Systems and methods for using different beam widths for communications between balloons
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A method, comprising:
- determining a vertical angle between a first balloon and a second balloon;
if the vertical angle is below a threshold angle, communicating with the second balloon using a narrow beam radio frequency (RF) signal from a communication system of the first balloon; and
if the vertical angle is not below the threshold angle, communicating with the second balloon using a wide beam RF signal from the communication system of the first balloon.
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Abstract
Example methods and systems for using radio frequency (RF) signals with different beam widths for purposes of balloon-to-balloon communication are described. One example method includes determining a vertical angle between a first balloon and a second balloon, if the vertical angle is below a threshold angle, communicating with the second balloon using a narrow beam RF signal from a communication system of the first balloon, and if the vertical angle is not below the threshold angle, communicating with the second balloon using a wide beam RF signal from the communication system of the first balloon.
76 Citations
20 Claims
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1. A method, comprising:
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determining a vertical angle between a first balloon and a second balloon; if the vertical angle is below a threshold angle, communicating with the second balloon using a narrow beam radio frequency (RF) signal from a communication system of the first balloon; and if the vertical angle is not below the threshold angle, communicating with the second balloon using a wide beam RF signal from the communication system of the first balloon. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
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10. A balloon, comprising:
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an RF communication system capable of transmitting a narrow beam RF signal and a wide beam RF signal; and a control system configured to; determine a vertical angle between the balloon and a second balloon; if the vertical angle is below a threshold angle, communicate with the second balloon by transmitting a narrow beam RF signal from the communication system to the second balloon; and if the vertical angle is not below the threshold angle, communicate with the second balloon by transmitting a wide beam RF signal from the communication system to the second balloon. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13)
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14. A method, comprising:
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determining a vertical angle between a first balloon and a second balloon; determining a corresponding angle range for a plurality of beam widths, wherein a communication system of the first balloon is capable of transmitting RF signals at the plurality of beam widths; selecting a beam width from the plurality of beam widths such that the vertical angle is within the corresponding angle range of the selected beam width; and communicating with the second balloon using an RF signal with the selected beam width from the communication system of the first balloon. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
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20. A non-transitory computer readable medium having stored therein instructions, that when executed by a computing system, cause the computing system to perform functions comprising:
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determining a vertical angle between a first balloon and a second balloon; if the vertical angle is below a threshold angle, communicating with the second balloon using a narrow beam RF signal from a communication system of the first balloon; and if the vertical angle is not below the threshold angle, communicating with the second balloon using a wide beam RF signal from the communication system of the first balloon.
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Specification