Mobile Mesh Relay Deployment for Vehicle-Base Connectivity
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing solutions for maintaining wireless connectivity between a moving mission vehicle (VM) and a rear base (RB) face challenges such as requiring hardware adaptation of the vehicle and inability of deployed communication relays to adjust their location, leading to degraded connectivity in large areas or hostile environments.
Innovation Solution
The use of Autonomous Robotic Communication Relays (ARCRs) that autonomously move and adjust their position along the VM's trajectory to form a linear mesh wireless communication network, ensuring high-quality connectivity by adding or removing relays as needed, without requiring hardware adaptation of the VM.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Length of stationary object
If communication relay nodes are deployed by the vehicle to extend wireless connectivity, then the connectivity range is improved, but the vehicle requires hardware adaptation and the relays cannot adjust their location once deployed
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies the dynamics principle by transforming stationary relay nodes into mobile robotic relay nodes that can autonomously move and reposition themselves along the vehicle's trajectory. This allows the relays to dynamically adjust their locations to maintain optimal communication quality, resolving the contradiction between extended connectivity range and the inability to adjust relay positions after deployment
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements self-service by equipping relay nodes with autonomous navigation capabilities that allow them to independently follow the vehicle's trajectory and adjust their positions without requiring vehicle hardware adaptation or manual intervention. The robotic relays self-manage their deployment and repositioning, eliminating the need for complex vehicle hardware modifications
2Reliability
If relay nodes are deployed along the trajectory to maintain connectivity, then wireless connectivity quality is improved, but the system cannot adapt when the vehicle reverses course
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies dynamics by enabling relay nodes to dynamically reposition themselves when the vehicle reverses course. The robotic relays can autonomously navigate back along the trajectory and adjust their positions to maintain optimal communication geometry, allowing the system to adapt to course reversals while preserving connectivity quality
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements feedback mechanisms where the system continuously monitors the vehicle's position and trajectory, and the robotic relay nodes receive real-time information to adjust their positions accordingly. This feedback loop enables the relays to adapt their deployment strategy when the vehicle reverses course, maintaining reliable connectivity throughout the mission
3Reliability
If multiple communication relays are deployed to ensure connectivity in hostile environments, then connectivity reliability is improved, but the deployment and management complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements self-service by enabling robotic relay nodes to autonomously deploy themselves along the vehicle's trajectory without manual intervention. The nodes independently navigate, position themselves optimally, and self-organize into a mesh network, dramatically simplifying deployment while ensuring reliable connectivity in hostile environments
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-positioning robotic relay nodes in reserve areas before the vehicle begins its mission. These pre-positioned nodes are ready to be autonomously deployed as needed, allowing the system to rapidly scale connectivity reliability without complex real-time deployment decisions
Data Source
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Figure 2b~3
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AI summary
The invention relates to a device and a method for automatic deployment of a communications network between a moving vehicle VM and a rear base BA, the moving vehicle moving from an initial position along a path T. The deployment consists in positioning a plurality of communication relay devices along the path of the VM in order to create, between the VM and the rear base, a bidirectional, linear wireless mesh communications network such that communications between the moving vehicle and the rear base maintain a communication link quality Q which is equal to or greater than a threshold value S. Each communication relay device is an autonomous mobile device, referred to as the Robot-Controlled Autonomous Communication Relay R CRA, which is capable of moving autonomously and taking up a position along the path T followed by the VM so as to enable the quality of the communication link to be maintained.