JP7156476B1 - Air vehicle, wireless communication system, method and program - Google Patents

Abstract

An object of the present invention is to reduce interference with an interfering party even if the position of the interfering party is not known. A flightable vehicle, an antenna for communicating with a plurality of repeaters that transmit control signals for controlling the operation of the vehicle transmitted from radios by means of beamformed radio waves; For each of the radio waves received from the plurality of repeaters and the radio waves received from the interfering party, an arrival wave direction estimation unit for estimating an arrival wave direction, which is the direction from which the radio wave arrived, and the arrival wave direction estimation unit. Based on the arrival wave azimuth of each radio wave obtained, the repeater that interferes with the interfering party is determined as an interfering repeater, and the interfering repeater transits to an interference state in which transmission of the radio wave to the flying object is stopped. and an interference control unit that generates state transition data that instructs the flying object. [Selection drawing] Fig. 3

Description

The present invention relates to an aircraft, wireless communication system, method and program.

In recent years, the use of unmanned flying objects called drones has spread. The operation of the aircraft is controlled by radio waves transmitted from a radio or radio equipment. For this reason, with the spread of drones, the number of radio equipment is also increasing, and the available frequency bands are becoming tighter. Spatial separation is useful for improving frequency utilization efficiency, and the spatial separation can be realized by beam direction control by, for example, a phased array antenna. However, if the existing equipment, the aircraft and the radio are arranged on the same straight line, the existing equipment will be included in the range of the beam direction from the radio to the aircraft, so the radio will not interfere with the existing equipment. will give.

In addition, various studies are being conducted to improve frequency utilization efficiency. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a wireless communication resource control method that statistically acquires various waveform feature values from signal waveforms, detects surrounding wireless communication conditions, and reduces interference with surrounding wireless communication systems. disclosed. In addition, in Patent Document 2, a sensor station is installed in the vicinity of the interference suppression target, and the transmission signal from the own wireless communication system is adjusted so that it becomes null at the position of the interference suppression target, thereby suppressing interference with the target. A method is disclosed. Further, Patent Document 3 discloses a technique of forming beams by combining flight paths of aircraft, service coverage areas, and attitude control.

JP 2010-233095 A JP 2009-159585 A JP 2018-127201 A

However, in the wireless communication resource control method disclosed in Patent Document 1, a huge cost may be incurred in order to implement the function for acquiring the waveform feature quantity in the existing system. Moreover, in the method disclosed in Patent Document 2, it is necessary to install a sensor station in the vicinity of the interference suppression target. That is, since the position of the interference reduction target must be known, there is a possibility that the target may be overlooked. Furthermore, it is necessary to install the sensor station in the vicinity of the relevant facility, and there is a possibility that the existing facility is located in a location where it is difficult to install the sensor station. Further, in the method disclosed in Patent Document 3, the aircraft itself does not set the coverage area, but spatially separates according to the area set in advance. Therefore, as in Patent Document 2, the position of the interference suppression target must be known.

Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and the object of the present invention is to reduce the interference caused to the interfering partner even if the position of the interfering partner is not known. A new and improved flying object, wireless communication system, method and program are provided.

In order to solve the above problems, according to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a flightable aircraft, wherein a control signal for controlling the operation of the aircraft transmitted from a wireless device is transmitted by beam-formed radio waves. and an arriving wave for estimating an arriving wave azimuth, which is the direction from which the radio wave arrived, for each of the radio waves received from the plurality of repeaters and the radio waves received from the interfering party by the antenna. Based on the direction estimating section and the direction of arrival of each radio wave estimated by the direction of arrival estimating section, the direction of arrival of the radio wave received from the interfering party and the direction of arrival of the radio wave received from the repeater are calculated for the plurality of repeaters. A difference between the direction of arrival of the radio wave and the direction of arrival of the radio wave is calculated, a repeater whose difference is within the reference range is determined as an interfering repeater, and the interfering repeater is put into an interference state in which transmission of the radio wave to the aircraft is stopped. and an interference control unit that generates state transition data instructing transition.

The antenna may receive radio waves indicating a half-value angle of the beam directed to the aircraft from the plurality of repeaters, and the reference range may be a range within the half-value angle of the beam with respect to 180 degrees. .

The interference control unit transmits the radio wave to the flying object to the repeater with the highest received radio wave quality, and transitions to a main state in which the data received from the flying object is transferred to the wireless device. You may generate the state transition data which instruct|indicate to do.

The interference control unit transmits the radio wave to the flying object to the repeater whose received radio wave quality is next highest to the repeater operated in the main state, and transmits the data transmitted from the flying object to the repeater. State transition data may be generated to instruct transition to a sub-state in which transfer to the machine is not performed.

When the quality of the radio waves received from the first repeater operating in the sub-state exceeds the quality of the radio waves received from the second repeater operating in the main state, the interference control unit State transition data may be generated that instructs the repeater to transition to the main state and instructs the second repeater to transition to the sub-state.

When the quality of radio waves received from a repeater operating in the sub-state no longer satisfies a standard, the interference control unit causes the repeater to transition to a standby state in which the radio waves are not transmitted to the aircraft. and state transition data instructing any of the repeaters that have been in the standby state until then to transition to the sub-state.

The interference control unit may generate state transition data for instructing the repeater to transition to the standby state when it is determined that the repeater operating in the interference state does not interfere with the interfering partner.

In order to solve the above problems, according to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a wireless communication system comprising a wireless device, a plurality of repeaters, and a flightable aircraft, wherein the plurality of repeaters an antenna for receiving radio waves transmitted from the plurality of repeaters; an arrival wave azimuth estimating unit for estimating an arrival wave azimuth, which is the azimuth from which the radio waves arrive, for each of the radio waves received from the plurality of repeaters and the radio waves received from the interfering party by an antenna; and the arrival wave azimuth estimation unit. calculating the difference between the arrival wave direction of the radio wave received from the interfering party and the arrival wave direction of the radio wave received from the repeater for the plurality of repeaters , based on the arrival wave direction of each radio wave estimated by Then, a repeater whose difference is within the reference range is determined as an interfering repeater, and state transition data is generated that instructs the interfering repeater to transition to an interference state that stops transmission of the radio wave to the aircraft. A wireless communication system is provided, comprising: an interference control unit that

In order to solve the above problems, according to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method performed by a flightable vehicle comprising: a control signal transmitted from a radio for controlling operation of the vehicle; and communicating with a plurality of repeaters that transfer by beam-formed radio waves, and for each of the radio waves received from the plurality of repeaters and the radio waves received from the interfering party, the arrival wave azimuth, which is the direction from which the radio waves arrived. and based on the estimated azimuth of arrival of each radio wave, for the plurality of repeaters, the azimuth of arrival of the radio wave received from the interfering party and the azimuth of arrival of the radio wave received from the repeater. and determines the repeater whose difference is within the reference range as an interfering repeater, and instructs the interfering repeater to transition to an interference state in which transmission of the radio wave to the flying object is stopped. and generating state transition data.

In order to solve the above problems, according to another aspect of the present invention, a computer is configured to beam a control signal for controlling the operation of a flying object transmitted from a radio. An antenna that communicates with a plurality of repeaters that are transferred by formed radio waves, and an incoming wave that is the direction from which the radio waves arrived for each of the radio waves received by the antenna from the plurality of repeaters and the radio waves received from an interfering party. an arrival wave direction estimator for estimating a direction; and an arrival wave direction of the radio wave received from the interfering partner for the plurality of repeaters based on the arrival wave direction of each radio wave estimated by the arrival wave direction estimation unit. calculating the difference between the direction of arrival of the radio wave received from the repeater and the direction of arrival of the radio wave, determining the repeater whose difference is within a reference range as an interfering repeater, and transmitting the radio wave to the flying object to the interfering repeater; and an interference control unit that generates state transition data instructing transition to an interference state that stops the interference state.

According to the present invention described above, it is possible to reduce interference with an interfering party even if the position of the interfering party is not known.

1 is an explanatory diagram showing the configuration of a wireless communication system according to one embodiment of the present invention; FIG. FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing a specific example of a scene where interference may occur; 1 is an explanatory diagram showing the configuration of an aircraft 300 according to an embodiment of the present invention; FIG. FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing the configuration of a propo 400 according to one embodiment of the present invention; 4 is an explanatory diagram showing the configuration of a repeater 500 according to one embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing detailed functions of a radio control circuit 304 of an aircraft 300. FIG. FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing a specific example of a beam half-value angle B and an incoming wave direction; FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing the direction of incoming waves of radio waves WI from an existing facility 80; 4 is an explanatory diagram showing state transitions of the repeater 500; FIG. 4 is a flow chart showing a control method of state transition of a repeater; FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing the state of the wireless communication system at the first point in time; FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing the state of the wireless communication system at a second point in time; FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing the state of the wireless communication system at a third point in time;

Embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the present specification and drawings, constituent elements having substantially the same functional configuration are denoted by the same reference numerals, thereby omitting redundant description.

In addition, in this specification and drawings, a plurality of components having substantially the same functional configuration may be distinguished by attaching different letters after the same reference numerals. For example, multiple configurations having substantially the same functional configuration or logical significance are differentiated, such as repeaters 500A, 500B and 500C, as appropriate. However, when there is no particular need to distinguish between a plurality of constituent elements having substantially the same functional configuration, only the same reference numerals are given to each of the plurality of constituent elements. For example, repeaters 500A, 500B and 500C are simply referred to as repeater 500 when there is no particular need to distinguish between them.

<Configuration of wireless communication system>
One embodiment of the present invention relates to a wireless communication system including air vehicles. A configuration of a wireless communication system according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described below. An example in which the wireless communication system according to one embodiment of the present invention is applied to inspection of infrastructure such as bridges will be mainly described below.

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing the configuration of a radio communication system according to one embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, a wireless communication system according to one embodiment of the present invention has an air vehicle 300, a propo 400 and multiple repeaters 500A-500C. The propo 400 and the plurality of repeaters 500A to 500C can communicate by wireless communication WA to WC, respectively, and the flying object 300 and the plurality of repeaters 500A to 500C can communicate by wireless communication WX to WZ, respectively. The body 300 and propo 400 can communicate by wireless communication WD. The wireless communication may be communication conforming to a known standard such as wireless LAN, or may be communication conforming to a proprietary standard.

Air vehicle 300 flies according to the maneuver commands issued by propo 400 . Air vehicle 300 comprises sensors, such as image sensors or ultrasonic sensors, for inspecting infrastructure such as bridges. The flying object 300 transmits inspection data acquired by sensors. Air vehicle 300 is planned to move in direction T in the example shown in FIG. Note that the flying object 300 receives transmission data transmitted from the propo 400 and relayed by the repeater 500, and basically does not directly receive transmission data from the propo 400 in wireless communication WD. However, when the propo 400 sets a predetermined flag and transmits transmission data, the flying object 300 may receive the transmission data.

The propo 400 is an example of a wireless device, and issues a control command as a control signal for controlling the operation of the flying object based on the operation by the operator P. Also, the propo 400 receives sensor data transmitted from the flying object 300 .

Repeater 500 relays communication between flying object 300 and propo 400 . For example, the repeater 500A receives a control command from the radio 400 via the wireless communication WA, and transmits the control command to the aircraft 300 via the wireless communication WX. The repeater 500A also receives inspection data from the aircraft 300 via wireless communication WX, and transmits the inspection data to the propo 400 via wireless communication WA.

The above-described flying object 300, propo 400 and each repeater 500 are capable of wireless communication by transmitting beam-formed radio waves. For example, the repeater 500A forms a beam so that the beam direction is directed toward the aircraft 300 and transmits radio waves. In addition, flying object 300 forms beams so that the beam directions are directed toward each of repeaters 500A, 500B, and 500C, and transmits radio waves. Further, the transmission data transmitted by the flying object 300, the propo 400 and each repeater 500 includes identification information indicating itself.

The existing facility 80 performs wireless communication according to standards different from wireless communication WA to WC, WX to WZ, and WD. As such, existing installation 80 may be an interfering partner of a wireless communication system according to an embodiment of the present invention. Now, with reference to FIG. 2, a specific example of a scene where interference may occur will be described.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing a specific example of a scene where interference may occur. In FIG. 2, the repeater 500, the aircraft 300 and the existing equipment 80 are positioned substantially on a straight line. At this time, if the repeater 500 directs the beam direction toward the aircraft 300 and forms a beam to transmit radio waves, the radio waves may reach the existing equipment 80 and interfere with the existing equipment 80 . The radio waves WI transmitted by the existing equipment 80 may interfere with the wireless communication system according to the embodiment of the present invention.

The inventor of the present invention has created an embodiment of the present invention by focusing on the above circumstances.
According to one embodiment of the present invention, it is possible to reduce interference with an interfering party such as the existing facility 80 even if the position of the interfering party is not known. Hereinafter, the configuration and operation according to one embodiment of the present invention will be sequentially described in detail.

<Configuration of flying object>
FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing the configuration of an aircraft 300 according to one embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 3, an aircraft 300 according to an embodiment of the present invention comprises a radio controller 301 , an interference suppression device 311 , a flight controller 321 , a drive device 331 , an inspection device 341 and a battery 351 . Each function of the radio control device 301, the interference suppression device 311, and the flight control device 321 can be realized, for example, by the processor reading a program stored in the memory and executing the program.

(Flight control device 321)
The flight control device 321 has the function of controlling the flight of the aircraft 300 . Specifically, the flight control device 321 has a sensor group 322 and a flight control circuit 323 as shown in FIG.

The sensor group 322 includes a GNSS receiver, an acceleration sensor, a magnetic sensor, an altimeter, and the like. The sensor group 322 is connected to a flight control circuit 323 and outputs sensor data such as the attitude angle, latitude, longitude and altitude of the aircraft 300 to the flight control circuit 323 .

The flight control circuit 323 uses the sensor data acquired from the sensor group 322 to perform calculations for generating attitude control commands for controlling the attitude of the aircraft 300 . The flight control circuit 323 is connected to the driving device 331 and outputs the attitude control command to the driving device 331 .

In addition, the flight control circuit 323 is connected to the interference suppression device 311, transfers the sensor data acquired from the sensor group 322 to the interference suppression device 311, and issues an operation command for the aircraft 300 by the propo 400 from the interference suppression device 311. and transfer the steering command to the drive device 331 .

(Interference suppression device 311)
Interference suppression device 311 is connected to radio control circuitry 304 and flight control circuitry 323 . The interference suppression device 311 has a function as an interference control unit and performs control to reduce interference with the existing equipment 80 . Control for reducing interference will be described later in detail.

(Radio control device 301)
The radio control device 301 is composed of an array antenna 302, an RF reception circuit 303, a radio control circuit 304, and an RF transmission circuit 305, and has a function of performing radio communication.

Array antenna 302 is an antenna connected to RF receiving circuit 303 and RF transmitting circuit 305 , receives radio waves from radio 400 and repeaters 500 A to 500 C, and transfers received signals to RF receiving circuit 303 . Array antenna 302 also emits a transmission signal from RF transmission circuit 305 as radio waves to propo 400 and repeaters 500A to 500C.

The RF receiving circuit 303 is connected to the wireless control circuit 304 , converts received radio waves into received signals, and transfers the signals to the wireless control circuit 304 .

The wireless control circuit 304 is connected to the interference suppressing device 311 , the RF receiving circuit 303 , the RF transmitting circuit 305 and the inspection device 341 . The radio control circuit 304 performs reception processing on the reception signal acquired from the RF reception circuit 303, converts the reception signal into a control command for operating the aircraft 300, and performs flight control via the interference suppression device 311. Transfer steering commands to circuit 323 .

Further, the wireless control circuit 304 converts the received signal into an inspection command for operating the inspection device 341 through similar reception processing, and transfers the inspection command to the inspection device 341 . Further, the interference suppressing device 311 attaches type data indicating that the data is from the flying object 300 to the sensor data of the flying object 300 acquired from the flight control circuit 323 and the inspection data acquired from the inspection device 341, and transmits the data. It is transferred to the wireless control circuit 304 as data. After transferring the transmission data to the radio control circuit 304, the interference suppression device 311 further transfers a transmission request. Thereby, the transmission data is converted into a transmission signal in the radio control circuit 304 , and the transmission signal is transferred to the RF transmission circuit 305 .

The RF transmission circuit 305 is connected to the array antenna 302 and the radio control circuit 304 , converts a transmission signal transferred from the radio control circuit 304 into a transmission radio wave, and transfers the radio wave to the array antenna 302 .

(Driving device 331)
The driving device 331 includes a motor and a propeller for causing the flying object 300 to fly, and an ESC (Electric Speed Controller) for controlling the number of revolutions of these motors and propellers. The drive device 331 is connected to the flight control circuit 323 and operates according to attitude control commands and maneuver commands transferred from the flight control circuit 323 .

(Inspection device 341)
The inspection device 341 has sensors such as an image sensor and an ultrasonic sensor for inspecting the infrastructure. The inspection device 341 is connected to the wireless control circuit 304 and outputs inspection data acquired by the sensor to the wireless control circuit 304 .

(Battery 351)
The battery 351 is a battery such as a lithium ion polymer secondary battery or a lithium ion secondary battery capable of supplying electric power. The battery 351 is connected to the radio control device 301, the interference suppression device 311, the flight control device 321, the driving device 331, and the inspection device 341, and supplies power to each of these devices.

<Propo configuration>
The configuration of the aircraft 300 according to one embodiment of the present invention has been described above. Next, with reference to FIG. 4, the configuration of the propo 400 according to one embodiment of the present invention will be described.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing the configuration of the propo 400 according to one embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 4, the propo 400 according to one embodiment of the present invention comprises a radio controller 401 , an HMI (Human Interface) 411 and a battery 421 . Each function of the wireless control device 401 and the HMI 411 can be realized by, for example, reading a program stored in the memory by the processor and executing the program.

(Radio control device 401)
The radio control device 401 has an array antenna 402 , an RF reception circuit 403 , a radio control circuit 404 and an RF transmission circuit 405 . Since the functions of the radio control device 401 generally correspond to the functions of the radio control device 301 of the aircraft 300 described above, detailed description thereof will be omitted here.

(HMI411)
HMI 411 has vehicle control circuitry 412 , display 413 and lever 414 .

The aircraft control circuit 412 issues an operation command for the aircraft 300 in response to the operation of the lever 414, transfers the operation command to the wireless control circuit 404 as transmission data, and further transfers a transmission request. The aircraft control circuit 412 also has a function of issuing an execution command for initialization processing according to the operation of the lever 414 and transferring the execution command to the wireless control circuit 404 as transmission data. The transmission data is provided with type data indicating that it is data from the propo 400 .

A display 413 displays inspection data transmitted from the aircraft 300 . The lever 414 is configured to be operated by the operator P. The operator P can operate the flying object 300 by operating the lever 414 while confirming the inspection data displayed on the display 413 .

(Battery 421)
The battery 421 is a battery such as a lithium ion polymer secondary battery or a lithium ion secondary battery capable of supplying electric power. A battery 421 is connected to the radio control device 401 and the HMI 411 and supplies necessary power to each device.

<Repeater configuration>
The configuration of the propo 400 according to one embodiment of the present invention has been described above. Next, with reference to FIG. 5, the configuration of repeater 500 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing the configuration of repeater 500 according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 5, repeater 500 according to an embodiment of the present invention comprises radio controller 501 , relay controller 511 and battery 521 . Each function of the radio control device 501 and the relay control device 511 can be realized, for example, by reading a program stored in the memory by the processor and executing the program.

(Radio control device 501)
The radio control device 501 has an array antenna 502 , an RF reception circuit 503 , a radio control circuit 504 and an RF transmission circuit 505 . Since the functions of the radio control device 501 generally correspond to the functions of the radio control device 301 of the aircraft 300 described above, detailed description thereof will be omitted here.

(Relay control device 511)
The relay control device 511 has a relay control circuit 512 . The relay control circuit 512 is connected to the radio control circuit 504 and determines whether or not to relay the received data from the transmitter 400 and the aircraft 300 during normal operation. 504 as transmission data. The relay control device 511 adds type data indicating a repeater when transferring the transmission data, and transfers the transmission request to the wireless control circuit 504 together.

(battery 521)
The battery 521 is a battery such as a lithium ion polymer secondary battery or a lithium ion secondary battery capable of supplying electric power. A battery 521 is connected to the radio control device 501 and the relay control device 511 and supplies necessary power to each device.

<Functions of Wireless Control Circuit 304>
Next, detailed functions of the wireless control circuit 304 of the flying object 300 will be described. The functions described below can also be applied to the radio control circuit 404 of the radio control circuit 400 and the radio control circuit 504 of the repeater 500 .

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing detailed functions of the radio control circuit 304 of the aircraft 300. As shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 6 , the radio control circuit 304 includes an arrival direction estimation unit 601 , a reception processing unit 602 , a reception directivity calculation unit 603 , a storage unit 604 , a wave emission direction selection unit 605 , a transmission directivity calculation unit 606 . , and a transmission processing unit 607 .

(Arriving wave direction estimation unit 601)
The arrival wave direction estimator 601 has a function of estimating the arrival wave direction, which is the direction from which the radio wave arrives, based on the received signal of each antenna element of the array antenna 302 . A high-resolution algorithm such as MUSIC (Multiple Signal Classification) method or ESPRIT (Estimation of Signal Parameters via Rotation Invariance Techniques) method may be used for estimating the arrival wave direction. The direction-of-arrival estimator 601 estimates the direction of arrival of each of the radio waves received from the existing equipment 80 , the radio waves received from the repeater 500 , and the radio waves received from the transmitter 400 .

(Receiving directivity calculator 603)
Reception directivity calculation section 603 directs beams to radio system 400, repeaters 500A to 500C, and aircraft 300 based on the direction of arrival of waves estimated by direction of arrival estimation section 601, and directs beams to existing facility 80, which is an interference partner. A complex weight W is calculated so as to have a null directivity with respect to , and each element data received from each antenna element is synthesized using the complex weight W. A complex weight, not shown, is a weight for adjusting the phase and amplitude of each element data. Directivity calculation uses, for example, a DCMP (Directionally Constrained Minimization of Power) method.

(Reception processing unit 602)
Reception processing section 602 has a function of decoding the reception signal synthesized by reception directivity calculation section 603 according to the communication system and outputting reception data received from each device. The reception data received from the repeater 500 includes information indicating the beam half-value angle B in the beamforming performed by the repeater 500 .

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing specific examples of the beam half-value angle B and the azimuth of the incoming wave. As shown in FIG. 7, the beam half-value angle B is an angle between two directions in which the electric field strength is half the maximum value, including the beam direction in which the electric field strength is the maximum value. Note that the incoming wave azimuth D indicates, for example, the magnitude of the angle around the clockwise direction in a plan view with the N direction as a reference.

(storage unit 604)
The storage unit 604 associates and stores the type data, the identification information, and the direction of arrival of the incoming wave included in the received data. For example, the storage unit 604 associates and stores the type data, the identification information, and the direction of arrival of each of the propo 400, the repeaters 500A to 500C, the aircraft 300, and the existing equipment 80. FIG. Regarding the existing facility 80, the type data indicating indefinite and the incoming wave azimuth U shown in FIG.

(Emitted wave direction selector 605)
Emitted wave direction selection section 605 refers to storage section 604 based on the transmission request input from interference suppression device 311 , selects the beam direction and null direction, and sends the beam direction and null direction to transmission directivity calculation section 606 . Output. For example, when a transmission request to the repeater 500A is input, the emitted wave direction selection unit 605 selects the incoming wave direction stored in the storage unit 604 in association with the repeater 500A as the beam direction, and associates it with the existing facility 80. The incoming wave direction stored in the storage unit 604 may be selected as the null direction.

(Transmission directivity calculator 606)
The transmission directivity calculator 606 calculates a complex weight W that realizes the beam direction and null direction input from the emitted wave direction selector 605 . Further, the transmission directivity calculation unit 606 calculates a transmission pattern based on the calculated complex weight W, calculates a beam half-value angle B with respect to the azimuth of the aircraft 300 from the transmission pattern, and transfers it to the transmission processing unit 607 .

(Transmission processing unit 607)
The transmission processing unit 607 includes the beam half-value angle B in the transmission data, creates a transmission signal according to the communication method based on the transmission data, and multiplies the transmission signal by the complex weight W obtained from the transmission directivity calculation unit 606. , outputs the multiplication result to the RF transmission circuit.

<Repeater state transition>
Next, the function of the interference suppression device 311 of the aircraft 300 will be described in detail. The interference suppression device 311 generates state transition data that instructs the state transition of the repeater 500 . The state transition data is transmitted from radio network controller 301 to repeater 500, and repeater 500 makes a state transition according to the received state transition data.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram showing state transitions of the repeater 500. As shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 9, the states of repeater 500 include, for example, standby state, sub-state, main state and interference state. The standby state is a state in which radio waves are not transmitted to the flying object 300 . The sub state is a state in which radio waves are transmitted to the flying object 300 and data transmitted from the flying object 300 is not transferred to the propo 400 . The main state is a state in which radio waves are transmitted to the flying object 300 and data transmitted from the flying object 300 is also transferred to the radio transmitter 400 . The interference state is a state in which radio waves are not transmitted to the flying object 300 and data transmitted from the flying object 300 is not transferred to the propo 400 .

For example, when repeater 500A is in a standby state, wireless communication WX is one-way communication from aircraft 300 to repeater 500A, and wireless communication WA is one-way communication from radio 400 to repeater 500A. Also, when the repeater 500A is in the sub state, the wireless communication WX is two-way communication, and the wireless communication WA is one-way communication from the radio 400 to the repeater 500A. Also, when repeater 500A is in the main state, both wireless communication WX and wireless communication WA are two-way communication. Also, when the repeater 500A is in an interference state, the wireless communication WX is one-way communication from the aircraft 300 to the repeater 500A, and the wireless communication WA is one-way communication from the radio 400 to the repeater 500A.

As shown in FIG. 9, each repeater 500 first enters a standby state. A repeater 500 in the waiting state may transition to a sub-state or an interfering state. A repeater 500 in a substate can transition to a main state, an interfering state, or a standby state. A repeater 500 in the main state may transition to a substate or an interference state. A repeater 500 in an interfering state may transition to a standby state.

The criteria by which the interference suppression device 311 controls transitions between the states described above will be described below with reference to FIG. 10 .

FIG. 10 is a flow chart showing a control method of state transition of a repeater. Before execution of the control method shown in FIG. 10, the repeaters 500A to 500C are installed separately, the repeaters 500A to 500C transmit radio waves as initialization processing, and the repeaters 500A to 500C are stored in the storage unit 604 of the aircraft 300. is stored. The initialization process starts when the propo 400 transmits an initialization command as transmission data to the aircraft 300 and the repeaters 500A to 500C based on the operation of the lever 414 of the propo 400 by the operator P. In the initialization process, each repeater 500A-500C may recognize the positional relationship with each other and the positional relationship with the propo 400. FIG. Further, in the initialization process, each of repeaters 500A to 500C may transmit its own position information to flying object 300, and flying object 300 may store the position information of each of repeaters 500A to 500C.

First, the interference suppression device 311 sets each repeater 500 to a standby state (S204). Interference suppression device 311 causes one repeater 500 among the plurality of repeaters whose identification information is stored in storage unit 604 to transition to the sub-state (S208). For example, the interference suppression device 311 may cause the repeater 500 in the waiting state to transition to a sub-state in FIFO (First In First Out). That is, the interference suppression device 311 may cause the repeater 500 to transition to the sub-state according to the order in which the identification information is stored in the storage unit 604 .

The interference suppression device 311 then observes the PER (Packet Error Rate) of the sub-repeater (the repeater 500 operating in the sub-state) and determines whether the PER of the sub-repeater is 10% or more (S212). Determining whether the PER is 10% or more is an example of determining whether the radio wave quality satisfies the standard. Other determinations may be applied to determine whether the quality of the radio waves meets the criteria, such as determining whether the received strength of the radio waves exceeds a predetermined value.

If the radio wave quality of the sub-repeater does not meet the standard, that is, if the PER of the sub-repeater is 10% or more (S212/Yes), the interference suppression device 311 will 500) is replaced (S216), and the processing from S212 is repeated. If the radio wave quality of the sub-repeater satisfies the standard, that is, if the PER is less than 10% (S212/No), the interference suppression device 311 transitions the sub-repeater to the main repeater (S220). The interference suppression device 311 then transitions one standby repeater to the sub-state (S224).

After that, the interference suppression device 311 determines whether or not there is a repeater 500 that interferes with the existing equipment 80 (hereinafter referred to as an interfering repeater) (S228). The interference suppression device 311, for example, calculates the difference between the incoming wave direction U of the radio wave received from the existing facility 80 and the incoming wave direction D of the radio wave received from each repeater 500, and determines that the difference is within the reference range. A certain repeater 500 is determined as an interfering repeater. The reference range may be a range within the half-value angle B of the beam included in the reception data received from the corresponding repeater 500 with 180 degrees as the reference. In this case, the repeater 500 that satisfies "180−(B/2)<difference between U and D<180+(B/2)" is determined as the interfering repeater.

When the interference suppression device 311 determines that there is an interfering repeater (S228/Yes), the interference suppressing device 311 transitions the interfering repeater to the interfering state (S232). When the interference suppression device 311 determines that there is no interfering repeater (S228/No), and if there is an interfering repeater 500, the interference suppression device 311 transitions the repeater 500 to the standby state (S236).

Next, the interference suppression device 311 determines whether or not the PER of the main repeater exceeds the PER of the sub-repeater (S240). Note that determining whether the PER of the main repeater exceeds the PER of the sub-repeater is an example of determining whether the quality of the radio wave received from the main repeater is lower than the quality of the radio wave received from the sub-repeater. . When determining that the PER of the main repeater exceeds the PER of the sub-repeater (S240/No), the interference suppression device 311 switches the main repeater and the sub-repeater (S224).

Furthermore, the interference suppression device 311 determines whether the PER of the sub-repeater is 10% or more (S248). When the PER of the sub-repeater is 10% or more (S248/Yes), the interference suppression device 311 switches the sub-repeater and the standby repeater (S252). After that, the process from S228 is repeated until the operation of the wireless communication system according to one embodiment of the present invention is completed (S260). When radio waves from the existing facility 80 other than the repeater 500 are received from the direction of the incoming wave from the repeater 500, the interference suppression device 311 changes the state of the repeater 500 to the standby state if there is a repeater 500 in the interference state. After making the transition, the processing from S228 may be repeated.

<Specific example of state transition>
Next, a specific example of the above-described state transition of the repeater 500 will be described.

(state at the first point in time)
FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram showing the state of the wireless communication system at the first point in time. In the state shown in FIG. 11, repeater 500A is the main repeater, repeater 500B is the standby repeater, and repeater 500C is the sub-repeater. That is, the wireless communication WA for the repeater 500A, which is the main repeater, is two-way communication with the propo 400, and the wireless communication WX is also two-way communication with the aircraft 300. FIG. Wireless communication WB for repeater 500B, which is a standby repeater, is one-way communication from transmitter 400 to repeater 500B, and wireless communication WY is one-way communication from aircraft 300 to repeater 500B. Wireless communication WC for repeater 500C, which is a sub-repeater, is one-way communication from propo 400 to repeater 500C, and wireless communication WZ is two-way communication with aircraft 300. FIG.

Therefore, when the operator P operates the lever 414 of the propo 400, a steering command is transmitted as transmission data through the wireless communications WA to WC, and the repeaters 500A to 500C receive the steering command. Repeaters 500A and 500B also transmit the control command received from propo 400 as transmission data to flying object 300 via wireless communications WX and WY, and flying object 300 receives the control command.

Interference suppression device 311 of aircraft 300 confirms the type data and identification information of the data received from repeaters 500A and 500B, and extracts a maneuver command from the data received from repeater 500A, which is the main repeater. Then, the interference suppressing device 311 transfers the maneuver command to the flight control circuit 323, whereby flight control in the direction T is realized.

On the other hand, the flying object 300 transmits data including inspection data and state transition data acquired by the inspection device 341 to the repeaters 500A to 500C via wireless communications WX to WZ. Here, since there is no change in the state transition data, repeaters 500A-500C do not perform state transition. Also, since the repeater 500A is the main repeater, it transmits the data received from the flying object 300 to the propo 400 by the wireless communication WA. Propo 400 extracts inspection data from the received data and displays the inspection data on display 413 .

(state at the second point in time)
FIG. 12 is an explanatory diagram showing the state of the wireless communication system at a second point in time after the first point in time. At the second point in time, the flying object 300 has moved in the direction T, so that the flying object 300 is receiving radio waves WI transmitted from the existing facility 80 . Since the radio wave WI is a radio wave transmitted according to a standard different from that of wireless communication WA to WC, WX to WZ, and WD, the reception processing unit 602 of the aircraft 300 may not be able to demodulate the radio wave WI as received data. On the other hand, the arrival wave azimuth estimation unit 601 can estimate the arrival wave azimuth U of the radio wave WI to be, for example, 310 degrees. In this case, the storage unit 604 associates and stores the type data of indefinite with 310 degrees as the direction of the incoming wave. The transmission directivity calculator 606 calculates a complex weight W that makes the direction of arrival of the radio wave WI null, and the transmission data is transmitted from the aircraft 300 using the complex weight W. FIG.

Further, when the incoming wave azimuth U is 310 degrees, the incoming wave azimuth D of the radio wave received from the repeater 500C is 110 degrees, and the beam half-value angle B is 40 degrees, "180−(B/2)<U and D<180+(B/2)” is satisfied. Therefore, the interference suppression device 311 determines that the repeater 500C is the interfering repeater, instructs the repeater 500C to transition to the interference state, and instructs the repeater 500B to transition to the sub-state because the sub-repeater is absent. Generate state transition data to As a result, the repeater 500</b>C transitions from the sub-state to the interference state, and stops transmitting radio waves to the aircraft 300 . Also, the repeater 500B transitions from the standby state to the sub-state and starts transmitting radio waves to the aircraft 300 . Repeater 500A maintains the main state and continues to transmit radio waves to flying object 300 .

(state at the third point in time)
FIG. 13 is an explanatory diagram showing the state of the wireless communication system at a third point in time after the second point in time. At the third point in time, the flying object 300 further moves in the direction T, so that the incoming wave azimuth U of the radio wave WI becomes 280 degrees, and the azimuth D of the repeater 500C as seen from the flying object 300 becomes 121 degrees. Angle B is 40 degrees. Although the repeater 500C is in an interference state and does not transmit radio waves, the flying object 300 can estimate the azimuth D of the repeater 500C based on the position information of the repeater 500C obtained in advance.

In this case, “180−(B/2)<difference between U and D<180+(B/2)” is not satisfied for repeater 500C. Therefore, the interference suppression device 311 determines that the repeater 500C is no longer an interfering repeater, and causes the repeater 500C to transition to the standby state.

Furthermore, assume that the flying object 300 moves away from the repeater 500A and approaches the repeater 500B, so that the PER of the repeater 500A operating in the main state becomes 20% and the PER of the repeater 500B operating in the sub state becomes 0%. In this case, interference suppression device 311 determines that the PER of the main repeater exceeds the PER of the sub-repeater, causes repeater 500A to transition from the main state to the sub-state, and repeater 500B to transition from the sub-state to the main state. Furthermore, since the PER of repeater 500A in the sub-state is 10% or more, interference suppression device 311 causes repeater 500A to transition from the sub-state to the standby state, and repeater 500C that has been in the standby state to transition to the sub-state. . As a result, the repeater 500A stops transmitting radio waves to the flying object 300, and the repeater 500C starts transmitting radio waves to the flying object 300. FIG.

<Effect>
According to one embodiment of the present invention described above, various effects can be obtained. For example, according to one embodiment of the present invention, since interference suppression can be achieved without demodulating the radio wave WI transmitted from the existing facility 80, there is no need to change the function of the existing facility 80, and the No cost. Further, according to one embodiment of the present invention, interference suppression can be realized even if the position of the existing equipment 80 is not known, so a preliminary survey of the existing equipment 80 is not required.

Further, the interference suppression device 311 according to an embodiment of the present invention calculates the difference between the incoming wave direction U of the radio wave received from the existing equipment 80 and the incoming wave direction D of the radio wave received from each repeater 500, A repeater 500 whose difference is within the reference range is determined as an interfering repeater. According to such a configuration, it is possible to highly accurately determine the repeater 500 that can transmit radio waves that interfere with the existing facility 80 as the interfering repeater.

Also, the interference suppressing device 311 according to one embodiment of the present invention appropriately transitions the state of the repeater 500 among the standby state, sub-state, main state and interference state. According to such a configuration, the number of repeaters 500 that transmit radio waves is narrowed down, so it is possible to further suppress the tightness of the band and the occurrence of interference. In particular, since the repeater 500 with good communication status preferentially operates as the main repeater, improvement in communication performance can also be expected.

Note that the repeater 500 can be easily installed on a tripod or the like. Another advantage of the embodiment of the present invention is that the repeater 500 can be installed at a high degree of freedom, and the repeater 500 need not be installed near the existing equipment 80 .

<Supplement>
Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above with reference to the accompanying drawings, the present invention is not limited to such examples. It is obvious that a person having ordinary knowledge in the technical field to which the present invention belongs can conceive of various modifications or modifications within the scope of the technical idea described in the claims. It is understood that these also naturally belong to the technical scope of the present invention.

For example, although an example in which an embodiment of the present invention is applied to inspection of infrastructure has been mainly described above, the aircraft 300 may be equipped with a visible light camera instead of the inspection device 341. An embodiment of the invention can also be applied to aerial photography. Even in this case, interference with the existing facility 80 can be suppressed.

In the above description, the existing facility 80 operating under a standard different from that of the wireless communication system according to the embodiment of the present invention is mainly described as an interfering partner. Interference can be suppressed. In this case, it becomes possible to operate two radio communication systems at the same time, and frequency utilization efficiency is improved.

Also, each step in the processing of the flying object 300 in this specification does not necessarily have to be processed in chronological order according to the order described as a sequence diagram or flowchart. For example, each step in the processing of the flying object 300 may be processed in an order different from the order described as the flowchart, or may be processed in parallel.

A computer for causing hardware such as a CPU, ROM, and RAM built into the aircraft 300, the radio 400, and the repeater 500 to exhibit functions equivalent to the respective configurations of the aircraft 300, the radio 400, and the repeater 500 described above. Programs can also be created. A non-transitory storage medium storing the computer program is also provided.

300 Aircraft 301 Radio Control Device 302 Array Antenna 303 RF Reception Circuit 304 Radio Control Circuit 305 RF Transmission Circuit 311 Interference Suppression Device 321 Flight Control Device 322 Sensor Group 323 Flight Control Circuit 331 Driving Device 341 Inspection Device 351 Battery 400 Propo 401 Radio Control Device 402 Array Antenna 403 RF Reception Circuit 404 Wireless Control Circuit 405 RF Transmission Circuit 411 HMI
412 Aircraft control circuit 413 Display 414 Lever 421 Battery 500 Repeater 501 Radio control device 502 Array antenna 503 RF reception circuit 504 Radio control circuit 505 RF transmission circuit 511 Relay control device 512 Relay control circuit 521 Battery 601 Arrival wave direction estimation unit 602 Reception Processing unit 603 Reception directivity calculation unit 604 Storage unit 605 Emitted wave direction selection unit 606 Transmission directivity calculation unit 607 Transmission processing unit

Claims (10)

a flightable aircraft,
an antenna communicating with a plurality of repeaters that transmit control signals for controlling the operation of the vehicle transmitted from radios by beam-formed radio waves;
an arrival wave azimuth estimating unit for estimating an arrival wave azimuth, which is the azimuth from which the radio waves have arrived, for each of the radio waves received from the plurality of repeaters and the radio waves received from an interfering party by the antenna;
Based on the arrival wave direction of each radio wave estimated by the arrival wave direction estimation unit, for the plurality of repeaters, the arrival wave direction of the radio wave received from the interference partner and the arrival wave of the radio wave received from the repeater A difference from the azimuth is calculated, a repeater whose difference is within a reference range is determined as an interfering repeater, and the interfering repeater is instructed to transition to an interference state in which transmission of the radio wave to the flying object is stopped. an interference control unit that generates state transition data to
An air vehicle. the antenna receives, from the plurality of repeaters, radio waves indicating a half-value angle of the beam toward the aircraft;
2. The flying object according to claim 1 , wherein the reference range is within a half-value angle of the beam with respect to 180 degrees. The interference control unit transmits the radio wave to the flying object to the repeater with the highest received radio wave quality, and transitions to a main state in which the data received from the flying object is transferred to the wireless device. 3. The flying object according to claim 1 , which generates state transition data instructing to do. The interference control unit transmits the radio wave to the flying object to the repeater whose received radio wave quality is next highest to the repeater operated in the main state, and transmits the data transmitted from the flying object to the repeater. 4. The aircraft according to claim 3 , which generates state transition data instructing transition to a sub-state in which transfer to the aircraft is not performed. When the quality of the radio waves received from the first repeater operating in the sub-state exceeds the quality of the radio waves received from the second repeater operating in the main state, the interference control unit 5. The aircraft according to claim 4 , which generates state transition data instructing a repeater to transition to a main state and instructing said second repeater to transition to a sub-state. When the quality of radio waves received from a repeater operating in the sub-state no longer satisfies a standard, the interference control unit causes the repeater to transition to a standby state in which the radio waves are not transmitted to the aircraft. Generate state transition data that instructs
6. The aircraft according to claim 5 , wherein state transition data is generated that instructs any repeater that has been in a standby state up to that point to transition to said sub-state. 7. When determining that the repeater operating in the interference state does not interfere with the interfering partner, the interference control unit generates state transition data for instructing the repeater to transition to the standby state. The aircraft described in . A wireless communication system comprising a radio, a plurality of repeaters, and a flightable vehicle,
the plurality of repeaters transmit control signals for controlling the operation of the flying object transmitted from the radio to the flying object by beam-formed radio waves;
The aircraft is
an antenna for receiving radio waves transmitted from the plurality of repeaters;
an arrival wave azimuth estimating unit for estimating an arrival wave azimuth, which is the azimuth from which the radio waves have arrived, for each of the radio waves received from the plurality of repeaters and the radio waves received from an interfering party by the antenna;
Based on the arrival wave direction of each radio wave estimated by the arrival wave direction estimation unit, for the plurality of repeaters, the arrival wave direction of the radio wave received from the interference partner and the arrival wave of the radio wave received from the repeater A difference from the azimuth is calculated, a repeater whose difference is within a reference range is determined as an interfering repeater, and the interfering repeater is instructed to transition to an interference state in which transmission of the radio wave to the flying object is stopped. an interference control unit that generates state transition data to
A wireless communication system comprising: A method performed by a flyable vehicle comprising:
Communicating with a plurality of repeaters that transmit control signals for controlling the operation of the vehicle transmitted from radios by means of beamformed radio waves;
estimating an arrival wave azimuth, which is the azimuth from which the radio waves arrived, for each of the radio waves received from the plurality of repeaters and the radio waves received from the interfering party;
Based on the estimated arrival wave azimuth of each radio wave, for the plurality of repeaters, a difference between the arrival wave azimuth of the radio wave received from the interfering party and the arrival wave azimuth of the radio wave received from the repeater is calculated. determining a repeater whose difference is within the reference range as an interfering repeater, and generating state transition data instructing the interfering repeater to transition to an interference state in which transmission of the radio wave to the aircraft is stopped; and
A method, including the computer,
radio waves received from the plurality of repeaters by an antenna in communication with a plurality of repeaters transmitting control signals for controlling the operation of the aircraft transmitted from radios by beamformed radio waves, and radio waves received from interfering parties; an arriving wave direction estimating unit for estimating an arriving wave direction, which is the direction from which the radio wave arrived, for each of the radio waves;
Based on the arrival wave direction of each radio wave estimated by the arrival wave direction estimation unit, for the plurality of repeaters, the arrival wave direction of the radio wave received from the interference partner and the arrival wave of the radio wave received from the repeater A difference from the azimuth is calculated, a repeater whose difference is within a reference range is determined as an interfering repeater, and the interfering repeater is instructed to transition to an interference state in which transmission of the radio wave to the flying object is stopped. an interference control unit that generates state transition data to
A program to function as

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