WO2019199182A1

WO2019199182A1 - System and method for automatically controlling communication sector of antennas configured with tethered balloon

Info

Publication number: WO2019199182A1
Application number: PCT/OM2018/050004
Authority: WO
Inventors: Hadj BOURDOUCEN; Ahmed AL-MAASHRI; Ashraf SALEEM; Mohammed BAIT-SUWAILAM; Raid AL-ZARAFI; Ali AL-BIMANI
Original assignee: Sultan Qaboos University; Oman Telecommunications Company (S.A.O.G)
Priority date: 2018-04-11
Filing date: 2018-04-11
Publication date: 2019-10-17

Abstract

A system configured with a tethered balloon to automatically control communication sector of antennae. The system includes a housing unit, sensing unit, controlling unit, and motor unit. The housing unit is detachably attached beneath the tethered balloon which includes top and bottom closed portions, open side portions to reduce air resistance, and corners to support the antennae. The sensing unit continuously records information pertaining to z-axis orientation of the antennae and measures deviation in the z-axis orientation. The controlling unit receives the deviation from sensing unit and computes the deviation with another deviation in z-axis orientation from the pre-stored orientation of the antennae. The motor unit receives a command from the controlling unit. Further, the motor unit adjusts the z-axis orientation of the antennae by counter-rotating the housing unit. The controlling unit wirelessly receives controlling commands pertaining to the z-axis orientation of the antennae from a remotely placed communication unit, wherein the wireless communication unit is used only to set the initial orientation before switching to autonomous mode and self-calibration.

Description

SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR AUTOMATICALLY CONTROLLING COMMUNICATION

SECTOR OF ANTENNAE CONFIGURED WITH TETHERED BALLOON TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present invention generally relates to a method and system configured with a tethered balloon to automatically control communication sector of antennae. The system communicates the orientation data to a remotely placed communication unit via a communication network. The tethered balloon is positioned at a predefined altitude.

BACKGROUND

[0002] The demand for improved and wider bandwidth in current telecom and Internet services is increasing continuously, despite the limited spectrum allocated to the service operators. Thus the existing Telecommunication Service Providers (Telecos) are exploring various innovative communication systems topologies to cover ground challenging terrains and to serve the demand for sparse, highly-temporarily populated and rural areas. However, there are some limitations in the conventional systems and methods to deploy mobile service base stations and satellites in complex terrains. In order to solve this limitation, service providers are using alternative deployment mechanisms such as the utilization of tethered balloons.

[0003] Helium tethered balloon may help in carrying telecommunication equipment to an altitude sufficient enough to provide telecom and Internet services to the nearby subscribers. The telecommunication equipment includes antennae that need to maintain their communication sectors. However, wind and other external factors affect the stability of the tethered balloon. Any abrupt and random movement of the tethered balloon has its implications on the antennae as they get displaced away from their pre-set communication sectors. This displacement of the tethered balloon from the desired location affect the quality of the signal, which in turn affects the quality of services provided to the subscribers. [0004] US3,893,l23 discloses a self-tracking platform attached to the bottom of a tethered balloon which houses an autonomous tracking system, up to four antennae, a motor and an intelligent embedded system. Although ‘123 discloses a method for autonomously adjusting orientation of the antennae, nowhere does‘123 disclose or teach that the antennae are divided into sectors. Furthermore, ‘123 fails to teach for an embedded system which does not require any calibration as it is not dependent on local reference.

[0005] US3,742,358 which also describes a similar system, fails to teach or recite a system which enables an operator to manually adjust the sectors of the antennae via wireless connection. Furthermore, and similar to‘123,‘358 fails to teach an embedded system which does not require any calibration as it is not dependent on local reference. Combined, Ί23 and‘358 taken together or separately do not provide enough elements to enable a person skilled in the art to achieve the features of the present invention.

[0006] US9,266,598 discloses a balloon with an antenna and a reorientation mechanism, however, nowhere does‘598 teach a person skilled in the art to consider that the balloon should be tethered. Once again,‘598 fails to recite or teach a system which enables an operator to manually adjust the sectors of the antennae via wireless connection or an embedded system which does not require calibration.

[0007] Therefore there is a need for an efficient and cost-effective method and system which is configured with a tethered balloon to automatically control communication sector of antennae. Further, there is also a need for a system which allows the tethered balloon to be strategically positioned at low altitudes. Furthermore, there is also a need for a system and method which can provide a mobile deployment platform with a high- capacity and low-latency connectivity with a good adaptability to desired coverage and bandwidth in various terrains. Additionally, there is also a need for a system and method which can automatically adjust the communication sector of the antennae and the units carried by the tethered balloon, whereby such a system does not require substantive effort or specific advanced experience from the operator to calibrate said system. [0008] The disadvantages and limitations of traditional and conventional approaches will become apparent to the person skilled in the art through a comparison of the described system with some aspects of the present disclosure, as put forward in the remainder of the present application and with reference to the drawings.

SUMMARY OF INVENTION

[0009] According to embodiments illustrated herein, there is provided a system configured with a tethered balloon to automatically control communication sector corresponding to a plurality of antennae. In an aspect, the tethered balloon is positioned at a predefined altitude. The system includes a housing unit, a sensing unit, a controlling unit, and a motor unit.

[0010] The housing unit is detachably attached beneath the tethered balloon which includes a top closed portion, a bottom closed portion, a plurality of open side portions to reduce air resistance, and a plurality of corners to support the plurality of antennae. The sensing unit continuously records information pertaining to z-axis orientation of the antennae and measures a deviation in the z-axis orientation. The controlling unit is operatively configured at the bottom portion of the housing unit to receive the deviation from the sensing unit and computes the deviation with another deviation in the z-axis orientation from a pre-stored orientation of the antennae. The motor unit is operatively configured at the top portion of the housing unit to receive a command from the controlling unit. Further, the motor unit adjusts the z-axis orientation of the antennae by counter-rotating the housing unit. The controlling unit is coupled to a remotely placed communication unit to wirelessly receive controlling commands pertaining to the z-axis orientation of the antennae. This latter is only required to be used to set the initial orientation, prior to switching the system back to an autonomous mode.

[0011] In an aspect, the housing unit is capable of a 360-degree YAW movement (360°).

[0012] In an aspect, each of the antennae covers a communication sector with an offset of the neighboring antennae. [0013] In an aspect, the motor unit adjusts the orientation of the antennae without applying any additional force on the tethered balloon.

[0014] In an aspect, the remotely placed communication unit enables an operator to wirelessly set the orientation of the communication sector.

[0015] In an aspect, the housing unit includes a plurality of software-based filters to eliminate electrical noise generated by the antennae’s radiations.

[0016] In an aspect, the tethered balloon is positioned at a pre-defined altitude of up to 25 meters.

[0017] As per the embodiments illustrated herein, there is provided a method for automatically controlling communication sector corresponding to a plurality of antennae configured with a tethered balloon. In an aspect, the tethered balloon is positioned at a predefined altitude. The method includes the step of detachably attaching a housing unit beneath the tethered balloon. The housing unit includes a top closed portion, a bottom closed portion, a plurality of open side portions to reduce air resistance, and a plurality of corners to support the plurality of antennae. Then the method includes the step of recording information pertaining to z-axis orientation of the antennae and measuring a deviation in the z-axis orientation through a sensing unit.

[0018] Further, the method includes the step of receiving the deviation from the sensing unit and computing the deviation with another deviation in the z-axis orientation from a pre-stored orientation of the antennae through a controlling unit operatively configured at the bottom portion of the housing unit. The method then includes the step of counter rotating the housing unit on receiving a command from the controlling unit to adjust the z-axis orientation of the antennae through a motor unit operatively configured at the top portion of the housing unit. Furthermore, the method includes the step of wirelessly transmitting the controlling commands pertaining to the z-axis orientation of the antennae to the controlling unit through a remotely placed communication unit. As described herein above, this is only required to be used to set the initial orientation, prior to switching the system to an autonomous mode. [0019] Accordingly, one advantage of the present invention is that it creates an extra degree of freedom and stabilizes the units separately from the tethered balloon. This ensures that the system is maintained autonomously, without the need for further interference for calibration. Therefore, the present system enables the tethered balloon to move within a reasonable degree of freedom.

[0020] Another advantage of the present invention is that it automatically adjusts the orientation of the antennae in real time. This self-calibration without the use of local reference adds an additional feature which is not disclosed in the prior art, and which is key to the improvements of the disclosure of the present invention.

[0021] Still another advantage of the present invention is that it provides a compact lightweight system which can be easily deployed in a short period of time.

[0022] Another advantage of the present invention is that it provides a novel mechanism to adjust and control the orientation of the antennae carried by a tethered balloon.

[0023] The aforementioned features and advantages of the present disclosure may be appreciated by reviewing the following description of the present disclosure, along with the accompanying figures wherein like reference numerals refer to like parts.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0024] The appended drawings illustrate the embodiments of the present system and methods of the present disclosure. Any person with ordinary skills in the art will appreciate that the illustrated element boundaries in the drawings represent an example of the boundaries. In an exemplary embodiment, one element may be designed as multiple elements, or multiple elements may be designed as one element. In an exemplary embodiment, an element shown as an internal component of one element may be implemented as an external component in another and vice versa. Furthermore, the elements may not be drawn to scale.

[0025] Various embodiments will hereinafter be described in accordance with the accompanying drawings, which have been provided to illustrate, not limit, the scope, wherein similar designations denote similar elements, and in which: [0026] FIG. 1 represents an environment diagram of the present method and system configured with the tethered balloon to automatically control communication sector corresponding to a plurality of antennae, in accordance with at least one embodiment;

[0027] FIG. 2 illustrates a schematic view of the present system, in accordance with an embodiment;

[0028] FIG. 3 illustrates a schematic view of the housing unit, in accordance with an embodiment;

[0029] FIG. 4 illustrates a graphical view of the role of a median filter to eliminate the effects of noise in the signal read from the sensing units, in accordance with an embodiment; and

[0030] FIG. 5 illustrates the flowchart of the method for automatically controlling communication sector corresponding to a plurality of antennae configured with a tethered balloon, in accordance with an embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0031] The present disclosure is best understood with reference to the detailed drawings and description set forth herein. Various embodiments have been discussed with reference to the drawings. However, the person skilled in the art will readily appreciate that the detailed descriptions provided herein with respect to the drawings are merely for explanatory purposes, as the systems and methods may extend beyond the described embodiments. For instance, the teachings presented and the needs of a particular application may yield multiple alternative and suitable approaches to implement the functionality of any detail described herein. Therefore, any approach may extend beyond certain implementation choices in the following embodiments.

[0032] FIG. 1 represents an environment diagram 100 of the present method and system 102 configured with the tethered balloon 104 to automatically control communication sector corresponding to a plurality of antennae, in accordance with at least one embodiment. In an embodiment, the tethered balloon 104 is positioned at a pre-defined altitude of up to 25 meters. Each of the antennae covers a communication sector with an offset of the neighboring antennae. Communication sector is the direction at which the antennae are directed to.

[0033] The system 102 (shown and explained in conjunction with FIG. 2) includes a housing unit 202, a sensing unit 204, a controlling unit 206 in which the communication network is integrated, and a motor unit 208. The housing unit 202 (shown and explained in conjunction with FIG. 2) is detachably attached beneath the tethered balloon 104 which includes a top closed portion 302, a bottom closed portion 304, a plurality of open side portions (306a, 306b) to reduce air resistance, and a plurality of corners (308a, 308b, 308c, and 308d) to support the plurality of antennae. Further, the housing unit 202 is capable of a 360-degree YAW movement (360°) and may support at least four antennae. The housing unit 202 may accommodate different antennae’ types, sizes, and weights depending on the telecommunication technology adopted for the service provisioning.

[0034] The sensing unit 204 continuously records information pertaining to z-axis orientation of the antennae and measures a deviation in the z-axis orientation. In an embodiment, the sensing unit 204 is selected from at least one of a gyroscope, a compass, or an inertial measurement unit (IMU) and/or a combination thereof to sense the z-axis orientation (YAW angle) of the antennae. Further, the sensing unit 204 senses the z-axis orientation without local reference and therefore onsite calibration of the present system 102 is not needed.

[0035] The controlling unit 206 is operatively configured at the bottom portion of the housing unit 202 to receive the deviation from the sensing unit 204 and computes the deviation with another deviation in the z-axis orientation from a pre-stored orientation of the antennae. Examples of the controlling unit 206 include but not limited to special- purpose processing devices such as an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC). The controlling unit 206 represents general-purpose processing devices such as a microprocessor, central processing unit, microcontrollers, etc.

[0036] The motor unit 208 is operatively configured at the top portion of the housing unit 202 to receive a command from the controlling unit 206. Further, the motor unit 208 adjusts the z-axis orientation of the antennae by counter-rotating the housing unit 202.The motor unit 208 adjusts the orientation of the antennae without applying an additional force on the tethered balloon. Examples of the motor unit 208 include but not limited to a stepper motor.

[0037] The present system 102 can be mounted to function with any type of single- tethered or multi-tethered (tethering shown as 108 in FIG. 1) balloon. The tethered balloon might be placed on the ground, on a truck, or on a building to provide continuous telecom and internet services.

[0038] The controlling unit 206 is communicatively coupled to a remotely placed communication unit 106 to wirelessly receive controlling commands pertaining to the z- axis orientation of the antennae. Further, the remotely placed communication unit 106 enables the operator to wirelessly set the orientation of the communication sector, where this is only done to set the initial orientation. In an embodiment, the remotely placed communication unit 106 communicates with the controlling unit 206 over a communication network. The communication network may correspond to a communication medium through which the remotely placed communication unit 106 and the controlling unit 206 may communicate. Such a communication may be performed, by utilizing various wired and wireless communication protocols such as Transmission Control Protocol and Internet Protocol (TCP/IP), Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP), ZigBee, EDGE, infrared (IR), cellular communication protocols, and/or Bluetooth (BT) communication protocols. The communication network 206 may include, but not limited to, Internet, cloud network, Wireless Fidelity (Wi-Fi) network, a Wireless Focal Area Network (WEAN), a Focal Area Network (FAN), and/or a Metropolitan Area Network (MAN).

[0039] The wireless communication, established by using wireless technologies, includes, but is not limited to, ZigBee, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and Infrared. Furthermore, the plurality of commands transmitted from the remotely placed communication unit 106 includes, but is not limited to, adjusting the z-axis orientation of the antennae turning on/off the controlling unit 206 etc. [0040] The mounting holes 210 are placed over a mounting slate 212 for tethering the present system 102 to the tethered balloon 104. The mounting slate 212 is attached to the tethers 107 that extend from beneath the tethered balloon 104. The mounting slate 212 is situated on top of the motor shaft 214.

[0041] In an embodiment, the present system 102 may include an onboard power source 216 to power the controlling unit 206 and the motor unit 208. In an exemplary embodiment, the onboard power source 216 may include a battery such as lithium ion or batteries having small current ratings with a long discharging cycle such as an absorbent glass mat (AGM) battery, a sealed lead acid (SLA) battery, or a gel cell. In an additional exemplary embodiment, the onboard power source 216 may retrieve power from an external power source.

[0042] In an embodiment, the motor unit 208 includes an automatic braking system to lock the system into the desired orientation. Further, the control unit 206 includes a software -based filter, to eliminate electrical noise generated by the antennae’ radiations. In an embodiment, the electric filter is a median filter. FIG. 4 illustrates a graphical view 400 of the role of a median filter to eliminate the effects of noise in the signal read from the sensing units, in accordance with an embodiment. The samples of readings that are affected by noise shown as 402 (dark lines). The lighter lines 404 represent the outcome of the median filter, where spikes introduced by the noise which have been normalized. The present system 102 tolerates movement of the tethered balloon 104 and stabilizes the installed units. Therefore the present invention allows the tethered balloon 104 to move within a restricted degree of freedom. The various units of the present invention are integrated into the housing unit 202 as a single integrated platform which improves the stability of the present system 102. By maintaining the z-axis orientation (YAW) of the antennae, the communication sector is not affected by the movement of the tethered balloon 104, and hence the strength of the signal is kept within the required level to assure the coverage Quality of service (QoS).

[0043] FIG. 5 illustrates the flowchart of the method for automatically controlling communication sector corresponding to a plurality of antennae configured with a tethered balloon, in accordance with an embodiment. The tethered balloon is positioned at a predefined altitude. FIG. 5 is explained in conjunction with FIG. 1. The method initiates with step 502 of detachably attaching a housing unit beneath the tethered balloon. The housing unit includes a top closed portion, a bottom closed portion, a plurality of open side portions to reduce air resistance, and a plurality of corners to support the plurality of antennae. Then the method includes the step 504 of wirelessly transmitting controlling commands pertaining to the z-axis orientation of the antennae to the controlling unit through a remotely placed communication unit. The z orientation communicated by the wireless unit is stored as the new z-axis orientation.

[0044] Further, the method includes the step 506 of recording information pertaining to the z-axis orientation of the antennae and measuring a deviation in the z-axis orientation through a sensing unit. The method then includes the step 508 of receiving the deviation from the sensing unit and computing the deviation with another deviation in the z-axis orientation from a pre-stored orientation of the antennae through a controlling unit operatively configured at the bottom portion of the housing unit. Furthermore, the method includes the step 510 of counter-rotating the housing unit on receiving a command from the controlling unit to adjust the z-axis orientation of the antennae through a motor unit operatively configured at the top portion of the housing unit.

[0045] In operation, the tethered balloon 104 is filled, then the tethered balloon 104 rises to an altitude of approximately 2-3 meters. The present system 102 is attached beneath the tethered balloon 104. Then, the tethered balloon 104 is allowed to rise to the desired altitude (depending on requirements of the service provider, but usually ranges from 10 - 25 meters). After that, the operator can use a remotely placed communication unit 106 to set the initial orientation of the antennae as desired. Then, the system 102 is switched to an automatic mode, where the system 102 automatically adjusts the orientation whenever needed. The operator is also allowed to set a new sector at any time using remotely placed communication unit 106, without the need to lower the tethered balloon 104.

[0046] Thus the present system 100 and method automatically adjusts the communication sector of the antennae and the units carried by the tethered balloon 104. Further, the present system 100 provides a reliable communication to the subscribers which can be easily deployed for ad-hoc needs, large-scale services in case of disasters or unpredicted critical situations. Additionally, the present system 102 is deployable with various types of tethered balloons at very low altitudes and further allows to be remotely managed and monitored by an operator.

[0047] While embodiments of the present invention have been illustrated and described, it will be clear that the present invention is not limited to these embodiments only. Numerous modifications, changes, variations, substitutions, and equivalents will be apparent to the person skilled in the art, without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, as described in the claims.

Claims

1. A system configured with a tethered balloon to automatically control communication sector corresponding to a plurality of antennae, wherein the tethered balloon is positioned at a pre-defined altitude, the system comprising: a housing unit detachably attached beneath the tethered balloon, wherein the housing unit includes a top closed portion, a bottom closed portion, a plurality of open side portions to reduce air resistance, and a plurality of corners to support the plurality of antennae; a sensing unit to continuously record information pertaining to z-axis orientation of the antennae and measure a deviation in the z-axis orientation; a controlling unit operatively configured at the bottom portion of the housing unit to receive the deviation from the sensing unit and compute the deviation with another deviation in the z-axis orientation from a pre-stored orientation of the antennae; and a motor unit operatively configured at the top portion of the housing unit to receive a command from the controlling unit to adjust the z-axis orientation of the antennae by counter-rotating the housing unit, wherein the controlling unit is communicatively coupled to a remotely placed communication unit to wirelessly receive controlling commands pertaining to the z-axis orientation of the antennae.

2. The system according to claim 1 wherein the housing unit is capable of a 360-degree YAW movement (360°).

3. The system according to claim 1 wherein each of the antennae covers a communication sector with an offset of the neighboring antennae.

4. The system according to claim 1 wherein the motor unit adjusts the orientation of the antennae without applying an additional force on the tethered balloon.

5. The system according to claim 1 wherein the remotely placed communication unit enables an operator to wirelessly set the initial orientation of the communication sector.

6. The system according to claim 1 wherein said system is an autonomous self-calibration system with no local reference.

7. The system according to claim 1 wherein the housing unit includes an automatic braking system.

8. The system according to claim 1 wherein the housing unit includes a plurality of software -based filter to eliminate electrical noise generated by antennae’ radiations.

9. The system according to claim 1 wherein the tethered balloon is positioned at a pre defined altitude of up to 25 meters.

10. The system according to claim 1 wherein the sensing unit is selected from at least one of a gyroscope, a compass or an inertial measurement unit (IMU) and/or a combination thereof to sense z-axis orientation of the antennae.

11. The system according to claim 1 wherein the housing unit may support at least four antennae.

12. A method for automatically controlling communication sector corresponding to a plurality of antennae configured with a tethered balloon, wherein the tethered balloon is positioned at a pre-defined altitude, the method comprising the steps of: detachably attaching a housing unit beneath the tethered balloon, wherein the housing unit includes a top closed portion, a bottom closed portion, a plurality of open side portions to reduce air resistance, and a plurality of corners to support the plurality of antennae; recording information pertaining to z-axis orientation of the antennae and measuring a deviation in the z-axis orientation through a sensing unit; receiving the deviation from the sensing unit and computing the deviation with another deviation in the z-axis orientation from a pre-stored orientation of the antennae through a controlling unit operatively configured at the bottom portion of the housing unit; counter-rotating the housing unit on receiving a command from the controlling unit to adjust the z-axis orientation of the antennae through a motor unit operatively configured at the top portion of the housing unit; and wirelessly transmitting control commands pertaining to the z-axis orientation of the antennae to the controlling unit through a remotely placed communication unit.

13. The method according to claim 12 wherein the housing unit is capable of a 360-degree YAW movement (360°).

14. The method according to claim 12 wherein each of the antennae covers a communication sector with an offset of the neighboring antennae.

15. The method according to claim 12 wherein the motor unit adjusts the orientation of the antennae without applying an additional force on the tethered balloon.

16. The method according to claim 12 wherein the remotely placed communication unit enables an operator to wirelessly set the initial orientation of the communication sector.

17. The method according to claim 12 wherein said orientation is autonomously self calibrating with no local reference.

18. The method according to claim 12 wherein the housing unit includes an automatic braking system.

19. The method according to claim 12 wherein the housing unit includes a plurality of electric filters to eliminate electrical noise generated by antennae’ radiations.

20. The method according to claim 12 wherein the tethered balloon is positioned at a pre defined altitude of up to 25 meters.

21. The method according to claim 12 wherein the sensing unit is selected from at least one of a gyroscope, a compass or an inertial measurement unit (IMU) and/or a combination thereof to sense the z-axis orientation of the antennae.

22. The method according to claim 12 wherein the housing unit may support at least four antennae.