Patent ID: 9355564
Filing Date: 2016-05-31
CPC Classification: G05D,G08G

Claim Text:
1. A method for use in navigating a plurality of aircraft, the method comprising: identifying one of the plurality of aircraft as a master aircraft; receiving a plurality of messages from the plurality of aircraft within a plurality of time slots of a data transmission using a data link radio of each of the plurality of aircraft, wherein the time slots of the data transmission are divided by time such that each of the plurality of aircraft transmits a message within a separate time slot of the data transmission, wherein the master aircraft transmits a message within a first time slot of the plurality of time slots, wherein the message transmitted by the master aircraft is configured to resynchronize the plurality of aircraft, and wherein each message comprises position data, time data including an associated time stamp indicating the time at which data in the message was collected, aircraft orientation data, and intended flight path data for the aircraft transmitting the message, the intended flight path data comprising an energy state for the aircraft transmitting the message; wherein the energy state comprises acceleration/deceleration of airspeed with respect to desired position and throttle setting required to achieve the position; and