Antenna beam management and gateway design for broadband access using unmanned aerial vehicle (uav) platforms

Abstract

Systems and methods for creating beams from a non-terrestrial vehicle (e.g., unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV)) toward user terminals and gateways on the ground. Another aspect of the disclosure includes systems and methods for switching the UAV beams toward the user terminals and gateways as the UAV moves in its orbit. Still another aspect of the disclosure describes systems and methods for routing traffic from user terminals to the internet via multiple gateways.

1 .- 20 . (canceled) 
     
     
         21 . A system for providing broadband access using unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), comprising:
 a first antenna system comprising multiple first antenna sub-apertures, where each first antenna sub-aperture is configured to form at least one first beam toward one or more user terminals;   a second antenna system comprising multiple second antenna sub-apertures, where each second antenna sub-aperture is configured to form at least one second beam toward one or more gateways of a set of ground gateways configured to provide connectivity to a core network;   a first set of radio transceivers and modems configured to transmit and receive a plurality of first signals to/from the one or more user terminals;   a second set of radio transceivers and modems configured to transmit and receive a plurality of second signals to/from the one or more gateways;   a router/processor sub-system configured to route packets between the one or more user terminals and the one or more gateways and to manage the at least one first and at least one second beams, where the router/processor sub-system is further configured to:
 determine at least one fading condition that affects transmission or reception of the plurality of first or second signals; and 
 intelligently manage power consumption based on the determined at least one fading condition. 
   
     
     
         22 . The system of  claim 21 , where:
 the multiple second antenna sub-apertures are comprised of K antenna elements, each spaced at substantially a half wavelength apart from an adjacent antenna element;   each of the second antenna sub-apertures are configured to form M beams via one or more appropriate phases of the K antenna elements;   wherein K and M are integer values; and   wherein the router/processor sub-system is configured to select at least one of the M beams based on a determined signal quality.   
     
     
         23 . The system of  claim 21 , where the router/processor sub-system is configured to:
 measure at least two signal to interference plus noise ratios (SINRs) from a received signal on a primary beam associated with a primary gateway and at least one other candidate beam;   compare the at least two SINRs associated with the primary beam and the at least one other candidate beam; and   determine when the primary beam should be switched to the at least one other candidate beam based at least in part on the comparison.   
     
     
         24 . The system of  claim 21 , where the router/processor sub-system is configured to:
 measure at least two signal to interference plus noise ratios (SINRs) from a received signal on a primary beam and at least one other neighbor beam;   compare the at least two SINRs associated with the primary beam and the at least one other neighbor beam; and   determine when the primary beam should be switched to a neighbor beam based at least in part on the comparison; and   execute the beam switch from the primary beam to the neighbor beam.   
     
     
         25 . The system of  claim 21 , where the router/processor sub-system is configured to:
 determine a minimum transmit power to achieve a target signal quality for a given beam; and   adjust a power amplifier associated with the given beam to achieve the minimum transmit power.   
     
     
         26 . The system of  claim 25 , where the target signal quality is determined based on a rain fade condition and the adjustment of the power amplifier comprises increasing the minimum transmit power in order to compensate for the rain fade condition. 
     
     
         27 . The system of  claim 21 , where the router/processor sub-system is configured to:
 receive a beam change request originating from the one or more user terminals; and   execute the beam change request so as to switch beams for the one or more user terminals.   
     
     
         28 . The system of  claim 21 , where the router/processor sub-system is configured to:
 measure at least two signal to interference plus noise ratios (SINRs) from a received signal on a primary beam associated with a primary gateway and at least one inactive beam;   compare the at least two SINRs associated with the primary beam and the at least one inactive beam; and   determine when the primary beam should be switched to the at least one inactive beam based at least in part on the comparison.   
     
     
         29 . A method for providing broadband access via an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), comprising:
 forming at least one first beam towards one or more user terminals;   forming at least a second beam towards one or more gateways;   transacting a first plurality of signals with the one or more user terminals;   transacting a second plurality of signals with the one or more gateways via the second beam;   monitoring the one or more gateways for a blockage condition; and   when a blockage condition occurs, forming a third beam towards one or more diversity gateways and transacting the second plurality of signals via the third beam.   
     
     
         30 . The method of  claim 29 , further comprising switching the second beam to an inactive state when the blockage condition occurs. 
     
     
         31 . The method of  claim 30 , further comprising monitoring the one or more diversity gateways with the third beam in the inactive state when the blockage condition is not present. 
     
     
         32 . The method of  claim 29 , wherein the act of monitoring the one or more gateways for the blockage condition comprises measuring a signal to noise ratio (SNR).