination point.

16. The method of claim 15, further comprising converting the time ring with a conflict to a relative safety graph including confidence interval data, the relative safety graph depicting relative safety levels for the trajectory paths from the initial point to the destination point for the control aircraft.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the relative safety graph is converted to an absolute safety graph which depicts trajectory routes having a confidence interval above a predetermined threshold.

18. The method of claim 15, wherein generating a homotopy route includes generating one or more guide routes for the control vehicle, the guide routes creating a safe separation from the relevant vehicle residing along one of the plurality of trajectory paths on the VPR.

19. The method of claim 18, further comprising selecting a preferred guide route from the one or more guide.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the preferred guide route is transformed to one or more commands configured to control the control aircraft along the preferred guide route from the initial point to the destination point.