Autonomous Aerial Mission Plan Sync Without Continuous Links

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Solution Overview

Problem

Current systems for managing autonomous aerial vehicles require constant real-time communications and rely heavily on human operators, limiting the number of vehicles that can be managed due to workload constraints and the need for explicit human input for certain actions, especially in unforeseen events.

Innovation Solution

An autonomous aircraft management system with a computer system and mission manager that stores and synchronizes mission plans, allowing for modifications to be made and executed without continuous real-time communication, enabling the autonomous aerial vehicle to operate independently and reducing the workload for human operators.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If constant real-time communication is used to manage autonomous aerial vehicles, then safety and control can be maintained, but the number of vehicles that can be managed is limited due to human operator workload

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvesafety and controlVSAvoidnumber of vehicles managed

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The mission plan is divided into discrete mission components that can be independently modified, validated, and synchronized. This segmentation allows the system to manage multiple vehicles by processing individual mission component changes rather than requiring continuous monitoring of entire mission plans, thereby increasing the number of vehicles a human operator can manage while maintaining safety through component-level validation.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The system performs preliminary validation of modified mission components before synchronization by checking executability against the autonomous aerial vehicle's capabilities and constraints. This advance validation ensures safety and control are maintained while reducing the need for continuous real-time communication during execution, enabling management of more vehicles.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

2Reliability

If human operators provide explicit input for certain actions, then regulatory compliance can be ensured, but the workload increases and limits the number of vehicles that can be managed

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveregulatory complianceVSAvoidworkload

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The system enables autonomous aerial vehicles to self-validate modified mission components against their own capabilities, constraints, and regulatory requirements before execution. This self-service approach ensures regulatory compliance is maintained while significantly reducing human operator workload, as operators only need to review and approve pre-validated changes rather than manually verify each action.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #25Self-service

Solution Approach 2:

The system implements automated feedback loops where modified mission components are validated against the autonomous aerial vehicle's capabilities and regulatory constraints, with results fed back to determine whether synchronization should proceed. This automated feedback mechanism ensures regulatory compliance while reducing workload by eliminating manual verification steps for routine checks.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #23Feedback

3Productivity

If mission plan modifications are made without continuous communication, then operational efficiency increases, but the risk of executing invalid or unsafe missions increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveoperational efficiencyVSAvoidexecution safety

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs preliminary executability validation of modified mission components before synchronization by checking against the autonomous aerial vehicle's capabilities, constraints, and current state. This advance validation ensures execution safety is maintained even when modifications are made without continuous communication, as the system proactively identifies and prevents invalid or unsafe mission components before they are executed.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The system uses temporary validation data structures and executable checks that are created, evaluated, and discarded for each mission component modification. These lightweight, disposable validation mechanisms enable rapid safety checking without requiring continuous communication infrastructure, maintaining execution safety while improving operational efficiency through fast, ephemeral validation processes.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #27Cheap short-living objects (Disposable)

Data Source

PatentUS11972691B2Autonomous aerial vehicle flight management

Publication Date: 2024.04.30 THE BOEING CO

AI summary

A method, apparatus, apparatus, and computer program product for managing an autonomous aerial vehicle. A copy of a mission plan is stored in a mission work queue. The mission plan is located in the autonomous aerial vehicle and comprises mission components that define tasks performed by the autonomous aerial vehicle. A change to the mission components in the copy of the mission plan in the mission work queue is received to form a modified mission component in the copy of the mission plan. A determination is made as to whether the copy of the mission plan including the modified mission component can be executed by the autonomous aerial vehicle. The copy of the mission plan including the modified mission component is synchronized with the mission plan in the autonomous aerial vehicle such that the mission plan includes the modified mission component. The autonomous aerial vehicle executes the mission plan.