13 patents in this list

Updated: April 18, 2024

Drone tech's capacity to function as a cohesive unit is transforming a number of sectors.

The synchronized clusters of drones present noteworthy benefits, such as amplified efficacy, better expandability, and amplified potential for assignments like as agriculture, entertainment, search and rescue, and surveillance.

1. Autonomous Add-On Controller for Collision-Free Coordination of Multiple Unmanned Vehicles

BAE SYSTEMS PLC, 2023

(Summary) Controlling unmanned vehicles to prevent collisions and reduce user burden when multiple vehicles are operated. It provides autonomous control for commercial off-the-shelf unmanned vehicles via an add-on controller that receives user inputs and generates modified control signals to instruct the vehicles to follow pre-determined routes. The controller analyzes the user inputs and extracts the intended maneuvering commands while discarding velocity changes. To avoid collisions, the routes are generated by a server based on sensor data and deconflicting with other vehicles.

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2. Centralized Management System for Diverse UAV Fleet Coordination

NEC Corporation, 2023

(Summary) Centralized management of a plurality of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) of different types for preventing complication of processing related to information acquisition from each UAV, even in a case where flight management of a plurality of types of UAVs different from each other is performed. The technique involves using an information communication device attached to the UAVs that acquires flight status information and transmits it wirelessly in a predetermined data format. A centralized management device receives and monitors the UAVs using the flight status information transmitted from the information communication device. This standardized format allows uniform acquisition of flight status from different UAV types.

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3. Reinforcement Learning-Based Coordination for Multi-Drone Networks

Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute, 2023

(Summary) Using reinforcement learning to generate optimal operation plans for multi-drone networks performing cooperative tasks like data sensing and communication relay. The approach trains actor neural networks for each drone to learn policies for state-based decision making. These policies are then used to generate a plan by simulating the game state, obtaining observations, inferring actions, and recording the history. The resulting plan provides coordinated task execution that maximizes efficiency while maintaining network connections.

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4. Real-Time Trace Gas Detection and Environmental Monitoring Using Coordinated UAVs

University of Kentucky Research Foundation, 2023

(Summary) Detecting, quantifying and GPS-locating trace gases using unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to monitor the presence of gases like methane, propane, carbon dioxide, and volatile organic compounds in real time. The UAV carries gas sensors along with environmental sensors like temperature, humidity, and barometric pressure sensors. The UAVs are flown in coordinated patterns to simultaneously detect gases at different locations in an area of interest. This enables efficient, periodic monitoring of ambient air quality as well as detecting point source pollution events. The system can detect both anthropogenic and biogenic sources of pollution.

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5. Autonomous Vehicle Team Coordination with Independent Trajectory Estimation

Rockwell Collins, Inc., 2023

(Summary) Autonomous vehicle (AV) team coordination system that allows AVs to continue functioning as a team even when communication is disrupted. The system uses controllers on each AV to store mission data including objectives and default trajectories. If communication is lost, AVs can estimate teammate trajectories based on the stored mission data.

6. Autonomous Vehicle Team Coordination for Efficient Search Operations

Rockwell Collins, Inc., 2023

(Summary) An autonomous vehicle team coordination system that facilitates efficient search operations with multiple autonomous vehicles. The system involves capturing measurement data from sensors on each vehicle, matching time slices of data between vehicles, and using that to build a synchronized occupancy map of the environment. This allows the vehicles to share what areas have been searched or not, even when communication is intermittent due to the changing environment.

7. Efficient UAV Data Transmission Management System in Smart Cities

CHENGDU QINCHUAN IOT TECHNOLOGY CO., LTD., 2023

A system and method for managing unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) data transmission in a smart city using the Internet of Things (IoT). The system involves a management platform that coordinates multiple UAVs performing different missions by assigning them to specific time domains and airspaces. This allows efficient data collection without interference. The platform also uses techniques like relay transmission, split transmission, and merging transmission to improve transmission efficiency based on the data requirements and features.

8. Automated Teaming and Real-Time Coordination Strategy for Multi-Drone Missions

Rockwell Collins, Inc., 2023

(Summary) Automated modular multi-vehicle teaming for unmanned systems with payloads like sensors, weapons, and cargo. It enables efficient and survivable missions with a team of unmanned vehicles. The team is led by a primary asset with critical payload, surrounded by secondary assets. They fly in a formation that provides surveillance and protection. If secondary assets are lost, the primary can continue. The secondary assets autonomously reposition based on mission priorities or losses. The team uses algorithms to navigate airspace safely against threats. The guidance commands are computed in real-time to enable complex missions with diverse payloads.

9. Autonomous UAV Swarms for Detection and Neutralization of Rogue Drones

Sarcos Corp., 2023

(Summary) Coordinated swarms of UAVs that can autonomously detect, intercept and capture rogue drones to neutralize threats from unauthorized or dangerous drones. The system uses multiple counter-attack UAVs equipped with nets that can be deployed to capture target drones. An external drone detection system provides target tracking data to the counter-attack UAVs. The coordinated swarm intercepts the target drone and captures it in the net, effectively neutralizing the threat. The counter-attack UAVs autonomously coordinate their flight to surround and capture the target drone in the net.

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10. Adaptive Autonomous Control System for Collision-Free UAV Swarm Coordination

BlueHalo, LLC, 2023

(Summary) Autonomous control system for unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) swarms that allows dynamic, adaptive control of the swarm while avoiding collisions and failures. The system receives flight commands from operators, generates fleet configuration instructions and safety information for each UAV, and only transmits the instructions if all UAVs can safely carry them out. Each UAV checks for collision risks and modifies instructions if necessary. This allows direct control of the swarm while mitigating risks.

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Download a PDF report with complete details of all 13 patents for offline reading.

When it comes to drone swarm coordination techniques, researchers are making great progress. Drone swarms will soon be able to realize their full potential thanks to innovations like autonomous collision-avoidance controllers, centralized fleet management systems, and coordinated UAVs that monitor the surroundings in real time.