A blockchain technology-based unmanned aerial vehicle cluster relative sensor assisted navigation system and method

Abstract

Disclose a kind of unmanned aerial vehicle cluster relative sensor auxiliary navigation system based on blockchain technology, including blockchain network framework, mesh self-organizing network communication module, relative navigation sensing module, smart contract module, beidou navigation module, satellite detection module.There is also provided a kind of unmanned aerial vehicle cluster relative sensor auxiliary navigation method based on blockchain technology.The present application is navigated by being connected with each unmanned aerial vehicle in unmanned aerial vehicle formation into blockchain network by relative sensor auxiliary navigation, carries out relative navigation information sharing, authenticity verification etc. between each unmanned aerial vehicle node, outputs the comprehensive processing after unmanned aerial vehicle formation navigation information, based on the authenticity verification etc. of this blockchain network, can guarantee the authenticity and effectiveness of the output formation navigation information in relative sensor auxiliary navigation, to realize high-precision low-cost unmanned aerial vehicle formation navigation.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to the blockchain technology, and in particular to a relative sensor assisted navigation system and method for a UAV cluster based on the blockchain technology. BACKGROUND

[0002] At present, with the rapid development of UAV technology, the unmanned and intelligent application in various fields of military is gradually realized. In the process of task execution, the single UAV has great limitations, and the UAV cluster plays an important role in the process of task execution, has the advantages of high task completion rate, strong functionality and optimized task allocation. However, in the process of task execution of the current UAV formation, if all UAVs use the global navigation satellite system (GNSS), the flight cost will be greatly increased. At the same time, due to the complexity of the battlefield environment and the interference of other factors, the navigation data error obtained by relying on GNSS will also increase, and the accuracy of each UAV using GNSS navigation is not the same. When the UAV formation flies in formation, a large number of problems will be caused in navigation positioning. If the relative navigation sensor is used for in-network auxiliary navigation on this basis, it is impossible to ensure that there is no malicious node or invalid node in the network. How to ensure the navigation accuracy of the UAV formation while ensuring that the UAV formation navigation is not affected by malicious nodes and invalid nodes, so that the related application of the UAV formation in the military field is unmanned and intelligent development, is a problem to be solved at present.

[0003] The blockchain is a distributed database integrating multiple fields of technology. Its characteristics are to generate blocks in chronological order, prevent forgery based on cryptography, update blocks using a consensus mechanism, apply in the form of smart contracts, and ensure decentralization by adopting a distributed structure. As a new type of underlying protocol, the blockchain technology has natural security advantages compared to traditional networks in today's network environment, and can play a good role in solving point-to-point information access and data sharing.

[0004] UAV cooperative navigation is to use the navigation information of each member and the relative navigation information shared between members to suppress the calculation error in the conventional navigation, and to perform more accurate navigation for the UAV formation.

[0005] The existing method of assisting navigation by using a relative sensor has problems of being unable to defend against malicious nodes and being unable to quickly find nodes with errors in data sets when facing an environment that cannot be fully trusted, thereby causing the output relative navigation information to be unable to be confirmed as real when performing relative navigation. In addition, when multiple nodes simultaneously use GNSS for navigation, due to different device states and different navigation accuracies, the navigation information cannot be used, and the cost is relatively high, and the need to support unmanned applications in the existing military field cannot be met. SUMMARY

[0006] In view of the problems of the prior art, the present application provides a blockchain technology-based unmanned aerial vehicle cluster relative sensor assisted navigation system, which comprises a blockchain network framework, a mesh self-organizing network communication module, a relative navigation sensing module, an intelligent contract module, a Beidou navigation module and a satellite detection module.

[0007] The blockchain network framework is used for point-to-point information transmission between nodes in the task based on the blockchain network, and the blockchain network framework carries out information interaction and function implementation of all other modules.

[0008] The mesh self-organizing network communication module is configured on all unmanned aerial vehicle nodes, and is referred to as a node below, and performs mesh self-organizing network between nodes. The mesh self-organizing network communication module is responsible for information transmission between nodes and multi-route backup between multiple nodes, and each node transmits information through the mesh self-organizing network communication module.

[0009] The relative navigation sensing module is configured on all nodes and performs relative navigation within the unmanned aerial vehicle formation.

[0010] The intelligent contract module is configured on the blockchain network framework, and the intelligent contract module is connected with all modules. The intelligent contract module determines the operation strategy of the unmanned aerial vehicle cluster network, writes the functions of all other modules, and determines the election method between nodes in the network.

[0011] The satellite detection module is provided on each node, and all nodes complete signal-to-noise ratio detection through the satellite detection module before navigation.

[0012] The Beidou navigation module is configured on all nodes and generates satellite navigation information.

[0013] The present application also provides a blockchain technology-based unmanned aerial vehicle cluster relative sensor assisted navigation method, which is based on the above-mentioned blockchain technology-based unmanned aerial vehicle cluster relative sensor assisted navigation system and specifically comprises the following steps:

[0014] Step 1. In a blockchain network built using the super ledger Hyperledger Fabric consortium chain network framework, all unmanned aerial vehicles self-network in a mesh, and the data sent by the source node is indirectly transmitted to the destination node through multiple forwarding of other nodes;

[0015] Step 2. All unmanned aerial vehicles test the satellite signal-to-noise ratio.

[0016] From any node, the satellite test module of each unmanned aerial vehicle is used to test the satellite signal-to-noise ratio of the node.

[0017] Step 3. Each node sends the listening result to all other nodes in the blockchain network, and all other nodes confirm the node with the highest signal-to-noise ratio and select the unmanned aerial vehicle with the highest signal-to-noise ratio as the navigation master node this time.

[0018] Whenever a node finishes listening, the listening result of the node is verified by other nodes in the blockchain network, and if the node information is true and valid, it is recorded in the blockchain to generate a new block, and the node with the highest satellite signal-to-noise ratio is selected as the navigation master node this time.

[0019] Step 4. The master node uses Beidou satellite for navigation.

[0020] Step 5. Whenever any node outputs relative navigation information, other nodes in the blockchain network verify the relative navigation information to verify whether the node information is true and valid, and if all other nodes are true and valid, the relative navigation information is recorded in the block, and then the navigation master node uses information fusion method to fuse the relative navigation information; if the node information is invalid, that is, the relative navigation information output by the node does not carry the hash value of the previous block during verification, the relative navigation information that is not true is deleted, and the malicious node that sends invalid node information is traced through the blockchain log, the related permissions of the node are deleted, and the mesh networking is updated.

[0021] Step 6. The navigation master node uses the information fusion method to fuse the satellite navigation information of itself and the relative navigation information of the remaining nodes, and obtains higher precision navigation information of the unmanned aerial vehicle cluster after fusion, and the unmanned aerial vehicle cluster is completely navigated through the navigation information.

[0022] In an embodiment of the present application, in step 1, the source node refers to the node that sends data.

[0023] In a specific embodiment of the present application, in steps 5 and 6, a distributed fusion structure method and a volume information filtering algorithm are used as the information fusion method.

[0024] In another embodiment of the present application, in step 5, the method for updating the mesh networking routing is:

[0025] (5a) Starting from any node, using the relative navigation sensing module of each unmanned aerial vehicle, using the relative navigation sensor as the reference point of the master node to measure and upload the relative navigation information in the blockchain network;

[0026] (5b) Whenever a node detects, the other nodes in the blockchain network verify the relative navigation information output by the node, if the node information is true and valid, a new block is generated in the blockchain; if the node information is not verified as true information, the node outputting the non-true information is ignored and the mesh self-organizing network routing selection is updated.

[0027] The present application is used to solve the problem that in the existing military field, the unmanned aerial vehicle cluster formation navigation has high cost and low navigation precision, and cannot well guarantee the security and effectiveness of the training model transmission between nodes in federated learning.

[0028] The present application realizes high-precision and low-cost unmanned aerial vehicle formation navigation by connecting each unmanned aerial vehicle in the unmanned aerial vehicle formation to the blockchain network for relative sensor assisted navigation, sharing relative navigation information between each unmanned aerial vehicle node, verifying the authenticity, and outputting the comprehensive processed unmanned aerial vehicle formation navigation information, based on the authenticity verification operation of the blockchain network, the authenticity and effectiveness of the formation navigation information output in the relative sensor assisted navigation can be guaranteed. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0029] Figure 1 The overall framework diagram of the unmanned aerial vehicle cluster relative sensor assisted navigation method based on the blockchain technology in the present application is shown;

[0030] Figure 2 The detailed flowchart of the method of the present application is shown. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0031] The idea of realizing the present application is to build a blockchain network in the unmanned aerial vehicle cluster, select the unmanned aerial vehicle with the highest signal-to-noise ratio as the navigation master node by listening to the signal-to-noise ratio of each node in the blockchain network, and use GNSS for navigation on the navigation master node. Whenever there is a node outputting relative navigation information, the authenticity of the output relative navigation information is verified by other nodes in the blockchain network, if it is "true", the authenticity of the next block information is verified. If it is judged as false, the routing selection update of the mesh networking is re-performed. The satellite navigation information of the master node and the relative navigation information of the remaining nodes are fused to provide complete navigation service to the unmanned aerial vehicle cluster. Thus, the relative navigation of the unmanned aerial vehicle cluster is completed, and the training model is output.

[0032] The application provides a relative sensor assisted navigation system for a UAV cluster based on a blockchain technology, comprising a blockchain network framework, a mesh self-organizing network communication module, a relative navigation sensor module, an intelligent contract module, a Beidou navigation module and a satellite detection module.

[0033] The blockchain network framework is used for carrying a navigation task of a UAV formation, each UAV node in the task can perform point-to-point information transmission between nodes based on the blockchain network, and the blockchain network can verify the authenticity of relative navigation information output by the nodes, so that the decentralized UAV formation navigation is ensured and fault tolerance is enhanced.

[0034] The mesh self-organizing network communication module is arranged on all UAV nodes (the UAVs are equivalent to computer nodes in the network), and is used for mesh self-organizing network between the nodes, and when there is a malicious node or a failed node, the mesh network is reselected by skipping the node.

[0035] The relative navigation sensor module is arranged on all nodes, and is used for relative navigation in the UAV formation, and after a navigation master node selected according to a satellite signal-to-noise ratio (described below) fuses relative navigation information output by all nodes, position information and speed information in the UAV formation are obtained.

[0036] The intelligent contract module is arranged on the blockchain network framework, and is used for realizing a response strategy after each judgment, for example, if the authenticity is true, a signature writing operation on the node is triggered.

[0037] The satellite detection module is arranged on all nodes, and each node selects a node with the highest satellite signal-to-noise ratio as a navigation master node through the module at the beginning.

[0038] The Beidou navigation module is arranged on all nodes, and only the navigation master node performs satellite navigation in the navigation process after the navigation master node is selected.

[0039] The intelligent contract module decides the operation strategy of the unmanned aerial vehicle cluster network, writes the functions of other modules, and the election method between nodes in the network. The intelligent contract module is connected with all the modules. The mesh ad hoc network communication module is responsible for information transmission between nodes, and also responsible for multi-route backup between multiple nodes. The nodes transmit information through the mesh ad hoc network communication module. The satellite detection module is equipped on each node. Before navigation, all nodes complete signal-to-noise ratio detection through the satellite detection module, and upload the detection results to the blockchain network through the mesh ad hoc network communication module. Through the node selection strategy in the intelligent contract, all nodes select the node with the highest signal-to-noise ratio as the master node. The Beidou navigation module is equipped on each node. After selecting the master node, the unmanned aerial vehicle cluster uses the information of the Beidou navigation module of the master node as the satellite navigation information with the earth as the reference system. The master node fuses the satellite navigation information as the reference navigation information with the relative navigation information sent by other nodes to the master node according to the information fusion strategy written in the intelligent contract module, and sends the fused navigation data to the unmanned aerial vehicle cluster commander as the reference navigation information of the unmanned aerial vehicle cluster. Each node is equipped with a relative navigation sensing module, which is an essential module for forming higher precision fused navigation information. The blockchain network framework carries the information interaction and function of all other modules.

[0040] The application also provides a relative sensor assisted navigation method for an unmanned aerial vehicle cluster based on blockchain technology, which specifically comprises the following steps:

[0041] Step 1. In the blockchain network built by using the Hyperledger Fabric consortium chain network framework (Hyperledger Fabric is an open source blockchain distributed ledger created by Linux Foundation. Reference document Hyperledger Fabric: A Distributed Operating System for Permissioned Blockchains), all unmanned aerial vehicles form mesh networking by themselves, and the data sent by the source node (in the application, the source node refers to the node sending data) reaches the destination node indirectly through multiple forwarding of other nodes.

[0042] Step 2. All unmanned aerial vehicles test the satellite signal-to-noise ratio.

[0043] Starting from any node, the satellite test module of each unmanned aerial vehicle is used to test the satellite signal-to-noise ratio of the node.

[0044] Step 3. Each node sends the listening result to all other nodes in the blockchain network, and all other nodes confirm the node with the highest signal-to-noise ratio and select the unmanned aerial vehicle with the highest signal-to-noise ratio as the master node for this navigation.

[0045] Whenever a node listens, other nodes in the blockchain network verify its listening results, and if the node information is real and valid, it is recorded in the blockchain to generate a new block, and the node with the highest satellite signal-to-noise ratio is selected as the navigation master node.

[0046] Step 4. The master node uses Beidou satellite for navigation.

[0047] Step 5. Whenever any node outputs relative navigation information, other nodes in the blockchain network verify the relative navigation information to verify whether the node information is real and valid, and if all other nodes are real and valid, they are recorded in the block, and the navigation master node uses the distributed fusion structure method (reference: Zhang H, Sun C, Cen Y. Data fusion method in distributed multi-sensor structure [J]. Journal of Wuhan University of Science and Technology (Natural Science Edition), 2008, 36(6): 37-39. DOI: 10.3321 / j.issn:1671-4512.2008.06.011.) and volume information filtering algorithm (reference: Ge L, Qian H. Volume Kalman filter algorithm and its application in navigation [D]. Harbin Engineering University, 2014.) to fuse the relative navigation information. If the node information is invalid, i.e. the relative navigation information output by the node does not carry the hash value of the previous block during verification, delete the relative navigation information that is not verified as true, and trace the malicious node that sends invalid node information by checking the blockchain log, delete the node's related permissions (such as the right to send relative navigation information to the network), and update the mesh networking routing. Specifically:

[0048] (5a) Starting from any node, use the relative navigation sensing module of each unmanned aerial vehicle, and use the relative navigation sensor with the master node as the reference point to measure and upload relative navigation information in the blockchain network.

[0049] (5b) Whenever a node detects, other nodes in the blockchain network verify the relative navigation information output by the node, and if the node information is real and valid, it is recorded in the blockchain to generate a new block; if the node information is not verified as real information, ignore the node that outputs non-real information and update the mesh self-organizing network routing.

[0050] Step 6. The navigation master node uses the distributed fusion structure method and volume information filtering algorithm to fuse its satellite navigation information and the relative navigation information of the remaining nodes, and obtains higher precision navigation information of the unmanned aerial vehicle cluster after fusion, and provides complete navigation service to the unmanned aerial vehicle cluster through the navigation information.

Claims

1. A sensor-assisted navigation system for unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) swarms based on blockchain technology, characterized in that, It includes a blockchain network framework, a mesh self-organizing network communication module, a relative navigation sensing module, a smart contract module, a Beidou navigation module, and a satellite detection module; in The blockchain network framework enables point-to-point information transmission between various drone nodes in the mission. The blockchain network framework also supports the information interaction and functionality of all other modules. The mesh self-organizing network communication module is configured on all drone nodes (hereinafter referred to as "nodes"). It enables mesh self-organizing networks between nodes. The mesh self-organizing network communication module is responsible for information transmission between nodes and also for multi-route backup between multiple nodes. Information is transmitted between nodes through this mesh self-organizing network communication module. The relative navigation sensing module is configured on all nodes to perform relative navigation within the drone formation. The smart contract module is configured on the blockchain network framework and is connected to all other modules. The smart contract module determines the operating strategy of the drone swarm network, writes the functions of other modules, and determines the election method among the nodes in the network. The satellite detection module is equipped on each node. Before navigation, all nodes complete the signal-to-noise ratio detection through the satellite detection module. The BeiDou navigation module is configured on all nodes and generates satellite navigation information.

2. A method for relative sensor-assisted navigation of a drone swarm based on blockchain technology, which is based on the relative sensor-assisted navigation system of a drone swarm based on blockchain technology as described in claim 1, characterized in that, Specifically, the following steps are included: Step 1. In the blockchain network built using the Hyperledger Fabric consortium blockchain network framework, all drones form mesh networks on their own, and the data sent by the source node is indirectly transmitted to the destination node through multiple forwardings by other nodes; Step 2. Test the satellite signal-to-noise ratio for all drones; Starting from any node, the satellite signal-to-noise ratio of the node is tested using the satellite test module of each drone; Step 3. Each node sends the listening results to all other nodes in the blockchain network. All other nodes then confirm the node with the highest signal-to-noise ratio and select the drone with the highest signal-to-noise ratio as the main node for this navigation. After each node finishes listening, other nodes in the blockchain network verify its listening results. If the node's information is true and valid, it is recorded in the blockchain to generate a new block, and the node with the highest satellite signal-to-noise ratio is selected as the main node for this navigation. Step 4. The master node uses BeiDou satellites for navigation; Step 5. Whenever any node outputs relative navigation information, other nodes in the blockchain network verify this information to confirm its authenticity. If the relative navigation information is authentic and valid for all other nodes, it is recorded in a block, and then the navigation master node uses the information fusion method to fuse the relative navigation information. If the node information is invalid, that is, the relative navigation information output by the node does not carry the hash value of the previous block when it is verified, the invalid relative navigation information is deleted, and the malicious node that issued the invalid node information is traced by checking the blockchain log, the relevant permissions of the node are deleted, and the mesh network is updated. Step 6. The navigation master node uses the information fusion method to fuse its own satellite navigation information and the relative navigation information of the other nodes. After fusion, it obtains higher-precision navigation information for the UAV cluster and provides complete navigation services for the UAV cluster through this navigation information.

3. The drone swarm relative sensor-assisted navigation method based on blockchain technology as described in claim 2, characterized in that, In step 1, the source node refers to the node that sends the data.

4. The drone swarm relative sensor-assisted navigation method based on blockchain technology as described in claim 2, characterized in that, In steps 5 and 6, a distributed fusion structure method and a volumetric information filtering algorithm are used as information fusion methods.

5. The method for relative sensor-assisted navigation of unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) swarms based on blockchain technology as described in claim 2, characterized in that, In step 5, the method for updating routes in the mesh network is as follows: (5a) Starting from any node, use the relative navigation sensor module of each UAV to measure relative navigation information with the main node as the reference point and upload it to the blockchain network. (5b) After a node finishes its inspection, other nodes in the blockchain network verify the relative navigation information it outputs. If the node information is true and valid, it is recorded in the blockchain to generate a new block. If the node information is not verified as true, the node that outputs false information is ignored and the routing selection of the mesh self-organizing network is updated.

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