Airborne Control Link Using Orthogonal Codes for Low-Latency Flight
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing control systems in the aeronautical sector lack a reliable, low-latency wireless communication solution necessary for complex operations like unmanned or manned-unmanned close formation and air-to-air refuelling, which are critical for maintaining system stability and scalability.
Innovation Solution
An airborne networked communication system utilizing Frequency Division Duplexing (FDD) and Time Division Duplexing (TDD) combined with Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) to establish dedicated channels and orthogonal code sequences for bi-directional, low-latency data transmission among multiple aircraft, enabling real-time control loops.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If wireless communication is introduced for remote control applications, then system scalability and operational flexibility are improved, but communication latency and reliability deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The wireless communication channel is segmented into multiple orthogonal code sequences, each dedicated to specific control directions (sensor-to-controller, actuator-to-controller). This segmentation ensures that critical control signals are transmitted on dedicated channels with guaranteed bandwidth and latency bounds, improving reliability while maintaining system scalability through the modular code structure
Solution Approach 2:
Orthogonal code sequences are pre-allocated to different control functions before operation begins. The forward link code for sensor data and reverse link code for actuator commands are assigned in advance, eliminating contention and access delays during real-time operation. This preliminary assignment guarantees deterministic communication timing essential for reliable remote control
2Adaptability or versatility
If multiple aircraft are connected in a networked system, then operational capability and control flexibility are improved, but communication latency increases
Solution Approach 1:
The available spectrum is segmented into multiple orthogonal code sequences that can simultaneously carry multiple data streams. Each aircraft or control function is assigned a dedicated code sequence, allowing parallel transmission of multiple control signals without time-division multiplexing delays. This enables scalable network operation with bounded latency regardless of the number of connected aircraft
Solution Approach 2:
The system transitions from time-division or frequency-division single-channel access to code-division multiple access in the signal processing domain. By spreading each signal across the bandwidth with a unique orthogonal code, multiple aircraft communications occur simultaneously in the same time-frequency resource without interference, adding a code-domain dimension that eliminates queuing delays
3Reliability
If dedicated channels are allocated for each communication direction, then communication reliability is improved, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
A single wireless transceiver unit performs multiple functions: it modulates signals using different orthogonal codes for different control directions, demodulates incoming signals, and manages code sequence assignment. This universal hardware architecture provides dedicated communication channels for sensor-to-controller and actuator-to-controller links without requiring separate physical hardware for each function, thereby maintaining reliability while controlling complexity
Data Source
Figure 1~3
AI summary
Airborne networked communication system and method for a remote control system comprising: - a first aircraft (1) comprising a controller and data transmission means for sending and receiving data from and to a plurality of second aircraft (2, 3, ...n), - the plurality of second aircraft (2, 3, ...n) comprising data transmission means, a sensor and an actuator controlled by the controller of the first aircraft (1). The data transmission means from the first aircraft (1) to the plurality of second aircraft (2, 3, ...n) uses a first dedicated channel or frequency (F1). The data transmission means from the plurality of second aircraft (2, 3, ...n) to the first aircraft (1) uses a second dedicated channel or frequency (F2) and a different orthogonal code sequence (Code#1, Code#2, ...) for each second aircraft (2, 3, ...n) for the first aircraft (1) to distinguish among the different second aircraft (2, 3, ...n).