Airborne unmanned aerial vehicle monitoring station

• US 9,741,255 B1
• Filed: 05/28/2015
• Issued: 08/22/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 05/28/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc. (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc. (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Inventors: Navot, Amir, Kimchi, Gur, Porter, Brandon William, Bar-Zeev, Avi, Buchmueller, Daniel
• Primary Examiner(s): Khatib, Rami
• Assistant Examiner(s): Boomer, Jeffrey
• Application Number:
  US14/724,657
• Time in Patent Office: 817 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/083 Shipping
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0008 with other aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0013 with a ground station
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0021 located in the aircraft
• 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 5/0082 for monitoring traffic from a ground station radar or analogous systems specially adapted for traffic control G01S13/91
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0095 Aspects of air-traffic control not provided for in the other subgroups of this main group

Abstract

Described is an airborne monitoring station (“AMS”) for use in monitoring a coverage area and/or unmanned aerial vehicles (“UAVs”) positioned within a coverage area of the AMS. For example, the AMS may be an airship that remains at a high altitude (e.g., 45,000 feet) that monitors a coverage area that is within a line-of-sight of the AMS. As UAVs enter, navigate within and exit the coverage area, the AMS may wirelessly communicate with the UAVs, facilitate communication between the UAVs and one or more remote computing resources, and/or monitor a position of the UAVs.

Claims

1. An unmanned aerial vehicle monitoring system, comprising:

an aerial monitoring station (“

AMS”

), the AMS;

including an airship that maintains the AMS at an altitude above a commercial airspace;

including a plurality of image capture devices; and

configured to monitor positions of each of a plurality of unmanned aerial vehicles (“

UAVs”

) located within an AMS coverage area;

wherein, for each of the plurality of UAVs, the AMS is configured to receive respective position information, and the AMS is configured to orient a respective image capture device in a direction indicated by respective position information of a respective one of the plurality of UAVs; and

a remote computing resource in wireless communication with the AMS.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the AMS coverage area is within a defined distance of the AMS such that the AMS can wirelessly communicate with each of the plurality of UAVs and obtain images that include visual representations of the UAVs.

3. The system of claim 1, the AMS further including:

wherein, for each of the plurality of UAVs,

the respective image capture device is configured to obtain an image that includes a representation of the respective one of the plurality of UAVs.

4. The system of claim 1, the AMS further including:

wherein each of the plurality of image capture devices having includes a respective field of view oriented toward a respective portion of the AMS coverage area, wherein the respective fields of view of the plurality of image capture devices encompass the AMS coverage area; and

wherein the AMS is configured to receive images from each of the plurality of image capture devices.

5. The system of claim 4, the AMS further including a wireless transmitter configured to transmit the images to the remote computing resource;

and

wherein the remote computing resource is configured to process the images to detect each of the plurality of UAVs represented in the images.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the AMS is further configured to:

monitor a first weather condition within the AMS coverage area;

monitor a second weather condition approaching the AMS coverage area; and

provide weather information corresponding to the first weather condition and the second weather condition to each of the plurality of UAVs.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the AMS is further configured to wirelessly communicate with each of the plurality of UAVs.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein each of the plurality of UAVs sends to the AMS using wireless communication, at least one of position information, images obtained using an image capture device located on a UAV, or difference information based on a difference between topography information provided to the UAV and information obtained by sensors of the UAV.

9. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

a second AMS, the second AMS positioned at a second altitude and configured to monitor positions of each of a second plurality of UAVs located within a second AMS coverage area; and

wherein the second AMS is in wireless communication with at least one of the remote computing resource or the AMS.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the remote computing resource sends UAV navigation instructions to the AMS;

and wherein the AMS sends the UAV navigation instructions to at least one of the plurality of UAVs.

11. A computer implemented method, comprising:

under control of one or more computing systems configured with executable instructions;

detecting an unmanned aerial vehicle (“

UAV”

) within a coverage area of an aerial monitoring station (“

AMS”

), wherein the AMS includes an airship positioned at an altitude above a UAV navigation space;

monitoring at the AMS a position of the UAV, wherein the monitoring includes;

receiving position information from the UAV indicating the position of the UAV; and

orienting a camera associated with the AMS in a direction corresponding to the position information;

sending the position information indicating the position of the UAV from the AMS to a remote computing resource;

receiving at the AMS an instruction for the UAV; and

sending the instruction from the AMS to the UAV.

12. The computer implemented method of claim 11, wherein monitoring the position of the UAV includes:

obtaining an image with the camera; and

processing the image to detect a representation of the UAV in the image.

13. The computer implemented method of claim 12, wherein processing the image includes detecting in the image an identifier associated with the UAV, wherein the identifier is at least one of a projected light pattern, a shape of the UAV, or a graphical identifier.

14. The computer implemented method of claim 11, wherein the instruction for the UAV includes navigation instructions.

15. The computer implemented method of claim 11, wherein the instruction is sent from the AMS to the UAV using a line of sight communication between the AMS and the UAV.

16. An aerial monitoring station (“

AMS”

) apparatus, comprising;

an airship configured to maintain the AMS at an altitude above an AMS coverage area;

a plurality of sensors located on the airship and oriented to monitor a respective portion of the AMS coverage area, the plurality of sensors including a plurality of cameras; and

a communication component located on the airship and configured to wirelessly communicate with each of a plurality of UAVs positioned within the AMS coverage area and wirelessly communicate with a remote computing resource; and

wherein, for each of the plurality of UAVs, the AMS is configured to receive respective position information, and the AMS is configured to orient a respective camera of the plurality of cameras in a direction indicated by respective position information of a respective one of the plurality of UAVs.

17. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the a plurality of cameras are oriented to obtain images of the respective portion of the AMS coverage area;

and

wherein images obtained by the plurality of cameras are wirelessly transmitted to the remote computing resource.

18. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the communication component:

wirelessly receives data from at least one of the plurality of UAVs; and

wirelessly sends the data to the remote computing resource.

19. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the communication component:

wirelessly receives navigation instructions from the remote computing resource; and

wirelessly sends to at least one of the plurality of UAVs the navigation instructions.