Traffic and security monitoring system and method

• US 8,643,719 B2
• Filed: 05/21/2008
• Issued: 02/04/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 02/29/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: The Boeing Co.
• Original Assignee: The Boeing Co.
• Inventors: Vian, John Lyle, Mansouri, Ali Reza, Saad, Emad William
• Primary Examiner(s): Feild, Lynn
• Assistant Examiner(s): ELFERVIG, TAYLOR A
• Application Number:
  US12/124,511
• Publication Number:
  US 20090219393A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,085 Days
• Field of Search: 348/143, 348/144, 348/148, 701/23, 701/26
• US Class Current: 348/144
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/008 communicating information to a remotely located station transmission systems for measured values G08C
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/0866 the electronic data carrier being a digital video recorder in combination with video camera
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0039 Modification of a flight plan
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0069 specially adapted for an unmanned aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0086 for monitoring terrain radar or analogous systems specially adapted for terrain avoidance G01S13/935

Abstract

A method for monitoring a geographic area that using a plurality of unmanned mobile vehicles. Each unmanned mobile vehicle may be programmed with an operational plan to cover a specific subregion of said geographic area. Each unmanned mobile vehicle may be used to obtain visual images of its associated said subregion during operation. A surveillance system is also disclosed for monitoring a geographic area. The system includes a plurality of autonomously operated unmanned mobile vehicles. Each vehicle includes an onboard system that executes an operational plan to enable the vehicle to traverse a specific subregion of the geographic area. Each onboard system further includes a monitoring system to obtain visual images of its associated subregion.

Claims

1. A method for monitoring a geographic area, comprising:

using a plurality of unmanned mobile vehicles;

prior to use, programming each said unmanned mobile vehicle with a first operational plan to cover a first specific subregion of said geographic area, and a second operational plan to cover a second, specific subregion of said geographic area;

using each said unmanned mobile vehicle to obtain visual images of said specific subregion that each said unmanned vehicle has been programmed to cover;

using a structural health monitoring system carried by each one of said unmanned mobile vehicles to monitor a structural health of its associated said unmanned mobile vehicle;

upon a first one of the unmanned mobile vehicles experiencing a structural health event that degrades an ability of said first one of the mobile vehicles to follow said first operational plan, then;

communicating information to at least a second one of the plurality of unmanned mobile vehicles concerning a compromised health status of the first one of the unmanned mobile vehicles;

having at least said second one of said unmanned mobile vehicles dynamically change from using said first operational plan to using said second operational plan, in real time, the second operational plan enabling the second one of said plurality of unmanned mobile vehicles to cover at least a portion of a subregion that would have been covered by said first one of said plurality of unmanned mobile vehicles.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising causing at least one of said plurality of unmanned mobile vehicles to wirelessly transmit said visual images obtained to a centralized monitoring station.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein causing each one of said plurality of unmanned mobile vehicles to wirelessly transmit said visual images comprises causing each said unmanned mobile vehicle to wirelessly transmit at least one of:

still color images;

still black and white images;

streaming color video;

streaming black and white video;

still infrared images; and

streaming infrared video.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising having each of said unmanned mobile vehicles dynamically change from using said first operational plan to using said second operational plan, in real time, when the first one of said plurality of unmanned mobile vehicles becomes inoperable, to enable remaining ones of the plurality of unmanned mobile vehicles to cooperatively cover the subregion that would have been covered by said first one of said unmanned mobile vehicles.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising enabling an individual to remotely override a dynamically assigned flight plan for at least one of said plurality of unmanned mobile vehicles, with a different flight plan.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising having a centralized control station monitor operation of said plurality of unmanned mobile vehicles and inform remaining ones of said plurality of unmanned mobile vehicles to use the second operational plan, and wherein the second operational plan includes a new flight plan for said remaining ones of said unmanned mobile vehicles.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein using a plurality of unmanned mobile vehicles comprises using a plurality of unmanned airborne mobile vehicles.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein using a plurality of unmanned mobile vehicles comprises using an unmanned mobile land vehicle.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein using each one of said plurality of unmanned mobile vehicles to obtain visual images comprises using a camera mounted on each one of said unmanned mobile vehicles.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising using an audio pickup device with at least one of said plurality of unmanned mobile vehicles to obtain audio information from said subregion being covered by said at least one unmanned mobile vehicle.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein said visual images obtained from at least one of said plurality of unmanned mobile vehicles are wirelessly transmitted to a centralized monitoring station in real time for viewing on a display.

12. The method of claim 1, further comprising causing each one of said plurality of unmanned mobile vehicles to periodically wirelessly transmit a status condition message to at least one of:

a centralized monitoring station; and

all other ones of said plurality of unmanned mobile vehicles.

13. The method of claim 1, further comprising using a tracking subsystem on at least one of said plurality of unmanned mobile vehicles to detect and track at least one of:

a specific object;

a specific target;

and having said plurality of unmanned mobile vehicles dynamically change from the first operational plan to a different operational plan, when needed, to enable at least one of said plurality of unmanned mobile vehicles to continuously begin tracking at least one of said detected specific object and said detected specific target, while enabling a remaining quantity of said plurality of unmanned mobile vehicles to continuing covering said geographic area.

14. A monitoring method for monitoring a geographic area, comprising:

using a plurality of airborne unmanned mobile vehicles;

prior to use, programming each said airborne unmanned mobile vehicle with a first operational plan to cover a first specific subregion of said geographic area, and a second operational plan to cover a second, specific subregion;

using each said airborne unmanned mobile vehicle to obtain visual images of said subregion that each said mobile platform has been programmed to cover during its operation;

causing each said airborne unmanned mobile vehicle to wirelessly transmit said images it obtains to a centralized monitoring station;

viewing each of said images on a display at said centralized monitoring station; and

when at least one of said plurality of airborne unmanned mobile vehicles becomes inoperable, then having at least a remaining subplurality of said plurality of airborne unmanned mobile vehicles dynamically make a determination to use said second operational plan, said second operational plan enabling one or more of said remaining subplurality of said plurality of airborne unmanned mobile vehicles to cover said specific subregion that would have been covered by said at least one of said airborne unmanned mobile vehicles that has become inoperable; and

enabling an individual located remote from said airborne unmanned mobile vehicles to remotely override a dynamically assigned flight plan implemented by at least one of said unmanned mobile vehicles, with a different flight plan.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein transmitting said images to a centralized monitoring station comprises transmitting said images to one of a terrestrial based, centralized monitoring station and an airborne centralized monitoring station.

16. The method of claim 14, further comprising causing each of said airborne unmanned mobile vehicles to monitor its associated said subregion for audio signals present in said subregion being monitored and transmitting said audio signals to said centralized monitoring station.

17. The method of claim 14, further comprising causing each of said airborne unmanned mobile vehicles to wirelessly communicate with one another and to detect when any one of said plurality of airborne unmanned mobile vehicles becomes inoperative.

18. The method of claim 17, further comprising causing each of said airborne unmanned mobile vehicles to dynamically change to said second operational plan without involvement of said centralized monitoring station.

19. The method of claim 14, wherein causing each said airborne unmanned mobile vehicle to wirelessly transmit images comprises causing each said airborne unmanned mobile vehicle to wirelessly transmit at least one of:

still color images;

still black and white images;

streaming color video;

streaming black and white video;

still infrared images; and

streaming infrared video.

20. A surveillance system for monitoring a geographic area, comprising:

a plurality of autonomously operated unmanned mobile vehicles;

each of said unmanned mobile vehicles including an onboard structural health monitoring system, and a guidance control system that executes a first pre-stored operational plan to enable each said unmanned mobile vehicle to traverse a specific, assigned subregion of said geographic area; and

each said onboard system further including a monitoring system to obtain at least one of;

visual images of said specific, assigned subregion associated with a given one of said unmanned mobile vehicles; and

audio signals emanating from its associated said specific, assigned subregion associated with a given one of said unmanned mobile vehicles; and

upon a given one of said autonomously operated unmanned mobile vehicles experiencing a structural health comprising event, then said onboard systems of at least a subplurality of said autonomously operated unmanned mobile vehicles being apprised of a change in an operational status of said given one autonomously operated unmanned mobile vehicle, and switching to a second, pre-stored operational plan, such that one or more of said subplurality of autonomously operated unmanned mobile vehicles operate to traverse a subregion associated with said given one of said autonomously operated unmanned mobile vehicles to enhance a persistent monitoring capability of said subplurality of autonomously operated unmanned mobile vehicles.