System and method for determining optimal path arrangements for an infrastructure link with terrain slope consideration

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11635544-B2
Application number	US-201815992559-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 30, 2018
Priority date	May 30, 2018
Publication date	Apr 25, 2023
Grant date	Apr 25, 2023

Abstract

A method for determining optimal path arrangements for an infrastructure link between two geographic locations, in particular, in uneven terrain. The method includes modelling a geographic terrain containing the two geographic locations; optimizing an arrangement cost and a repair rate for two or more potential paths based on the modelled geographic terrain, an arrangement cost model, and a repair rate model, taking into account at least two design levels, wherein the arrangement cost model incorporates direction-dependent factor and direction-independent factor associated with the path arrangements; and determining the optimal path arrangements each including multiple path portions and respective design levels associated with the path portions based on the optimization.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A computer-implemented method for determining optimal path arrangements for a sub-marine cable between two geographic locations, comprising:
modelling, using one or more processors, a geographic terrain containing the two geographic locations,
the modelling including modelling the geographic terrain into a grid with multiple grid points such that each point on the model is denoted by a 3D coordinate including altitude of the geographic terrain;
optimizing, using the one or more processors, an arrangement cost and a repair rate for two or more potential paths for the sub-marine cable based on the modelled geographic terrain, an arrangement cost model, and a repair rate model, taking into account at least one design level, wherein the arrangement cost model incorporates direction-dependent arrangement cost factors and direction-independent arrangement cost factors associated with path arrangements of the two or more potential paths, the direction-dependent arrangement cost factors being associated with a capsize risk of a remotely operated vehicle arranged to lay the sub-marine cable;
determining, using the one or more processors, and based on the optimization, the optimal path arrangements each including multiple path portions and the at least one design level associated with the path portions;
and displaying, at a display operably connected with the one or more processors, at least one of the optimized path arrangements on a map of the geographic terrain; wherein the optimization comprises:
calculating a minimum weighted cost value over the at least one design level for each point on the modelled geographic terrain;
transforming the optimization to a Hamilton-Jacobi-Bellman equation based on the calculated minimum weighted cost value;
and applying Ordered Upwind Method to solve the Hamilton-Jacobi-Bellman equation for determining the optimal path arrangements;
and wherein determining the optimal path arrangements comprises:
determining a set of Pareto optimal solutions representing the optimal path arrangements, wherein the optimal path arrangements are optimal laying paths,
wherein the arrangement cost model models the direction-dependent arrangement cost factors as
h 1 ( x,a )= e q 1 (x,a)−θ 1 +e q 2 (x,a)−θ 2 ,

where wherein h 1 is the direction dependent arrangement cost, x is the 3D coordinate of the grid point, a is a direction of the path, e is an exponential function, q 1 (x, a) is a slope parallel to the direction of the path as a function of x and a, q 2 (x, a) is a slope perpendicular to the direction of the path as a function of x and a, θ 1 is a threshold representing an allowable maximum slope parallel to the direction of the path, and θ 2 is a threshold representing an allowable maximum slope perpendicular to the direction of the path.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , further comprising receiving input associated with dimensions of the grid points for modelling the geographic terrain.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , further comprising receiving input associated with the two geographic locations.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein the direction-independent arrangement cost factors comprise arrangement costs associated with: labor, licenses, or protection level.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , further comprising receiving input associated with the direction-dependent arrangement cost factors and the direction-independent arrangement cost factors.

6. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein the direction-independent arrangement cost factors are associated with location and the design level of the path for each portion of a path, and wherein the arrangement cost model sums the arrangement cost per unit length of a path to determine an arrangement cost of the path.

7. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein the repair rate model is based on spatially distributed ground motion intensity associated with the geographic terrain in which the path is arranged.

8. The computer-implemented method of claim 7 , wherein the spatially distributed ground motion intensity comprises peak ground velocity.

9. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein the repair rate model is based on spatially distributed ground motion intensity associated with the geographic terrain of each portion of a path and sums the repair rate per unit length of a path to determine a repair rate of the path.

10. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein the sub-marine cable is a sub-marine optical cable.

11. An information handling system for determining optimal path arrangements for a sub-marine cable between two geographic locations, comprising:
one or more processors arranged to:
model a geographic terrain containing the two geographic locations, including modelling the geographic terrain into a grid with multiple grid points such that each point on the model is denoted by a 3D coordinate including altitude of the geographic terrain;
optimize an arrangement cost and a repair rate for two or more potential paths based on the modelled geographic terrain, an arrangement cost model, and a repair rate model, taking into account at least one design level, wherein the arrangement cost model incorporates direction-dependent arrangement cost factors and direction-independent arrangement cost factors associated with path arrangements of the two or more potential paths, the direction-dependent arrangement cost factors being associated with a capsize risk of a remotely operated vehicle arranged to lay sub-marine cable; and
determine, based on the optimization, the optimal path arrangements each including multiple path portions and the at least one design level associated with the path portions; a display operably connected with the one or more processors and arranged to display the determined optimal path arrangements on a map of the geographic terrain;
wherein the one or more processors are arranged to perform the optimization by, at least:
calculating a minimum weighted cost value over the at least one design level for each point on the modelled geographic terrain; transforming the optimization to a Hamilton-Jacobi-Bellman equation based on the calculated minimum weighted cost value;
and applying Ordered Upwind Method to solve the Hamilton-Jacobi-Bellman equation for determining the optimal path arrangements; and wherein the one or more processors are arranged to determine the optimal path arrangements by, at least:
determining a set of Pareto optimal solutions representing the optimal path arrangements, wherein the optimal path arrangements are optimal laying paths; wherein the arrangement cost model models the direction-dependent arrangement cost factors as
h 1 ( x,a )= e q 1 (x,a)−θ 1 +e q 2 (x,a)−θ 2 ,

where wherein h 1 is the arrangement cost model, x is the 3D coordinate of the grid point, a is a direction of the path, e is an exponential function, q 1 (x, a) is a slope parallel to the direction of the path as a function of x and a, q 2 (x, a) is a slope perpendicular to the direction of the path as a function of x and a, θ 1 is a threshold representing an allowable maximum slope parallel to the direction of the path, and θ 2 is a threshold representing an allowable maximum slope perpendicular to the direction of the path.

12. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein the optimizing of the two or more potential paths takes into account at least two design levels each corresponding to a respective level of shielding for the sub-marine cable, and wherein the m

Assignees

• Univ City Hong Kong

Inventors

• Zukerman Moshe
• Wang Zengfu
• Wang Qing
• Moran Bill
• Tahchi Elias

Classifications

• G06Q10/067

  Enterprise or organisation modelling · CPC title

• G06Q10/06313 Primary

  Resource planning in a project environment · CPC title

• H02G1/06

  for laying cables, e.g. laying apparatus on vehicle · CPC title

• G01V99/005 Primary

  Physics · mapped topic

• G01V20/00 Primary

  Geomodelling in general · CPC title