Software-Defined Drone Controller With Integrated Cellular Mission Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing unmanned vehicle systems, such as drones, face challenges in efficiently managing high-speed control loops while minimizing power consumption and weight, and in effectively communicating and controlling autonomous missions.
Innovation Solution
A vehicle controller system that integrates an inertial measurement unit (IMU), a flight controller, a mission computer, and a cellular data radio within a single housing, enabling high-speed control loops, autonomous mission control, and wireless communication via a cellular network.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Use of energy by moving object
If conventional FMUs are designed to minimize power consumption and weight, then power efficiency is improved, but the system lacks integrated mission control and cellular communication capabilities
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the flight controller, mission computer, and cellular data radio into a single integrated vehicle controller unit. This merging allows the system to maintain power efficiency while gaining enhanced versatility through integrated mission control and wireless communication capabilities, resolving the contradiction between minimizing power consumption and maintaining system adaptability.
Solution Approach 2:
The vehicle controller is designed as a multi-functional device that performs flight control, mission management, and cellular communication functions simultaneously. This universal design enables the system to achieve diverse capabilities without requiring separate dedicated components, thereby improving adaptability while managing power consumption efficiently through shared hardware resources.
2Productivity
If a mission computer with high performance processor is added, then computational capability is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The mission computer is merged with the flight controller into a single integrated unit, sharing common hardware resources such as processors, memory, and power supply. This integration reduces overall system complexity while maintaining high computational capability for mission-critical tasks, as the shared architecture eliminates redundant components and simplifies system management.
3Volume of moving object
If multiple components are integrated into a single housing, then system compactness is improved, but thermal management becomes more challenging
Solution Approach 1:
Multiple heat-generating components (flight controller, mission computer, cellular radio) are merged into a single housing with a unified thermal management system. This approach achieves compactness while managing thermal challenges through centralized heat dissipation strategies, such as shared heat sinks and coordinated cooling pathways, rather than requiring separate cooling systems for each component.
Data Source
AI summary
A vehicle controller for operating an autonomous vehicle includes an inertial measurement unit (IMU) configured measure specific forces acting upon the autonomous vehicle, and a flight controller configured to execute a high-speed control loop to periodically update commands to a plurality of control actuators for controlling a position or an attitude of the autonomous vehicle based on data from the IMU regarding the specific forces acting upon the autonomous vehicle. The vehicle controller also includes a mission computer including a processor programmed to control a mission of the autonomous vehicle. The vehicle controller also includes a cellular data radio configured to wirelessly communicate via a cellular network. The vehicle controller also includes a housing containing the IMU, the flight controller, the mission computer, and the cellular data radio. A method of operating an autonomous vehicle is also provided.