A global positioning system (GPS) receiver may include an antenna configured to receive GPS signals from GPS satellites, a radio frequency (RF) front end configured to pre-process signals received by the antenna, a demodulator/converter configured to perform demodulation and analog-to-digital conversion of output signals received from the RF front end, a clock configured to provide a consistent clock signal, and a digital signal processor configured to receive the clock signal and make time and code measurements associated with determining a location of the GPS receiver based on the signals received by the antenna. The GPS receiver may be configured to eliminate reflected or indirect signals from the time and code measurements.
G01S 19/36 - Constructional details or hardware or software details of the signal processing chain relating to the receiver frond end
G01S 19/39 - Determining a navigation solution using signals transmitted by a satellite radio beacon positioning system the satellite radio beacon positioning system transmitting time-stamped messages, e.g. GPS [Global Positioning System], GLONASS [Global Orbiting Navigation Satellite System] or GALILEO
A method for performing seamless relocation of a mobile terminal in a wireless network includes selecting a first serving gateway (SGW) among a plurality of SGWs and a first packet data network gateway (PGW) among a plurality of PGWs, wherein the first SGW connects to the first PGW to setup the first S5 session, establishing a first communication channel between the terminal and the first PGW and assigning an internet protocol (IP) address to the terminal, selecting a second SGW among the plurality of SGWs when the terminal is about to move out of an area being served by the first SGW, connecting the second SGW to the second PGW to setup a new S5 session when a second PGW among the plurality of PGWs is closer to the second SGW than the first PGW or connecting the second SGW to the first PGW to modify the first S5 session when no PGW is closer to the second SGW than the first PGW, establishing a second communication channel between the terminal and the second SGW using the IP address allocated to the terminal, reconfiguring routing for terminal IP destination, and terminating the first communication channel between the terminal and the first PGW.
An advisory module may include processing circuitry configured to receive data indicative of internal factors and external factors related to route optimization of a combined route of a subject. The combined route may include an air segment and a ground segment, and at least some of the external factors may include dynamic parameters that are changeable while the air segment or ground segment is being transited by the subject to a ground objective. The processing circuitry may be further configured to generate a guidance option to deliver the subject to the ground objective based on integration of the internal factors and the external factors to optimize a route to the ground objective, and provide a graphical representation of the guidance option along with comparative data or context information associated with the route.
A system for providing services to remote airports includes a backbone network, an antenna assembly and a remote services module. The backbone network operates using first assigned RF spectrum and is configured to provide backhaul services and network control to operably couple one or more base stations of the backbone network to the Internet. The antenna assembly is disposed at a remote airport to define an airport cell and is configured to communicate wirelessly with an aircraft located in the airport cell via second assigned RF spectrum. The antenna assembly is operably coupled to the backbone network for backhaul to the Internet or an intranet. The remote services module is accessible by the aircraft both in flight and on the ground within the airport cell via the antenna assembly. The remote services module includes processing circuitry configuring the remote services module to provide the aircraft with access to obtain airside or landside services associated with the remote airport.
H04W 4/42 - Services specially adapted for particular environments, situations or purposes for vehicles, e.g. vehicle-to-pedestrians [V2P] for mass transport vehicles, e.g. buses, trains or aircraft
An air-to-ground communications system includes at least one base station to be positioned on the ground and including a ground-based transceiver, a phased array antenna coupled to the ground-based transceiver, and a beamforming network coupled to the ground-based transceiver. The ground-based transceiver is configured to provide data traffic and control information to an aircraft. The beamforming network is configured to simultaneously generate at least one narrow antenna beam for the data traffic and at least one wide beam for the control information.
Aspects described herein relate to a network for providing air-to-ground wireless communication in various cells. The network includes a first base station array, each base station of which includes a respective first antenna array defining a directional radiation pattern that is oriented in a first direction, wherein each base station of the first base station array is disposed spaced apart from another base station of the first base station array along the first direction by a first distance. The network also includes a similar second base station array where the second base station array extends substantially parallel to the first base station array and is spaced apart from the first base station array by a second distance to form continuous and at least partially overlapping cell coverage areas between respective base stations of the first and second base station arrays.
An information manager may include processing circuitry configured to receive dynamic aircraft information associated with operation of an in-flight aircraft, receive a message from a communication device on the in-flight aircraft for transmission to a ground based content server via a wireless communication network capable of communicating with in-flight assets, and generate an aviation cookie for communication to the content server along with the message. The aviation cookie may be generated based on the dynamic aircraft information and may enable the content server to generate content based at least in part on the dynamic aircraft information.
H04L 67/12 - Protocols specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
G08G 5/21 - Arrangements for acquiring, generating, sharing or displaying traffic information located onboard the aircraft
G08G 5/26 - Transmission of traffic-related information between aircraft and ground stations
H04L 67/02 - Protocols based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
H04L 67/142 - Managing session states for stateless protocolsSignalling session statesState transitionsKeeping-state mechanisms
H04L 67/52 - Network services specially adapted for the location of the user terminal
8.
TERRESTRIAL BASED HIGH SPEED DATA COMMUNICATIONS MESH NETWORK
A network for providing high speed data communications may include multiple terrestrial transmission stations that are located within overlapping communications range and a mobile receiver station. The terrestrial transmission stations provide a continuous and uninterrupted high speed data communications link with the mobile receiver station employing a wireless radio access network protocol.
An aggregation router for an aircraft may include processing circuitry. The processing circuitry may be configured to receive a first channel from a first airborne radio, and receive a second channel from a second airborne radio. The first and second channels may be WAN connections to wireless communication network resources on the ground. The processing circuitry may be further configured to aggregate the first and second channels for service to LAN connections on the aircraft, which LAN connections may include one or more short range wireless communication access points.
A method for performing seamless relocation of a mobile terminal in a wireless network includes selecting a first serving gateway (SGW) among a plurality of SGWs and a first packet data network gateway (PGW) among a plurality of PGWs, wherein the first SGW connects to the first PGW to setup the first S5 session, establishing a first communication channel between the terminal and the first PGW and assigning an internet protocol (IP) address to the terminal, selecting a second SGW among the plurality of SGWs when the terminal is about to move out of an area being served by the first SGW, connecting the second SGW to the second PGW to setup a new S5 session when a second PGW among the plurality of PGWs is closer to the second SGW than the first PGW or connecting the second SGW to the first PGW to modify the first S5 session when no PGW is closer to the second SGW than the first PGW, establishing a second communication channel between the terminal and the second SGW using the IP address allocated to the terminal, reconfiguring routing for terminal IP destination, and terminating the first communication channel between the terminal and the first PGW.
An air to ground (ATG) communication system testing platform may be configured to operably couple a base station to an aircraft base radio in a lab environment. The testing platform may include a position simulator and a channel simulator. The position simulator may be configured to generate simulated aircraft position information and communicate the simulated aircraft position information to an aircraft base radio and a base band unit of the base station. The channel simulator may operably couple a remote radio head of the base station to the aircraft base radio, and may be configured to emulate channel conditions with respect to transmission of signaling generated by the remote radio head for communication to the aircraft base radio based on the emulated channel conditions.
A system may include an access network comprising at least two base stations configured to communicate with a wireless communication device via dynamically steerable or formable beams, a resource manager disposed at a location accessible via the access network or at the wireless communication device, and an experience tester configured to determine a qualitative assessment of capabilities of the access network relative to different categories of services or applications for the wireless communication device via a first beam formed or selected to serve the communication device. The resource manager may be configured to initiate a handover based on both location-based criteria and user experience based criteria. The user experience based criteria may be associated with the qualitative assessment.
H04B 7/06 - Diversity systemsMulti-antenna systems, i.e. transmission or reception using multiple antennas using two or more spaced independent antennas at the transmitting station
H04B 7/0408 - Diversity systemsMulti-antenna systems, i.e. transmission or reception using multiple antennas using two or more spaced independent antennas using two or more beams, i.e. beam diversity
H04B 7/08 - Diversity systemsMulti-antenna systems, i.e. transmission or reception using multiple antennas using two or more spaced independent antennas at the receiving station
A unified radio system for providing wireless communication to a communication device on an aircraft regardless of aircraft altitude may include a terrestrial network including a plurality of terrestrial base stations configured to communicate primarily in a ground communication layer below a first altitude, an ATG network including a plurality of ATG base stations configured to communicate primarily in an ATG communication layer above a second altitude, an air-to-air mesh network for data relays through connected aircraft, and an aircraft with an onboard antenna assembly and a unified radio. The unified radio may be configured to monitor network parameters of the terrestrial network and the ATG network and switch between a currently serving network and a non-serving network based on the network parameters.
A global positioning system (GPS) receiver may include an antenna configured to receive GPS signals from GPS satellites, a radio frequency (RF) front end configured to pre-process signals received by the antenna, a demodulator/converter configured to perform demodulation and analog-to-digital conversion of output signals received from the RF front end, a clock configured to provide a consistent clock signal, and a digital signal processor configured to receive the clock signal and make time and code measurements associated with determining a location of the GPS receiver based on the signals received by the antenna. The GPS receiver may be configured to eliminate reflected or indirect signals from the time and code measurements.
G01S 19/36 - Constructional details or hardware or software details of the signal processing chain relating to the receiver frond end
G01S 19/39 - Determining a navigation solution using signals transmitted by a satellite radio beacon positioning system the satellite radio beacon positioning system transmitting time-stamped messages, e.g. GPS [Global Positioning System], GLONASS [Global Orbiting Navigation Satellite System] or GALILEO
An aerospace commerce exchange system may include a network, a plurality of clients operably coupled to the network, and an aerospace commerce exchange platform operably coupled to the network to provide exchange services to the clients. At least one of the clients may be operably coupled to the aerospace commerce exchange platform via an air-to-ground wireless communication link or satellite link (or other links with which an aircraft may be associated) to provide or receive data associated with at least one of the exchange services.
G06Q 20/40 - Authorisation, e.g. identification of payer or payee, verification of customer or shop credentialsReview and approval of payers, e.g. check of credit lines or negative lists
G06Q 30/06 - Buying, selling or leasing transactions
G06Q 50/40 - Business processes related to the transportation industry
H04L 9/32 - Arrangements for secret or secure communicationsNetwork security protocols including means for verifying the identity or authority of a user of the system
H04W 4/44 - Services specially adapted for particular environments, situations or purposes for vehicles, e.g. vehicle-to-pedestrians [V2P] for communication between vehicles and infrastructures, e.g. vehicle-to-cloud [V2C] or vehicle-to-home [V2H]
A context awareness engine may include processing circuitry configured to receive a context update request from a content provider for an originator of a content request from a source internet protocol (IP) address associated with a dynamic context, determine updated context information for the originator based on the source IP address, and provide the updated context information to the content provider to enable the content provider to provide a response to the content request including requested content or additional content that is based on the updated context information.
H04W 4/02 - Services making use of location information
H04W 4/42 - Services specially adapted for particular environments, situations or purposes for vehicles, e.g. vehicle-to-pedestrians [V2P] for mass transport vehicles, e.g. buses, trains or aircraft
H04W 36/32 - Reselection being triggered by specific parameters by location or mobility data, e.g. speed data
Aspects described herein relate to a network for providing air-to-ground wireless communication in various cells. The network includes a first base station array, each base station of which includes a respective first antenna array defining a directional radiation pattern that is oriented in a first direction, wherein each base station of the first base station array is disposed spaced apart from another base station of the first base station array along the first direction by a first distance. The network also includes a similar second base station array where the second base station array extends substantially parallel to the first base station array and is spaced apart from the first base station array by a second distance to form continuous and at least partially overlapping cell coverage areas between respective base stations of the first and second base station arrays.
A network for providing air-to-ground (ATG) wireless communication in various cells may include an in-flight aircraft including an antenna assembly, a plurality of ATG base stations, a plurality of terrestrial base stations. Each of the ATG base stations defines a corresponding radiation pattern, and the ATG base stations are spaced apart from each other to define at least partially overlapping coverage areas to communicate with the antenna assembly in an ATG communication layer defined between a first altitude and a second altitude. The terrestrial base stations are configured to communicate primarily in a ground communication layer below the first altitude. The terrestrial base stations and the ATG base stations are each configured to communicate using the same radio frequency (RF) spectrum in the ground communication layer and ATG communication layer, respectively.
A network for providing air-to-ground (ATG) wireless communication in various cells may include a receiver station disposed on an aircraft in flight, a plurality of base stations, each base station defining a corresponding radiation pattern such that the base stations are spaced apart from each other to define at least partially overlapping coverage areas, and a control module in communication with at least one of the base stations. The control module may be configured to receive information indicative of an altitude of the aircraft and select a frequency for communication between the at least one of the base stations and the receiver station based on the altitude.
A network analytics control module may include processing circuitry configured to receive three dimensional location information and corresponding signal quality information for a particular asset in an air-to-ground (ATG) network, make a service quality inference for the particular asset based at least in part on the received information, and provide an instruction for a network control activity based on the service quality inference.
An information manager may include processing circuitry configured to receive dynamic aircraft information associated with operation of an in-flight aircraft, receive a message from a communication device on the in-flight aircraft for transmission to a ground based content server via a wireless communication network capable of communicating with in-flight assets, and generate an aviation cookie for communication to the content server along with the message. The aviation cookie may be generated based on the dynamic aircraft information and may enable the content server to generate content based at least in part on the dynamic aircraft information.
G06F 15/16 - Combinations of two or more digital computers each having at least an arithmetic unit, a program unit and a register, e.g. for a simultaneous processing of several programs
H04L 67/02 - Protocols based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
H04L 67/12 - Protocols specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
H04L 67/142 - Managing session states for stateless protocolsSignalling session statesState transitionsKeeping-state mechanisms
H04L 67/52 - Network services specially adapted for the location of the user terminal
22.
APPARATUS, METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR PROVIDING USER DEFINED CONSTRAINTS FOR AIRCRAFT ROUTE PLANNING
An advisory module may include processing circuitry configured to receive route planning information related to route optimization for travel of an aircraft between a starting location and a destination, generate a flight path associated with the route optimization, receive a user defined constraint via a user interface, and generate an updated flight path based on the user defined constraint.
A network controller including processing circuitry may be configured to receive dynamic position information indicative of a three dimensional position of at least one mobile communication node, compare fixed position information indicative of fixed geographic locations of respective access points of a network to the dynamic position information to determine a relative position of the at least one mobile communication node relative to at least one of the access points based on the fixed position information and the dynamic position information, and provide network control instructions to at least one network asset based on the relative position.
H04W 4/02 - Services making use of location information
H04W 4/029 - Location-based management or tracking services
H04W 4/44 - Services specially adapted for particular environments, situations or purposes for vehicles, e.g. vehicle-to-pedestrians [V2P] for communication between vehicles and infrastructures, e.g. vehicle-to-cloud [V2C] or vehicle-to-home [V2H]
H04W 64/00 - Locating users or terminals for network management purposes, e.g. mobility management
H04W 36/32 - Reselection being triggered by specific parameters by location or mobility data, e.g. speed data
Aspects described herein relate to a base station for providing air-to-ground wireless communication over various altitudes. The base station includes a first antenna array comprising one or more antennas configured to form a first cell coverage area extending substantially from a horizon up to a first elevation angle away from the first antenna array to a predetermined distance from the first antenna array. The base station further includes a second antenna array configured at an uptilt elevation angle to form a second cell coverage area extending at least from the first elevation angle to a second elevation away from the second antenna array, wherein the first cell coverage area and the second cell coverage area are concentric to define the ATG cell at least to the predetermined distance and up to a predetermined elevation.
An air to ground (ATG) communication system testing platform may be configured to operably couple a base station to an aircraft base radio in a lab environment. The testing platform may include a position simulator and a channel simulator. The position simulator may be configured to generate simulated aircraft position information and communicate the simulated aircraft position information to an aircraft base radio and a base band unit of the base station. The channel simulator may operably couple a remote radio head of the base station to the aircraft base radio, and may be configured to emulate channel conditions with respect to transmission of signaling generated by the remote radio head for communication to the aircraft base radio based on the emulated channel conditions.
Aspects described herein relate to a network for providing air-to-ground wireless communication in various cells. The network includes a first base station array, each base station of which includes a respective first antenna array defining a directional radiation pattern that is oriented in a first direction, wherein each base station of the first base station array is disposed spaced apart from another base station of the first base station array along the first direction by a first distance. The network also includes a similar second base station array where the second base station array extends substantially parallel to the first base station array and is spaced apart from the first base station array by a second distance to form continuous and at least partially overlapping cell coverage areas between respective base stations of the first and second base station arrays.
An aviation-related communication network includes a plurality of base stations configured to communicate with in-flight aircraft, a plurality of aviation-related communication network radios disposed on selected aircraft where the aviation-related communication network radios are configured to communicate with base stations of the aviation-related communication network via aviation-related communication network communication links using a first communication standard, and a first wireless access point on each of the selected aircraft to define a first wireless local area network on each of the selected aircraft. At least some of the selected aircraft include a second wireless local area network that defines a priority access network. Devices of the priority access network may be provided with priority access to bandwidth supplied by the aviation-related communication network relative to devices of the first wireless local area network.
H04W 4/42 - Services specially adapted for particular environments, situations or purposes for vehicles, e.g. vehicle-to-pedestrians [V2P] for mass transport vehicles, e.g. buses, trains or aircraft
H04W 72/0453 - Resources in frequency domain, e.g. a carrier in FDMA
An aggregation router for an aircraft may include processing circuitry. The processing circuitry may be configured to receive a first channel from a first airborne radio, and receive a second channel from a second airborne radio. The first and second channels may be WAN connections to wireless communication network resources on the ground. The processing circuitry may be further configured to aggregate the first and second channels for service to LAN connections on the aircraft, which LAN connections may include one or more short range wireless communication access points.
An advisory module may include processing circuitry configured to receive data indicative of internal factors and external factors related to route optimization of a combined route of a subject. The combined route may include an air segment and a ground segment, and at least some of the external factors may include dynamic parameters that are changeable while the air segment or ground segment is being transited by the subject to a ground objective. The processing circuitry may be further configured to generate a guidance option to deliver the subject to the ground objective based on integration of the internal factors and the external factors to optimize a route to the ground objective, and provide a graphical representation of the guidance option along with comparative data or context information associated with the route.
A beamforming control module including processing circuitry may be configured to receive fixed position information indicative of a fixed geographic location of a base station, receive dynamic position information indicative of a three dimensional position of at least one mobile communication station, determine an expected relative position of a first network node relative to a second network node based on the fixed position information and the dynamic position information, and provide instructions to direct formation of a steerable beam from an antenna array of the second network node based on the expected relative position.
An aviation advisory module may include processing circuitry configured to receive data indicative of internal factors and external factors related to route optimization of an aircraft. At least some of the external factors may include dynamic parameters that are changeable while the aircraft is in-flight. The processing circuitry may also be configured to generate a guidance output associated with a route of the aircraft based on integration of the internal factors and the external factors to optimize the route for a user-selected cost parameter, and provide a graphical representation of the guidance output along with comparative data or context information associated with the user-selected cost parameter.
A global positioning system (GPS) receiver may include an antenna configured to receive GPS signals from GPS satellites, a radio frequency (RF) front end configured to pre-process signals received by the antenna, a demodulator/converter configured to perform demodulation and analog-to-digital conversion of output signals received from the RF front end, a clock configured to provide a consistent clock signal, and a digital signal processor configured to receive the clock signal and make time and code measurements associated with determining a location of the GPS receiver based on the signals received by the antenna. The GPS receiver may be configured to eliminate reflected or indirect signals from the time and code measurements.
G01S 19/36 - Constructional details or hardware or software details of the signal processing chain relating to the receiver frond end
G01S 19/39 - Determining a navigation solution using signals transmitted by a satellite radio beacon positioning system the satellite radio beacon positioning system transmitting time-stamped messages, e.g. GPS [Global Positioning System], GLONASS [Global Orbiting Navigation Satellite System] or GALILEO
An information manager may include processing circuitry configured to receive dynamic aircraft information associated with operation of an in-flight aircraft, receive a message from a communication device on the in-flight aircraft for transmission to a ground based content server via a wireless communication network capable of communicating with in-flight assets, and generate an aviation cookie for communication to the content server along with the message. The aviation cookie may be generated based on the dynamic aircraft information and may enable the content server to generate content based at least in part on the dynamic aircraft information.
G06F 15/16 - Combinations of two or more digital computers each having at least an arithmetic unit, a program unit and a register, e.g. for a simultaneous processing of several programs
H04L 67/12 - Protocols specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
A network for providing air-to-ground (ATG) wireless communication in various cells may include a receiver station disposed on an aircraft in flight, a plurality of base stations, each base station defining a corresponding radiation pattern such that the base stations are spaced apart from each other to define at least partially overlapping coverage areas, and a control module in communication with at least one of the base stations. The control module may be configured to receive information indicative of an altitude of the aircraft and select a frequency for communication between the at least one of the base stations and the receiver station based on the altitude.
A context awareness engine may include processing circuitry configured to receive a context update request from a content provider for an originator of a content request from a source internet protocol (IP) address associated with a dynamic context, determine updated context information for the originator based on the source IP address, and provide the updated context information to the content provider to enable the content provider to provide a response to the content request including requested content or additional content that is based on the updated context information.
H04W 8/26 - Network addressing or numbering for mobility support
H04W 4/42 - Services specially adapted for particular environments, situations or purposes for vehicles, e.g. vehicle-to-pedestrians [V2P] for mass transport vehicles, e.g. buses, trains or aircraft
A system for providing services to remote airports includes a backbone network, an antenna assembly and a remote services module. The backbone network operates using first assigned RF spectrum and is configured to provide backhaul services and network control to operably couple one or more base stations of the backbone network to the Internet. The antenna assembly is disposed at a remote airport to define an airport cell and is configured to communicate wirelessly with an aircraft located in the airport cell via second assigned RF spectrum. The antenna assembly is operably coupled to the backbone network for backhaul to the Internet or an intranet. The remote services module is accessible by the aircraft both in flight and on the ground within the airport cell via the antenna assembly. The remote services module includes processing circuitry configuring the remote services module to provide the aircraft with access to obtain airside or landside services associated with the remote airport.
H04W 4/42 - Services specially adapted for particular environments, situations or purposes for vehicles, e.g. vehicle-to-pedestrians [V2P] for mass transport vehicles, e.g. buses, trains or aircraft
A method for performing seamless relocation of a mobile terminal in a wireless network includes selecting a first serving gateway (SGW) among a plurality of SGWs and a first packet data network gateway (PGW) among a plurality of PGWs, wherein the first SGW connects to the first PGW to setup the first S5 session, establishing a first communication channel between the terminal and the first PGW and assigning an internet protocol (IP) address to the terminal, selecting a second SGW among the plurality of SGWs when the terminal is about to move out of an area being served by the first SGW, connecting the second SGW to the second PGW to setup a new S5 session when a second PGW among the plurality of PGWs is closer to the second SGW than the first PGW or connecting the second SGW to the first PGW to modify the first S5 session when no PGW is closer to the second SGW than the first PGW, establishing a second communication channel between the terminal and the second SGW using the IP address allocated to the terminal, reconfiguring routing for terminal IP destination, and terminating the first communication channel between the terminal and the first PGW.
A network for providing air-to-ground (ATG) wireless communication in various cells may include an in-flight aircraft including an antenna assembly, a plurality of ATG base stations, a plurality of terrestrial base stations. Each of the ATG base stations defines a corresponding radiation pattern, and the ATG base stations are spaced apart from each other to define at least partially overlapping coverage areas to communicate with the antenna assembly in an ATG communication layer defined between a first altitude and a second altitude. The terrestrial base stations are configured to communicate primarily in a ground communication layer below the first altitude. The terrestrial base stations and the ATG base stations are each configured to communicate using the same radio frequency (RF) spectrum in the ground communication layer and ATG communication layer, respectively.
A system for improving cockpit operations in an aircraft includes an airborne augmented reality module and a ground-based information management module. The augmented reality module may be disposed in the cockpit of the aircraft and may include processing circuitry configured to generate an augmented reality display in the cockpit based at least in part on selected external environmental data received. The information management module may be configured to include external environmental data received from a plurality of sources and generate the selected external environmental data for communication to the augmented reality module via a wireless communication network while the aircraft is in flight. The selected external environmental data may be selected based on aircraft location and a determination of temporal relevance and locational relevance of the selected external environmental data.
H04W 4/42 - Services specially adapted for particular environments, situations or purposes for vehicles, e.g. vehicle-to-pedestrians [V2P] for mass transport vehicles, e.g. buses, trains or aircraft
G06T 19/00 - Manipulating 3D models or images for computer graphics
A unified radio system for providing wireless communication to a communication device on an aircraft regardless of aircraft altitude may include a terrestrial network including a plurality of terrestrial base stations configured to communicate primarily in a ground communication layer below a first altitude, an ATG network including a plurality of ATG base stations configured to communicate primarily in an ATG communication layer above a second altitude, an air-to-air mesh network for data relays through connected aircraft, and an aircraft with an onboard antenna assembly and a unified radio. The unified radio may be configured to monitor network parameters of the terrestrial network and the ATG network and switch between a currently serving network and a non-serving network based on the network parameters.
A method of providing a cloud-based flight management system (FMS) may include receiving an input to a flight management computer (FMC) client in an airborne aircraft indicative of a need for FMS data, communicating a request for the FMS data to a FMS management module located remotely from the airborne aircraft via a wireless communication network, receiving a response to the request at the FMC client of the airborne aircraft via the wireless communication network, and, based on the response, generating an output on the airborne aircraft via the FMC client.
H04W 4/42 - Services specially adapted for particular environments, situations or purposes for vehicles, e.g. vehicle-to-pedestrians [V2P] for mass transport vehicles, e.g. buses, trains or aircraft
42.
Method and apparatus for optimizing of beamforming based on user experience
A system may include an access network comprising at least two base stations configured to communicate with a wireless communication device via dynamically steerable or formable beams, a resource manager disposed at a location accessible via the access network or at the wireless communication device, and an experience tester configured to determine a qualitative assessment of capabilities of the access network relative to different categories of services or applications for the wireless communication device via a first beam formed or selected to serve the communication device. The resource manager may be configured to initiate a handover based on both location-based criteria and user experience based criteria. The user experience based criteria may be associated with the qualitative assessment.
H04B 7/06 - Diversity systemsMulti-antenna systems, i.e. transmission or reception using multiple antennas using two or more spaced independent antennas at the transmitting station
H04B 7/0408 - Diversity systemsMulti-antenna systems, i.e. transmission or reception using multiple antennas using two or more spaced independent antennas using two or more beams, i.e. beam diversity
H04B 7/08 - Diversity systemsMulti-antenna systems, i.e. transmission or reception using multiple antennas using two or more spaced independent antennas at the receiving station
A method of interference mitigation may include receiving a desired signal from an asset of the system at an antenna assembly and associating the desired signal with relative phase distribution information based on a relative location of origin of the desired signal where the relative phase distribution information is predetermined for the antenna assembly. The method further includes receiving an interfering signal and associating the interfering signal with relative phase distribution information based on a relative location of origin of the interfering signal where the desired signal and the interfering signal forming a received signal set. The method further includes normalizing signals of the received signal set to respective relative phases associated with each respective relative location of origin, and performing interference cancellation of the interfering signal based on the normalized signals.
A method of obtaining qualitative information regarding network capabilities includes determining network identification information for an access network of a user responsive to receipt of a request from a user device to detect the access network of the user, determining network parameters for the access network, performing one or more additional network tests specific to categories of services or applications to obtain a qualitative assessment of the access network's capabilities relative to different categories of services or applications, and/or providing a graphical display of the qualitative assessment on the user device.
A spectral mapping module may include processing circuitry configured to receive spectral activity information from one or more assets that have flown through an area. The spectral activity information may be associated with location information indicating a respective location at which each portion of the spectral activity information was obtained. The processing circuitry may be further configured to associate the spectral activity information with respective volumetric elements that are each associated with respective portions of the area, determine spectral activity indicators for each of the respective volumetric elements that has spectral activity information associated therewith, and generate display data including the spectral activity indicators.
An air-to-ground communications system includes at least one base station to be positioned on the ground and including a ground-based transceiver, a phased array antenna coupled to the ground-based transceiver, and a beamforming network coupled to the ground-based transceiver. The ground-based transceiver is configured to provide data traffic and control information to an aircraft. The beamforming network is configured to simultaneously generate at least one narrow antenna beam for the data traffic and at least one wide beam for the control information.
An inter-network communication controller may include processing circuitry. The processing circuitry may be configured to receive location information associated with an in-flight aircraft being tracked and provided with air-to-ground (ATG) wireless communication services by a first ATG network. The first ATG network may employ beamforming directed to the aircraft to provide the communication services. The processing circuitry may also be configured to provide the location information to a second ATG network to enable the second ATG network to utilize the location information for employing beamforming to establish wireless communication with the aircraft. The first ATG network and the second ATG network may each operate over different ranges of radio frequency (RF) spectrum.
H01Q 1/28 - Adaptation for use in or on aircraft, missiles, satellites, or balloons
H01Q 3/08 - Arrangements for changing or varying the orientation or the shape of the directional pattern of the waves radiated from an antenna or antenna system using mechanical movement of antenna or antenna system as a whole for varying two co-ordinates of the orientation
H01Q 3/24 - Arrangements for changing or varying the orientation or the shape of the directional pattern of the waves radiated from an antenna or antenna system varying the orientation by switching energy from one active radiating element to another, e.g. for beam switching
H01Q 3/26 - Arrangements for changing or varying the orientation or the shape of the directional pattern of the waves radiated from an antenna or antenna system varying the relative phase or relative amplitude of energisation between two or more active radiating elementsArrangements for changing or varying the orientation or the shape of the directional pattern of the waves radiated from an antenna or antenna system varying the distribution of energy across a radiating aperture
H01Q 21/20 - Arrays of individually energised antenna units similarly polarised and spaced apart the units being spaced along, or adjacent to, a curvilinear path
H04B 7/06 - Diversity systemsMulti-antenna systems, i.e. transmission or reception using multiple antennas using two or more spaced independent antennas at the transmitting station
A portable test platform for testing aviation electronics connectivity to a core network includes a test controller, a test equipment cell site operating under control of the test controller, and a test antenna assembly operably coupled to the test equipment cell site and configured to provide a wireless link to an aircraft base radio of a grounded aircraft. The test equipment cell site is configured to act as a radio access network cell site within the core network.
09 - Scientific and electric apparatus and instruments
35 - Advertising and business services
39 - Transport, packaging, storage and travel services
42 - Scientific, technological and industrial services, research and design
Goods & Services
Providing wireless broadband communications services for the transmission of voice, video, and data from or to users on aircraft; Telecommunications services, namely, transmission of voice, data, graphics, images, audio and video by means of wireless communications networks provided to aircraft and users on aircraft; Telecommunication services, namely, providing internet access via broadband wireless networks to aircraft and users on aircraft; Wireless electronic transmission of aviation-related data; Telecommunication services, namely, transmission of voice, data, graphics, images, audio and video by means of wireless communication networks Downloadable computer software for facilitating broadband communication of voice, video, and data from or to users on aircraft; Downloadable computer software in the form of application programming interface (API) modules for retrieving data from one or more sources of aviation-related data; Downloadable computer software for data retrieval, and real-time data analysis, namely, computer software used for data mining of aviation-related data, and building charts, graphs, diagrams, maps, and data representations of aviation-related data; Downloadable software for use in the field of airspace management, namely, software for coordinating, integrating, and optimizing flight paths; Downloadable software for use in the field of air traffic control and airspace management modernization and automation, namely, software for coordinating, integrating, and optimizing flight paths; Downloadable software for testing and analyzing flight patterns for air traffic control optimization in the aerospace industry; Downloadable software for transmitting data over air-to-air channels; Computer hardware devices for the collection, programming, and distribution of aviation and airspace information for use in connection with modernizing and automating airspace management Telecommunications network management services, namely, the operation and administration of wireless telecommunication systems and networks connected to in-flight aircraft and devices of passengers traveling on aircraft; Telecommunications network management services, namely, the operation and administration of telecommunication systems and networks for others Providing air traffic information, namely, real-time and historical air traffic data for retrieval by software applications that generate charts, graphs, diagrams, maps, and other representations of the data alone or in combination with other sources of data Providing weather information, namely, real-time and historical weather data for retrieval by software applications that generate charts, graphs, diagrams, maps, and other representations of the data alone or in combination with other sources of data; Management of wireless communications networks for others; Providing online non-downloadable software for use in the field of airspace management, namely, software for coordinating, integrating, and optimizing flight paths; Providing online non-downloadable software for use in the field of air traffic control and airspace management modernization and automation, namely, software for coordinating, integrating, and optimizing flight paths; Providing online non-downloadable software for testing and analyzing flight patterns for air traffic control optimization in the aerospace industry; Providing online non-downloadable software for transmitting data over air-to-air data channels; Consulting and advisory services in the field of flight operations optimization in the aerospace industry in the nature of technical consulting in the field of flight operations engineering; Providing weather information, namely, atmospheric turbulence information for use in aviation applications; Providing meteorological information, namely, atmospheric turbulence information based on a submitted flight plan; Providing weather information, namely, atmospheric turbulence information
An antenna assembly includes a plurality of antenna elements disposed in a circular pattern and equidistant from each other in angular separation relative to a common reference point at a center of the circular pattern. The antenna assembly may include or be operably coupled to a phase control module configured to apply selected phase fronts to each of the antenna elements to generate constructive and destructive interference patterns to define a directive beam in a desired direction. The selected phase fronts may include no phase adjustment, a positive phase adjustment value and a negative phase adjustment value, the positive and negative phase adjustment values each having a same magnitude.
H01Q 21/20 - Arrays of individually energised antenna units similarly polarised and spaced apart the units being spaced along, or adjacent to, a curvilinear path
H01Q 1/24 - SupportsMounting means by structural association with other equipment or articles with receiving set
H01Q 1/28 - Adaptation for use in or on aircraft, missiles, satellites, or balloons
H01Q 3/36 - Arrangements for changing or varying the orientation or the shape of the directional pattern of the waves radiated from an antenna or antenna system varying the relative phase or relative amplitude of energisation between two or more active radiating elementsArrangements for changing or varying the orientation or the shape of the directional pattern of the waves radiated from an antenna or antenna system varying the distribution of energy across a radiating aperture varying the phase by electrical means with variable phase-shifters
51.
Monopole antenna assembly with directive-reflective control
An antenna assembly includes a driven element, a first set of antenna elements disposed a first distance from the driven element such that each element of the first set of antenna elements is equidistant from adjacent elements of the first set of antenna elements, and a second set of antenna elements disposed a second distance from the driven element such that each element of the second set of antenna elements is equidistant from adjacent elements of the second set of antenna elements, the second distance being larger than the first distance. The antenna assembly includes or is operably coupled to a selector module configured to select one element of the first set of antenna elements as a selected director, and select one element of the second set of antenna elements as a selected reflector by effectively shortening a length of the selected director and effectively lengthening the selected reflector.
H01Q 3/44 - Arrangements for changing or varying the orientation or the shape of the directional pattern of the waves radiated from an antenna or antenna system varying the electric or magnetic characteristics of reflecting, refracting, or diffracting devices associated with the radiating element
H01Q 1/28 - Adaptation for use in or on aircraft, missiles, satellites, or balloons
H01Q 9/34 - Mast, tower, or like self-supporting or stay-supported antennas
H01Q 19/32 - Combinations of primary active antenna elements and units with secondary devices, e.g. with quasi-optical devices, for giving the antenna a desired directional characteristic using a secondary device in the form of two or more substantially straight conductive elements the primary active element being end-fed and elongated
H01Q 21/20 - Arrays of individually energised antenna units similarly polarised and spaced apart the units being spaced along, or adjacent to, a curvilinear path
An antenna assembly includes a plurality of active antenna elements disposed in a first linear array along a reference line and equidistant from each adjacent antenna element by a first linear distance, and a plurality of passive antenna elements disposed in a second linear array extending parallel to the reference line such that each passive antenna element is a second linear distance away from a corresponding one of the active antenna elements. The antenna assembly includes or is operably coupled to a phase control module configured to apply selected phase fronts to selected ones of the antenna elements to generate constructive and destructive interference patterns to define a directive beam in a desired direction in a range between about 0 and 180 degrees relative to the reference line.
H01Q 3/36 - Arrangements for changing or varying the orientation or the shape of the directional pattern of the waves radiated from an antenna or antenna system varying the relative phase or relative amplitude of energisation between two or more active radiating elementsArrangements for changing or varying the orientation or the shape of the directional pattern of the waves radiated from an antenna or antenna system varying the distribution of energy across a radiating aperture varying the phase by electrical means with variable phase-shifters
H01Q 1/28 - Adaptation for use in or on aircraft, missiles, satellites, or balloons
H01Q 1/42 - Housings not intimately mechanically associated with radiating elements, e.g. radome
An advisory module may include processing circuitry configured to receive route planning information related to route optimization for travel of an aircraft between a starting location and a destination, generate a flight path associated with the route optimization, receive a user defined constraint via a user interface, and generate an updated flight path based on the user defined constraint.
09 - Scientific and electric apparatus and instruments
35 - Advertising and business services
39 - Transport, packaging, storage and travel services
42 - Scientific, technological and industrial services, research and design
Goods & Services
Providing wireless broadband communications services for the transmission of voice, video, and data from or to users on aircraft; Telecommunications services, namely, transmission of voice, data, graphics, images, audio and video by means of wireless communications networks provided to aircraft and users on aircraft; Telecommunication services, namely, providing internet access via broadband wireless networks to aircraft and users on aircraft; Wireless electronic transmission of aviation-related data; Telecommunication services, namely, transmission of voice, data, graphics, images, audio and video by means of wireless communication networks Downloadable computer software for facilitating broadband communication of voice, video, and data from or to users on aircraft; Downloadable computer software in the form of application programming interface (API) modules for retrieving data from one or more sources of aviation-related data; Downloadable computer software for data retrieval, and real-time data analysis, namely, computer software used for data mining of aviation-related data, and building charts, graphs, diagrams, maps, and data representations of aviation-related data; Downloadable software for use in the field of airspace management, namely, software for coordinating, integrating, and optimizing flight paths; Downloadable software for use in the field of air traffic control and airspace management modernization and automation, namely, software for coordinating, integrating, and optimizing flight paths; Downloadable software for testing and analyzing flight patterns for air traffic control optimization in the aerospace industry; Downloadable software for transmitting data over air-to-air channels; Computer hardware devices for the collection, programming, and distribution of aviation and airspace information for use in connection with modernizing and automating airspace management Telecommunications network management services, namely, the operation and administration of wireless telecommunication systems and networks connected to in-flight aircraft and devices of passengers traveling on aircraft; Telecommunications network management services, namely, the operation and administration of telecommunication systems and networks for others Providing air traffic information, namely, real-time and historical air traffic data for retrieval by software applications that generate charts, graphs, diagrams, maps, and other representations of the data alone or in combination with other sources of data Providing weather information, namely, real-time and historical weather data for retrieval by software applications that generate charts, graphs, diagrams, maps, and other representations of the data alone or in combination with other sources of data; Management of wireless communications networks for others; Providing online non-downloadable software for use in the field of airspace management, namely, software for coordinating, integrating, and optimizing flight paths; Providing online non-downloadable software for use in the field of air traffic control and airspace management modernization and automation, namely, software for coordinating, integrating, and optimizing flight paths; Providing online non-downloadable software for testing and analyzing flight patterns for air traffic control optimization in the aerospace industry; Providing online non-downloadable software for transmitting data over air-to-air data channels; Consulting and advisory services in the field of flight operations optimization in the aerospace industry in the nature of technical consulting in the field of flight operations engineering; Providing weather information, namely, atmospheric turbulence information for use in aviation applications; Providing meteorological information, namely, atmospheric turbulence information based on a submitted flight plan; Providing weather information, namely, atmospheric turbulence information
An air to ground (ATG) communication system testing platform may be configured to operably couple a base station to an aircraft base radio in a lab environment. The testing platform may include a position simulator and a channel simulator. The position simulator may be configured to generate simulated aircraft position information and communicate the simulated aircraft position information to an aircraft base radio and a base band unit of the base station. The channel simulator may operably couple a remote radio head of the base station to the aircraft base radio, and may be configured to emulate channel conditions with respect to transmission of signaling generated by the remote radio head for communication to the aircraft base radio based on the emulated channel conditions.
A network analytics control module may include processing circuitry configured to receive three dimensional location information and corresponding signal quality information for a particular asset in an air-to-ground (ATG) network, make a service quality inference for the particular asset based at least in part on the received information, and provide an instruction for a network control activity based on the service quality inference.
09 - Scientific and electric apparatus and instruments
35 - Advertising and business services
39 - Transport, packaging, storage and travel services
42 - Scientific, technological and industrial services, research and design
Goods & Services
Providing wireless broadband communications services for the transmission of voice, video, and data from or to users on aircraft; Telecommunications services, namely, transmission of voice, data, graphics, images, audio and video by means of wireless communications networks provided to aircraft and users on aircraft; Telecommunication services, namely, providing internet access via broadband wireless networks to aircraft and users on aircraft; Wireless electronic transmission of aviation-related data; Telecommunication services, namely, transmission of voice, data, graphics, images, audio and video by means of wireless communication networks Downloadable computer software for facilitating broadband communication of voice, video, and data from or to users on aircraft; Downloadable computer software in the form of application programming interface (API) modules for retrieving data from one or more sources of aviation-related data; Downloadable computer software for data retrieval, and real-time data analysis, namely, computer software used for data mining of aviation-related data, and building charts, graphs, diagrams, maps, and data representations of aviation-related data; Downloadable software for use in the field of airspace management, namely, software for coordinating, integrating, and optimizing flight paths; Downloadable software for use in the field of air traffic control and airspace management modernization and automation, namely, software for coordinating, integrating, and optimizing flight paths; Downloadable software for testing and analyzing flight patterns for air traffic control optimization in the aerospace industry; Downloadable software for transmitting data over air-to-air channels; Computer hardware devices for the collection, programming, and distribution of aviation and airspace information for use in connection with modernizing and automating airspace management Telecommunications network management services, namely, the operation and administration of wireless telecommunication systems and networks connected to in-flight aircraft and devices of passengers traveling on aircraft; Telecommunications network management services, namely, the operation and administration of telecommunication systems and networks for others Providing air traffic information, namely, real-time and historical air traffic data for retrieval by software applications that generate charts, graphs, diagrams, maps, and other representations of the data alone or in combination with other sources of data Providing weather information, namely, real-time and historical weather data for retrieval by software applications that generate charts, graphs, diagrams, maps, and other representations of the data alone or in combination with other sources of data; Management of wireless communications networks for others; Providing online non-downloadable software for use in the field of airspace management, namely, software for coordinating, integrating, and optimizing flight paths; Providing online non-downloadable software for use in the field of air traffic control and airspace management modernization and automation, namely, software for coordinating, integrating, and optimizing flight paths; Providing online non-downloadable software for testing and analyzing flight patterns for air traffic control optimization in the aerospace industry; Providing online non-downloadable software for transmitting data over air-to-air data channels; Consulting and advisory services in the field of flight operations optimization in the aerospace industry in the nature of technical consulting in the field of flight operations engineering; Providing weather information, namely, atmospheric turbulence information for use in aviation applications; Providing meteorological information, namely, atmospheric turbulence information based on a submitted flight plan; Providing weather information, namely, atmospheric turbulence information
09 - Scientific and electric apparatus and instruments
35 - Advertising and business services
39 - Transport, packaging, storage and travel services
42 - Scientific, technological and industrial services, research and design
Goods & Services
Providing wireless broadband communications services for the transmission of voice, video, and data from or to users on aircraft; Telecommunications services, namely, transmission of voice, data, graphics, images, audio and video by means of wireless communications networks provided to aircraft and users on aircraft; Telecommunication services, namely, providing internet access via broadband wireless networks to aircraft and users on aircraft; Wireless electronic transmission of aviation-related data; Telecommunication services, namely, transmission of voice, data, graphics, images, audio and video by means of wireless communication networks Downloadable computer software for facilitating broadband communication of voice, video, and data from or to users on aircraft; Downloadable computer software in the form of application programming interface (API) modules for retrieving data from one or more sources of aviation-related data; Downloadable computer software for data retrieval, and real-time data analysis, namely, computer software used for data mining of aviation-related data, and building charts, graphs, diagrams, maps, and data representations of aviation-related data; Downloadable software for use in the field of airspace management, namely, software for coordinating, integrating, and optimizing flight paths; Downloadable software for use in the field of air traffic control and airspace management modernization and automation, namely, software for coordinating, integrating, and optimizing flight paths; Downloadable software for testing and analyzing flight patterns for air traffic control optimization in the aerospace industry; Downloadable software for transmitting data over air-to-air channels; Computer hardware devices for the collection, programming, and distribution of aviation and airspace information for use in connection with modernizing and automating airspace management Telecommunications network management services, namely, the operation and administration of wireless telecommunication systems and networks connected to in-flight aircraft and devices of passengers traveling on aircraft; Telecommunications network management services, namely, the operation and administration of telecommunication systems and networks for others Providing air traffic information, namely, real-time and historical air traffic data for retrieval by software applications that generate charts, graphs, diagrams, maps, and other representations of the data alone or in combination with other sources of data Providing weather information, namely, real-time and historical weather data for retrieval by software applications that generate charts, graphs, diagrams, maps, and other representations of the data alone or in combination with other sources of data; Management of wireless communications networks for others; Providing online non-downloadable software for use in the field of airspace management, namely, software for coordinating, integrating, and optimizing flight paths; Providing online non-downloadable software for use in the field of air traffic control and airspace management modernization and automation, namely, software for coordinating, integrating, and optimizing flight paths; Providing online non-downloadable software for testing and analyzing flight patterns for air traffic control optimization in the aerospace industry; Providing online non-downloadable software for transmitting data over air-to-air data channels; Consulting and advisory services in the field of flight operations optimization in the aerospace industry in the nature of technical consulting in the field of flight operations engineering; Providing weather information, namely, atmospheric turbulence information for use in aviation applications; Providing meteorological information, namely, atmospheric turbulence information based on a submitted flight plan; Providing weather information, namely, atmospheric turbulence information
An information manager may include processing circuitry configured to receive dynamic aircraft information associated with operation of an in-flight aircraft, receive a message from a communication device on the in-flight aircraft for transmission to a ground based content server via a wireless communication network capable of communicating with in-flight assets, and generate an aviation cookie for communication to the content server along with the message. The aviation cookie may be generated based on the dynamic aircraft information and may enable the content server to generate content based at least in part on the dynamic aircraft information.
G06F 15/16 - Combinations of two or more digital computers each having at least an arithmetic unit, a program unit and a register, e.g. for a simultaneous processing of several programs
H04L 67/12 - Protocols specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
A context awareness engine may include processing circuitry configured to receive a context update request from a content provider for an originator of a content request from a source internet protocol (IP) address associated with a dynamic context, determine updated context information for the originator based on the source IP address, and provide the updated context information to the content provider to enable the content provider to provide a response to the content request including requested content or additional content that is based on the updated context information.
H04W 8/26 - Network addressing or numbering for mobility support
H04W 4/42 - Services specially adapted for particular environments, situations or purposes for vehicles, e.g. vehicle-to-pedestrians [V2P] for mass transport vehicles, e.g. buses, trains or aircraft
An aviation-related communication network includes a plurality of base stations configured to communicate with in-flight aircraft, a plurality of aviation-related communication network radios disposed on selected aircraft where the aviation-related communication network radios are configured to communicate with base stations of the aviation-related communication network via aviation-related communication network communication links using a first communication standard, and a first wireless access point on each of the selected aircraft to define a first wireless local area network on each of the selected aircraft. At least some of the selected aircraft include a second wireless local area network that defines a priority access network. Devices of the priority access network may be provided with priority access to bandwidth supplied by the aviation-related communication network relative to devices of the first wireless local area network.
H04W 4/42 - Services specially adapted for particular environments, situations or purposes for vehicles, e.g. vehicle-to-pedestrians [V2P] for mass transport vehicles, e.g. buses, trains or aircraft
H04W 72/10 - Wireless resource allocation based on priority criteria
Aspects described herein relate to a network for providing air-to-ground wireless communication in various cells. The network includes a first base station array, each base station of which includes a respective first antenna array defining a directional radiation pattern that is oriented in a first direction, wherein each base station of the first base station array is disposed spaced apart from another base station of the first base station array along the first direction by a first distance. The network also includes a similar second base station array where the second base station array extends substantially parallel to the first base station array and is spaced apart from the first base station array by a second distance to form continuous and at least partially overlapping cell coverage areas between respective base stations of the first and second base station arrays.
Aspects described herein relate to a base station for providing air-to-ground wireless communication over various altitudes. The base station includes a first antenna array comprising one or more antennas configured to form a first cell coverage area extending substantially from a horizon up to a first elevation angle away from the first antenna array to a predetermined distance from the first antenna array. The base station further includes a second antenna array configured at an uptilt elevation angle to form a second cell coverage area extending at least from the first elevation angle to a second elevation away from the second antenna array, wherein the first cell coverage area and the second cell coverage area are concentric to define the ATG cell at least to the predetermined distance and up to a predetermined elevation.
A network controller including processing circuitry may be configured to receive dynamic position information indicative of a three dimensional position of at least one mobile communication node, compare fixed position information indicative of fixed geographic locations of respective access points of a network to the dynamic position information to determine a relative position of the at least one mobile communication node relative to at least one of the access points based on the fixed position information and the dynamic position information, and provide network control instructions to at least one network asset based on the relative position.
H04W 4/02 - Services making use of location information
H04W 4/029 - Location-based management or tracking services
H04W 4/44 - Services specially adapted for particular environments, situations or purposes for vehicles, e.g. vehicle-to-pedestrians [V2P] for communication between vehicles and infrastructures, e.g. vehicle-to-cloud [V2C] or vehicle-to-home [V2H]
H04W 64/00 - Locating users or terminals for network management purposes, e.g. mobility management
H04W 36/32 - Reselection being triggered by specific parameters by location or mobility data, e.g. speed data
An aggregation router for an aircraft may include processing circuitry. The processing circuitry may be configured to receive a first channel from a first airborne radio, and receive a second channel from a second airborne radio. The first and second channels may be WAN connections to wireless communication network resources on the ground. The processing circuitry may be further configured to aggregate the first and second channels for service to LAN connections on the aircraft, which LAN connections may include one or more short range wireless communication access points.
An advisory module may include processing circuitry configured to receive data indicative of internal factors and external factors related to route optimization of a combined route of a subject. The combined route may include an air segment and a ground segment, and at least some of the external factors may include dynamic parameters that are changeable while the air segment or ground segment is being transited by the subject to a ground objective. The processing circuitry may be further configured to generate a guidance option to deliver the subject to the ground objective based on integration of the internal factors and the external factors to optimize a route to the ground objective, and provide a graphical representation of the guidance option along with comparative data or context information associated with the route.
An antenna alignment bracket may include a guide member having a first end and a second end, a first end plate disposed at the first end of the guide member to extend away from the guide member in a first direction that is substantially perpendicular to a direction of longitudinal extension of the guide member, a second end plate disposed at the second end of the guide member to extend away from the guide member in the first direction, and an extension portion operably coupled to one of the first end plate, the second end plate, or the guide member at a proximal end of the extension portion. The extension portion may be configured to support an alignment tool bracket for holding an alignment tool configured to align an antenna assembly at a distal end of the extension portion. A receiving space is defined between the first and second end plates to receive the antenna assembly.
An aerospace commerce exchange system may include a network, a plurality of clients operably coupled to the network, and an aerospace commerce exchange platform operably coupled to the network to provide exchange services to the clients. At least one of the clients may be operably coupled to the aerospace commerce exchange platform via an air-to-ground wireless communication link or satellite link (or other links with which an aircraft may be associated) to provide or receive data associated with at least one of the exchange services.
G06Q 20/40 - Authorisation, e.g. identification of payer or payee, verification of customer or shop credentialsReview and approval of payers, e.g. check of credit lines or negative lists
G06Q 30/06 - Buying, selling or leasing transactions
H04L 9/32 - Arrangements for secret or secure communicationsNetwork security protocols including means for verifying the identity or authority of a user of the system
G06Q 10/20 - Administration of product repair or maintenance
H04W 4/44 - Services specially adapted for particular environments, situations or purposes for vehicles, e.g. vehicle-to-pedestrians [V2P] for communication between vehicles and infrastructures, e.g. vehicle-to-cloud [V2C] or vehicle-to-home [V2H]
G06Q 20/12 - Payment architectures specially adapted for electronic shopping systems
69.
Air to ground communication system with separate control and traffic channels
A base station within a network for providing ATG wireless communication in various cells may include an antenna array defining a plurality of wedge shaped sectors having respective widths defined in azimuth, and a beamforming control module. The beamforming control module may be configured to communicate with the antenna array via a first RF chain to perform beamforming defining traffic channel beams having a first width, and a second RF chain to perform beamforming defining control channel beams having a second width. The second width may be greater than the first width.
H04B 7/04 - Diversity systemsMulti-antenna systems, i.e. transmission or reception using multiple antennas using two or more spaced independent antennas
H04B 7/06 - Diversity systemsMulti-antenna systems, i.e. transmission or reception using multiple antennas using two or more spaced independent antennas at the transmitting station
A method of interference mitigation may include receiving a desired signal from an asset of the system at an antenna assembly and associating the desired signal with relative phase distribution information based on a relative location of origin of the desired signal where the relative phase distribution information is predetermined for the antenna assembly. The method further includes receiving an interfering signal and associating the interfering signal with relative phase distribution information based on a relative location of origin of the interfering signal where the desired signal and the interfering signal forming a received signal set. The method further includes normalizing signals of the received signal set to respective relative phases associated with each respective relative location of origin, and performing interference cancellation of the interfering signal based on the normalized signals.
A method and system for continuously re-planning a vehicle's path, in the face of stationary and moving obstacles, dynamically calculates a new path in real time which is both efficient and maintains minimum safety clearances relative to obstacles. Repulsion signals emanating from obstacles and propagating through delineated sections of a grid representing a geographic space are summed along with values representing the relative distance of the sections from the vehicle origin and vehicle destination. The grid sections having optimal values according to a predetermined criteria represent an efficient and safe travel path between the vehicle origin and destination.
A network for providing high speed data communications may include multiple terrestrial transmission stations that are located within overlapping communications range and a mobile receiver station. The terrestrial transmission stations provide a continuous and uninterrupted high speed data communications link with the mobile receiver station employing a wireless radio access network protocol.
An aviation advisory module may include processing circuitry configured to receive data indicative of internal factors and external factors related to route optimization of an aircraft. At least some of the external factors may include dynamic parameters that are changeable while the aircraft is in-flight. The processing circuitry may also be configured to generate a guidance output associated with a route of the aircraft based on integration of the internal factors and the external factors to optimize the route for a user-selected cost parameter, and provide a graphical representation of the guidance output along with comparative data or context information associated with the user-selected cost parameter.
G01C 23/00 - Combined instruments indicating more than one navigational value, e.g. for aircraftCombined measuring devices for measuring two or more variables of movement, e.g. distance, speed or acceleration
74.
Systems and methods for locating ground and air radio antennae for ground-to-air and air-to-air communications networks
The present disclosure provides a method and a system for determining locations of telecommunication ground stations. In one aspect, the method includes creating heat map data set representing air traffic volume at grid units of a geographic region, determining a ground station location at one of the grid units having air traffic volume greater than that of others of the grid units, modifying the heat map data by excluding data representing one or more of the grid units surrounding the ground station location, and repeating the determining and modifying steps until a predetermined quantity of ground station locations is determined.
G01B 21/16 - Measuring arrangements or details thereof, where the measuring technique is not covered by the other groups of this subclass, unspecified or not relevant for measuring distance or clearance between spaced objects
A network for providing air-to-ground (ATG) wireless communication in various cells may include an in-flight aircraft including an antenna assembly, a plurality of ATG base stations, a plurality of terrestrial base stations. Each of the ATG base stations defines a corresponding radiation pattern, and the ATG base stations are spaced apart from each other to define at least partially overlapping coverage areas to communicate with the antenna assembly in an ATG communication layer defined between a first altitude and a second altitude. The terrestrial base stations are configured to communicate primarily in a ground communication layer below the first altitude. The terrestrial base stations and the ATG base stations are each configured to communicate using the same radio frequency (RF) spectrum in the ground communication layer and ATG communication layer, respectively.
A network for providing air-to-ground (ATG) wireless communication in various cells may include a receiver station disposed on an aircraft in flight, a plurality of base stations, each base station defining a corresponding radiation pattern such that the base stations are spaced apart from each other to define at least partially overlapping coverage areas, and a control module in communication with at least one of the base stations. The control module may be configured to receive information indicative of an altitude of the aircraft and select a frequency for communication between the at least one of the base stations and the receiver station based on the altitude.
A system for providing services to remote airports includes a backbone network, an antenna assembly and a remote services module. The backbone network operates using first assigned RF spectrum and is configured to provide backhaul services and network control to operably couple one or more base stations of the backbone network to the Internet. The antenna assembly is disposed at a remote airport to define an airport cell and is configured to communicate wirelessly with an aircraft located in the airport cell via second assigned RF spectrum. The antenna assembly is operably coupled to the backbone network for backhaul to the Internet or an intranet. The remote services module is accessible by the aircraft both in flight and on the ground within the airport cell via the antenna assembly. The remote services module includes processing circuitry configuring the remote services module to provide the aircraft with access to obtain airside or landside services associated with the remote airport.
A spectral mapping module may include processing circuitry configured to receive spectral activity information from one or more assets that have flown through an area. The spectral activity information may be associated with location information indicating a respective location at which each portion of the spectral activity information was obtained. The processing circuitry may be further configured to associate the spectral activity information with respective volumetric elements that are each associated with respective portions of the area, determine spectral activity indicators for each of the respective volumetric elements that has spectral activity information associated therewith, and generate display data including the spectral activity indicators.
A global positioning system (GPS) receiver may include an antenna configured to receive GPS signals from GPS satellites, a radio frequency (RF) front end configured to pre-process signals received by the antenna, a demodulator/converter configured to perform demodulation and analog-to-digital conversion of output signals received from the RF front end, a clock configured to provide a consistent clock signal, and a digital signal processor configured to receive the clock signal and make time and code measurements associated with determining a location of the GPS receiver based on the signals received by the antenna. The GPS receiver may be configured to eliminate reflected or indirect signals from the time and code measurements.
G01S 19/39 - Determining a navigation solution using signals transmitted by a satellite radio beacon positioning system the satellite radio beacon positioning system transmitting time-stamped messages, e.g. GPS [Global Positioning System], GLONASS [Global Orbiting Navigation Satellite System] or GALILEO
G01S 19/36 - Constructional details or hardware or software details of the signal processing chain relating to the receiver frond end
A system for improving cockpit operations in an aircraft includes an airborne augmented reality module and a ground-based information management module. The augmented reality module may be disposed in the cockpit of the aircraft and may include processing circuitry configured to generate an augmented reality display in the cockpit based at least in part on selected external environmental data received. The information management module may be configured to include external environmental data received from a plurality of sources and generate the selected external environmental data for communication to the augmented reality module via a wireless communication network while the aircraft is in flight. The selected external environmental data may be selected based on aircraft location and a determination of temporal relevance and locational relevance of the selected external environmental data.
An antenna assembly may include an antenna element, a radome structure disposed proximate to the antenna element and including a plurality of plasma elements, a driver circuit operably coupled to the plasma elements to selectively ionize individual ones of the plasma elements, and a controller. The controller may be operably coupled to the driver circuit to provide control of plasma density of the individual ones of the plasma elements. The plasma elements may include respective enclosures. At least some of the enclosures may have at least two peripheral edge surfaces substantially fully contacted by corresponding peripheral edge surfaces of adjacent enclosures at at least one section along a longitudinal length thereof.
H01Q 1/42 - Housings not intimately mechanically associated with radiating elements, e.g. radome
H01Q 19/06 - Combinations of primary active antenna elements and units with secondary devices, e.g. with quasi-optical devices, for giving the antenna a desired directional characteristic using refracting or diffracting devices, e.g. lens
H01Q 15/00 - Devices for reflection, refraction, diffraction or polarisation of waves radiated from an antenna, e.g. quasi-optical devices
H01Q 1/36 - Structural form of radiating elements, e.g. cone, spiral, umbrella
H01Q 17/00 - Devices for absorbing waves radiated from an antenna Combinations of such devices with active antenna elements or systems
82.
Wedge shaped cells in a wireless communication system
Aspects described herein relate to a network for providing air-to-ground wireless communication in various cells. The network includes a first base station array, each base station of which includes a respective first antenna array defining a directional radiation pattern that is oriented in a first direction, wherein each base station of the first base station array is disposed spaced apart from another base station of the first base station array along the first direction by a first distance. The network also includes a similar second base station array where the second base station array extends substantially parallel to the first base station array and is spaced apart from the first base station array by a second distance to form continuous and at least partially overlapping cell coverage areas between respective base stations of the first and second base station arrays.
Aspects described herein relate to a base station for providing air-to-ground wireless communication over various altitudes. The base station includes a first antenna array comprising one or more antennas configured to form a first cell coverage area extending substantially from a horizon up to a first elevation angle away from the first antenna array to a predetermined distance from the first antenna array. The base station further includes a second antenna array configured at an uptilt elevation angle to form a second cell coverage area extending at least from the first elevation angle to a second elevation away from the second antenna array, wherein the first cell coverage area and the second cell coverage area are concentric to define the ATG cell at least to the predetermined distance and up to a predetermined elevation.
A system may include an access network comprising at least two base stations configured to communicate with a wireless communication device via dynamically steerable or formable beams, a resource manager disposed at a location accessible via the access network or at the wireless communication device, and an experience tester configured to determine a qualitative assessment of capabilities of the access network relative to different categories of services or applications for the wireless communication device via a first beam formed or selected to serve the communication device. The resource manager may be configured to initiate a handover based on both location-based criteria and user experience based criteria. The user experience based criteria may be associated with the qualitative assessment.
H04B 7/06 - Diversity systemsMulti-antenna systems, i.e. transmission or reception using multiple antennas using two or more spaced independent antennas at the transmitting station
H04B 7/08 - Diversity systemsMulti-antenna systems, i.e. transmission or reception using multiple antennas using two or more spaced independent antennas at the receiving station
H04B 7/0408 - Diversity systemsMulti-antenna systems, i.e. transmission or reception using multiple antennas using two or more spaced independent antennas using two or more beams, i.e. beam diversity
H04W 36/30 - Reselection being triggered by specific parameters by measured or perceived connection quality data
A method of providing a cloud-based flight management system (FMS) may include receiving an input to a flight management computer (FMC) client in an airborne aircraft indicative of a need for FMS data, communicating a request for the FMS data to a FMS management module located remotely from the airborne aircraft via a wireless communication network, receiving a response to the request at the FMC client of the airborne aircraft via the wireless communication network, and, based on the response, generating an output on the airborne aircraft via the FMC client.
A unified radio system for providing wireless communication to a communication device on an aircraft regardless of aircraft altitude may include a terrestrial network including a plurality of terrestrial base stations configured to communicate primarily in a ground communication layer below a first altitude, an ATG network including a plurality of ATG base stations configured to communicate primarily in an ATG communication layer above a second altitude, an air-to-air mesh network for data relays through connected aircraft, and an aircraft with an onboard antenna assembly and a unified radio. The unified radio may be configured to monitor network parameters of the terrestrial network and the ATG network and switch between a currently serving network and a non-serving network based on the network parameters.
42 - Scientific, technological and industrial services, research and design
Goods & Services
Providing atmospheric turbulence information for use in aviation applications; Providing atmospheric turbulence information based on a submitted flight plan; Atmospheric turbulence information services; Atmospheric turbulence information
An information manager may include processing circuitry configured to receive dynamic aircraft information associated with operation of an in-flight aircraft, receive a message from a communication device on the in-flight aircraft for transmission to a ground based content server via a wireless communication network capable of communicating with in-flight assets, and generate an aviation cookie for communication to the content server along with the message. The aviation cookie may be generated based on the dynamic aircraft information and may enable the content server to generate content based at least in part on the dynamic aircraft information.
G06F 15/16 - Combinations of two or more digital computers each having at least an arithmetic unit, a program unit and a register, e.g. for a simultaneous processing of several programs
H04L 29/08 - Transmission control procedure, e.g. data link level control procedure
A network controller including processing circuitry may be configured to receive dynamic position information indicative of a three dimensional position of at least one mobile communication node, compare fixed position information indicative of fixed geographic locations of respective access points of a network to the dynamic position information to determine a relative position of the at least one mobile communication node relative to at least one of the access points based on the fixed position information and the dynamic position information, and provide network control instructions to at least one network asset based on the relative position.
H04W 4/02 - Services making use of location information
H04W 4/029 - Location-based management or tracking services
H04W 4/44 - Services specially adapted for particular environments, situations or purposes for vehicles, e.g. vehicle-to-pedestrians [V2P] for communication between vehicles and infrastructures, e.g. vehicle-to-cloud [V2C] or vehicle-to-home [V2H]
H04W 64/00 - Locating users or terminals for network management purposes, e.g. mobility management
H04W 36/32 - Reselection being triggered by specific parameters by location or mobility data, e.g. speed data
A network analytics control module may include processing circuitry configured to receive three dimensional location information and corresponding signal quality information for a particular asset in an air-to-ground (ATG) network, make a service quality inference for the particular asset based at least in part on the received information, and provide an instruction for a network control activity based on the service quality inference.
A base station within a network for providing ATG wireless communication in various cells may include a first antenna array, a base station unit and a remote radio head disposed between the base station unit and the first antenna array. The first antenna array defines a plurality of first sectors having respective widths defined in azimuth. Each of the first sectors includes a first sector floor and a first sector ceiling at respective elevation angles such that combining first sector floors and first sector ceilings creates at least a portion of a respective first base station conical cell centered at the first base station. The first base station is configured to define additional first base station conical cells at respective elevation angles between the first sector floor and the first sector ceiling. The remote radio head receives location information indicative of a location of an aircraft to enable the remote radio head to form a steerable beam in both azimuth and elevation angle at the first antenna array toward the aircraft.
An inter-network communication controller may include processing circuitry. The processing circuitry may be configured to receive location information associated with an in-flight aircraft being tracked and provided with air-to-ground (ATG) wireless communication services by a first ATG network. The first ATG network may employ beamforming directed to the aircraft to provide the communication services. The processing circuitry may also be configured to provide the location information to a second ATG network to enable the second ATG network to utilize the location information for employing beamforming to establish wireless communication with the aircraft. The first ATG network and the second ATG network may each operate over different ranges of radio frequency (RF) spectrum.
H01Q 1/28 - Adaptation for use in or on aircraft, missiles, satellites, or balloons
H01Q 3/08 - Arrangements for changing or varying the orientation or the shape of the directional pattern of the waves radiated from an antenna or antenna system using mechanical movement of antenna or antenna system as a whole for varying two co-ordinates of the orientation
H01Q 3/24 - Arrangements for changing or varying the orientation or the shape of the directional pattern of the waves radiated from an antenna or antenna system varying the orientation by switching energy from one active radiating element to another, e.g. for beam switching
H01Q 3/26 - Arrangements for changing or varying the orientation or the shape of the directional pattern of the waves radiated from an antenna or antenna system varying the relative phase or relative amplitude of energisation between two or more active radiating elementsArrangements for changing or varying the orientation or the shape of the directional pattern of the waves radiated from an antenna or antenna system varying the distribution of energy across a radiating aperture
H01Q 21/20 - Arrays of individually energised antenna units similarly polarised and spaced apart the units being spaced along, or adjacent to, a curvilinear path
H04B 7/06 - Diversity systemsMulti-antenna systems, i.e. transmission or reception using multiple antennas using two or more spaced independent antennas at the transmitting station
A method of obtaining qualitative information regarding network capabilities includes determining network identification information for an access network of a user responsive to receipt of a request from a user device to detect the access network of the user, determining network parameters for the access network, performing one or more additional network tests specific to categories of services or applications to obtain a qualitative assessment of the access network's capabilities relative to different categories of services or applications, and/or providing a graphical display of the qualitative assessment on the user device.
A grouping agent may include processing circuitry configured to receive a device identifier of a communication device associated with a transportation asset, define a communication group including the communication device and one or more other communication devices also associated with the transportation asset, and enable communication of a message to the communication group on the transportation asset.
An antenna assembly includes a driven element, a first set of antenna elements disposed a first distance from the driven element such that each element of the first set of antenna elements is equidistant from adjacent elements of the first set of antenna elements, and a second set of antenna elements disposed a second distance from the driven element such that each element of the second set of antenna elements is equidistant from adjacent elements of the second set of antenna elements, the second distance being larger than the first distance. The antenna assembly includes or is operably coupled to a selector module configured to select one element of the first set of antenna elements as a selected director, and select one element of the second set of antenna elements as a selected reflector by effectively shortening a length of the selected director and effectively lengthening the selected reflector.
H01Q 9/34 - Mast, tower, or like self-supporting or stay-supported antennas
H01Q 21/20 - Arrays of individually energised antenna units similarly polarised and spaced apart the units being spaced along, or adjacent to, a curvilinear path
H01Q 19/32 - Combinations of primary active antenna elements and units with secondary devices, e.g. with quasi-optical devices, for giving the antenna a desired directional characteristic using a secondary device in the form of two or more substantially straight conductive elements the primary active element being end-fed and elongated
H01Q 1/28 - Adaptation for use in or on aircraft, missiles, satellites, or balloons
H01Q 3/44 - Arrangements for changing or varying the orientation or the shape of the directional pattern of the waves radiated from an antenna or antenna system varying the electric or magnetic characteristics of reflecting, refracting, or diffracting devices associated with the radiating element
97.
Method and apparatus for dynamic aircraft trajectory management
Disclosed are algorithms and agent-based structures for a system and technique for analyzing and managing the airspace. The technique includes managing bulk properties of large numbers of heterogeneous multidimensional aircraft trajectories in an airspace, for the purpose of maintaining or increasing system safety, and to identify possible phase transition structures to predict when an airspace will approach the limits of its capacity. The paths of the multidimensional aircraft trajectories are continuously recalculated in the presence of changing conditions (traffic, exclusionary airspace, weather, for example) while optimizing performance measures and performing trajectory conflict detection and resolution. Such trajectories are represented as extended objects endowed with pseudo-potential, maintaining objectives for time, acceleration limits, and fuel-efficient paths by bending just enough to accommodate separation.
A portable test platform for testing aviation electronics connectivity to a core network includes a test controller, a test equipment cell site operating under control of the test controller, and a test antenna assembly operably coupled to the test equipment cell site and configured to provide a wireless link to an aircraft base radio of a grounded aircraft. The test equipment cell site is configured to act as a radio access network cell site within the core network.
An antenna assembly includes a plurality of active antenna elements disposed in a first linear array along a reference line and equidistant from each adjacent antenna element by a first linear distance, and a plurality of passive antenna elements disposed in a second linear array extending parallel to the reference line such that each passive antenna element is a second linear distance away from a corresponding one of the active antenna elements. The antenna assembly includes or is operably coupled to a phase control module configured to apply selected phase fronts to selected ones of the antenna elements to generate constructive and destructive interference patterns to define a directive beam in a desired direction in a range between about 0 and 180 degrees relative to the reference line.
H01Q 3/36 - Arrangements for changing or varying the orientation or the shape of the directional pattern of the waves radiated from an antenna or antenna system varying the relative phase or relative amplitude of energisation between two or more active radiating elementsArrangements for changing or varying the orientation or the shape of the directional pattern of the waves radiated from an antenna or antenna system varying the distribution of energy across a radiating aperture varying the phase by electrical means with variable phase-shifters
H01Q 19/32 - Combinations of primary active antenna elements and units with secondary devices, e.g. with quasi-optical devices, for giving the antenna a desired directional characteristic using a secondary device in the form of two or more substantially straight conductive elements the primary active element being end-fed and elongated
H01Q 21/12 - Parallel arrangements of substantially straight elongated conductive units
An antenna assembly includes a plurality of antenna elements disposed in a circular pattern and equidistant from each other in angular separation relative to a common reference point at a center of the circular pattern. The antenna assembly may include or be operably coupled to a phase control module configured to apply selected phase fronts to each of the antenna elements to generate constructive and destructive interference patterns to define a directive beam in a desired direction. The selected phase fronts may include no phase adjustment, a positive phase adjustment value and a negative phase adjustment value, the positive and negative phase adjustment values each having a same magnitude.
H01Q 1/24 - SupportsMounting means by structural association with other equipment or articles with receiving set
H01Q 1/28 - Adaptation for use in or on aircraft, missiles, satellites, or balloons
H01Q 21/20 - Arrays of individually energised antenna units similarly polarised and spaced apart the units being spaced along, or adjacent to, a curvilinear path
H01Q 25/00 - Antennas or antenna systems providing at least two radiating patterns
H01Q 3/34 - Arrangements for changing or varying the orientation or the shape of the directional pattern of the waves radiated from an antenna or antenna system varying the relative phase or relative amplitude of energisation between two or more active radiating elementsArrangements for changing or varying the orientation or the shape of the directional pattern of the waves radiated from an antenna or antenna system varying the distribution of energy across a radiating aperture varying the phase by electrical means
H01Q 3/36 - Arrangements for changing or varying the orientation or the shape of the directional pattern of the waves radiated from an antenna or antenna system varying the relative phase or relative amplitude of energisation between two or more active radiating elementsArrangements for changing or varying the orientation or the shape of the directional pattern of the waves radiated from an antenna or antenna system varying the distribution of energy across a radiating aperture varying the phase by electrical means with variable phase-shifters
