RAN Node Drone Traffic Management via Priority Queues
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current systems lack efficient methods for managing drone traffic, particularly in ensuring safe and priority-based airspace access, leading to potential collisions and inefficient flight paths.
Innovation Solution
A radio access network (RAN) node, such as an eNodeB, manages drone traffic by receiving flight configurations, determining capacity, and prioritizing drones based on priority flags, and handling handovers to different RAN nodes when capacity is unavailable.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If drone traffic is managed without a priority-based system, then the system complexity is reduced, but the safety and collision avoidance capability deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments drone traffic into different priority levels (high priority and low priority queues) to manage safety-critical traffic separately from routine traffic. This segmentation allows the system to focus safety mechanisms on high-priority drones while maintaining overall system manageability through structured categorization.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a RAN node as an intermediary between drones and the air traffic management system. This intermediary handles priority determination, queue management, and coordination, thereby improving safety without requiring each drone or the central system to handle all safety logic directly, thus managing complexity through layered architecture.
2Reliability
If capacity checks are performed for every drone request, then collision risk is reduced, but the processing time and operational efficiency deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs capacity checks and priority determinations in advance before drones enter the airspace. By pre-authorizing flight paths and determining priority levels before critical operations, the system ensures collision avoidance is already accounted for while minimizing real-time processing delays during actual flight operations.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies full capacity checking and safety verification only to high-priority drones that require immediate authorization, while low-priority drones undergo streamlined processing. This partial application of rigorous safety checks maintains collision avoidance for critical traffic while reducing time loss for non-critical operations.
3Productivity
If multiple drones are allowed to access the airspace simultaneously, then the productivity increases, but the risk of collision and interference increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic queue management where drones are authorized to enter airspace based on real-time capacity conditions and priority levels. The system can adjust the number of concurrent drones, their authorized paths, and timing based on current airspace state, enabling high throughput while maintaining safety through flexible, condition-based authorization rather than fixed limits.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent establishes a feedback loop where the RAN node continuously monitors airspace capacity and drone positions, then adjusts authorization decisions accordingly. This feedback mechanism allows the system to maintain high productivity by allowing multiple drones when capacity permits while automatically reducing authorization when collision risk increases, thus dynamically balancing throughput and safety.
Data Source
AI summary
Concepts and technologies disclosed herein are directed to intelligent drone traffic management via a radio access network (“RAN”). As disclosed herein, a RAN node, such as an eNodeB, can receive, from a drone, a flight configuration. The flight configuration can include a drone ID and a drone route. The RAN node can determine whether capacity is available in an airspace associated with the RAN node. In response to determining that capacity is available in the airspace associated with the RAN node, the RAN node can add the drone ID to a queue of drones awaiting use of the airspace associated with the RAN node. When the drone ID is next in the queue of drones awaiting use of the airspace associated with the RAN node, the RAN node can instruct the drone to fly through at least a portion of the airspace in accordance with the drone route.