Beam forming and pointing in a network of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for broadband access
First Claim
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1. A method of relaying Internet traffic via an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), the method comprising:
- associating each of a plurality of ground terminals to respective ones of a plurality of cells;
receiving data at the UAV from a gateway apparatus, the gateway apparatus being in data communication with an Internet; and
transmitting via a first beam comprising at least a portion of the received data to the plurality of cells, the associated ones of the plurality of ground terminals being in data communication with the UAV, the UAV and the associated ones of the plurality of ground terminals communicating according to an IEEE 802.11 physical air interface protocol;
executing, at the UAV and the associated ones of the plurality of ground terminals, an IEEE 802.11 medium access control (MAC) layer configured to synchronize the plurality of ground terminals to a master UAV transceiver;
where adjacent ones of the plurality of cells receive the first beam at different frequencies.
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Abstract
Systems and methods configured to form and point beams from one or more unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) toward a target coverage area on the ground. One embodiment describes dividing the target coverage area on the ground among multiple UAVs when each UAV antenna system generates static beams. Another embodiment describes dividing the target coverage area on the ground among multiple UAVs when their antenna systems are capable of dynamically steering their respective beams. Another set of embodiments describe systems and method to allow multiple UAVs to provide service in the same area on the ground using the same spectrum.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. A method of relaying Internet traffic via an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), the method comprising:
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associating each of a plurality of ground terminals to respective ones of a plurality of cells; receiving data at the UAV from a gateway apparatus, the gateway apparatus being in data communication with an Internet; and transmitting via a first beam comprising at least a portion of the received data to the plurality of cells, the associated ones of the plurality of ground terminals being in data communication with the UAV, the UAV and the associated ones of the plurality of ground terminals communicating according to an IEEE 802.11 physical air interface protocol; executing, at the UAV and the associated ones of the plurality of ground terminals, an IEEE 802.11 medium access control (MAC) layer configured to synchronize the plurality of ground terminals to a master UAV transceiver; where adjacent ones of the plurality of cells receive the first beam at different frequencies. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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7. An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) configured to relay Internet traffic, the UAV comprising:
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a first radio interface configured to communicate with a gateway apparatus; a second radio interface configured to communicate with a plurality of ground terminals according to an IEEE 802.11 physical air interface protocol; a processor apparatus; and a non-transitory computer readable medium with at least one computer program stored thereon, the at least one computer program configured to, when executed on the processor apparatus; associate each of the plurality of ground terminals to respective ones of a plurality of cells; receive data from the gateway apparatus while the gateway apparatus is in data communication with an Internet; transmit via a first beam, at least a portion of the received data to the plurality of cells while the plurality of ground terminals are in communication with the UAV; execute an IEEE 802.11 medium access control (MAC) layer configured to synchronize the plurality of ground terminals to a master UAV transceiver; where adjacent ones of the plurality of cells receive the first beam at different frequencies. - View Dependent Claims (8, 9, 10)
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11. A ground terminal configured to receive relayed Internet traffic from an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), the ground terminal comprising:
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a radio interface configured to communicate with the UAV according to an IEEE 802.11 physical air interface protocol; a processor apparatus; and a non-transitory computer readable medium with at least one computer program stored thereon, the at least one computer program configured to, when executed on the processor apparatus; associate the ground terminal to a cell of a plurality of cells served by the UAV; receive via a first beam, at least a portion of data transmitted to the plurality of cells by the UAV; wherein the portion of data transmitted from the gateway apparatus comprises relayed Internet traffic; execute an IEEE 802.11 medium access control (MAC) layer configured to synchronize to a master UAV transceiver; where adjacent ones of the plurality of cells receive the first beam at different frequencies. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13)
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Specification