Autonomous command and control unit for mobile platform

In an autonomous vehicle (AV) designed for the execution of a mission, and having an autonomous programmable decision unit for managing and controlling the execution of the mission by utilizing a plurality of subsystems and database means for holding and managing data including pre-stored data and data acquired by and received from said plurality of subsystems, said autonomous programmable decision unit being functionally organized in a three-level hierarchy architecture of a top level, an intermediate level and a leaf level;

• said top level having a mission manager (MM) comprising a mission manager mission plan (MM MP) for accomplishing the execution of said mission that utilizes said database;
• said MP graph consisting of a plurality of states each being a mission manager's mission state (MM MS) and including MM MS that are defined as "mission start", "mission complete" and "mission failed";
• and a plurality of arcs linking said states each signifying transition conditions between two Mm MSs which it links;
• said intermediate level comprising a plurality of system managers (SM), subordinated to said MM, and comprising each a system manager's operational plan (SOP) that utilizes said database;
• said leaf level comprising a plurality of subsystems each subordinated to one only of said SM's;
• each MM MS representing a MM mission segment, to be assigned to at least one of the SMs, in terms of at least one essentially functionally defined task and its associated constraints and parameters;
• the SOP of each SM determining an SOP mission segment for assignment to and execution by the subsystem subordinated thereto in terms of detailed design of said essentially functionally defined task;
• the operation of managing and controlling the execution of the mission including a succession of iterations that include each:
• (i) assignment of an MM mission segment associated with a current MM MS via said at least one SM to said at least one subsystem;
• (ii) receipt by each one of said at least one SM from its subordinated subsystem intermediate level report data which include data indicative of the execution status of said SOP mission segment by said subsystem;
• (iii) receipt by said MM from the SMs top level report data which include data indicative of the execution status of said MM mission segment by said at least one sub system;
• (iv) evaluation of said top level report data for determining either of normal behavior and an exceptional event;
• and
• (iv.1) in response to normal behavior either staying in current MM MS or transiting from the current MM MS to another in the case that said top level report data, or portion thereof, satisfy said transition conditions;
• or
• (iv.2) in response to exceptional event eliciting a responsive action from the MM in order to accomplish the execution of said mission.

In a vehicle designed for the execution of a mission, a programmable decision unit for managing and controlling the execution of the mission by utilizing a plurality of subsystems and database means for holding and managing data including pre-stored data and data acquired by and received from said plurality of subsystems, which programmable decision unit comprises a mission plan (MP), for accomplishing the execution of said mission, comprising:

• (a) a plurality of states each being a mission state representing a mission segment to be executed by at least one of the subsystems and including mission states that are defined as "mission start", "mission complete" and "mission failed";
• and
• (b) a plurality of arcs linking said states and each signifying transition conditions between two mission states which it links;
• the operation of managing and controlling the execution of the mission includes a succession of iterations that include each:
• (i) assignment of a mission segment associated with a current mission state to at least one of said subsystems;
• (ii) receipt from the subsystems of report data which include data indicative of the execution status of said mission segment by said at least one subsystem;
• (iii) evaluation of said report data for determining at least either of normal behavior and exceptional event;
• and
• (iii.1) in response to normal behavior, either staying in current mission state of the MP or transiting from the current mission state of the MP to another in the case that said report data, or portion thereof, satisfy and transition conditions;
• or
• (iii.2) in response to exceptional even eliciting a responsive action in order to accomplish the execution of said mission.

In a vehicle designed for the execution of a mission, a programmable decision unit for managing and controlling the execution of the mission by utilizing a plurality of subsystems and database means for holding and managing data including pre-stored data and data received from said plurality of subsystems, which programmable decision unit comprises a mission plan (MP) for accomplishing the execution of said mission, comprising:

• a plurality of mission segments to be executed by at least one of the subsystems;
• and the operation of managing and controlling the execution of the mission includes a succession of iterations that includes each:
• (i) assignment of a mission segment associated with a current mission state to at least one of said subsystems;
• (ii) receipt from the subsystems of report data which includes data indicative of the execution status of said mission segment by said at least one subsystem;
• (iii) evaluation of said report data for determining at least either of normal behavior and exceptional event.