PREEMPTIVE COUNTERMEASURE MANAGEMENT

• US 20150268011A1
• Filed: 06/11/2012
• Published: 09/24/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 06/11/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Lockheed Martin Corporation (Martin Marietta Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Lockheed Martin Corporation (Martin Marietta Corporation)
• Inventors: Herman, Carl R.
• Granted Patent: US 9,279,643 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: F41G 7/007 Preparatory measures taken before the launching of the guided missiles
• CPC Class Codes: F41G 7/224 Deceiving or protecting means jamming or anti-jamming of radio-wave systems in general G01S7/36, G01S7/38; defense installations in general F41H11/02; chaff dispensers F42B12/70
• CPC Class Codes: F41H 11/02 Anti-aircraft or anti-guided missile or anti-torpedo defence installations or systems cartridges or missiles for producing smoke or for dispensing radar chaff or infrared material F42B5/15, F42B12/48, F42B12/70; informative reference: details of radar or sonar systems G01S7/00; jamming or electronic countermeasures G01S7/38, G01S7/495, H04K3/00

Abstract

Embodiments of the invention are directed to techniques for preemptively managing countermeasures of a vehicle. Prior to identifying an actual threat, at least one countermeasure device may be preemptively oriented to point in a direction most likely to produce a threat. The preemptive orientation may be determined my environmental information and/or vehicular information. Once an actual threat is identified, the countermeasure device may re-orient to point to the identified threat. The preemptive orientation may save time in the re-orientation process thereby providing extra time for countermeasures to be actively deployed.

Claims

1. A method of preemptively positioning at least one countermeasure device of a vehicle, comprising:

(a) computing, using at least one controller, a pre-threat orientation of the at least one countermeasure device based at least on environmental information about the current environment of the vehicle; and

(b) orienting the at least one countermeasure device based on the computed pre-threat orientation.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

repeating acts (a) and (b).

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving the environmental information about the current environment of the vehicle, wherein receiving the environmental information comprises;

using at least one sensor of the vehicle to obtain measurements of the current environment; and

determining the environmental information from the measurements.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein computing the pre-threat orientation comprises computing a center of mass of a potential threat.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein computing the pre-threat orientation is further based on vehicular information about the vehicle.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the vehicular information comprises a thermal map describing thermal emissions from the vehicle.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein:

the at least one countermeasure device comprises a first countermeasure device; and

a second countermeasure device; and

the vehicular information comprises information about the operation of the first countermeasure device.

8. A vehicle comprising:

at least one countermeasure device;

at least one controller coupled to the countermeasure device, wherein the at least one controller is configured to;

(a) compute a pre-threat orientation of the at least one countermeasure device based at least on environmental information about the current environment of the vehicle; and

(b) orient the at least one countermeasure device based on the computed pre-threat orientation.

9. The vehicle of claim 8, wherein the controller is further configured to:

repeat acts (a) and (b).

10. The vehicle of claim 8, wherein the controller is further configured to:

receive the environmental information about the current environment of the vehicle, wherein receiving the environmental information comprises;

using at least one sensor of the vehicle to obtain measurements of the current environment; and

determining the environmental information from the measurements.

11. The vehicle of claim 8, wherein computing the pre-threat orientation comprises computing a center of mass of a potential threat.

12. The vehicle of claim 8, wherein computing the pre-threat orientation is further based on vehicular information about the vehicle.

13. The vehicle of claim 12, wherein the vehicular information comprises a thermal map describing thermal emissions from the vehicle.

14. The vehicle of claim 12, wherein:

the at least one countermeasure device comprises a first countermeasure device; and

a second countermeasure device; and

the vehicular information comprises information about the operation of the first countermeasure device.

15. At least one computer readable medium encoded with instructions that, when executed on a computer system of a vehicle, perform a method of preemptively positioning countermeasures, the method comprising:

(a) computing a pre-threat orientation of the at least one countermeasure device based at least on environmental information about the current environment of the vehicle; and

(b) orienting the at least one countermeasure device based on the computed pre-threat orientation.

17. The at least one computer readable medium of claim 15, wherein computing the pre-threat orientation comprises computing a center of mass of a potential threat.

18. The at least one computer readable medium of claim 15, wherein computing the pre-threat orientation is further based on vehicular information about the vehicle.

19. The at least one computer readable medium of claim 18, wherein the vehicular information comprises a thermal map describing thermal emissions from the vehicle.

20. The at least one computer readable medium of claim 18, wherein:

the at least one countermeasure device comprises a first countermeasure device; and

a second countermeasure device; and

the vehicular information comprises information about the operation of the first countermeasure device.