JP4702105B2 - Data relay antenna drive control device and drive control method - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a data relay antenna drive control apparatus and drive control method, and more particularly to data communication between a plurality of ground stations and mobile stations by relaying data such as images transmitted from each ground station and mobile station. The present invention relates to a drive control device and a drive control method for a data relay antenna mounted on a moving body.

  Conventionally, various systems for driving and controlling an antenna have been proposed in a system that performs communication between a mobile unit and a ground station (see, for example, Patent Documents 1 to 4). FIG. 7 shows a block diagram of an example of a conventional data transmission apparatus described in Patent Document 1. In FIG. This data transmission apparatus is used in a data transmission system that takes a ground image from a mobile object such as an aircraft, transmits the obtained image data to a ground station on the ground, and performs image processing at the ground station. It comprises a position detector 101, a moving body attitude detector 102, a ground station position calculator 103, an antenna drive control command calculator 104, an antenna drive controller 105, and a transmission / reception antenna 106.

  In the conventional data transmission apparatus shown in FIG. 7, a mobile body position detection signal 107 that is an output signal of the mobile body position detector 101, a mobile body posture detection signal 108 that is an output signal of the mobile body posture detector 102, Based on the ground station position calculation signal 109, which is an output signal of the station position calculator 103, the antenna drive control command calculator 104 calculates how to set the directivity direction of the transmission / reception antenna 106 mounted on the mobile body. Is generated as an antenna drive control command signal 110. The antenna drive controller 105 compares the antenna drive control command signal 110 with the current antenna directivity angle, calculates an antenna directivity angle error, generates an antenna drive control signal 111 based on the signal, and transmits / receives the transmit / receive antenna 106. By driving the directivity angle of the antenna, the antenna directivity direction can be adjusted even in a situation where the position and orientation of the moving body fluctuate.

  Patent Document 2 discloses a laser range finder that is located in the stratosphere and keeps the relative positional relationship between the geostationary satellite and the earth constant, and a laser beam is transmitted from the laser range finder to the geostationary satellite. By detecting the distance and direction from the geostationary satellite by receiving the reflected laser beam from the geostationary satellite, and in a low altitude geosynchronous orbit that is stationary when viewed from the earth. An invention is disclosed in which a relay between two terrestrial radio stations fixed on the ground is performed by a radio relay aerial base equipped with an engine motor that can be adjusted to be held in position.

  Further, in Patent Document 3, in a mobile communication system having a radio wave insensitive zone as a service area, position information of a ground station to be a relay partner is planned in advance at each time and relayed to the ground station based on the information. A mobile communication system that enables relaying to the ground station by driving and controlling the direction of the antenna is disclosed.

  Patent Document 4 discloses an antenna control system that can obtain an optimal reception state even in an environment with many obstacles and shields by controlling rotation of a directional antenna according to the level of received electric field strength. ing.

  On the other hand, Patent Document 5 discloses an antenna control device that controls the directivity and directivity of a parabolic antenna installed on an aircraft body such as a helicopter. The antenna is based on the position, velocity, attitude, and ground station position of the aircraft. Is controlled to maintain communication with the ground station and continuously relay to the broadcast station.

JP 2002-354462 A (6th page, FIG. 1) Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 4-96528 (page 3, FIG. 1) JP-A-8-172388 (page 7, FIG. 2) Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2004-120533 (page 12, FIG. 1) JP 2002-185233 A (page 5-6, FIG. 1, FIG. 5)

  However, in the data transmission apparatus as shown in FIG. 7 described in Patent Document 1, since only one-to-one communication can be realized between the mobile body and the ground station, this data transmission apparatus can be used between a plurality of ground stations and mobile stations. In order to apply to data transmission / reception (data relay) in a mobile station, it is necessary to exchange various information such as the position of the ground station and the mobile station and the antenna directivity angle by installing a plurality of data transmission devices on the mobile body. Therefore, there is a problem that it is difficult to realize data relay with the configuration of FIG.

  Further, the invention described in Patent Document 2 has a problem that it is not possible to realize relay between a mobile station and a ground station or between mobile stations. Further, in the invention described in Patent Document 3, it is difficult to obtain the position information of the ground station when the ground station constantly moves according to the situation, and cannot be applied when the ground station always moves. There is a problem. In the invention described in Patent Document 4, antenna directivity angle control can be realized according to the reception level, but with this alone, the position / orientation is arbitrarily designated by an antenna mounted on a moving body that changes moment by moment. There is a problem that data relay between multiple ground stations cannot be realized.

  Furthermore, the invention described in Patent Document 5 has a configuration that can cope with the displacement of the airframe that exceeds the tracking drive capability of the antenna drive device mounted on the relay helicopter that is a moving object. Since the antenna reception strength is not used for control, appropriate antenna switching and highly accurate antenna directivity control cannot be performed.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and is mounted on a moving body such as an aircraft or an automobile, and the radio wave obtained by the position / velocity, attitude angle / angular velocity of the moving body, the position of each ground station or mobile station, and communication. The ground station on the ground or moves by performing antenna switching and antenna directivity control while automatically determining the communication priority for each ground station and mobile station based on the antenna directivity angle error obtained according to the reception strength, etc. It is an object of the present invention to provide a data relay antenna drive control apparatus and drive control method capable of efficiently relaying image data and the like between a plurality of ground stations such as mobile stations and / or mobile stations.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention relays data such as images transmitted from a ground station on the ground or a moving mobile station, thereby moving between a plurality of ground stations, between mobile stations, or with a ground station. In order to carry out data communication between stations, it is a drive control device of a data relay antenna mounted on a mobile body,
A plurality of antennas that are configured so that their directing directions are movable and have a range that partially overlaps each other, a moving body detecting means that detects the position, velocity, posture angle, and angular velocity of the moving body, and data A ground station / mobile station position calculating means for calculating a position of the ground station and / or mobile station that performs communication and outputting a ground station / mobile station position signal, and the ground station and / or mobile station that performs data communication A plurality of received radio wave intensity detecting means for separately receiving the radio waves transmitted from the mobile station and detecting the received radio wave intensity at that time, and the position, velocity, attitude angle and angular velocity of the moving object output from the moving object detecting means From the detection signals and the ground station / mobile station position signal output from the ground station / mobile station position calculation means, the priority order of the antennas that maintain the communication state at the time of antenna switching is indicated. Priority determination means for generating an antenna priority determination signal, antenna priority determination signal, detection signal of position, velocity, attitude angle and angular velocity of a moving body, ground / mobile station position signal, and received radio wave intensity Antenna drive control command calculation means for generating a plurality of antenna drive command signals for each antenna for a plurality of antennas from the received radio wave intensity detection signal output from the detection means, and a plurality of antenna drive signals based on the plurality of antenna drive command signals Is generated and supplied separately to a plurality of antennas, and when the plurality of antennas are in a range where their movable ranges overlap, they are driven independently of each other to change the directivity directions of the plurality of antennas. And a control means.

  In this invention, based on the position / velocity / attitude angle / attitude angular velocity information and ground station / mobile station position information of a mobile body equipped with a plurality of antennas, a ground station and a mobile station that can communicate with each antenna are selected. After setting the priority for communication with each ground station and mobile station, the priority determination means determines whether it is necessary to switch the combination of each antenna with the ground station and mobile station, thereby driving the antenna. The generation of the antenna drive control command signal generated by the control command calculation means is optimized. As a result, in the present invention, between the ground station and the mobile station that can be relayed from the position / velocity / attitude angle / angular velocity of the moving body, the received radio wave intensity received by the mounted antenna, and the relative positional relationship with the ground station or the mobile station. In addition, the directivity direction of each mounted antenna can be controlled so that the communication interruption time associated with antenna switching is minimized.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention relays data such as images transmitted from a ground station on the ground or a moving mobile station, so that a plurality of ground stations, mobile stations or ground In order to carry out data communication between a station and a mobile station, a data relay antenna drive control device mounted on a mobile body,
A plurality of antennas that are configured so that their directing directions are movable and have a range that partially overlaps each other, a moving body detecting means that detects the position, velocity, posture angle, and angular velocity of the moving body, and data A ground station / mobile station position calculating means for calculating a position of the ground station and / or mobile station that performs communication and outputting a ground station / mobile station position signal, and the ground station and / or mobile station that performs data communication A plurality of received radio wave intensity detecting means for separately receiving the radio waves transmitted from the mobile station and detecting the received radio wave intensity at that time, and the position, velocity, attitude angle and angular velocity of the moving object output from the moving object detecting means From each detection signal and the ground station / mobile station position signal output from the ground station / mobile station position calculation means, a superior signal for determining an antenna priority order determination signal for simultaneously changing the directivity directions of a plurality of antennas. Position determination means, antenna priority determination signal, position, velocity, attitude angle and angular velocity detection signals of the moving body, ground / mobile station position signal, and received radio wave intensity output from the received radio wave intensity detection means From the detection signal, an antenna drive control command calculating means for generating a plurality of antenna drive command signals for each antenna for a plurality of antennas, and generating a plurality of antenna drive signals based on the plurality of antenna drive command signals, Antenna driving control means for separately supplying and driving the plurality of antennas independently of each other and simultaneously changing the directivity directions of the plurality of antennas when the movable ranges thereof are in the overlapping range. And

  In the present invention, it is determined whether or not it is necessary to switch the mounted antenna used for communication with the ground station and the mobile station without setting a priority for the communication with the ground station and / or the mobile station that performs data communication. It can always be optimized based on the position, velocity, attitude angle, angular velocity detection signals and ground / mobile station position calculation signals, and correct the antenna pointing angle using the received signal strength received by the onboard antenna. Thus, it is possible to configure an antenna drive control system that is not easily affected by detection errors of the position, speed, posture angle, and angular velocity of the moving body.

Moreover, in order to achieve the above object, by relaying data such as images transmitted from a ground station on the ground or a moving mobile station, a plurality of ground stations, mobile stations or ground stations and mobile stations are relayed. A data relay antenna drive control method mounted on a moving body in order to carry out data communication between,
A first step of detecting the position, velocity, attitude angle and angular velocity of the moving body, and the position of the ground station and / or mobile station performing data communication are calculated, and a ground station / mobile station position signal is output. A second step, a third step of separately receiving radio waves transmitted from the ground station and / or mobile station that perform data communication, and detecting a received radio wave intensity at that time, a position of the moving body, Antenna switching of a plurality of antennas whose directional directions are configured to be movable from each of the velocity, attitude angle and angular velocity detection signals and the ground station / mobile station position signal, and which partially overlap each other. A fourth step of generating an antenna priority determination signal indicating the priority of the antenna that maintains the communication state at the time, the antenna priority determination signal, and the position, speed, attitude angle, and angular speed of the moving object A fifth step of generating a plurality of antenna drive command signals for each of the plurality of antennas from each of the detection signals, the ground station / mobile station position signal, and the detection signal of the received radio wave intensity, and a plurality of antenna drive commands A plurality of antenna drive signals are generated based on the signal and supplied separately to the plurality of antennas. When the plurality of antennas are in a range where their movable ranges overlap, they are driven independently of each other to And a sixth step of changing each directivity direction.

  In this invention, based on the position / velocity / attitude angle / attitude angular velocity information and ground station / mobile station position information of a mobile body equipped with a plurality of antennas, a ground station that can communicate with each antenna is selected. Optimize the generation of antenna drive control command signal by setting whether to change the combination of each antenna and the ground station by priority determining means after setting the priority for communication with . As a result, in the present invention, the priority order between relay stations that can be relayed is determined from the position / velocity / attitude angle / angular velocity of the moving body, the received radio wave intensity received by the mounted antenna, and the relative positional relationship with the ground station. In the above, the directivity direction of each mounted antenna can be controlled so that the communication interruption time associated with antenna switching is minimized.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention relays data such as images transmitted from a ground station on the ground or a moving mobile station, so that a plurality of ground stations, mobile stations or ground In order to carry out data communication between a station and a mobile station, a drive control method for a data relay antenna mounted on a mobile body,
A first step of detecting the position, velocity, attitude angle and angular velocity of the moving body, and the position of the ground station and / or mobile station performing data communication are calculated, and a ground station / mobile station position signal is output. A second step, a third step of separately receiving radio waves transmitted from the ground station and / or mobile station that perform data communication, and detecting a received radio wave intensity at that time, a position of the moving body, Directional directions of a plurality of antennas whose directional directions are movable from the detection signals of velocity, attitude angle and angular velocity and ground station / mobile station position signals, and that partially overlap the movable range. A fourth step of generating an antenna priority determination signal for simultaneously changing the antenna, an antenna priority determination signal, detection signals of position, velocity, attitude angle and angular velocity of the moving object, and ground station / mobile station position A fifth step of generating a plurality of antenna drive command signals for each of the plurality of antennas from the signal and the detection signal of the received radio wave intensity; and generating a plurality of antenna drive signals based on the plurality of antenna drive command signals Supplying separately to a plurality of antennas, and when the plurality of antennas are in a range where their movable ranges overlap, a sixth step of simultaneously driving the plurality of antennas to change the directivity directions of the plurality of antennas; It is characterized by including.

  In the present invention, the priority of communication with a plurality of ground stations and mobile stations is not set, and whether the mounted antenna used for communication with the ground stations and mobile stations needs to be switched is determined as to the position, speed, and attitude of the mobile body. It can always be optimized based on the detection signal of angular and angular velocities and the ground station / mobile station position calculation signal, and by correcting the antenna pointing angle using the received radio wave intensity received by the mounted antenna, An antenna drive control system that is not easily affected by position, velocity, attitude angle, and angular velocity detection errors can be configured.

  According to the present invention, the priority order between the ground stations that can be relayed is determined from the position / velocity of the moving body, the attitude angle / angular velocity, the received radio wave intensity received by the mounted antenna, and the relative positional relationship with the ground station or the mobile station. After deciding, the directivity direction of each mounted antenna is controlled so that the communication interruption time due to antenna switching is minimized, so that reliable, efficient, high-speed and high-accuracy data relay can be realized even while moving .

  Further, according to the present invention, the priority of communication with a plurality of ground stations and mobile stations is not set, and it is determined whether switching of the mounted antenna used for communication with the ground stations and mobile stations is necessary. Based on the detection signal of velocity, attitude angle, angular velocity, and ground station / mobile station position calculation signal, it can always be optimized, and the antenna pointing angle can be corrected by using the received signal strength received by the mounted antenna. Since the antenna drive control system that is not easily affected by the detection error of the position, speed, attitude angle, and angular velocity of the moving body is configured, reliable and highly accurate data relay can be realized.

FIG. 1 shows a block diagram of an embodiment of a drive control apparatus for a data relay antenna according to the present invention. As shown in the figure, the data relay antenna drive control apparatus includes a mobile body position / speed detector 1, a mobile body attitude angle / angular speed detector 2, a ground station / mobile station position calculator 3, an antenna drive control apparatus. 4 and n (n is an integer of 3 or more) received radio wave intensity detectors 5 _{1 to} 5 _n , n antenna drive controllers 7 _{1 to} 7 _n , and n mounted antennas 8 ₁ to 8 _n The The antenna drive control device 4 includes an antenna pointing station allocation and priority determination unit 41 and an antenna drive control command calculator 42, and is a station fixed on the ground (hereinafter referred to as a ground station) or a station moving on the ground. It is mounted on a mobile unit for data communication between multiple ground stations, between mobile stations, or between ground stations and mobile stations by relaying data such as images transmitted from (hereinafter referred to as mobile stations). It is a data relay antenna drive control device. Note that the moving body moves in the air or on the ground.

The moving body position / velocity detector 1 receives, for example, GPS signals from artificial satellites constituting the Global Positioning System (GPS), and detects the latitude / longitude information on which the device is located and changes thereof. By doing so, the current position and moving speed of the moving body are detected. The moving body posture angle / angular velocity detector 2 is composed of, for example, a gyro and an accelerometer. The ground station / mobile station position calculator 3 calculates the antenna directivity angle target value from the kinematic relationship from latitude information indicating the positions of the ground station and the mobile station or information such as x, y, z values in an arbitrary fixed coordinate system. It is a device for doing. The mounted antennas 8 ₁ to 8 _n are each provided with a directivity angle detector (not shown) for detecting the directivity angle by a known method such as a rotary encoder or a resolver. The directivity angle detection signals 16 _{1 to} 16 _n detected by the detector are supplied to the antenna drive control command calculator 42.

As shown in FIG. 1, the mobile relay mounted data relay antenna drive control apparatus according to this embodiment detects the position and speed of the mobile body in which this apparatus is mounted by the mobile body position / speed detector 1. The moving body posture angle / angular velocity detection obtained by detecting the moving body position / velocity detection signal 10 and the posture angle and angular velocity of the moving body on which the apparatus is mounted by the moving body posture angle / angular velocity detector 2. From the signal 11 and the ground station / mobile station position calculation signal 12 obtained by calculating the ground station / mobile station position calculator 3 with the positions of the ground station and mobile station with which this apparatus communicates, the antenna drive control device 4 is a combination of the antennas 8 ₁ to 8 _n on the moving body and the ground station that is the communication partner, and the antenna priority that determines the priority for each communication. Ranking The signal 9 is generated and supplied to the antenna drive control command calculator 42, where the moving object position / velocity detection signal 10, the moving object attitude angle / angular velocity detection signal 11, the ground / mobile station position calculation signal 12, and the first Based on the received radio wave intensity detection signal 13 _{1 of} the station to the received radio wave intensity detection signal 13 _{n of} the n-th station, antenna drive command signals 14 _{1 to} 14 _n that are command signals for the respective antennas are calculated.

The n antenna drive controllers 7 _{1 to} 7 _n respectively generate the antenna drive signals 15 ₁ to 15 _n independently of each other based on the antenna drive command signals 14 _{1 to} 14 _n , and correspondingly The provided mounting antennas 8 ₁ to 8 _n are driven independently of each other.

  Next, with regard to the operation of the present embodiment shown in FIG. 1, as a specific example, a helicopter (rotary wing aircraft) is equipped with two antennas in the case of n = 2, and between the ground fixed ground station and the mobile station. The data relay implemented in will be described.

  FIG. 2 shows, as an example of the embodiment of the present invention (Example 1), two antennas mounted on a rotorcraft that is a moving body between a ground station fixed on the ground and a moving mobile station. A configuration for data relay is shown, which is composed of a rotorcraft 21, a ground station 22, and a mobile station 23. In FIG. 2, the movable range 25L of the antenna port mounted on the left side in the traveling direction of the rotary wing machine 21 as a moving body is mounted on the left side of the rotary wing machine 21 and on the right side in the traveling direction of the rotary wing machine 21. The movable range 25R of the antenna starboard is shown on the right side of the rotary wing machine 21, and the shaded portion is a portion where the movable range 25R of the antenna starboard and the movable range 25L of the antenna port overlap. The antenna port and the antenna starboard are not shown in FIG.

  Also, what is shown in FIG. 2 is the yaw rate (angular velocity about the vertical axis with respect to the ground) of the rotary wing aircraft 21, and ψ represents the azimuth orientation angle of the aircraft. In FIG. 2, the antenna port is directed to the ground station 22 and the antenna starboard is directed to the mobile station 23, and the rotorcraft 21 is turning at an angular velocity yaw rate. At this time, the directivity directions of the antenna port and the antenna starboard mounted on the left and right sides of the rotary wing aircraft 21 enter the shaded area, and relaying can be continued without interruption even if the antenna port and the antenna starboard are switched. In the state and when the value of the directivity angle further increases, the antenna switching drive control is performed to replace the ground station and the mobile station to which the antenna port and the antenna star are directed.

  Switching antennas has limitations (restrictions) on the driving angles of the antenna port and starboard, and the airframe itself hinders communication, so it may be necessary to switch antennas to continue relaying Because.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of the first embodiment of the data relay antenna drive control device for mounting on a mobile unit whose function is shown in FIG. In the figure, the same components as those in FIG. 3, a ground station received radio wave intensity detector 30 and a mobile station received radio wave intensity detector 31 correspond to the received radio wave intensity detectors 5 ₁ and 5 ₂ in FIG. ₁ , and the antenna port drive controller 34 in FIG. The antenna starboard drive controller 35 corresponds to the antenna drive controllers 7 ₁ and 7 ₂ of FIG. 1, respectively. The mounted antenna port 36 and the mounted antenna starboard 37 of FIG. 3 are respectively mounted antennas 8 ₁ and 8 _{2 of} FIG. It corresponds to.

  The antenna switching in FIG. 2 is determined by the antenna pointing station allocation and priority determining unit 41 in FIG. 3, and the antenna priority determining signal 9 indicating the determined ground station allocation and priority is sent to the antenna drive control command calculator 42. Is input.

In this embodiment, together with the antenna switching shown in FIG. 2, the ground station received radio wave intensity detection signal 32 and the mobile station detected by the ground station received radio wave intensity detector 30 and the mobile station received radio wave intensity detector 31 provided for each antenna. Using the received radio wave intensity detection signal 33, the command signal generated from the mobile object position / velocity detection signal 10, the mobile object attitude angle / angular velocity detection signal 11, and the ground station / mobile station position calculation signal 12 is corrected, and the antenna is respectively corrected. by generating a drive command signal 14 ₁ and the antenna drive command signal 14 _2, contained in a mobile position-speed detection signal 10 and the mobile attitude angle, angular velocity detection signal 11 and the ground station / mobile station position calculation signal 12 The detection error component can be corrected, and the pointing accuracy of the mounted antenna port 36 and the mounted antenna starboard 37 with respect to each ground station can be ensured.

  Here, an algorithm of the detection error component correction method of the present embodiment will be described. The received radio wave intensity at a certain time n indicated by the ground station received radio wave intensity detection signal 32 or the mobile station received radio wave intensity detection signal 33 is AGC (n), and the antenna directivity angle of the mounted antenna port 36 or the mounted antenna starboard 37 at that time Where θ (n) is defined as the following variables.

このとき、数値シミュレーション及び実験により導出した｜ΔＡＧＣ／Δθ｜は、アンテナ指向角変動に対する電波強度変動の絶対値を示し、その値とアンテナ指向角誤差との関係は、図６に示すようになる。図６のＸ軸はアンテナ指向角誤差、Ｙ軸は（１）式を利用して導出するアンテナ指向角変動に対する電波強度変動の絶対値（電波強度変動／アンテナ指向角変動の絶対値）を示す。

At this time, | ΔAGC / Δθ | derived by numerical simulation and experiment indicates the absolute value of the radio wave intensity variation with respect to the antenna directivity angle variation, and the relationship between the value and the antenna directivity angle error is as shown in FIG. . In FIG. 6, the X-axis indicates the antenna directivity angle error, and the Y-axis indicates the absolute value of the radio wave intensity fluctuation (the radio wave intensity fluctuation / the absolute value of the antenna directivity angle fluctuation) with respect to the antenna directivity angle fluctuation derived using the equation (1). .

  Therefore, the antenna directivity angle error can be determined by evaluating the formula 2 to determine whether the antenna directivity angle error tends to increase or decrease. It is assumed that the received radio wave intensity at time n + 1 is AGC (n + 1) and the antenna directivity angle is θ (n + 1).

ここで、上記の数２で示される値が０以下であれば、移動体位置・速度検出信号１０と移動体姿勢角・角速度検出信号１１と地上局／移動局位置算出信号１２とから生成したアンテナ駆動指令信号１４_１〜１４_ｎに対する補正値を０とし、上記の数２で示される値が正であれば、移動体位置・速度検出信号１０と移動体姿勢角・角速度検出信号１１と地上局／移動局位置算出信号１２とから生成したアンテナ駆動指令信号１４_１〜１４_ｎに対する補正値を図６の｜ΔＡＧＣ（ｎ）／Δθ（ｎ）｜に対するアンテナ誤差角から導出しアンテナ駆動指令信号１４_１〜１４_ｎを補正する。なお、搭載アンテナ左舷３６と搭載アンテナ右舷３７とが通信する地上局／移動局の切換方法についてはいくつかある。

Here, if the value expressed by the above equation 2 is 0 or less, it is generated from the moving body position / velocity detection signal 10, the moving body attitude angle / angular velocity detection signal 11, and the ground station / mobile station position calculation signal 12. _If the correction value for the antenna drive command signals 14 _{1 to} 14 _n is 0 and the value shown in the above equation 2 is positive, the mobile object position / speed detection signal 10, the mobile body attitude angle / angular speed detection signal 11, and the ground Correction values for the antenna drive command signals 14 _{1 to} 14 _n generated from the station / mobile station position calculation signal 12 are derived from the antenna error angle with respect to | ΔAGC (n) / Δθ (n) | in FIG. 14 _{1 to} 14 _n are corrected. There are several methods for switching between a ground station and a mobile station through which the mounted antenna port 36 and the mounted antenna starboard 37 communicate.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 2, the antenna-mounted port 36 is in communication with the ground station 22 and the antenna-mounted starboard 37 is in communication with the mobile station 23, and the antenna pointing station assignment and priority determination unit in FIG. The operation of FIGS. 2 and 3 when the communication with the mobile station 23 is set to have a higher priority than the communication with the ground station 22 at 41 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

  As shown by the hatched area in FIG. 2, since there is a region where the antenna port movable range 25L and the antenna starboard movable range 25R of the rotorcraft 21 overlap, in order to continue relay without interruption of communication, the mounted antenna port When antenna 36 and mounted antenna starboard 37 are in the overlapping region of the movable range, antenna pointing station assignment and priority determination unit 41 in FIG. 3 needs to switch antennas in order to maintain communication with each ground station. If it is determined whether or not the antenna needs to be switched, communication with the ground station 22 is performed while the communication between the mounted antenna starboard 37 having the higher priority and the mobile station 23 is secured. In order to change the directivity direction of the mounted antenna port 36 used in FIG. 4 from the ground station 22 to the mobile station 23, the operation according to the flowchart of FIG. 4 is performed.

  That is, first, an antenna directivity direction command value for the mounted antenna port 36 is generated (step S1), and on the basis of this, the mounted antenna port 36 is driven by the antenna port drive controller 34 (step S2). Whether the mobile station 23 can communicate with the mobile station 23 is checked by checking whether the received radio wave intensity by the mobile station received radio wave intensity detector 31 is equal to or higher than a predetermined threshold (step S3).

When the received radio wave intensity by the mobile station received radio wave intensity detector 31 is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold value and communication with the mobile station 23 is possible, communication is locked on. Therefore, the antenna drive control command calculator 42 determines that communication with the mobile station is possible when communication is locked on in step S3, and this time, the antenna pointing direction with respect to the other mounted antenna starboard 37 is determined. A command value is generated (step S4). The antenna driving control command calculator 42 determines a driving control even when the antenna directivity angle detection signal 16 ₁ and the antenna drive command signal 14 ₁ on antenna port 36 are substantially the same in step S3 is finished, step S4 Proceeding to generate an antenna directivity direction command value for the mounted antenna starboard 37.

Subsequently, the mounted antenna starboard 37 is driven by the antenna starboard drive controller 35 based on the antenna directivity direction command value for the mounted antenna starboard 37 (step S5), and the mounted antenna starboard 37 has become communicable with the ground station 22. Whether or not the communication lock is turned on is confirmed by whether or not the received radio wave intensity by the ground station received radio wave intensity detector 30 is equal to or higher than a predetermined threshold (step S6). When the communication state with the ground station 22 is confirmed in the antenna drive control command calculator 42 by communication lock-on, the switching process is completed. The antenna driving control command calculator 42 determines that the antenna directional angle detection signal 16 ₂ and the antenna drive command signal 14 _second mounting antenna starboard 37 is also driving control is terminated when substantially coincides with step S6.

  Since communication is interrupted during antenna switching, how to minimize the communication interruption time during antenna switching is the biggest technical problem in data relaying. The priority order is determined among the ground station 22 and mobile station 23 that can be relayed from the position / posture of the rotorcraft 21 and the position of the ground station 22 and mobile station 23 and the received radio wave intensity received by the mounted antenna at each time. However, by controlling the antenna orientation so that the instantaneous interruption time is minimized, reliable, efficient, high-speed and high-accuracy data relay can be realized.

  Next, it is possible to switch antennas under the same conditions without setting priority for communication between the ground station 22 and the mobile station 23, and the operation of the embodiment of FIG. Referring to the flowchart of FIG. 5, communication between ground stations will be described as an example.

In order to maintain communication with each ground station, when the antenna directivity angle of one of the onboard antenna port 36 or the onboard antenna starboard 37 enters the shaded area in FIG. 2, the antenna orientation of FIG. In the station allocation and priority determination unit 41, whether the antenna switching of the mounted antenna port 36 and the mounted antenna starboard 37 used for communication with the ground station is necessary due to the limitation of the antenna driving angle and the necessity of data relay, After the determination based on the speed detection signal 10, the moving body attitude angle / angular velocity detection signal 11, and the ground station / mobile station position calculation signal 12, the antenna drive control command calculator 42 uses the mounted antenna port 36 and the mounted antenna starboard 37. Antenna starboard drive command value and antenna starboard drive command value (command signals 14 ₁ , 14 ₂ ) indicating respective directivity angles with respect to (Step S11).

Here, in the present embodiment, the antenna drive control command calculator 42 corrects the antenna directivity angle using the received radio wave strengths received by the mounted antenna port 36 and the mounted antenna starboard 37, respectively. Since the antenna starboard drive command values (command signals 14 ₁ and 14 ₂ ) are generated, they are less affected by detection errors of the mounted mobile body position / speed detector 1 and mobile body posture angle / angular speed detector 2. The communication interruption time at the time of antenna switching can be minimized.

  Subsequently, the antenna port drive controller 34 and the antenna starboard drive controller 35 respectively perform the mounted antenna port 36 and the mounted antenna based on the antenna port drive command value and the antenna starboard drive command value generated in step S11, respectively. The starboard 37 is driven at the same time (step S12), and it is determined that the communication with the ground station to which the mounted antenna port 36 and the mounted antenna starboard 37 are respectively assigned has been resumed (communication lock-on). Confirmation is made by the determiner 41 (step S13), and if it can be confirmed, the switching process is completed.

The antenna driving control command calculator 42 in step S13, the antenna port drive command value and the antenna starboard drive command value and the antenna directivity angle of the antenna directivity angle detection signal 16 ₁ and mounting the antenna starboard 37 of each mounting antenna port 36 even when the detection signal 16 ₂ substantially coincides, to complete the determination to switch processing and the drive control is finished.

  In addition, when only one of the mounted antenna starboard 36 and the mounted antenna starboard 37 has been locked in communication or the drive control has been terminated in spite of simultaneous antenna driving in step S12, the ground station information is waited to be updated or rotated from the ground. It is ensured that both the mounted antenna port 36 and the mounted antenna starboard 37 are in communication lock-on or drive control end by the adjustment by manual operation of the pilot of the wing machine 21 and the data relay state is always restored.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, regardless of whether or not there is a request for setting the priority order for the antenna port 36 and the antenna starboard 37 mounted on the rotorcraft 21 that is a moving object, the ground station It is possible to always optimize whether or not it is necessary to switch the mounted antenna used for communication with the mobile station based on the mobile body position / velocity detection signal 10, the mobile body attitude angle / angular speed detection signal 11, and the ground station / mobile station position calculation signal 12. Therefore, it is possible to realize high-performance data relay while minimizing data communication interruption due to antenna switching.

  Further, in the present embodiment, the antenna driving control command calculator 42 corrects the antenna directivity angle using the received radio wave intensity received by the mounted antenna, thereby mounting the mobile body position / speed detector 1 and the mobile body to be mounted. An antenna drive control system that is not easily affected by the detection error of the attitude angle / angular velocity detector 2 can be configured.

  In particular, the antenna pointing station allocation and priority order determination unit 41 and the antenna drive control command calculation unit 42 shown here are prioritized based on the viewpoint of realizing optimal data relay for a plurality of ground stations and mobile stations. This is a unique technique for appropriately performing switching, and cannot be easily inferred from conventional inventions such as Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-354462.

  In the description of FIG. 5, an example in which data communication between ground stations is relayed has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and data communication between a ground station and a mobile station, between mobile stations, and the like. Of course, it can also be applied to relaying.

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and can be applied to, for example, a data relay antenna drive control device for an aircraft (fixed wing aircraft) or an automobile traveling on the ground. It is also possible to set so that communication between the ground station 22 and the mobile station 23 is prioritized for communication with the ground station 22 over the mobile station 23.

It is a block diagram of one embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure explaining an example of antenna switching at the time of applying the device of Drawing 1 to a rotary wing machine carrying two antennas. It is a block diagram of one Example of this invention. FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an example of the process of FIG. 3 when the priority order of antenna driving is set. FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an example of the process of FIG. 3 when the antenna drive priority order is not set. FIG. It is a characteristic view which shows the relationship between the antenna directivity angle error and the radio field intensity fluctuation with respect to the antenna directivity angle fluctuation. It is a block diagram of an example of a conventional device.

Explanation of symbols

1 mobile position-speed detector 2 mobile attitude angle-angular rate detector 3 ground station / mobile station position calculator 4 antenna drive control device 5 ₁ to 5 _n RSSI detector 7 ₁ to _7-n antenna drive controller 8 ₁ to 8 _n mounted antenna 10 Mobile body position / velocity detection signal 11 Mobile body attitude angle / angular velocity detection signal 12 Ground / mobile station position calculation signal 13 ₁ First station received radio wave intensity detection signal 13 ₂ Second station received radio wave Intensity detection signal 13 _{n n-} th station received radio wave intensity detection signal 14 _{1 to} 14 _n antenna drive command signal 15 ₁ to 15 _n antenna drive signal 16 _{1 to} 16 _n antenna directivity angle detection signal 21 rotorcraft 22 ground station 23 mobile station 30 Ground station received radio wave intensity detector 31 Mobile station received radio wave intensity detector 32 Ground station received radio wave intensity detection signal 33 Mobile station received radio wave intensity detection signal 34 Antenna left Drive controller 35 antenna starboard drive controller 36 mounted antenna port 37 mounted antenna starboard 41 antenna directivity station assignments and priority determiner 42 antenna driving control command calculator

Claims (8)

By relaying data such as images transmitted from a ground station on the ground or a moving mobile station, data communication between a plurality of the ground stations, between the mobile stations, or between the ground station and the mobile station is performed. A data relay antenna drive control device mounted on a mobile body,
A plurality of antennas whose directional directions are configured to be movable and having ranges that partially overlap each other's movable ranges;
Mobile object detection means for detecting the position, speed, posture angle and angular velocity of the mobile object,
A ground station / mobile station position calculating means for calculating a position of the ground station and / or mobile station for performing data communication and outputting a ground station / mobile station position signal;
A plurality of received radio wave intensity detecting means for separately receiving radio waves transmitted from the ground station and / or mobile station performing data communication and detecting the received radio wave intensity at that time;
From each detection signal of the position, velocity, attitude angle and angular velocity of the moving object output from the moving object detection means, and the ground station / mobile station position signal output from the ground station / mobile station position calculation means Priority order determination means for generating an antenna priority order determination signal indicating the priority order of the antennas that maintain the communication state during antenna switching among the plurality of antennas;
The antenna priority determination signal, the detection signal of the position, velocity, attitude angle and angular velocity of the moving body, the ground / mobile station position signal, and the received radio wave intensity detection output from the received radio wave intensity detecting means An antenna drive control command calculating means for generating a plurality of antenna drive command signals for each antenna for the plurality of antennas from a signal;
A plurality of antenna drive signals are generated based on the plurality of antenna drive command signals and supplied separately to the plurality of antennas, and the plurality of antennas are independent from each other when the movable range is in the overlapping range. And a drive control unit for the data relay antenna, wherein the drive control unit is configured to change the directivity directions of the plurality of antennas. By relaying data such as images transmitted from a ground station on the ground or a moving mobile station, data communication between a plurality of the ground stations, between the mobile stations, or between the ground station and the mobile station is performed. A data relay antenna drive control device mounted on a mobile body,
A plurality of antennas whose directional directions are configured to be movable and having ranges that partially overlap each other's movable ranges;
Mobile object detection means for detecting the position, speed, posture angle and angular velocity of the mobile object,
A ground station / mobile station position calculating means for calculating a position of the ground station and / or mobile station for performing data communication and outputting a ground station / mobile station position signal;
A plurality of received radio wave intensity detecting means for separately receiving radio waves transmitted from the ground station and / or mobile station performing data communication and detecting the received radio wave intensity at that time;
From each detection signal of the position, velocity, attitude angle and angular velocity of the moving object output from the moving object detection means, and the ground station / mobile station position signal output from the ground station / mobile station position calculation means Priority order determining means for generating an antenna priority order determination signal for simultaneously changing the directivity directions of the plurality of antennas;
The antenna priority determination signal, the detection signal of the position, velocity, attitude angle and angular velocity of the moving body, the ground / mobile station position signal, and the received radio wave intensity detection output from the received radio wave intensity detecting means An antenna drive control command calculating means for generating a plurality of antenna drive command signals for each antenna for the plurality of antennas from a signal;
A plurality of antenna drive signals are generated based on the plurality of antenna drive command signals and supplied separately to the plurality of antennas, and the plurality of antennas are independent from each other when the movable range is in the overlapping range. And an antenna drive control means for simultaneously changing the directivity directions of the plurality of antennas to drive the data relay antenna.   In the case where two antennas are mounted on the mobile unit and data communication is performed between the ground station and the mobile station, the priority order determination unit is configured to output the mobile unit output from the mobile unit detection unit. From the detection signals of position, velocity, attitude angle and angular velocity and the ground station / mobile station position signal output from the ground station / mobile station position calculating means, the communication state with the mobile station at the time of antenna switching is Generating an antenna priority determination signal indicating an antenna priority for preferentially maintaining the directivity direction of one of the two antennas assigned to the communication with the mobile station so as not to be blocked; The data relay antenna drive control apparatus according to claim 1.   Two antennas are mounted on the mobile unit, and in order to perform data communication between the ground stations, between the mobile stations, or between the ground station and the mobile station, the priority determining means From the detection signals of the position, velocity, posture angle and angular velocity of the mobile body output from the body detection means and the ground station / mobile station position signal output from the ground station / mobile station position calculation means, an antenna 3. The data relay antenna drive control apparatus according to claim 2, wherein an antenna priority determination signal for simultaneously changing the directivity directions of the two antennas at the time of switching is generated. By relaying data such as images transmitted from a ground station on the ground or a moving mobile station, data communication between a plurality of the ground stations, between the mobile stations, or between the ground station and the mobile station is performed. In order to make it possible, a drive control method for a data relay antenna mounted on a mobile body,
A first step of detecting the position, velocity, posture angle and angular velocity of the moving body,
A second step of calculating a position of the ground station and / or mobile station performing data communication and outputting a ground station / mobile station position signal;
A third step of separately receiving radio waves transmitted from the ground station and / or mobile station performing data communication and detecting the received radio wave intensity at that time;
From the detection signals of the position, velocity, attitude angle and angular velocity of the moving body and the ground station / mobile station position signal, a pointing direction is configured to be movable, and a range that partially overlaps the movable range of each other. A fourth step of generating an antenna priority order determination signal indicating the priority order of the antennas that maintain the communication state at the time of antenna switching of the plurality of antennas;
From the antenna priority determination signal, each detection signal of the position, velocity, attitude angle and angular velocity of the moving body, the ground station / mobile station position signal, and the detection signal of the received radio wave intensity, the plurality of antennas A fifth step of generating a plurality of antenna drive command signals for each antenna with respect to
A plurality of antenna drive signals are generated based on the plurality of antenna drive command signals and supplied separately to the plurality of antennas, and the plurality of antennas are independent from each other when the movable range is in the overlapping range. And a sixth step of changing the directivity directions of the plurality of antennas to drive the data relay antenna. By relaying data such as images transmitted from a ground station on the ground or a moving mobile station, data communication between a plurality of the ground stations, between the mobile stations, or between the ground station and the mobile station is performed. In order to make it possible, a drive control method for a data relay antenna mounted on a mobile body,
A first step of detecting the position, velocity, posture angle and angular velocity of the moving body,
A second step of calculating a position of the ground station and / or mobile station performing data communication and outputting a ground station / mobile station position signal;
A third step of separately receiving radio waves transmitted from the ground station and / or mobile station performing data communication and detecting the received radio wave intensity at that time;
From the detection signals of the position, velocity, attitude angle and angular velocity of the moving body and the ground station / mobile station position signal, a pointing direction is configured to be movable, and a range that partially overlaps the movable range of each other. A fourth step of generating an antenna priority determination signal for simultaneously changing the directivity directions of the plurality of antennas;
From the antenna priority determination signal, each detection signal of the position, velocity, attitude angle and angular velocity of the moving body, the ground station / mobile station position signal, and the detection signal of the received radio wave intensity, the plurality of antennas A fifth step of generating a plurality of antenna drive command signals for each antenna with respect to
A plurality of antenna drive signals are generated based on the plurality of antenna drive command signals and supplied separately to the plurality of antennas, and the plurality of antennas are independent from each other when the movable range is in the overlapping range. And a sixth step of simultaneously changing the directivity directions of the plurality of antennas to drive the data relay antenna.   In the case where two antennas are mounted on the mobile body and data communication is performed between the ground station and the mobile station, the fourth step includes the position, speed, attitude angle, and angular speed of the mobile body. The directivity of one of the two antennas assigned to the communication with the mobile station so that the communication state with the mobile station is not interrupted at the time of antenna switching from each detection signal and the ground station / mobile station position signal. 6. The data relay antenna drive control method according to claim 5, wherein an antenna priority order determination signal indicating an antenna priority order for preferentially maintaining the direction is generated. In order to perform data communication between the ground stations, between the mobile stations, or between the ground station and the mobile station, the antenna is mounted on the mobile unit in the fourth step. An antenna priority determination signal for simultaneously changing the directivity directions of the two antennas at the time of antenna switching from the detection signals of body position, velocity, attitude angle and angular velocity and the ground station / mobile station position signal The data relay antenna drive control method according to claim 6, wherein the data relay antenna is generated.

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