Distributed Satellite Constellation for Cooperative Multi-target Tracking
AssigneeRaytheon Company
InventorsAmit Surana, Yiqing Lin, Tuhin Sahai, Laura A. Gordon, David C. Fisher
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Abstract
An auction-based distributed method for cooperative multi-target tracking by a plurality of satellites, includes distributed target tracking error and utilization computation as an auction bid across the satellite and uses message-passing to find best bid, handles different tracking requirements via definition of bids and modification of task definition used during the bidding process, and selected a list of auction winners to track the target.
Claims20
A method for an auction-based satellite cooperative multi-target tracking, executed by one or more satellite vehicles (SVs) in a constellation of SVs, the method comprising:
- a) receiving tracking information from a tracker by a plurality of SVs in the constellation;
- b) detecting an event related to a target by the plurality of SVs responsive to the tracking information;
- c) computing a reward value to the target, by each of the plurality of SVs;
- d) communicating the reward value in a bid message to neighboring SVs, by each of the plurality of SVs;
- e) selecting a first winner SV with a best reward value and placing the first winner SV in a winner list;
- f) Removing the first winner SV from the plurality of SVs to form a second the plurality of SVs;
- g) determining whether all target tracking requirements are met by the plurality of SVs;
- h) when all target requirements are not met, computing a second reward value for the target, by each of the second plurality of SVs;
- i) communicating the second reward value in a second bid message to neighboring SVs, by each of the second plurality of SVs;
- j) selecting a second winner SV with maximum second reward value and storing the second winner SV in the winner list;
- k) removing the second winner SV from the second plurality of SVs to form a third plurality of SVs;
- l) repeating processes g to k until the target tracking requirements are satisfied, to form a final winner list;
- and
- m) tracking the target using the final winner list.
A tangible computer storage medium having stored therein computer instructions, the computer instructions when executed by one or more computers perform a method for an auction-based satellite cooperative multi-target tracking, executed by one or more satellite vehicles (SVs) in a constellation of SVs, the method comprising:
- a) receiving tracking information from a tracker by a plurality of SVs in the constellation;
- b) detecting an event related to a target by the plurality of SVs responsive to the tracking information;
- c) computing a reward value to the target, by each of the plurality of SVs;
- d) communicating the reward value in a bid message to neighboring SVs, by each of the plurality of SVs;
- e) selecting a first winner SV with a best reward value and placing the first winner SV in a winner list;
- f) Removing the first winner SV from the plurality of SVs to form a second the plurality of SVs;
- g) determining whether all target tracking requirements are met by the plurality of SVs;
- h) when all target requirements are not met, computing a second reward value for the target, by each of the second plurality of SVs;
- i) communicating the second reward value in a second bid message to neighboring SVs, by each of the second plurality of SVs;
- j) selecting a second winner SV with maximum second reward value and storing the second winner SV in the winner list;
- k) removing the second winner SV from the second plurality of SVs to form a third plurality of SVs;
- l) repeating processes g to k until the target tracking requirements are satisfied, to form a final winner list;
- and
- m) tracking the target using the final winner list.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.