UAV Ad-Hoc Collaboration via Shared Intent Discovery

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Solution Overview

Problem

Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) lack the ability to dynamically discover and collaborate with each other to achieve common tasks efficiently, leading to suboptimal data collection and sharing in scenarios like event recording.

Innovation Solution

A method and system that enable UAVs to advertise task-oriented intents, analyze shared intentions, establish connections, and configure collaboration plans, allowing them to divide work and share data effectively, even with previously unknown operators.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Productivity

If UAVs operate independently without collaboration mechanisms, then device complexity is reduced, but productivity and task completion efficiency deteriorate

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvetask completion efficiencyVSAvoidcollaboration system complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

UAVs autonomously discover each other through intent broadcasting and automatically establish collaboration plans without requiring complex centralized coordination systems. Each UAV independently evaluates shared intents and negotiates collaboration terms, enabling efficient multi-UAV operations while maintaining relatively simple individual device architecture

Inventive Principle:

Principle #25Self-service

Solution Approach 2:

The patent introduces an intent message as an intermediary mechanism that facilitates collaboration between UAVs. These structured messages containing task descriptions, capabilities, and requirements serve as a standardized communication protocol, enabling efficient coordination without requiring complex direct peer-to-peer negotiation systems

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Adaptability or versatility

If UAVs establish ad-hoc collaboration groups dynamically, then adaptability improves, but loss of time for discovery and coordination increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvedynamic collaboration capabilityVSAvoiddiscovery and coordination time

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

UAVs pre-configure their intent messages with task descriptions, capabilities, and requirements before flight operations. This preliminary preparation enables immediate collaboration establishment upon encountering compatible UAVs, eliminating the need for time-consuming runtime negotiations and enabling rapid adaptive formation of collaboration groups

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The patent employs structured intent messages with defined parameters that can be efficiently compared and matched. By standardizing collaboration criteria into discrete parameters, UAVs can rapidly evaluate compatibility and make quick decisions about forming collaboration groups, reducing the time penalty associated with dynamic adaptation

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

Data Source

PatentUS11574547B2Unmanned aerial vehicle ad-hoc clustering and collaboration via shared intent and operator discovery

Publication Date: 2023.02.07 INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINE CORPORATION

AI summary

Systems and methods for establishing an ad-hoc collaboration between unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are provided. A method includes: configuring intent data of a first UAV using a controller of the first UAV; configuring a collaboration plan for the first UAV and a second UAV based on a determination of a shared intent between the first UAV and the second UAV; executing the collaboration plan by flying the first UAV and gathering data using the first UAV based on the collaboration plan; and sharing the gathered data with an operator of the second UAV.