System for pod-based transportation

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11796321-B2
Application number	US-201916444526-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 18, 2019
Priority date	Jun 18, 2019
Publication date	Oct 24, 2023
Grant date	Oct 24, 2023

Abstract

A system and method to transport one or more persons or objects. The system includes pods that each have an interior space to house the one or more persons or objects, and vehicles that are each configured to individually connect to one or more of the pods and to transport the pods from a first location to a second location. A server is located remotely from the pods and the vehicles. The server is configured to receive data from the pods and the vehicles through a wireless communication network to monitor a usage and location of the pods.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A system to monitor transportation of one or more persons, the system comprising:
pods that each comprise exterior walls that extend around and form an interior space to house the one or more persons, the exterior walls comprising floor wall segments, roof wall segments, and side wall segments that are configured to connect together in multiple different configurations and form the interior space, the wall segments comprising one or more doors and one or more windows, the pods further comprising one or more partitions configured to be mounted to the wall segments in different locations to adjust a layout of the interior space;
vehicles each configured to individually connect to one or more of the pods and to transport the pods from a first location to a second location, at least one of the vehicles configured to transport the pods by land and at least one of the vehicles configured to transport the pods by air; and
a server located remotely from the pods and the vehicles, the server configured to receive data from the pods and the vehicles through a wireless communication network to monitor a usage and location of the pods, the server configured to monitor a number of the wall segments and the partitions for each of the pods and the configuration of the wall segments of the pods.

2. The system of claim 1 , wherein the server is configured to receive a request from a person to configure one of the pods in a selected one of the configurations.

3. The system of claim 1 , wherein a first one of the vehicles comprises wheels that are driven by an engine or propulsion system to transport the pod over land, and a second one of the vehicles comprises an aircraft engine and wings to transport the pod through the air.

4. The system of claim 1 , wherein the server comprises:
a communication interface configured to receive the data from the pods and the vehicles transmitted through the wireless communication network;
a memory circuit configured to store information about the pods; and
a processing circuit configured to monitor the usage and location of the pods.

5. The system of claim 4 , wherein the server calculates an expected time of arrival to a destination location for the pods that are being transported by one of the vehicles.

6. The system of claim 4 , wherein the server is configured to calculate a travel plan for each of the pods that each comprises a travel path that extends between the first and second locations, the travel plan being calculated prior to departure from the first location.

7. The system of claim 6 , wherein the server is configured to:
monitor the movement of the pods along the travel paths; and
adjust the travel plan of one or more of the pods when the monitor server calculates that two or more of the pods are scheduled to pass within a predetermined distance of each other.

8. The system of claim 1 , wherein each of the pods further comprises:
one or more sensors that detect a geographic location of the pod; and
a communications circuit that enables wireless communications for the one or more persons in the interior space;
wherein the communications circuit is configured to wirelessly transmit the location of the pod to the server.

9. A method of transporting one or more persons, the method comprising:
monitoring a location of pods that each comprise wall segments that mount together to form an interior space to house the one or more persons, the wall segments comprising one or more doors configured to provide access into and out of the interior space, the wall segments being modular and configured to connect together in a variety of different configurations to selectively configure the interior space;
monitoring the configurations of the pods;
monitoring a location of vehicles each configured to individually connect to one or more of the pods and to transport the pods;
receiving a request to transport a pod that is located at a home of a first one of the persons to a remote second location, the request further comprising a selection of one of the configurations for the interior space of the pod;
scheduling a first one of the vehicles to transport the pod while in the selected one of the configurations from the home of the first one of the persons to an intermediate location when the first one of the persons is within the pod;
scheduling a second one of the vehicles to transport the pod from the intermediate location to the second location when the first one of the persons is within the pod; and
during transportation of the pods, sending and receiving communications with the one or more persons that are in the interior space of the pod.

10. The method of claim 9 , further comprising arranging the interior space into two or more separate rooms.

11. The method of claim 9 , further comprising:
calculating a travel path for the one of the pods that extends between the first location, the intermediate location, and the second location, the travel path being calculated prior to departure from the first location;
monitoring a location of the pod during the travel;
determining an event related to the travel path while the pod is being transported between the first and second locations; and
in response to determining the event, adjusting the travel path of the one of the pods.

12. The method of claim 11 , wherein determining the event related to the travel path comprises determining traffic along the travel path and adjusting the travel path in response to the traffic.

13. The method of claim 9 , further comprising:
calculating a travel path for the one of the pods that extends between the first location, the intermediate location, and the second location; and
accessing a map through a wireless communication network and integrating the travel path with the map.

14. The method of claim 9 , further comprising:
receiving a request to transport a second one of the persons from the first location to the second location;
assigning the pod to transport the second one of the persons; and
concurrently transporting both the first and second ones of the persons in the pod from the first location to the second location.

15. The method of claim 9 , further comprising updating a database that includes current and future movements of the pods and the vehicles prior to assigning the pod to transport the second one of the persons.

16. The method of claim 9 , further comprising using a first mode of transportation to transport the pod from the first location to the intermediate location and using a different second mode of transportation to transport the pod from the intermediate location to the second location.

17. The method of claim 9 , further comprising:
calculating a travel plan that includes a travel path from the first location to the second location prior to the pod departing from the first location;
monitoring a position of the pod during the travel and comparing the position with the travel path; and
notifying a remote entity when a difference between the position and the travel path exceeds a predetermined amount.

18. A method of transporting one or more persons, the method comprising:
positioning the pod at a home or business of a traveler, the pod comprising:
one or more floor wall segments, roof wall segments, and lateral sidewall segments configured together in multiple different configurations to form an interior space;
one or more partitions mountable within the interior space at different locations to form different sections, at least one of the one or more partitions comprising a do

Assignees

• Boeing Co

Inventors

• Glatfelter John William
• Laughlin Brian Dale

Classifications

• G08G5/26

  Transmission of traffic-related information between aircraft and ground stations · CPC title

• G05D1/0212

  with means for defining a desired trajectory (involving a plurality of land vehicles G05D1/0287) · CPC title

• G05D1/0202

  specially adapted to aircraft · CPC title

• G08G5/57

  for unmanned aircraft · CPC title

• G08G5/55

  for a single aircraft · CPC title