Aerial vehicle operation management device and aerial vehicle operation management method

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11810462-B2
Application number	US-201917269324-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 21, 2019
Priority date	Aug 24, 2018
Publication date	Nov 7, 2023
Grant date	Nov 7, 2023

Abstract

A specifying unit 51 of a flying body operation management device 50 specifies an airspace in which a propagation delay equal to or greater than a threshold value occurs in the uplink of a time-division duplex between a wireless communication terminal 30 and a wireless base station 41 to which wireless communication terminal 30 is wirelessly connected. Next, an assigning unit 52 of flying body operation management device 50 performs a process of assigning, with respect to each airspace, a flying body 10 having a wireless communication terminal 20 . At this time, with respect to an airspace specified by specifying unit 51 , assigning unit 52 limits the assigning of flying body 10 on which wireless communication terminal 20 is mounted.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An aerial vehicle operation management device comprising:
a processor configured to:
identify a first airspace of a plurality of airspaces in which a propagation delay equal to or greater than a first threshold value occurs in an uplink of a time-division duplex between a first wireless communication terminal and a first wireless base station to which the first wireless communication terminal is wirelessly connected;
identify a second airspace of the plurality of airspaces that satisfies a first condition that a second wireless communication terminal performs a time-division duplex with a second wireless base station by use of a guard period that is shorter than a guard period used between the first wireless communication terminal and the first wireless base station;
assign an aerial vehicle to at least one of the identified airspaces according to a flight plan, wherein a restriction is imposed on assignment of the aerial vehicle, on which the first wireless communication terminal is mounted, to at least one of the identified airspaces; and
control the flight of the aerial vehicle through the at least one assigned airspace.

2. The aerial vehicle operation management device according to claim 1 , wherein the processor is further configured to identify a third airspace of the plurality of airspaces that satisfies: a second condition that the first wireless communication terminal is present within the third airspace, and the second wireless communication terminal connected to the second wireless base station, which is different from the first wireless base station to which the first wireless communication terminal is connected, is present within a range of a given distance from the first wireless communication terminal.

3. The aerial vehicle operation management device according to claim 2 , wherein the given distance is a distance at which the second wireless communication terminal is capable of receiving a wireless signal wave transmitted from the first wireless communication terminal at a reception strength that is equal to or greater than a second threshold value.

4. The aerial vehicle operation management device according to claim 1 , wherein the processor is further configured not to assign the aerial vehicle on which the first wireless communication terminal is mounted, to the at least one of the identified airspaces.

5. The aerial vehicle operation management device according to claim 1 , wherein the processor is further configured to assign a reduced number of aerial vehicles, on which the first wireless communication terminal is mounted, to the at least one of the identified airspaces, compared to airspaces other than the at least one of the identified airspaces.

6. The aerial vehicle operation management device according to claim 5 , wherein the processor is further configured to limit a number of aerial vehicles, on which the first wireless communication terminal is mounted, assigned to the at least one of the identified airspaces, to a number equal to or smaller than a third threshold value that varies depending on the at least one of the identified airspaces.

7. An aerial vehicle operation management method comprising:
identifying a first airspace of a plurality of airspaces in which a propagation delay equal to or greater than a first threshold value occurs in an uplink of a time-division duplex between a first wireless communication terminal and a first wireless base station to which the first wireless communication terminal is wirelessly connected;
identifying a second airspace of the plurality of airspaces that satisfies a first condition that a second wireless communication terminal performs a time-division duplex with a second wireless base station by use of a guard period that is shorter than a guard period used between the first wireless communication terminal and the first wireless base station;
assigning an aerial vehicle to at least one of the identified airspaces according to a flight plan, wherein a restriction is imposed on assignment of the aerial vehicle, on which the first wireless communication terminal is mounted, to at least one of the identified airspaces; and
controlling the flight of the aerial vehicle through the at least one assigned airspace.

Assignees

• Ntt Docomo Inc

Inventors

• Yamada Takefumi
• Oono Youhei
• Segawa Yuichiro
• Hanano Shinya
• Yoshimoto Takashi
• Kitamura Yasuhiro

Classifications

• G08G5/20

  Arrangements for acquiring, generating, sharing or displaying traffic information (arrangements for monitoring traffic G08G5/72) · CPC title

• G08G5/727

  from a ground station · CPC title

• G08G5/57

  for unmanned aircraft · CPC title

• G08G5/55

  for a single aircraft · CPC title

• G08G5/53

  for cruising · CPC title