According to an aspect, a distributed package transport system includes unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), each of which is configured to transport packages within a geographic area and along a travel route. The system also includes UAV enclosures dispersed within the geographic area. The UAV enclosures include a number of cells, each of which provides a receptacle to temporarily house a UAV. At least one of the UAV enclosures is dynamically assigned to a location within the geographic area. Each of the UAV enclosures includes a computer processor and communication network interface and, for each of the UAVs in transit, the UAV enclosures communicate information specifying an origination point, drop off point, and return point amongst each other and coordinate to define, based on locations of the UAV enclosures and capacities of the UAV enclosures, a refined travel route including a subset of the UAV enclosures to serve as hops.
Distributed, unmanned aerial vehicle package transport network
2017-09-12
Patent
Electronic Resource
English
IPC: | B64C AEROPLANES , Flugzeuge / B64F GROUND OR AIRCRAFT-CARRIER-DECK INSTALLATIONS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR USE IN CONNECTION WITH AIRCRAFT , Boden- oder Flugzeugträgerdeckeinrichtungen besonders ausgebildet für die Verwendung in Verbindung mit Luftfahrzeugen / G05D SYSTEMS FOR CONTROLLING OR REGULATING NON-ELECTRIC VARIABLES , Systeme zum Steuern oder Regeln nichtelektrischer veränderlicher Größen / G06Q Datenverarbeitungssysteme oder -verfahren, besonders angepasst an verwaltungstechnische, geschäftliche, finanzielle oder betriebswirtschaftliche Zwecke, sowie an geschäftsbezogene Überwachungs- oder Voraussagezwecke , DATA PROCESSING SYSTEMS OR METHODS, SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL, SUPERVISORY OR FORECASTING PURPOSES / G08G Anlagen zur Steuerung, Regelung oder Überwachung des Verkehrs , TRAFFIC CONTROL SYSTEMS |
DISTRIBUTED, UNMANNED AERIAL VEHICLE PACKAGE TRANSPORT NETWORK
European Patent Office | 2016
|Package transport container and transport operations for an unmanned aerial vehicle
European Patent Office | 2018
|PACKAGE TRANSPORT CONTAINER AND TRANSPORT OPERATIONS FOR AN UNMANNED AERIAL VEHICLE
European Patent Office | 2016
|