Determination of a change in atmospheric pressure based on radio frequency return signal

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10586465-B2
Application number	US-201615378325-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 14, 2016
Priority date	Dec 14, 2016
Publication date	Mar 10, 2020
Grant date	Mar 10, 2020

Abstract

Apparatus and methods to determine a change in atmospheric pressure between a forward portion of a flying object and a rear portion of the flying object based on at least one radio frequency (RF) return signal, and to determine a password using the determined change in atmospheric pressure.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An apparatus comprising:
a memory configured to store a plurality of atmospheric pressure readings; and
a processor in communication with the memory, the processor configured to:
determine a change in atmospheric pressure between a forward portion of a flying object and a rear portion of the flying object based on at least one radio frequency (RF) return signal; and
decode a pressure differential password, based on the determined change.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the processor is further configured to determine data corresponding to at least one of a magnitude and a phase of the RF return signal.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the processor is configured to determine the change in atmospheric pressure based on data corresponding to at least one of a magnitude or a phase of the RF return signal.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the processor is further configured to compare the pressure differential password with an authorization code.

5. The apparatus of claim 4 , wherein the processor is further configured to send a signal upon a determination that the pressure differential password does not match the authorization code.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising a receiver configured to receive the RF return signal.

7. The apparatus of claim 6 , further comprising a transmitter configured to transmit a transmit RF signal.

8. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the memory is further configured to store at least one of:
data corresponding to the change in the atmospheric pressure of the volume of air surrounding the front and the rear of the flying object,
an authorization code to enter airspace, and
data corresponding to at least one of a magnitude or a phase of the RF return signal.

9. A method of decoding a pressure differential password, the method comprising:
transmitting a transmit radio frequency (RF) signal;
determining a change in atmospheric pressure between a forward portion of a flying object and a rear portion of the flying object based on at least one RF return signal; and
using the determined change to decode a pressure differential password.

10. The method of claim 9 , further comprising determining data corresponding to at least one of a magnitude or a phase of the RF return signal.

11. The method of claim 9 , further comprising determining the change in atmospheric pressure based on data corresponding to at least one of a magnitude or a phase of the RF return signal.

12. The method of claim 11 , further comprising comparing the pressure differential password with an authorization code.

13. The method of claim 12 , further comprising sending a signal upon a determination that the pressure differential password does not match the authorization code.

14. The method of claim 9 , further comprising receiving the RF return signal.

15. The method of claim 9 , further comprising storing data corresponding to the change in the atmospheric pressure of the volume of air surrounding the front and the rear of the flying object.

16. The method of claim 9 , further comprising storing at least one of:
an authorization code to enter airspace, and
data corresponding to at least one of a magnitude or a phase of the RF return signal.

17. A computer program product for decoding a pressure differential password, the computer program product comprising a non-transitory computer readable storage medium having program instructions embodied therewith, the program instructions executable by a device to cause the device to determine a change in atmospheric pressure of volume of air surrounding front and rear of a flying object based on radio frequency (RF) return signal, wherein the RF return signal corresponds to the RF return signal reflected from the volume of air surrounding the front and the rear of the flying object, and to use the determined change to decode the pressure differential password.

18. The computer program product of claim 17 , wherein the program instructions executable by the device further cause the device to determine the change in atmospheric pressure based on data corresponding to at least one of a magnitude or a phase of the RF return signal.

19. The computer program product of claim 18 , wherein the program instructions executable by the device further cause the device to compare the pressure differential password with an authorization code.

20. The computer program product of claim 19 , wherein the program instructions executable by the device further cause the device to send a signal upon a determination that the pressure differential password does not match the authorization code.

Assignees

• IBM

Inventors

• Berge Layne A
• Dangler John R
• Doyle Matthew S
• Liang Thomas W
• Orozco Manuel

Classifications

• G01S13/91

  for traffic control (G01S13/93 takes precedence) · CPC title

• G01S13/951

  ground based · CPC title

• G01S13/87

  Combinations of radar systems, e.g. primary radar and secondary radar · CPC title

• G01S13/781

  Secondary Surveillance Radar [SSR] in general · CPC title

• G01S13/50

  Systems of measurement based on relative movement of target · CPC title