A system, method, and non-transitory computer readable medium that detects trajectories of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) approaching a protected site is described. Airborne defense agents (ADAs) located at a fixed radius from the protected and equidistant from one another detect acoustic signals emitted by an approaching UAV. Circuitry included in each ADA use the detected acoustic signals to determine a direction and a distance of each UAV. A base station having a control center (BS-CC) located in the protected site communicates with the ADAs to aggregate direction and distance data from the ADAs. Using the aggregated direction and distance data, the BS-CC predicts routes towards the protected site of the approaching UAV and alerts the protected site of the predicted route of the approaching UAV.

A gaseous matter capture system and method comprising an aerial unit configured to capture gaseous matter directly from the atmosphere and further comprising storage means configured to transfer said gaseous matter for further processing in a non-aerial unit for the purposes of climate change mitigation and further use of captured gases.

Aspects of the technology relate to lighter-than-air (LTA) high altitude platforms configured to operate in the stratosphere. Such platforms can generate operate for weeks, months or longer. Shaped envelope LTA platforms may support a payload that provides telecommunications and/or other services to remote regions around the world. The payload may be arranged with other components on a modular bus-type chassis. One or more components may be moveable along the chassis to change the pitch of the vehicle for more effective flight operation. The modular chassis may include a truss configuration assembled from one or more subunits. The subunits may be preassembled with different equipment packages. Trusses formed using sets of struts may have two or more struts terminating at one interconnection node. Node connection elements, such as compound dovetail interconnects, facilitate a reliable, repeatable and quick mounting method for structural interconnections, which can lead to faster assembly and disassembly times.

The technology relates to aerial vehicle launch and land site selection. A method for determining beneficial launch and land sites may include computing a launch delay for a desired time period for each cell in a grid map with a target zone and an existing site located on the grid map, computing a flight time to target for a delay time that accounts for a launch delay, computing a launch time to target based on the launch delay and the flight time to target, receiving geographical restrictions data, and determining an efficiency benefit over the existing site based on the geographical restrictions data and a comparison of the launch time to target of each cell with the launch time to target of the existing site for the desired time period.

Drones with propulsions systems supported in a housing are provided where the orientation of the housing is independent from the orientation of the propulsion system. Drones are provided where a propulsion system is rotatable about a first axis and a second axis that is perpendicular to the first axis, permitting the propulsion system to assume substantially any position with a sphere. Drones are provided where a bladeless inner tube is rotatable about a first axis and a second axis that is perpendicular to the first axis, permitting the inner tube to assume substantially any position within a sphere. Drone systems are provided with connectable unit drones. An unmanned land vehicle is provided having a wheel assembly that is rotatable about a first axis and a second axis that is perpendicular to the first axis, permitting the wheel assembly to assume substantially any position with a sphere.

Systems and methods for determining a vehicle elevation height for launching an unmanned aerial vehicle may include performing a quantitative balancing analysis using baseline factors, establishing optimal values for operational goals of a vehicle based on the quantitative balancing analysis, determining a vehicle elevation height that achieves the established optimal values for the operational goals of the vehicle by evaluating vehicle delivery parameters using normalized values, and initiating on a winch system elevation of the unmanned aerial vehicle to the determined vehicle elevation height for launching.

A device attachable to an aerial vehicle that incorporates electronics to control sensor position data and verify safety of aerial vehicle landing area. The device may be easily attached to an existing aerial vehicle. The device monitors sensor data from one or more distance measuring sensors and pressure sensors to set an angle of incidence for the distance measuring sensors. This pressure sensor derived angle setting allows for a continual data mapping of the aerial vehicles landing area to enhance and improve the landing zone.

A system, method, and non-transitory computer readable medium that detects trajectories of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) approaching a protected site is described. Airborne defense agents (ADAs) located at a fixed radius from the protected and equidistant from one another detect acoustic signals emitted by an approaching UAV. Circuitry included in each ADA use the detected acoustic signals to determine a direction and a distance of each UAV. A base station having a control center (BS-CC) located in the protected site communicates with the ADAs to aggregate direction and distance data from the ADAs. Using the aggregated direction and distance data, the BS-CC predicts routes towards the protected site of the approaching UAV and alerts the protected site of the predicted route of the approaching UAV.

Example embodiments may relate to web interfaces for a balloon-network. For example, a computing device may display a graphical interface that that includes one or more interface features to receive a request for use of bandwidth of a balloon network. In particular, the computing device may receive, via the graphical interface, input data corresponding to a bandwidth request for a first location, where the bandwidth request includes: (i) an indication of the first location and (ii) an indication of time. Subsequently, the computing device may receive an indication corresponding to whether or not the bandwidth request is accepted, where acceptance of the bandwidth request is based at least in part on expected movement of one or more balloons from a plurality of balloons in the balloon network. As such, the computing device may display, on the graphical interface, the indication corresponding to whether or not the bandwidth request is accepted.

According to embodiments described in the specification, a hover attachment includes a housing operable to receive a mobile device having a processor, a memory, and a display, at least one sensor operable to detect a position parameter of the mobile device relative to an object under tracking, and a regulator operable to maintain, responsive to the detecting, the mobile device in a hover relation to the object under tracking, wherein the display of the mobile device is a situational display. An exemplary method includes providing a situational display interface on a display of a mobile device mounted in a hover attachment, detecting a movement of an object under tracking in hover relation to the mobile device, and when the detected movement is associated with a position change function, controlling the hover attachment to maintain the hover relation between the mobile device and the object under tracking.