Method and system for implementing self organizing mobile network (SOMNET) of drones

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10484884-B2
Application number	US-201916397890-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 29, 2019
Priority date	Jul 18, 2017
Publication date	Nov 19, 2019
Grant date	Nov 19, 2019

Abstract

Novel tools and techniques are provided for implementing self-organizing mobile networks (“SOMNETs”) of drones and platforms. In various embodiments, a computing system might receive first data from each of a plurality of vehicles; might receive second data from each of a plurality of platforms; might analyze the first data to determine a status of each vehicle; and might analyze the second data to determine a status of each platform. Based at least in part on the analyzed first and second data, the computing system might generate at least one of first control instructions to at least one first vehicle of the plurality of vehicles or second control instructions to at least one first platform of the plurality of platforms that respectively cause the at least one first vehicle to perform one or more first actions or cause the at least one first platform to perform one or more second actions.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method, comprising:
receiving, with a computing system, one or more requests for one of a plurality of vehicles to perform one or more tasks;
receiving, with the computing system, at least one first data from at least one first vehicle of the plurality of vehicles, the at least one first data comprising data regarding one or more second vehicles of the plurality of vehicles of a self-organizing mobile network (“SOMNET”) of vehicles, wherein the at least one first vehicle receives beacon data from each of at least one second vehicle of the one or more second vehicles, wherein the data regarding the one or more second vehicles comprises the beacon data from each of the at least one second vehicle, wherein the beacon data from each of the at least one second vehicle comprises at least one of signal strength of the beacon data, communication transmit power level, or configuration parameters;
analyzing, with the computing system, the at least one first data to determine a status of at least one second vehicle of the one or more second vehicles; and
in response to receiving the one or more requests and based at least in part on a determination that the at least one second vehicle is capable of performing at least one task of the one or more tasks, generating, with the computing system, one or more first control instructions and sending, with the computing system, the one or more first control instructions to the at least one second vehicle, the one or more first control instructions causing each of the at least one second vehicle to perform one or more first actions.

2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
in response to receiving the one or more requests and based at least in part on a determination that the at least one second vehicle is unable to perform the at least one task of the one or more tasks, identifying, with the computing system, at least one third vehicle of the one or more second vehicles that is capable of performing the at least one task of the one or more tasks and that is within a predetermined geographic range, generating, with the computing system, one or more second control instructions, and sending, with the computing system, the one or more second control instructions to the at least one third vehicle, the one or more second control instructions causing each of the at least one third vehicle to perform the one or more first actions.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the one or more second vehicles comprise the first vehicle.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the computing system comprises at least one of one or more vehicle processors disposed in one of the plurality of vehicles, one or more processors disposed in a user device associated with an operator of a service provider, a self-organizing network (“SON”) server, a service provider server, a gateway device, a computing node, a server computer, a distributed computing system, a distributed computing system that integrates computing resources from two or more vehicles, or a cloud computing system.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein each of the plurality of vehicles comprises one of a manned vehicle or an unmanned vehicle, wherein each manned vehicle comprises one of a car, a motorcycle, an all-terrain vehicle, a truck, a van, a semi-trailer truck, an aircraft, a subterranean vehicle, an amphibious vehicle, or a water craft, wherein each unmanned vehicle comprises one of an aerial drone, a land-based drone, a water-based drone, a subterranean drone, an amphibious drone, a robot, or an autonomous vehicle.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein at least one vehicle of the plurality of vehicles comprises an inductive charging system that charges via inductive power transfer from one or more charging pads in a corresponding charging platform.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the determined status of the at least one second vehicle comprises one of current battery charge level, remaining battery charge level, current geographic location, one or more currently plotted destinations, one or more currently plotted courses, proximity to one or more charging platforms, proximity to one or more communications platforms, proximity to one or more nearby vehicles, communications status with one or more nearby vehicles, new device status within the SOMNET, registration status within the SOMNET, availability to perform at least one of the one or more tasks, status of current task, status of one or more onboard tools, device failure status, disabled device status, or out-of-range device status.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the beacon data from each of the at least one second vehicle comprises at least one of a unique identifier assigned to a particular one of the at least one second vehicle, current battery level of the at least one second vehicle, remaining battery level of the at least one second vehicle, geographic location information of the particular one of the at least one second vehicle, or relative location information of the particular one of the at least one second vehicle with respect to other vehicles.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the one or more first actions comprise at least one of establishing wireless network communications between a built-in mobile wireless base station and at least one wireless network node of a telecommunications network to augment wireless network functionality, establishing wireless network communications between a built-in mobile wireless base station and at least one wireless network node of a telecommunications network to extend wireless network functionality, monitoring for vehicular accidents, monitoring for criminal activities, monitoring for man-made disasters, monitoring for natural disasters, tracking real-time traffic patterns, tracking one or more weather conditions, recovering one or more lost vehicles, recovering one or more damaged vehicles, delivering one or more packages, tracking one or more packages being delivered, or repairing one or more telecommunications equipment.

10. The method of claim 1 , wherein the one or more second vehicles each comprises at least one of a vehicle or a drone, wherein each of the one or more second vehicles comprises a mobile wireless base station, wherein the method further comprises:
deploying, with the computing system, the one or more second vehicles to at least one geographic area to extend a wireless range of a telecommunications network; and
establishing, with the computing system, wireless network communications between the mobile wireless base station and at least one wireless network node of the telecommunications network.

11. The method of claim 1 , wherein the one or more second vehicles each comprises at least one of a vehicle or a drone, wherein each of the one or more second vehicles comprises one or more weather sensors comprising at least one of one or more pressure sensors, one or more temperature sensors, one or more motion sensors, one or more solar light sensors, one or more ambient light sensors, one or more infra-red sensors, one or more ultra-violet sensors, one or more sound sensors, one or more seismic sensors, one or more air quality sensors, one or more moisture sensors, one or more wind sensors, or one or more particulate sensors, wherein the method further comprises:
tracking, with the one or more weather sensors, weather conditions in one or more geographic areas;
receiving, with the computing system, data from the one or more weather sensors tracking the weather conditions in the one or more geographic areas; and
sending, with the computing system, one or more messages to at least one of one or more user devices associated with customers in the one or more geographic areas, one or more law enf

Assignees

• Centurylink Ip Llc

Inventors

• Carpenter Phil
• Casey Steven M
• Cook Charles I

Classifications

• B64U2201/00

  UAVs characterised by their flight controls · CPC title

• B60L2240/70

  Interactions with external data bases, e.g. traffic centres · CPC title

• H04W8/005

  Discovery of network devices, e.g. terminals · CPC title

• H04W84/18

  Self-organising networks, e.g. ad-hoc networks or sensor networks · CPC title

• H04W84/005

  Moving wireless networks · CPC title