Scheduling of unmanned aerial vehicles for mission performance

• US 9,671,790 B2
• Filed: 05/20/2014
• Issued: 06/06/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 05/20/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: Srivastava, Ashok N., Pasko, Douglas M., Batla, Hani, Kantor, Igor, Ubhi, Gurpreet
• Primary Examiner(s): To, Tuan C.
• Application Number:
  US14/282,205
• Publication Number:
  US 20160216711A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,113 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B64C 39/024 of the remote controlled vehicle type, i.e. RPV
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 47/08 Arrangements of cameras
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 2101/00 UAVs specially adapted for particular uses or applications
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 2101/30 for imaging, photography or videography
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 2101/60 for transporting passengers; for transporting goods other than weapons
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 2201/10 autonomous, i.e. by navigating independently from ground or air stations, e.g. by using inertial navigation systems [INS]
• 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: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0631 Resource planning, allocation, distributing or scheduling for enterprises or organisations
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0013 with a ground station
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0026 located on the ground
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0034 Assembly of a flight plan
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0052 for cruising combined instruments indicating more than one navigational value G01C23/00
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/006 in accordance with predefined flight zones, e.g. to avoid prohibited zones
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0069 specially adapted for an unmanned aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0078 for monitoring traffic from the aircraft radar or analogous systems specially adapted for traffic control G01S13/91
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0091 for monitoring atmospheric conditions radar or analogous systems specially adapted for meteorological use G01S13/95; meteorology G01W
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks

Abstract

A device receives a request for a mission that includes traversal of a flight path from one or more first locations to a second location and performance of mission operations, and determines required capabilities and constraints for the mission based on the request. The device identifies UAVs based on the required capabilities and the constraints, and calculates a cost effective mission plan, for the identified UAVs, based on the required capabilities and the constraints. The device generates mission plan instructions, for the cost effective mission plan, that include flight path instructions for the flight path and mission instructions for the mission operations. The device provides the mission plan instructions to the identified UAVs to permit the identified UAVs to travel from the one or more first locations to the second location, via the flight path, and to perform the mission operations.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

receiving, by a device, a request for a mission that includes traversal of a flight path from a first geographical location to a second geographical location and performance of one or more mission operations;

determining, by the device, required capabilities for the mission based on the request;

determining, by the device, constraints for the mission based on the request;

identifying, by the device and from a plurality of unmanned aerial vehicles, particular unmanned aerial vehicles based on the required capabilities and the constraints;

calculating, by the device, a cost effective mission plan, for the particular unmanned aerial vehicles, based on the required capabilities and the constraints;

generating, by the device, mission plan instructions for the cost effective mission plan,

the mission plan instructions including flight path instructions for the flight path and mission instructions for the one or more mission operations; and

providing, by the device, the mission plan instructions to the particular unmanned aerial vehicles to permit the particular unmanned aerial vehicles to travel from the first geographical location to the second geographical location, via the flight path, and to perform the one or more mission operations.

2. The method of claim 1, where determining the constraints for the mission comprises at least one of:

determining the constraints for the mission based on availability of the plurality of unmanned aerial vehicles;

determining the constraints for the mission based on operational states of the plurality of unmanned aerial vehicles;

determining the constraints for the mission based on costs associated with operating the plurality of unmanned aerial vehicles;

determining the constraints for the mission based on a time limit associated with the mission;

or

determining the constraints for the mission based on a mission type associated with the mission.

3. The method of claim 1, where calculating the cost effective mission plan comprises:

determining a plurality of mission plans, for the particular unmanned aerial vehicles, based on the required capabilities and the constraints;

assigning weights to the required capabilities and the constraints;

calculating scores for the plurality of mission plans based on the assigned weights; and

selecting the cost effective mission plan, from the plurality of mission plans, based on the calculated scores.

4. The method of claim 1, where calculating the cost effective mission plan comprises:

utilizing a linear programming technique to calculate the cost effective mission plan, for the particular unmanned aerial vehicles, based on the required capabilities and the constraints.

5. The method of claim 1, where identifying the particular unmanned aerial vehicles comprises:

assigning weights to capability information associated with the plurality of unmanned aerial vehicles;

calculating scores for the plurality of unmanned aerial vehicles based on the assigned weights; and

identifying the particular unmanned aerial vehicles, from the plurality of unmanned aerial vehicles, based on the calculated scores.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising one of:

identifying one or more additional unmanned aerial vehicles for the particular unmanned aerial vehicles based on the cost effective mission plan;

or

removing one or more unmanned aerial vehicles from the particular unmanned aerial vehicles based on the cost effective mission plan.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, from at least one of the particular unmanned aerial vehicles, a notification indicating that the mission is complete when the particular unmanned aerial vehicles complete the one or more mission operations.

8. A system, comprising:

one or more devices to;

receive a request for a mission that includes traversal of a flight path from one or more first geographical locations to a second geographical location and performance of one or more mission operations at the second geographical location;

determine required capabilities for the mission based on the request;

determine constraints for the mission based on the request;

identify, from a plurality of unmanned aerial vehicles, particular unmanned aerial vehicles based on the required capabilities and the constraints;

calculate a cost effective mission plan, for the particular unmanned aerial vehicles, based on the required capabilities and the constraints;

generate mission plan instructions for the cost effective mission plan,

the mission plan instructions including flight path instructions for the flight path and mission instructions for the one or more mission operations; and

provide the mission plan instructions to the particular unmanned aerial vehicles to permit the particular unmanned aerial vehicles to travel from the one or more first geographical locations to the second geographical location, via the flight path, and to perform the one or more mission operations at the second geographical location.

9. The system of claim 8, where, when determining the constraints for the mission, the one or more devices are further to least one of:

determine the constraints for the mission based on availability of the plurality of unmanned aerial vehicles;

determine the constraints for the mission based on operational states of the plurality of unmanned aerial vehicles;

determine the constraints for the mission based on costs associated with operating the plurality of unmanned aerial vehicles;

determine the constraints for the mission based on a time limit associated with the mission;

or

determine the constraints for the mission based on a mission type associated with the mission.

10. The system of claim 8, where, when calculating the cost effective mission plan, the one or more devices are further to:

determine a plurality of mission plans based on the required capabilities and the constraints;

assign weights to the required capabilities and the constraints;

calculate scores for the plurality of mission plans based on the assigned weights;

select the cost effective mission plan, from the plurality of mission plans, based on the calculated scores.

11. The system of claim 8, where, when calculating the cost effective mission plan, the one or more devices are further to:

utilize a linear programming technique to calculate the cost effective mission plan, for the particular unmanned aerial vehicles, based on the required capabilities and the constraints.

12. The system of claim 8, where, when identifying the particular unmanned aerial vehicles, the one or more devices are further to:

assign weights to capability information associated with the plurality of unmanned aerial vehicles;

calculate scores for the plurality of unmanned aerial vehicles based on the assigned weights; and

identify the particular unmanned aerial vehicles, from the plurality of unmanned aerial vehicles, based on the calculated scores.

13. The system of claim 8, where the one or more devices are further to:

receive mission information from the particular unmanned aerial vehicles during performance of the one or more mission operations by the particular unmanned aerial vehicles; and

provide the mission information to a device that generated the request for the mission.

14. The system of claim 8, where the one or more devices are further to:

receive, from at least one of the particular unmanned aerial vehicles, a notification indicating that the mission is complete when the particular unmanned aerial vehicles complete the one or more mission operations.

15. A computer-readable medium for storing instructions, the instructions comprising:

one or more instructions that, when executed by one or more processors of a device, cause the one or more processors to;

receive a request for a mission that includes traversal of a flight path from one or more first geographical locations to a second geographical location and performance of one or more mission operations;

determine required capabilities for the mission based on the request;

determine constraints for the mission based on the request;

identify, from a plurality of unmanned aerial vehicles, particular unmanned aerial vehicles based on the required capabilities and the constraints;

calculate a cost effective mission plan, for the particular unmanned aerial vehicles, based on the required capabilities and the constraints;

generate mission plan instructions for the cost effective mission plan,

the mission plan instructions including flight path instructions for the flight path and mission instructions for the one or more mission operations; and

provide the mission plan instructions to the particular unmanned aerial vehicles to permit the particular unmanned aerial vehicles to travel from the one or more first geographical locations to the second geographical location, via the flight path, and to perform the one or more mission operations.

16. The computer-readable medium of claim 15, where the instructions to determine the constraints for the mission further comprise:

one or more instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to at least one of;

determine the constraints for the mission based on availability of the plurality of unmanned aerial vehicles;

determine the constraints for the mission based on operational states of the plurality of unmanned aerial vehicles;

determine the constraints for the mission based on costs associated with operating the plurality of unmanned aerial vehicles;

determine the constraints for the mission based on a time limit associated with the mission;

or

determine the constraints for the mission based on a mission type associated with the mission.

17. The computer-readable medium of claim 15, where the instructions to determine the required capabilities for the mission further comprise:

one or more instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to at least one of;

determine the required capabilities for the mission based on the one or more first geographical locations and the second geographical location;

determine the required capabilities for the mission based on component requirements associated with the flight path and the one or more mission operations;

determine the required capabilities for the mission based on physical requirements associated with the flight path and the one or more mission operations;

or

determine the required capabilities for the mission based on aviation information associated with the one or more first geographical locations and the second geographical location.

18. The computer-readable medium of claim 15, where the instructions to calculate the cost effective mission plan further comprise:

one or more instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to at least one of;

determine a plurality of mission plans based on the required capabilities and the constraints;

assign weights to the required capabilities and the constraints;

calculate scores for the plurality of mission plans based on the assigned weights; and

select the cost effective mission plan, from the plurality of mission plans, based on the calculated scores.

19. The computer-readable medium of claim 15, where the instructions to calculate the cost effective mission plan further comprise:

one or more instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to at least one of;

utilize a linear programming technique to calculate the cost effective mission plan, for the particular unmanned aerial vehicles, based on the required capabilities and the constraints.

20. The computer-readable medium of claim 15, where the instructions to identify the particular unmanned aerial vehicles further comprise:

one or more instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to;

assign different weights to different capability information associated with the plurality of unmanned aerial vehicles;

calculate scores for the plurality of unmanned aerial vehicles based on the assigned weights; and

identify the particular unmanned aerial vehicles, from the plurality of unmanned aerial vehicles, based on the calculated scores and based on the required capabilities for the mission.