Precision aerial delivery system

• US 9,120,570 B2
• Filed: 02/26/2013
• Issued: 09/01/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 02/26/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: The Boeing Co.
• Original Assignee: The Boeing Co.
• Inventors: Rawdon, Blaine Knight, Hoisington, Zachary Charles
• Primary Examiner(s): Sanderson, Joseph W
• Application Number:
  US13/776,733
• Publication Number:
  US 20140239123A1
• Time in Patent Office: 917 Days
• Field of Search: 244/137.1, 244/138.R, 244/142, 244/152, 169/53, 701/5, 701/300
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A62C 3/0235 by means of containers, e.g. buckets
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 1/08 the articles being load-carrying devices
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 1/16 Dropping or releasing powdered, liquid, or gaseous matter, e.g. for fire-fighting jettisoning fuel B64D37/26

Abstract

A system and methods for deployment operations from an airborne vehicle are presented. A designated location of a target is received at a flight control system coupled to a location tracking guided container comprising an agent. The location tracking guided container is ejected at an ejection point from the airborne vehicle approximately above the designated location of the target to descend at a descent rate and a descent angle. A calculated path to the designated location is calculated based on the designated location and a current location of the location tracking guided container. The location tracking guided container is aerodynamically guided by a glide control structure to fly along the calculated path from the ejection point to a load release altitude near the designated location of the target. The agent is delivered to the designated location of the target by releasing the agent at the load release altitude near the designated location.

Claims

1. A method for deployment operations from an airborne vehicle, the method comprising:

receiving a designated location of a target by a flight control system coupled to a location tracking guided container comprising a fire-suppression agent;

ejecting at an ejection point the location tracking guided container from the airborne vehicle approximately above the designated location of the target to descend at a descent rate and a descent angle;

calculating during descent, by a processor in the location tracking guided container, a calculated path to the designated location based on the designated location and a current location of the location tracking guided container;

aerodynamically guiding the location tracking guided container by a glide control structure coupled thereto under control of the processor in the location tracking guided container independent of the airborne vehicle to fly along the calculated path from the ejection point to a load release altitude near the designated location of the target,

controlling an actuator to operate a first suppression agent flow-control valve to control a flow rate of the fire suppression agent based on an operational condition of the location tracking guided container; and

delivering the fire-suppression agent to the designated location of the target by releasing the agent at the load release altitude near the designated location.

2. The method of claim 1,

wherein the guide control structure controls the descent rate from about 30 MPH to about 200 MPH, and

the guide control structure controls the descent angle from about 20 to about 90 degrees.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising engaging an automated transport system on the airborne vehicle to first select and then move the location tracking guided container.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising engaging the automated transport system on the airborne vehicle to first select and then move one or more additional location tracking guided containers to be ejected from the airborne vehicle.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising dropping from the airborne vehicle to one or more additional location tracking guided containers in response to one or more reconnaissance systems indicating updated information comprising preferred targets on or near the designated location of the target.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising deploying one or more of the glide control structure on the location tracking guided container to assist in a guidance of the location tracking guided container allowing the airborne vehicle to fly an offset path offset from the target.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising staggering drops of one or more additional location tracking guided containers from the airborne vehicle in response to intelligence information received from one or more reconnaissance systems that are in a proximity of the designated location of the target.

8. The method of claim 6, further comprising deploying one or more of the glide control structure on the one or more additional location tracking guided containers respectively to assist in steering by guidance of the location tracking guided container.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

transmitting the current location of the location tracking guided container by an on-board locator transmitter of the location tracking guided container; and

recovering the location tracking guided container based on the current location.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

sensing the current location of the location tracking guided container by the flight control system; and

calculating the calculated path to the designated location based on the current location and the designated location by the flight control system.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising delivering the agent to a fire at the designated location, wherein the agent comprises:

water, ammonium sulfate, ammonium polyphosphate, attapulgite clay, diammonium phosphate, guar gum, a fertilizer, HFC-125, Pentafluoroethane (CF3CHF2), Nitrogen, Argon, Helium, aerosolized liquid mist, fire protection fluid (C5F120), Halon, or a combination thereof.

12. The method of claim 1, further comprising aborting delivery of the agent by redirecting the location tracking guided container to release the agent at an abort altitude.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the airborne vehicle comprises an aircraft.

20. The method of claim 1, further comprising filing filling the location tracking guided container with the fire-suppression agent prior to loading the location tracking guided container into the airborne vehicle.

21. The method of claim 1, wherein the glide control structure comprises:

a steerable parachute, a Rogallo wing, or a balloon.

22. The method of claim 1, further comprising calibrating dispersion of the fire-suppression agent.

23. The method of claim 1, further comprising shaping a discharge of the fire-suppression agent in a linear distribution.

24. The method of claim 1, further comprising guiding landing of the location tracking guided container by a same glide control structure.

14. An air-deployable load delivery system, the system comprising:

a location tracking guided container comprising a processor therein, the location tracking guided container operable to;

receive a fire-suppression agent;

eject at an ejection point from a platform at an ejection altitude approximately above a designated location;

descend at a descent rate and a descent angle toward the designated location; and

deliver the fire-suppression agent to the designated location by releasing the fire-suppression agent at a load release altitude near the designated location; and

a glide control structure operable to aerodynamically control the location tracking guided container under control of the processor in the location tracking guided container independent of the platform to glide along a calculated path from the ejection point to the designated location, and

an actuator that operates a first suppression agent flow-control valve to control a flow rate of the fire suppression agent based on an operational condition of the location tracking guided container,

wherein the fire-suppression agent is delivered to the designated location of the target by releasing the agent at the load release altitude near the designated location.

15. The system of claim 14, further comprising a flight control computer coupled to the location tracking guided container and operable to:

detect the designated location of a target from an off-board system;

sense a current location of the location tracking guided container from a sensor coupled to the location tracking guided container; and

calculate the calculated path to the designated location based on the current location and the designated location.

16. The system of claim 14, wherein the platform comprises an airborne vehicle, or an airborne aircraft.

17. The system of claim 14, wherein the platform comprises a bridge or a building.

18. The system of claim 14, further comprising a fire-suppression agent flow-control valve operable to control a distributed flow rate of the fire-suppression agent based on operational conditions.

19. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium comprising computer-executable instructions for air-deploying a load delivery system from a platform, the computer-executable instructions comprising code for:

receiving a target location via an on-board guidance system coupled to a guided container comprising a fire-suppression agent;

sensing a current location of the guided container;

calculating during descent, by a processor in the location tracking guided container, a calculated path to the target location based on the current location and the target location;

aerodynamically guiding the guided container by a glide control structure coupled thereto under control of the processor in the location tracking guided container independent of the airborne vehicle to glide along the calculated path to a load release altitude near the target location,

controlling an actuator to operate a first suppression agent flow-control valve to control a flow rate of the fire suppression agent based on an operational condition of the location tracking guided container, and

delivering the fire-suppression agent to the target location by releasing the load at the load release altitude near the target location.