JP2021197699A - Communication device, program, mobile, system, and communication method - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a communication device, a program, a mobile body, a system, and a communication method for assigning appropriate beamforming to a mobile body such as a drone.SOLUTION: A communication device includes a plurality of beamforming antennas arranged to have directivity in different directions, an acquisition unit 132 that acquires moving object-related information related to a moving object to be communicated with, an antenna allocation unit 136 that assigns at least one beamforming antenna to each of a plurality of moving objects from the plurality of beam forming antennas on the basis of the moving object-related information of the plurality of moving objects, and a wireless communication unit 138 that wirelessly communicates with each of the plurality of moving objects using the beamforming antenna respectively assigned to the plurality of moving objects by the antenna allocation unit.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

The invention according to the present disclosure relates to a communication device, a program, a mobile body, a system, and a communication method.

Patent Document 1 describes a drone base station that is wirelessly connected to a backhaul node and functions as a wireless base station.
[Prior Art Document]
[Patent Document]
[Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2017-521962

According to one embodiment of the invention according to the present disclosure, a communication device is provided. The communication device may include a plurality of beamforming antennas arranged to have directivity in different directions. The communication device may include an acquisition unit for acquiring mobile object-related information related to the mobile object to be communicated with. The communication device may include an antenna assigning unit that assigns at least one beamforming antenna to each of the plurality of mobile objects from the plurality of beam forming antennas based on the mobile object-related information of the plurality of mobile objects. The communication device may include a wireless communication unit that wirelessly communicates with each of the plurality of mobile bodies by using a beamforming antenna assigned to each of the plurality of mobile bodies by the antenna allocation unit.

The antenna assigning unit may assign different beamforming antennas to the plurality of mobile bodies, except that only one beamforming antenna can be assigned to the plurality of mobile bodies. When the antenna allocation unit can assign a plurality of beamforming antennas to one mobile body, the antenna allocation unit may allocate the plurality of beamforming antennas to the one mobile body. The mobile object-related information may include position information indicating the position of the mobile object to be communicated, and the antenna assigning unit may be used from the plurality of beamforming antennas based on the position information of the plurality of mobile objects. At least one beamforming antenna may be assigned to each of the plurality of moving objects. The antenna allocation unit is an internal product of a vector in a reference directing direction of the plurality of beamforming antennas based on the position of the communication device and a vector with respect to the positions of the plurality of moving objects based on the position of the communication device. At least one beamforming antenna may be assigned to each of the plurality of moving objects based on the above. The antenna assigning unit specifies a beamforming antenna having an inner product higher than a predetermined threshold value as a candidate antenna for each of the plurality of mobile bodies, and the candidate antenna assigns the candidate antenna to one mobile body. It's okay. The antenna allocation unit specifies a beamforming antenna having an inner product higher than a predetermined threshold for each of the plurality of mobile bodies as a candidate antenna, and at least one beamforming antenna for each of the plurality of mobile bodies. The beamforming antenna may be assigned to each of the plurality of moving objects according to the combination to which the total value of the inner products is higher than that of the other combinations. The antenna assigning unit is based on the position information of the plurality of moving objects, and is based on the angle between the reference directivity direction and the direction with respect to each of the plurality of moving objects for each of the plurality of beamforming antennas. At least one beamforming antenna may be assigned to each of the plurality of moving objects. The acquisition unit may acquire the maximum received power from the plurality of mobile bodies for each of the plurality of beamforming antennas, and the antenna allocation unit may acquire the maximum received power acquired by the acquisition unit. , At least one beamforming antenna may be assigned to each of the plurality of moving objects from the plurality of beamforming antennas.

According to one embodiment of the invention according to the present disclosure, a program for making a computer function as the communication device is provided.

According to one embodiment of the invention according to the present disclosure, a mobile body including the above communication device is provided.

According to one embodiment of the invention according to the present disclosure, there is provided a system including an unmanned aerial vehicle equipped with the communication device and a plurality of unmanned aerial vehicles capable of establishing a wireless communication connection with the communication device. The wireless communication unit may form a wireless communication area on the ground.

According to one embodiment of the invention according to the present disclosure, a communication method executed by a communication device is provided. The communication method may include an acquisition step of acquiring mobile-related information related to the mobile to be communicated. The communication method may include an antenna assignment step of assigning at least one beamforming antenna to each of the plurality of mobiles from the plurality of beamforming antennas based on the mobile-related information of the plurality of mobiles. The communication method may include a wireless communication step of wirelessly communicating with each of the plurality of mobiles using the beamforming antennas assigned to each of the plurality of mobiles in the antenna allocation step.

The outline of the above invention does not list all the necessary features of the present invention. A subcombination of these feature groups can also be an invention.

An example of the communication device 100 is shown schematically. An example of the functional configuration of the communication device 100 is schematically shown. It is explanatory drawing for demonstrating the antenna allocation by a communication device 100. It is explanatory drawing for demonstrating the antenna allocation by a communication device 100. It is explanatory drawing for demonstrating the antenna allocation by a communication device 100. An example of the inner product 310 for explaining the antenna allocation using the inner product is shown. An example of the processing flow by the communication device 100 is schematically shown. An example of the communication flow by the communication device 100 is schematically shown. An example of antenna allocation calculation is shown schematically. An example of communication processing is shown schematically. An example of an unmanned aerial vehicle 400 equipped with a communication device 100 is shown schematically. An example of the system 10 is shown schematically. An example of the hardware configuration of the computer 1200 that functions as the communication device 100 is schematically shown.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described through embodiments of the invention, but the following embodiments do not limit the invention to which the claims are made. Also, not all combinations of features described in the embodiments are essential to the means of solving the invention.

FIG. 1 schematically shows an example of a communication device 100. The communication device 100 may include a plurality of antennas 110 arranged so as to have directivity in different directions. The antenna 110 may be a beamforming antenna. FIG. 1 illustrates a case where the communication device 100 includes six antennas 110, but the number of antennas 110 is not limited to this. The beamforming antenna is not particularly limited as long as it is an antenna that can change the directivity of the beam. For example, the beamforming antenna may be an antenna whose directivity of the beam can be changed without changing the direction of the antenna itself by program control or the like. Further, for example, the beamforming antenna may be an antenna whose directivity of the beam can be changed by changing the direction of the antenna itself by a gimbal or the like.

The antenna 110 may be capable of changing the orientation of the beam 120. The plurality of antennas 110 may be arranged so as to cover all directions. In the example shown in FIG. 1, each of the six antennas 110 may be capable of changing the orientation of the beam 120 by at least ± 30 degrees.

The communication device 100 may wirelessly communicate with the plurality of mobile bodies 200 by the beams 120 of the plurality of antennas 110. The mobile body 200 may be, for example, an unmanned aerial vehicle capable of wirelessly communicating with the communication device 100. The mobile body 200 may be, for example, a vehicle capable of wirelessly communicating with the communication device 100. The mobile body 200 may be a communication terminal carried by a person. The communication device 100 may communicate with another communication device 100 mounted on the mobile body 200. In the present disclosure, a target in which the communication device 100 can start wireless communication or a target in which wireless communication is being executed may be referred to as a communication target.

The communication device 100 may use the plurality of antennas 110 to perform wireless communication in parallel with the plurality of mobile bodies 200. Since the positions of the plurality of mobile bodies 200 change as appropriate, the communication device 100 may switch the antenna 110 to be used according to the positions of the plurality of mobile bodies 200. FIG. 1 shows a state in which two antennas 110 are used for wireless communication with two mobile bodies 200.

If one antenna 110 is assigned to a plurality of mobile bodies 200, for example, communication is performed with the plurality of mobile bodies 200 while switching by a time division communication method, and one antenna 110 is assigned to one mobile body 200. Communication efficiency is lower than when assigning. The communication device 100 according to one embodiment may have a function of selecting an antenna 110 to be used so as to reduce the possibility that one 110 is assigned to a plurality of mobile bodies 200.

FIG. 2 schematically shows an example of the functional configuration of the communication device 100. The communication device 100 includes an acquisition unit 132, a storage unit 134, an antenna allocation unit 136, and a wireless communication unit 138.

The acquisition unit 132 may acquire mobile-related information related to the mobile 200 to be communicated. The mobile body-related information may include, for example, position information indicating the position of the mobile body 200. The acquisition unit 132 may store the acquired mobile object-related information in the storage unit 134. That is, the acquisition unit 132 may store the acquired position information in the storage unit 134.

The acquisition unit 132 may acquire the position information of the plurality of mobile bodies 200 from, for example, the management server that manages the position information of the plurality of mobile bodies 200. The management server may manage the positions of the plurality of mobile bodies 200 by receiving the position information from each of the plurality of mobile bodies 200, for example.

The acquisition unit 132 may acquire the position information of the communication device 100. The management server may manage the location information of the communication device 100. The management server may manage the position of the communication device 100 by receiving the position information from the communication device 100, for example.

Further, the communication device 100 and the mobile body 200 may acquire position information by any method. For example, the communication device 100 and the mobile body 200 may have a satellite communication function. In this case, the acquisition unit 132 may acquire the position information of the communication device 100 and the position information of the mobile body 200 via the communication satellite. The location information may include information indicating latitude and longitude. Further, the position information may further include information indicating the altitude.

The antenna allocation unit 136 may allocate at least one antenna 110 to each of the plurality of mobile bodies 200 from the plurality of antennas 110 based on the mobile body-related information of the plurality of mobile bodies 200.

The antenna allocation unit 136 may assign different antenna 110 antennas to the plurality of mobile bodies 200, except that only one antenna 110 is assigned to the plurality of mobile bodies 200. Here, even though different antennas can be assigned to a plurality of communication targets, the communication efficiency may be lowered by allocating one antenna to a plurality of communication targets. be. On the other hand, the communication device 100 according to the embodiment can reduce the possibility that the communication efficiency is lowered.

When the antenna allocation unit 136 can assign a plurality of antennas 110 to one mobile body 200, the antenna allocation unit 136 may allocate a plurality of antennas 110 to the one mobile body 200. As a result, the communication device 100 according to the embodiment may be used for wireless communication using a plurality of antennas 110 at the same time with respect to one mobile body 200, or the one having a stronger reception power than the plurality of antennas 110 depending on the situation. It is possible to realize wireless communication using. That is, according to the communication device 100 according to the embodiment, the communication efficiency can be improved.

The antenna allocation unit 136 may allocate at least one antenna 110 to each of the plurality of mobile bodies 200 from the plurality of antennas 110 based on the position information of the plurality of mobile bodies 200. The antenna allocation unit 136 is, for example, an internal product of a vector in a reference directing direction of a plurality of antennas 110 with respect to the position of the communication device 100 and a vector with respect to the position of the plurality of moving bodies 200 with respect to the position of the communication device 100. At least one antenna 110 may be assigned to each of the plurality of moving objects 200 based on the above. The reference directivity direction of the plurality of antennas 110 may be the front direction of each of the plurality of antennas 110. The reference directivity direction of the plurality of antennas 110 may include a direction slightly deviated from the front direction of each of the plurality of antennas 110. That is, the reference directivity direction of the plurality of antennas 110 may be a direction including some error in the front direction of each of the plurality of antennas 110.

The communication device 100 may obtain a vector for the position of the mobile body 200 with respect to the position of the communication device 100 based on the position information of the communication device 100 and the position information of the mobile body 200. The vector may be a two-dimensional vector or a three-dimensional vector. That is, the communication device 100 may obtain a two-dimensional vector when the position information includes information indicating latitude and longitude. Further, the communication device 100 may obtain a three-dimensional vector when the position information further includes information indicating an altitude.

The communication device 100 may correct the vector according to the change in the position of its own device. That is, the communication device 100 may obtain a vector with respect to the positions of the plurality of mobile bodies 200 with respect to the position of the communication device 100 based on the position of the own device. The communication device 100 may correct the vector according to the change in the position of the mobile body 200 of the communication partner. That is, the communication device 100 may obtain a vector with respect to the position of the mobile body 200 with respect to the position of the communication device 100, based on the position of the mobile body 200 of the communication partner. The communication device 100 may correct the vector according to the change in the posture of its own device. That is, the communication device 100 may obtain a vector in the reference directivity direction of the plurality of antennas 110 with respect to the position of the communication device 100 based on the posture of the own device. In this case, the communication device 100 may acquire posture information indicating the posture of the communication device 100. The posture information may include, for example, information indicating the yaw, pitch, and roll angle of the communication device 100. The communication device 100 may acquire posture information by a gyro sensor or the like. The communication device 100 may store the posture information in the storage unit 134.

The antenna allocation unit 136 may specify an antenna 110 having an inner product higher than a predetermined threshold value as a candidate antenna for each of the plurality of mobile bodies 200. Further, when the antenna allocation unit 136 has one candidate antenna specified for the mobile body 200, the antenna allocation unit 136 may allocate the candidate antenna to the mobile body 200. As a result, the communication device 100 according to the embodiment can preferentially assign the candidate antenna to the mobile body 200 having one candidate antenna. That is, according to the communication device 100 according to the embodiment, at least one antenna 110 can be assigned to each of the plurality of mobile bodies 200, so that communication with the specific mobile body 200 may be interrupted. Can be reduced.

The wireless communication unit 138 may wirelessly communicate with each of the plurality of mobile bodies 200 by using the antenna 110 assigned to each of the plurality of mobile bodies 200 by the antenna allocation unit 136. The wireless communication unit 138 may track the mobile body 200 by adjusting the direction of the beam 120 according to the change in the position of the mobile body 200.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram for explaining antenna allocation by the communication device 100. The communication device 100 may select an antenna 110 to be assigned to each of the plurality of mobile bodies 200 according to a predetermined priority. The highest priority is to assign a plurality of antennas 110 to one mobile body 200, and to allocate one antenna 110 to one mobile body 200, and to a plurality of mobile bodies 200. The priority may be lowered in the order of allocating one antenna 110.

In the example shown in FIG. 3, since the mobile body 210 is located at a position where the two antennas 110 can be assigned, the communication device 100 may allocate the two antennas 110 to the mobile body 210. When the mobile body 210 is located at the end of the coverage range of the one antenna 110, the radio wave reception level from the one antenna 110 is lowered, but in such a situation, the communication device 100 refers to the mobile body 210 with respect to the mobile body 210. And assign a plurality of antennas 110. As a result, the communication device 100 according to the embodiment can reduce the drop in the radio wave reception level due to the mobile body 210.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram for explaining antenna allocation by the communication device 100. In the example shown in FIG. 4, since the mobile body 210 and the mobile body 220 are located where only one antenna 110 is assigned, the communication device 100 is one for the mobile body 210 and the mobile body 220. Antenna 110 may be assigned.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram for explaining antenna allocation by the communication device 100. Here, a case where the communication target is two mobile bodies 210 and a mobile body 220 will be described as an example.

The antenna allocation unit 136 is an internal product of a vector in a reference directing direction of a plurality of antennas 110 with respect to the position of the communication device 100 and a vector with respect to the positions of the moving body 210 and the moving body 220 with respect to the position of the communication device 100. May be calculated. Table 1 shows an example of the inner product.

The antenna allocation unit 136 may allocate antennas to the moving body in descending order of the value of the inner product. The antenna allocation unit 136 may allocate antennas to the moving body in descending order of the inner product value until there are no antennas whose inner product value is higher than a predetermined threshold value.

For example, when the threshold value is 0.7, the antenna allocation unit 136 may first allocate the antenna A to the moving body 210. Next, the antenna allocation unit 136 may allocate the antenna F to the moving body 220. Next, the antenna allocation unit 136 may allocate the antenna B to the moving body 210.

FIG. 6 shows an example of an inner product 310 for explaining antenna allocation using the inner product. FIG. 6 illustrates a case where the antenna 110 is assigned to three communication targets.

The antenna allocation unit 136 may extract, as a candidate antenna, an inner product 310 that exceeds a predetermined threshold value in each column. The threshold may be determined, for example, based on the maximum beamforming angle of the antenna 110. As a specific example, the threshold value may be the cosine of the maximum angle. The threshold value may be determined by the administrator of the communication device 100 or the like.

When the threshold value is 0.7, the antenna allocation unit 136 uses the antenna A and the antenna B as candidate antennas for the target A, the antenna D and the antenna F for the target B as candidate antennas, and the target C. Antenna A and antenna F may be used as candidate antennas.

When the candidate antenna has one target, the antenna allocation unit 136 may allocate the candidate antenna to the target. When there is no target for one candidate antenna, the antenna allocation unit 136 may select the antenna having the maximum inner product value. In the example shown in FIG. 6, the antenna allocation unit 136 may select the antenna F with respect to the target B having the maximum inner product value of 0.95. The antenna allocation unit 136 may repeat such a procedure.

In the example shown in FIG. 6, since the antenna F is assigned to the target B and the candidate antenna of the target C is only the antenna A, the antenna allocation unit 136 may select the antenna A for the target C. .. Further, since the candidate antenna of the target A is only the antenna B, the antenna allocation unit 136 may select the antenna B for the target A.

If the candidate antennas remain after the selection of the antennas for all the objects, the antenna allocation unit 136 may allocate the antennas having the highest internal product value first. In the example shown in FIG. 6, the antenna allocation unit 136 may allocate the antenna D to the target B.

The antenna allocation unit 136 specifies an antenna 110 having an inner product higher than a predetermined threshold value as a candidate antenna for each of the plurality of objects, and among the combinations in which at least one antenna 110 is assigned to each of the plurality of objects. The antenna 110 may be assigned to each of the plurality of objects according to the combination having the highest total value of the inner products. Table 2 shows an example of the total of the internal product values.

The antenna allocation unit 136 may allocate the antenna B to the target A, the antenna F to the target B, and the antenna A to the target C. If the candidate antennas remain after the selection of the antennas for all the objects, the antenna allocation unit 136 may allocate the antennas having the highest internal product value first.

The acquisition unit 132 may acquire the maximum received power from the plurality of mobile bodies 200 for each of the plurality of antennas 110. Each of the plurality of mobiles 200 may periodically transmit a beacon signal. The acquisition unit 132 may swing the beam 120 for each of the plurality of antennas 110 to record the direction in which the received power of the beacon signal is maximized.

The antenna allocation unit 136 may allocate at least one beamforming antenna to each of the plurality of mobile bodies 200 from the plurality of antennas 110 based on the maximum received power acquired by the acquisition unit 132. Table 3 shows an example of the maximum received power. The antenna allocation unit 136 may allocate an antenna to each of the target A, the target B, and the target C in the same manner as in the antenna allocation using the inner product.

The antenna allocation unit 136 moves a plurality of movements of each of the plurality of antennas 110 based on the angle between the reference directivity direction and the direction of the plurality of moving bodies 200 with respect to each of the plurality of moving bodies 200 based on the position information of the plurality of moving bodies 200. At least one beamforming antenna may be assigned to each of the bodies 200. Table 4 may be an example of angles. The left side is the horizontal angle and the right side is the vertical angle.

The antenna allocation unit 136 may calculate a value as an index of antenna allocation by using the following mathematical formula 1 in which the angle becomes 1 at 0 degrees and the limit angle of beamforming becomes 0.

When using the antenna 110 capable of ± 30 ° in the horizontal direction and ± 10 ° in the vertical direction, the index values are shown in Table 5. The antenna allocation unit 136 may allocate an antenna to each of the target A, the target B, and the target C in the same manner as in the antenna allocation using the inner product.

FIG. 7 schematically shows an example of the processing flow by the communication device 100. The communication device 100 may start the process shown in FIG. 7 at an arbitrary timing. Each process shown in FIG. 7 may be executed mainly by the control unit of the communication device 100.

At step 102 (the step may be abbreviated as S) 102, the loop is started. The loop may be repeated at regular intervals. In S104, the acquisition unit 132 may acquire and update the position information of the mobile body 200 to be communicated.

In S106, the antenna allocation unit 136 may execute the antenna allocation calculation. The antenna allocation unit 136 may store the calculation result in the storage unit 134.

In S108, it may be determined whether or not the end flag of the antenna allocation calculation is set. If it is determined that the end flag is set, the process may be terminated. If it is determined that the end flag is not set, the process may return to S104 after a certain period of time has elapsed.

FIG. 8 schematically shows an example of a communication flow by the communication device 100. Each process shown in FIG. 8 may be executed mainly by the control unit of the communication device 100.

In S202, the loop is started. The loop may be repeated at regular intervals. In S204, the antenna allocation unit 136 may perform antenna allocation and the wireless communication unit 138 may control beamforming based on the calculation result stored in the acquisition unit 132. In S206, the wireless communication unit 138 may execute the communication process.

In S208, the wireless communication unit 138 may determine whether or not the communication end flag is set. If it is determined that the end flag is set, the process may be terminated. If it is determined that the end flag is not set, the process may return to S204 after a certain period of time has elapsed.

FIG. 9 schematically shows an example of antenna allocation calculation. In S302, the loop is started. The loop may be repeated for the number of antennas N. In S304, the loop is started. The loop may be repeated for the number of objects M.

In S306, the antenna allocation unit 136 calculates the inner product of the vector in the reference directing direction of the antenna 110 with respect to the position of the communication device 100 and the vector with respect to the target position with respect to the position of the communication device 100, and lists them. May be added to. The antenna allocation unit 136 may repeat the loop until the processing for the target number M and the antenna number N is completed.

In S308, the loop is started. The loop may be repeated for the number of objects M. In S310, the antenna allocation unit 136 may determine whether or not there is one candidate antenna for the first target. If there is one candidate antenna, the process proceeds to S312, and if there is not one, the process proceeds to S314.

In S312, the antenna allocation unit 136 may select the candidate antenna 110. In S314, the antenna allocation unit 136 may select the antenna 110 having the largest inner product among the plurality of candidate antennas.

In S316, the antenna allocation unit 136 may determine the selected antenna as the antenna to be used for the target. In S318, the antenna allocation unit 136 may temporarily exclude the selected antenna from the list. The antenna allocation unit 136 may repeat the loop until the processing for the target number M is completed.

In S320, the antenna allocation unit 136 may determine whether or not the candidate antenna remains. If it is determined that there is no remaining, the process proceeds to S322, and if it is determined that there is no remaining, the process proceeds to S324. In S322, the antenna allocation unit 136 may allocate the remaining candidate antennas to the target having the maximum inner product.

In S324, the antenna allocation unit 136 may determine whether or not there is an object to which the antenna 110 has not been allocated. If it is determined that it exists, the process proceeds to S326, and if it is determined that it does not exist, the process may be terminated. In S326, the antenna allocation unit 136 may allocate the antenna having the maximum inner product to the object to which the antenna 110 is not allocated.

FIG. 10 schematically shows an example of communication processing. The wireless communication unit 138 communicates with the target using the antenna 110 assigned by the antenna allocation unit 136, and when a plurality of antennas 110 are assigned to the target by the antenna allocation unit 136, the received power is higher. Communication may be performed by switching to the stronger antenna as appropriate.

In S402, the wireless communication unit 138 executes communication processing with the target by using one antenna 110 assigned by the antenna allocation unit 136. In S404, the wireless communication unit 138 determines whether or not the sub-antenna exists. If it is determined that it exists, the process proceeds to S406, and if it is determined that it does not exist, the process may be terminated.

In S406, the acquisition unit 132 may measure the received power of the radio wave from the target by the sub-antenna. In S408, the wireless communication unit 138 determines whether or not the received power of the sub-antenna is higher than the value plus alpha to the received power of the main antenna. The value of plus alpha may be arbitrarily set. If it is determined to be high, the process proceeds to S410, and if it is determined not to be high, the process may be terminated. In S410, the wireless communication unit 138 may switch between the main antenna and the sub antenna.

In the above embodiment, the case where the communication device 100 is fixed has been described as an example, but the communication device 100 may be mounted on a mobile body. The communication device 100 may be mounted on the unmanned aerial vehicle 400, for example.

FIG. 11 schematically shows an example of an unmanned aerial vehicle 400 equipped with a communication device 100. Here, the case where the communication device 100 has six antennas 410 arranged so as to have directivity in six directions and an antenna 412 arranged so as to have directivity in the downward direction is illustrated. As described above, the communication device 100 may have an antenna configuration in which all the directions in which the communication target can exist as viewed from the unmanned aerial vehicle 400 are covered by any of the antennas having a multi-faceted structure.

FIG. 12 schematically shows an example of a system 10 composed of a plurality of unmanned aerial vehicles 400. Each of the plurality of unmanned aerial vehicles 400 may be equipped with a communication device 100.

The plurality of communication devices 100 may form a mesh network by establishing a wireless communication connection with each other. A mesh network may be connected to the network 50 by having some of the communication devices 100 out of the plurality of communication devices 100 establish a wireless communication connection with the terrestrial communication device 500.

The network 50 may include a mobile communication network. The mobile communication network may conform to a 3G (3rd Generation) communication method. The mobile communication network may comply with the LTE (Long Term Evolution) communication method. The mobile communication network may conform to a 5G (5th Generation) communication method. The mobile communication network may conform to the communication method after the 6G (6th Generation) communication method. The network 50 may include the Internet.

The unmanned aerial vehicle 400 may be fixed point anti-aircraft. The unmanned aerial vehicle 400 may move.

The communication device 100 may form a wireless communication area 402 below. The communication device 100 may provide a wireless communication service to a communication terminal in the wireless communication area 402. The communication device 100 may relay the communication between the network 50 and the communication terminal via the mesh network. That is, the mesh network may function as a backhaul. Examples of communication terminals include mobile phones such as smartphones, tablet terminals, PCs (Personal Computers), so-called IoT (Internet of Things) devices, and the like.

The communication device 100 may comply with a 3G (3rd Generation) communication method. The communication device 100 may comply with the LTE (Long Term Evolution) communication method. The communication device 100 may conform to a 5G (5th Generation) communication method. The communication device 100 may comply with the communication method after the 6G (6th Generation) communication method.

In particular, when the mesh network functions as a backhaul, each of the plurality of unmanned aerial vehicles 400 may receive wired power supply from the ground. Further, each of the plurality of unmanned aerial vehicles 400 may generate electricity by a solar panel.

The communication device 100 may establish a wireless communication connection with the direct access terminal. FIG. 12 illustrates a case where a wireless communication connection is established with an aircraft 600, which is an example of a direct access terminal. The aircraft 600 may access the network 50 via a mesh network via a wireless communication connection with the communication device 100.

The antenna 412 may be used in part for forming the wireless communication area 402 and in other parts for wireless communication with the direct access terminal. The antenna 412 may be used only for forming the wireless communication area 402. Further, the antenna 412 may be used only for wireless communication with the direct access terminal.

As illustrated in FIG. 12, when a backhaul is formed by a plurality of unmanned aerial vehicles 400, each communication device 100 may use a plurality of antennas 110 in combination. In this case, each communication device 100 needs to select an antenna to be assigned to each target to which the beam is directed. According to the communication device 100 according to the embodiment, for example, it is possible to calculate the internal product value of the vector in the front direction of the antenna 110 and the vector with respect to the communication target. The communication device 100 according to the embodiment can determine the antenna to be assigned by the algorithm based on the calculated inner product value. In addition, as described above, the communication device 100 may determine the antenna to be assigned based on the received power of the antenna 110 and the angle of the beam. According to the communication device 100 according to the embodiment, it is possible to reduce the possibility that one antenna is assigned to a plurality of communication targets. That is, the communication device 100 according to the embodiment can improve the communication efficiency. Further, the communication device 100 according to the embodiment can reduce the decrease in the communication level at the time of switching the antennas by allocating the plurality of antennas 110 to one communication target. Further, the communication device 100 according to the embodiment can select a relatively appropriate antenna 110 in response to a change in attitude of the unmanned aerial vehicle 400 by considering a vector in the front direction of the antenna.

FIG. 13 schematically shows an example of a hardware configuration of a computer 1200 that functions as a communication device 100. A program installed on the computer 1200 causes the computer 1200 to function as one or more "parts" of the device according to the embodiment, or causes the computer 1200 to perform an operation associated with the device according to the embodiment or the one or the like. A plurality of "parts" can be executed and / or a computer 1200 can be made to execute a process according to the above embodiment or a stage of the process. Such a program may be run by the CPU 1212 to cause the computer 1200 to perform certain operations associated with some or all of the blocks of the flowcharts and block diagrams described herein.

The computer 1200 according to one embodiment includes a CPU 1212, a RAM 1214, and a graphic controller 1216, which may be interconnected by a host controller 1210. The computer 1200 also includes an input / output unit such as a communication interface 1222, a storage device 1224, and a DVD drive 1226 and an IC card drive, which may be connected to the host controller 1210 via the input / output controller 1220. The storage device 1224 may be a hard disk drive, a solid state drive, or the like. The computer 1200 also includes a legacy I / O unit such as a ROM 1230 and a keyboard, which may be connected to the I / O controller 1220 via an I / O chip 1240.

The CPU 1212 may operate according to a program stored in the ROM 1230 and the RAM 1214, thereby controlling each unit. The graphic controller 1216 may acquire the image data generated by the CPU 1212 in a frame buffer or the like provided in the RAM 1214 or itself so that the image data is displayed on the display device 1218.

The communication interface 1222 may communicate with other electronic devices via a network. The storage device 1224 may store programs and data used by the CPU 1212 in the computer 1200. The IC card drive may read the program and data from the IC card and / or write the program and data to the IC card.

The ROM 1230 may store a boot program or the like executed by the computer 1200 at the time of activation and / or a program depending on the hardware of the computer 1200. The input / output chip 1240 may also connect various input / output units to the input / output controller 1220 via a USB port, a parallel port, a serial port, a keyboard port, a mouse port, and the like.

The program may be provided by a computer-readable storage medium such as a DVD-ROM 1227 or an IC card. The program may be read from a computer-readable storage medium, installed in a storage device 1224, RAM 1214, or ROM 1230, which is also an example of a computer-readable storage medium, and executed by the CPU 1212. The information processing described in these programs can be read by the computer 1200 and bring about coordination between the program and the various types of hardware resources described above. The device or method may be configured to implement the operation or processing of information in accordance with the use of the computer 1200.

For example, when communication is performed between the computer 1200 and an external device, the CPU 1212 may execute a communication program loaded in the RAM 1214. Then, the CPU 1212 may instruct the communication interface 1222 to perform communication processing based on the processing described in the communication program. The communication interface 1222 may read transmission data stored in a transmission buffer area provided in a recording medium such as a RAM 1214, a storage device 1224, a DVD-ROM 1227, or an IC card under the control of the CPU 1212. Then, the communication interface 1222 may transmit the read transmission data to the network, or may write the reception data received from the network to the reception buffer area or the like provided on the recording medium.

Further, the CPU 1212 may allow the RAM 1214 to read all or necessary parts of a file or database stored in an external recording medium such as a storage device 1224, a DVD drive 1226 (DVD-ROM1227), an IC card, or the like. Then, the CPU 1212 may execute various types of processing on the data on the RAM 1214. The CPU 1212 may then write back the processed data to an external recording medium.

Various types of information such as various types of programs, data, tables, and databases may be stored in recording media and processed. The CPU 1212 describes various types of operations, information processing, conditional judgment, conditional branching, unconditional branching, and information retrieval described in various parts of the present disclosure with respect to the data read from the RAM 1214. Various types of processing may be performed, including / replacement and the like. Then, the CPU 1212 may write back the result to the RAM 1214. Further, the CPU 1212 may search for information in a file, database, or the like in the recording medium. For example, when a plurality of entries each having an attribute value of the first attribute associated with the attribute value of the second attribute are stored in the recording medium, the CPU 1212 is the first of the plurality of entries. You may search for an entry that matches the condition for which the attribute value of the attribute of is specified. Then, the CPU 1212 reads the attribute value of the second attribute stored in the entry, thereby acquiring the attribute value of the second attribute associated with the first attribute satisfying the predetermined condition. good.

The program or software module described above may be stored on a computer 1200 or in a computer readable storage medium near the computer 1200. Further, a recording medium such as a hard disk or RAM provided in a server system connected to a dedicated communication network or the Internet may be usable as a computer-readable storage medium. That is, the program may be provided to the computer 1200 via the network.

The blocks in the flowcharts and block diagrams of an embodiment may represent the stage of the process in which the operation is performed or the "part" of the device responsible for performing the operation. Specific steps and "parts" are supplied with a dedicated circuit, a programmable circuit supplied with computer-readable instructions stored on a computer-readable storage medium, and / or with computer-readable instructions stored on a computer-readable storage medium. It may be implemented by the processor. Dedicated circuits may include digital and / or analog hardware circuits. Dedicated circuits may include, for example, integrated circuits (ICs) and / or discrete circuits. Programmable circuits include logical products, logical sums, exclusive logical sums, negative logical products, negative logical sums, and other logical operations, such as, for example, field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), programmable logic arrays (PLAs), and the like. , Flip-flops, registers, and reconfigurable hardware circuits, including memory elements.

The computer-readable storage medium may include any tangible device capable of storing instructions executed by the appropriate device. As a result, the computer-readable storage medium having the instructions stored therein may comprise a product containing instructions that may be executed to create means for performing the operation specified in the flowchart or block diagram. Examples of the computer-readable storage medium may include an electronic storage medium, a magnetic storage medium, an optical storage medium, an electromagnetic storage medium, a semiconductor storage medium, and the like. More specific examples of computer-readable storage media include floppy (registered trademark) disks, diskettes, hard disks, random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), and erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or flash memory). , Electrically Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory (EEPROM), Static Random Access Memory (SRAM), Compact Disc Read Only Memory (CD-ROM), Digital Versatile Disc (DVD), Blu-ray® Disc, Memory Stick , Integrated circuit cards and the like may be included.

Computer-readable instructions are assembler instructions, instruction set architecture (ISA) instructions, machine instructions, machine-dependent instructions, microcode, firmware instructions, state-setting data, or object-oriented programming such as Smalltalk, JAVA®, C ++, etc. Includes either source code or object code written in any combination of one or more programming languages, including languages and traditional procedural programming languages such as the "C" programming language or similar programming languages. good.

Computer-readable instructions are used to generate means for a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, or the processor of another programmable data processing device, or a programmable circuit, to perform an operation specified in a flowchart or block diagram. General purpose computers, special purpose computers, or other programmable data processing locally or via a local area network (LAN), a wide area network (WAN) such as the Internet, etc., to execute such computer-readable instructions. It may be provided to the processor of the device or a programmable circuit. The processor may be, for example, a computer processor, a processing unit, a microprocessor, a digital signal processor, a controller, a microcontroller, or the like.

Although the invention according to the present disclosure has been described above by using the embodiment, the technical scope of the invention according to the present disclosure is not limited to the scope described in the above embodiment. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes or improvements can be made to the above embodiments. It is clear from the description of the claims that the form with such changes or improvements may be included in the technical scope of the present invention.

The order of execution of each process, such as operation, procedure, step, and step in the device, system, program, and method shown in the claims, specification, and drawings, is particularly "before" and "prior to". It should be noted that it can be realized in any order unless the output of the previous process is used in the subsequent process. Even if the scope of claims, the specification, and the operation flow in the drawings are explained using "first", "next", etc. for convenience, it means that it is essential to carry out in this order. It's not a thing.

10 systems, 50 networks, 100 communication devices, 110 antennas, 120 beams, 132 acquisition units, 134 storage units, 136 antenna allocation units, 138 wireless communication units, 200 mobile units, 210 mobile units, 220 mobile units, 310 inner products, 400 Unmanned aircraft, 402 wireless communication area, 410 antenna, 412 antenna, 500 terrestrial communication device, 600 aircraft, 1200 computer, 1210 host controller, 1212 CPU, 1214 RAM, 1216 graphic controller, 1218 display device, 1220 input / output controller, 1222 communication Interface, 1224 storage device, 1226 DVD drive, 1227 DVD-ROM, 1230 ROM, 1240 input / output chip

Claims (13)

With multiple beamforming antennas arranged to have directivity in different directions,
An acquisition unit that acquires mobile-related information related to the mobile to be communicated with,
An antenna assigning unit that assigns at least one beamforming antenna to each of the plurality of moving objects from the plurality of beam forming antennas based on the moving body-related information of the plurality of the moving objects.
A communication device including a wireless communication unit that wirelessly communicates with each of the plurality of mobile bodies by using a beamforming antenna assigned to each of the plurality of mobile bodies by the antenna allocation unit. The communication according to claim 1, wherein the antenna assigning unit allocates different beamforming antennas to the plurality of mobile bodies, except that only one beamforming antenna is assigned to the plurality of mobile bodies. Device. The communication according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the antenna assigning unit allocates the plurality of beamforming antennas to the one mobile body when a plurality of beamforming antennas can be assigned to the one mobile body. Device. The mobile object-related information includes position information indicating the position of the mobile object to be communicated.
The antenna assigning unit allocates at least one beamforming antenna to each of the plurality of moving objects from the plurality of beam forming antennas based on the position information of the plurality of moving objects, according to claims 1 to 3. The communication device according to any one of the above. The antenna allocation unit is an internal product of a vector in a reference directing direction of the plurality of beamforming antennas based on the position of the communication device and a vector with respect to the positions of the plurality of moving objects based on the position of the communication device. 4. The communication device according to claim 4, wherein at least one beamforming antenna is assigned to each of the plurality of moving objects. The antenna assigning unit identifies a beamforming antenna having an inner product higher than a predetermined threshold as a candidate antenna for each of the plurality of mobile bodies, and the candidate antenna assigns the candidate antenna to one mobile body. , The communication device according to claim 5. The antenna assigning unit identifies a beamforming antenna having an inner product higher than a predetermined threshold as a candidate antenna for each of the plurality of mobile bodies, and at least one beamforming antenna for each of the plurality of mobile bodies. The communication device according to claim 5, wherein the beamforming antenna is assigned to each of the plurality of mobile bodies according to the combination to which the total value of the inner products is higher than that of the other combinations. The antenna assigning unit is based on the position information of the plurality of mobile bodies, and is based on the angle between the reference directivity direction and the direction with respect to each of the plurality of mobile bodies for each of the plurality of beamforming antennas. The communication device according to claim 4, wherein at least one beamforming antenna is assigned to each of the plurality of mobile objects. The acquisition unit acquires the maximum received power from the plurality of mobile bodies for each of the plurality of beamforming antennas.
The antenna allocation unit allocates at least one beamforming antenna to each of the plurality of mobile objects from the plurality of beamforming antennas based on the maximum received power acquired by the acquisition unit. The communication device according to any one of 3 to 3. A program for operating a computer as the communication device according to any one of claims 1 to 9. A mobile body including the communication device according to any one of claims 1 to 9. An unmanned aerial vehicle equipped with the communication device according to any one of claims 1 to 9.
It is equipped with the communication device and multiple unmanned aerial vehicles that establish wireless communication connections.
The wireless communication unit forms a wireless communication area on the ground.
system. A communication method performed by a communication device.
The acquisition step to acquire the mobile-related information related to the mobile to be communicated with,
An antenna assignment step of assigning at least one beamforming antenna to each of the plurality of mobiles from the plurality of beamforming antennas based on the mobile-related information of the plurality of the mobiles.
A communication method comprising a wireless communication step of wirelessly communicating with each of the plurality of mobile bodies by using a beamforming antenna assigned to each of the plurality of mobile bodies in the antenna allocation step.

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