Active Proximity Navigation for Dense UxV Collision Avoidance
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing navigation systems for unmanned and autonomous vehicles (UxVs) struggle to enable multiple vehicles to operate in close proximity without causing collisions or disrupting each other's operations, particularly in restricted areas like public events or flight corridors, where increasing the number of vehicles is desired without compromising safety or performance.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of an active proximity system (APS) on each UxV, which uses proximity signals to maintain a predefined distance from other vehicles, allowing them to fly or maneuver in densely packed formations by continuously adjusting position based on received proximity signals, creating a virtual cage to avoid collisions and optimize spatial usage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If multiple UxVs are crowded together in restricted areas to increase the number of vehicles operating simultaneously, then productivity is improved, but the risk of collision and disruption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by establishing virtual cages around each UxV before collisions can occur. The proximity system continuously defines exclusion zones based on predefined safety distances, preventing vehicles from entering dangerous proximity to each other before a collision risk actually materializes. This proactive approach enables dense packing while maintaining safety margins.
Solution Approach 2:
The active proximity system acts as an intermediary between multiple UxVs, mediating their interactions through virtual cage boundaries. Rather than direct vehicle-to-vehicle collision avoidance, the proximity system creates intermediate virtual barriers that automatically enforce safety distances, allowing vehicles to operate densely without direct interference or collision risks.
2Reliability
If UxVs maintain predefined distances from each other using proximity systems, then collision avoidance is improved, but the density of vehicles in restricted areas is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The system transitions from two-dimensional spatial separation to three-dimensional virtual cage containment. By defining exclusion zones in three-dimensional space around each vehicle, the system maximizes the use of available volume rather than just horizontal distance, allowing more vehicles to be packed into the same restricted area while maintaining safety distances through vertical and radial separation.
Solution Approach 2:
The virtual cages are dynamic rather than static, automatically adjusting to the motion and position of each UxV. As vehicles move, their virtual cages move with them, continuously maintaining the predefined safety distances. This dynamic adaptation allows maximum vehicle density at any given moment while ensuring safety constraints are always satisfied.
Data Source
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AI summary
The presently disclosed subject matter includes an active proximity system (APS) mountable on an unmanned autonomous vehicle (UxV), the APS comprising: one or more proximity sensors and a processing circuitry; the one or more proximity sensors are configured to sense one or more proximity signals, each of the signals is indicative of the presence of a respective emitter in proximity to the UxV; the processing circuitry is configured, responsive to a sensed proximity signal, to repeatedly: generate maneuvering instructions dedicated for causing the Ux V to move and increase the distance between the UxV and the respective emitter; and then generate maneuvering instructions dedicated for causing the UxV to move and decrease the distance between the UxV and the respective emitter; and thereby maintain the UxV within a certain range from the respective emitter defined by the sensed proximity signal.