System and method for operator control of heterogeneous unmanned system teams
| DWPI Title: Method for controlling team of heterogeneous unmanned systems by operator, involves utilizing processor, which is functioned as high level optimizer, to modify assignment of objective to minimize cost during performance of objective |
| Abstract: A control architecture and associated control methods are under development to allow a single user to control a team of multiple heterogeneous UMS as they conduct multi-faceted (i.e. multi-objective) missions in real time is disclosed. The control architecture is hierarchical, modular and layered and enables operator interaction at each layer, ensuring the human operator is in close control of the unmanned team at all times. The architecture and key data structures are introduced. Two approaches to distributed collaborative control of heterogeneous unmanned systems are described, including an extension of homogeneous swarm control and a novel application of distributed model predictive control. Initial results are presented, demonstrating heterogeneous UMS teams conducting collaborative missions. |
| Use: Method for controlling team of UMSs by an operator. |
| Advantage: The method enables reducing communication bandwidth to complete missions by unmanned agents. The method enables reducing a level of human interaction required to complete the missions by the unmanned agents. |
| Novelty: The method involves determining control instructions to be executed by unmanned vehicles that minimize a total cost of an objective. The control instructions to be executed by the unmanned vehicles are transmitted to the unmanned vehicles. A processor, which is functioned as a high level optimizer, is utilized to continue to estimate the cost and to modify assignment of the objective to minimize the cost during performance of the objective. The objective is executed while minimizing the cost of the objective. Sensor data is transmitted from one of the unmanned vehicles to a user, where the cost is tunable during performing of the objective by the user, the objective comprises multi-agent behaviors, and the unmanned vehicle is selected from a group consisting of unmanned ground vehicle, unmanned aerial vehicles, unmanned water vehicles and unmanned underwater vehicles. |
| Filed: 4/22/2014 |
| Application Number: US14258986A |
| Tech ID: SD 12671.1 |
| This invention was made with Government support under Contract No. DE-NA0003525 awarded by the United States Department of Energy/National Nuclear Security Administration. The Government has certain rights in the invention. |
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