Remote sensing and determination of tactical ship readiness

• US 8,594,866 B1
• Filed: 04/16/2010
• Issued: 11/26/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 04/16/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: The Boeing Co.
• Original Assignee: The Boeing Co.
• Inventors: Chen, Henry, Deng, Lang, Cheng, Willie Z., Elkin, Jonathan David, Ballou, Philip J
• Primary Examiner(s): Tarcza, Thomas
• Assistant Examiner(s): ALHARBI, ADAM MOHAMED
• Application Number:
  US12/762,003
• Time in Patent Office: 1,320 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 701/21
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2200/32 Waterborne vessels
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/622 by satellite navigation
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/662 Temperature
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/70 Interactions with external data bases, e.g. traffic centres
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2250/10 by alarm
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2250/16 by display
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 3/00 Electric devices on electrically-propelled vehicles for safety purposes; Monitoring operating variables, e.g. speed, deceleration or energy consumption methods or circuit arrangements for monitoring or controlling batteries or fuel cells B60L58/00
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 58/30 for monitoring or controlling fuel cells
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/72 Electric energy management in electromobility
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/16 Information or communication technologies improving the operation of electric vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/40 Application of hydrogen technology to transportation, e.g. using fuel cells

Abstract

The different advantageous embodiments provide an apparatus comprising a sensor system, a computer system, and a satellite transceiver. The sensor system is configured to monitor time, position, heading, motions, environmental conditions, and performance data for a vessel and generate data about the vessel and an environment around the vessel. The computer system is connected to the sensor system. The computer system is configured to receive the data from the sensor system, generate vessel information about the data, and send the vessel information to a remote location. The satellite transceiver is connected to the computer system. The satellite transceiver is configured to send the vessel information to and receive other information from the remote location.

Claims

1. An apparatus comprising:

a sensor system configured to monitor time, position, heading, speed, motions, environmental conditions, and performance data for a vessel associated with the apparatus, and generate data about the vessel including a flex, a stress, a strain, an orientation, a rotation, and an acceleration of the vessel and an environment around the vessel;

a computer system connected to the sensor system, wherein the computer system is configured to receive the data from the sensor system, generate vessel information about the data, and send the vessel information to a remote location;

a satellite transceiver connected to the computer system, wherein the satellite transceiver is configured to send the vessel information to and receive other information from the remote location;

an automatic identification system;

wherein the data further includes shipboard conditions, encryption information for uploading or downloading large files at a next opportunity with a suitable connection, emergency SOS calls, personal messages from crew members, reports of extreme weather in a local environment, reports of suspicious activity by other vessels in the environment, and crew-adjusted routing information; and

wherein the shipboard conditions include motions, accelerations, a tilt, roll, a yaw, a pitch, a platform movement, an engine performance, a fuel flow, carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, and local environmental conditions.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the satellite transceiver is configured to send the vessel information in short data packets, the short data packets configured for short data bursts over a satellite network, the satellite network comprising a low earth orbit satellite constellation, the low earth orbit satellite constellation comprising a number of satellites at a number of altitudes between approximately 160 and 2000 kilometers.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the sensor system further comprises:

a number of sensors configured to detect a presence and movement of other vessels in an environment around a vessel associated with the apparatus.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the sensor system further comprises:

a number of sensors configured to detect engine status, engine performance, fuel flow, temperature, through-water velocity, local radar, wave radar, sea surface temperature, motions, single strain factors, and multiple strain factors for the vessel associated with the apparatus.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the sensor system further comprises:

one or more high integrity global positioning systems configured to monitor position, orientation, motions, and stresses of the vessel.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the computer system is further configured to acquire, integrate, compress, and encode the data collected from the sensor system to form a first number of short data packets.

7. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the computer system is further configured to manage the transmission of the first number of short data packets to the remote location.

8. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the computer system is further configured to manage the reception of a second number of short data packets from the remote location;

wherein the second number of short data packets include weather information for an environment around the vessel, weather information for a projected environment on a vessel route, software-enabling licensing information for certain software functionality of a vessel computer, and personal short messages directed to crew members.

9. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the remote location further comprises:

an analysis system configured to receive a first number of short data packets transmitted by the computer system of the apparatus, analyze the data collected from the sensor system of the apparatus, and generate a second number of short data packets in response to the data collected;

wherein the second number of short data packets are generated by the computer applying a number of policies that include a time arrival policy, a fuel efficiency during a voyage policy, a following a prescribed route policy, a safe operating standards policy, an aircraft landing parameters policy, a launch operations parameters policy, a re-fueling at sea parameters policy, a boarding a vessel at sea parameters policy, a parameters for navigating in close proximity to a number of other vessels and/or objects policy.

10. A method for determining vessel or fleet tactical readiness from a remote site, the method comprising:

receiving a first number of data packets from a vessel using a satellite transceiver;

decoding the first number of data packets to retrieve collected data; and

analyzing the collected data using a number of policies to determine whether the vessel meets a number of parameters required for a given task;

wherein the given task is selected from a list including a tactical operation, a launch operation, an aircraft landing operation, a re-fueling at sea operation, an operation involving navigating in close proximity with other vessels or obstacles, and an operation performing a number of operations in poor or zero visibility conditions; and

wherein the number of policies include at least one set of parameters, and wherein the number of policies include on time arrival, fuel efficiency during a voyage, following a prescribed route, safe operating standards, aircraft landing parameters, launch operations parameters, re-fueling at sea parameters, boarding a vessel at sea parameters, parameters for navigating in close proximity to a number of other vessels and/or objects, and/or any other suitable policy, and wherein the first number of short data packets are configured for short data burst transmission over the satellite communication system, the satellite communication system comprising a number of satellite transceivers connected to the computer system and a low earth orbit satellite constellation, the low earth orbit satellite constellation comprising a number of satellites at a number of altitudes between approximately 160 and 2000 kilometers.

11. The method of claim 10 further comprising:

generating at least one of instructions, information, requests, and alerts in response to the collected data to form a second number of short data packets; and

transmitting the second number of short data packets to the vessel using the satellite transceiver;

wherein the second number of short data packets includes commands selected from a list comprising a launch command, a vessel route update, and information about aircraft projected to use the vessel as a landing platform.

12. An apparatus comprising:

a data manager configured to receive a first number of short data packets from a computer system associated with a vessel using a satellite communication system, decode the number of short data packets to retrieve data about vessel including a flex, a stress, a strain, an orientation, a rotation, and an acceleration of the vessel and an environment around the vessel, responsive to a determination that a response is needed, form a second number of short data packets for the response, and transmit the second number of short data packets to the computer system associated with the vessel using the satellite communication system, wherein the response includes an advisory notice regarding changing of route direction or speed, using a different ship class for a given task, and changing propeller design or hull coating type;

an analysis system configured to analyze the data retrieved, determine tactical readiness of the vessel, determine whether the response is needed, generate at least one of instructions, information, requests, and alerts in response to the determination of tactical readiness and determination that the response is needed, wherein the data manager uses the at least one of instructions, information, requests, and alerts generated to form the second number of short data packets;

wherein the data manager is further configured to manage the reception of a number of short data packets between the computer system associated with the vessel and the apparatus; and

wherein the first number of short data packets are configured for short data burst transmission over the satellite communication system, the satellite communication system comprising a number of satellite transceivers connected to the computer system and a low earth orbit satellite constellation, the low earth orbit satellite constellation comprising a number of satellites at a number of altitudes between approximately 160 and 2000 kilometers.

13. A computer program product having computer usable program code stored on a computer readable storage medium, the computer usable program code executed by a computer to:

receive collected data about an environment and a vessel in the environment from a sensor system configured to monitor a time, a position, a heading, motions, environmental conditions, and performance data for the vessel including a speed, a flex, a stress, a strain, an orientation, a rotation, and an acceleration of the vessel and an environment around the vessel;

encode the data to form a first number of short data packets;

determine whether a report is needed;

responsive to a determination that the report is needed, transmit the first number of data packets to a remote server using a satellite transceiver;

receive a first number of data packets from a vessel using a satellite transceiver, wherein the satellite transceiver is configured to send the vessel information in short data packets, the short data packets configured for short data bursts over a satellite network, the satellite network comprising a low earth orbit satellite constellation, the low earth orbit satellite constellation comprising a number of satellites at a number of altitudes between approximately 160 and 2000 kilometers;

decode the first number of data packets to retrieve collected data; and

analyze the collected data using a number of policies to determine whether the vessel meets a number of parameters required for a given task.

14. The computer program product of claim 13, the computer usable program code further executed by the computer to:

analyze data received from one or more high integrity global positioning systems to monitor position, orientation, motions, and stresses of the vessel;

in response to analyzing the data, transmit an alert, wherein the alert includes information associated with safety and/or efficiency of a vessel, environment, route, operating parameter, emergency weather reports, routing advisory information, notices that a large file is waiting to be downloaded the next time the vessel has access to a broadband connection, alerts of storms, typhoons, hurricanes, rogue waves, and piracy activity.

15. The computer program product of claim 13, the computer usable program code further executed by the computer to:

decode a second number of short data packets received from the remote server to retrieve information, wherein the second number of short data packets is received using the satellite transceiver.

16. The computer program product of claim 13, the computer usable program code further executed by the computer to:

determine at least one of whether a reporting schedule indicates the report is needed, whether a request for an unscheduled report has been received, and whether an unscheduled automated alert is triggered that requires a report.