Patent Publication Number: US-2022238030-A1

Title: Fleet Controller

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application is a continuation application and claims the benefit of U.S. application Ser. No. 16/720,543, filed on Dec. 19, 2019, which application is hereby incorporated herein by reference. 
    
    
     TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The present invention relates generally to a system and method for scheduling and controlling individual autonomous vehicles in a fleet, and, in particular embodiments, to a system and method for anticipating demand for cargo and passenger transportation by autonomous flying vehicles, and controlling the autonomous vehicles accordingly 
     BACKGROUND 
     The increasing availability of electric-powered vehicles and improved remote vehicle control capabilities has recently led to increasing use of autonomous vehicles and development of autonomous vehicle fleets. The cost and complexity of autonomous vehicles, coupled with the increasing size of vehicle fleets calls for centralized fleet management systems. 
     SUMMARY 
     An embodiment method includes obtaining, by a fleet controller, from a master schedule, a mission for a vehicle of a fleet of autonomous vehicles, where the mission is associated with a mission entry of the master schedule, generating vehicle commands according to mission parameters associated with the mission, maintaining a persistent connection with the vehicle, sending the vehicle commands to the vehicle using the connection, the vehicle commands causing the vehicle to execute the mission under control of the fleet controller, and monitoring operation of the vehicle during performance of the mission. 
     An embodiment device may be a fleet controller, including a processor and a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing a program to be executed by the processor. The program may include instructions for obtaining, from a master schedule, a mission for a vehicle of a fleet of autonomous vehicles, where the mission is associated with a mission entry of the master schedule, generating vehicle commands according to mission parameters associated with the mission, maintaining a persistent connection with the vehicle through a communications network, sending the vehicle commands to the vehicle using the connection, the vehicle commands causing the vehicle to execute the mission under control of the fleet controller, and monitoring operation of the vehicle during performance of the mission. 
     An embodiment system includes a vehicle, a communications network, and a fleet controller in communication with the vehicle by way of the communications network. The fleet controller may be configured to obtain, from a master schedule, a mission for a vehicle of a fleet of autonomous vehicles, where the mission is associated with a mission entry of the master schedule, generate vehicle commands according to mission parameters associated with the mission, maintain a persistent connection with the vehicle through the communications network, send the vehicle commands to the vehicle using the connection, with the vehicle being configured to receive the vehicle command and execute the mission according to the vehicle commands, and monitor operation of the vehicle during performance of the mission. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       For a more complete understanding of the present invention, and the advantages thereof, reference is now made to the following descriptions taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which: 
         FIG. 1  illustrates an arrangement of a fleet management system for command and monitoring of one or more vehicles according to some embodiments; 
         FIG. 2  illustrates operation of a fleet management system for control and monitoring of one or more vehicles according to some embodiments; 
         FIG. 3A  illustrates an embodiment of a master schedule; 
         FIG. 3B  illustrates an embodiment of a mission entry in the master schedule; 
         FIG. 4  illustrates operation of a system using the fleet controller according to some embodiments; and 
         FIG. 5  is a flow diagram illustrating a method for handling vehicles missions in a fleet management system according to some embodiments. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF ILLUSTRATIVE EMBODIMENTS 
     Embodiments of a fleet management system are described herein, with the fleet management system providing control and monitoring of autonomous vehicles to optimize the effective use of the vehicles, while maintaining safety and maintenance standards. While some embodiments of the fleet management system are described as being directed to control and monitoring of flying vehicles, such as drones, aircraft, rotorcraft, or the like, it should be understood that the principles described herein are equally applicable to watercraft, ground vehicles, or mixed fleets including any number or combination of flying vehicles, ground vehicles, and watercraft. 
     In some embodiments, the fleet management system provides a persistent connection with each vehicle, which may include real-time, near real-time, monitoring, or tracking last known statuses of vehicles for use in the case of a connection failure by the vehicle. The fleet management system may permit a user to control vehicles from various interaction mediums such as tablets, augmented reality (AR) headsets, laptops, desktops, control centers, or the like. 
     Some embodiments of the fleet management system permits assignment of role-based access for command and control of vehicles to segregate users into various roles and allow management of user access to vehicles controlled by the fleet management system. The fleet management system may also use a control arbitrator to ensure a single point of control of a vehicle at any one time to prevent contradictory command or control from different users or sources. Additionally, the fleet management system may permit role based access to command or control of vehicles, with different roles being permitted different levels of control or authority over the vehicles. 
     In some embodiments, the fleet management system provides for tracking, monitoring and management at the device level, with individual connected components on each vehicle being tracked and monitored to provide for part localization, tracking of component location (such as in vehicle, in repair, or the like), protection against fraudulent or counterfeit parts, lifecycle management of individual parts, or the like. These individual components may be connected components that self-identify on the vehicle and use the vehicle datalink to send component telemetry. In some embodiments, each of the connected components may include a unique device identity, which may be represented by an on-device certificate, such as an X.509 public key certificate or the like. The tracking of individual connected components and the reporting of connected component telemetry to the fleet management system permits the tracking of complete component histories for the lifetimes of each of the connected components, which may be made available via a cloud data storage system as a cloud-based component logbook. 
     Additionally, the tracking of individual connected components may include storing device performance, use or maintenance history, and the like, for use by prediction services such as a fleet scheduler, active connected component health monitoring, predictive maintenance, and the like. Tracking the histories of the connected components and having access to the connected component histories further permits software/firmware updates and the deployment and management of component-level systems. 
       FIG. 1  illustrates an arrangement  100  of a fleet management system  102  for command and monitoring of one or more vehicles  112  according to some embodiments. The fleet management system  102  is a system for launching and sustaining continuous operations for fleets of autonomous vehicles. The fleet management system  102  may include a fleet scheduler  104  that generates, or submits entries to, a master schedule  106 . The master schedule  106  is used by a fleet controller  108  to control one or more vehicles through a communications system such as an internet-of-things (IoT) backbone no. The vehicles  112  may feed operational data back through the IoT backbone no, which then delivers the operational data back to the fleet scheduler  104 , or otherwise makes the operational data available to the fleet scheduler  104 . 
     The fleet scheduler  104  monitors real-world data or mission impact data, including the operational data, and generates future-state predictions based on that data. The fleet scheduler  104  may then produce the optimized master schedule  106 , which may include vehicle positions, mission timing, flight plans, maintenance and service (such as vehicle recharge/refuel) schedules, and the like, for fleet operations. 
     Additionally, the fleet scheduler  104  may include an API or other system for permitting third parties to submit third parties entries or requests to the master schedule, or requests for scheduling by the fleet scheduler  104 . In some embodiments, third party requests  114  may be submitted directly to the master schedule  106 , or may be submitted to the fleet scheduler  104  for verification or scheduling. For example, a third party cargo carrier may submit a request to the fleet scheduler  104  for carrying a particular class of cargo at a particular time and location, and the fleet scheduler  104  may determine a vehicle  112  suitable for the requested mission, assign the mission to the vehicle, and submit the scheduled mission to the master schedule  106 . In other embodiments, a third party may perform the mission generation and scheduling, and submit a mission entry to the master schedule  106  for execution by the fleet controller  108 . 
     In some embodiments, the fleet scheduler  104  analyzes historical demand, such as payload or passenger movement between identified points, demand input such as manual user entry or integration with planning systems, and environmental data such as weather, public transit, or ground traffic, air traffic, and then outputs recommendations for vehicle placement across a region&#39;s nodes in anticipation of upcoming demand. This predictive modeling allows for anticipatory vehicle placement to handle future demand, avoiding the need to assign vehicles fixed, regular routes, which require a fixed schedule with a fixed number of vehicles. Such anticipatory positioning may also permit vehicles to be automatically prepositioned before an actual demand exists, rather than tasking vehicles to a particular site or assignment after demand occurs. 
     In some embodiments, the fleet scheduler  104  also monitors health characteristics of vehicle systems that are known to be associated with component degradation by analyzing real-time on-board sensor data in the operational data sent from the individual vehicles. The fleet scheduler  104  may apply machine learning to predict when the system or component is likely to fail or need maintenance, inspection or servicing. In such an embodiment, the fleet scheduler  104  uses predicted failure insights to determine when the vehicle  112  should be scheduled for maintenance or inspection in coordination with regular mission operations. Using data from operational vehicles permits the fleet scheduler  104  to correlate maintenance requirements for components/systems that follow similar maintenance cycles. This permits sequencing of vehicle maintenance downtime according to a predicted maintenance or servicing need at the fleet level, and the staggering or sequencing of scheduled maintenance activities ensures the fleet remains available to carry out daily mission operations. 
     The fleet controller  108  executes the master schedule  106 , while also monitoring real-time air and ground conditions. The fleet controller  108  observes vehicles  112  of the fleet, weather conditions, and other operating factors or mission impact data, and will delay, redirect, or otherwise modify commands to the vehicles  112  if executing the master schedule  106  would result in unsafe or undesirable conditions. The fleet controller  108  executes the master schedule  106  by maintaining communication with the vehicles  112 , monitoring the vehicles  112  in real-time or near real-time, and sending command instructions to the vehicles  112 . The fleet controller  108  monitors real-time or near real-time fleet information regarding vehicle state, performance and health, progress of each flight, and the state of each vertiport or ground location. The fleet controller  108  looks for conflicts during vehicle operations that result in unsafe or undesirable conditions and deviates from the master schedule  106  as necessary to enact contingencies that ensure safe and desirable fleet operations. In this way, the fleet controller  108  works independently from the fleet scheduler  104  to ensure a second layer of safe operation. 
       FIG. 2  illustrates operation of a fleet management system  102  for control and monitoring of one or more vehicles  112  according to some embodiments. The fleet management system  102  is in communication with one or more vehicles  112  via the IoT backbone  110 . In some embodiments, the fleet scheduler  104  generates the master schedule  106  and the fleet controller  108  uses entries in the master schedule  106  to generate command instructions  202  which are sent to the vehicles  112 . In some embodiments, the command instructions  202  are instructions to follow a particular flight path  216  to a destination, such as a maintenance facility  206 , a service facility  208 , a staging location  210  or a target origin  212 , or for a mission between a target origin  212  and a target destination  214 . For example, the fleet scheduler  104  may determine that a particular vehicle  112  has components in need of inspection or replacement, and may route the respective vehicle  112  to a maintenance facility  206 . Similarly, the fleet scheduler  104  may determine from vehicle telemetry  204 , or other data, that a battery of a vehicle  112  needs to be charged, that the vehicle  112  needs fuel, or the like, and may route the respective vehicle  112  to a service facility  208  or the like. 
     The fleet scheduler  104  may also provide entries in the master schedule  106  for missions such as passenger carriage, package or cargo pickup and delivery, and the like. In some embodiments, the fleet scheduler  104  may use predictive analytics to determine where potential demand exists. The fleet scheduler  104  may stage vehicles  112  at a staging location  210  associated with target origins  212  for missions between the target origins  212  and target destinations  214 , or between the target origins  212  and target destinations  214  which are not determined at the time of predicted demand. For example, the fleet scheduler  104  may use a transit schedule, such as a train schedule, to predict that demand for passenger carriage or taxi service will peak shortly after a train arrives at a train station, and may send vehicles  112  to a staging location  210  near the train station, with the train station being a target origin  212  for a potential passenger carriage mission. Thus, the fleet scheduler  104  may be able to have vehicles  112  ready to accept passengers at the anticipate demand time, reducing passenger wait times. The fleet scheduler  104  may also use a weather service or weather forecast to predict that adverse weather conditions will increase demand for passenger carriage service at the train station, and may task additional vehicles  112  to the staging location  210  prior to a train&#39;s arrival to handle the anticipated increase in passenger carriage mission demand. In such situations, the target destination  214  may be input by a passenger after the passenger requests carriage, or after the passenger enters the vehicle  112 . The fleet scheduler  104  may receive a request for a passenger carriage mission, may determine one or more vehicles  112  closest to the passenger&#39;s target origin  212 , and may provide an entry in the master schedule  106  assigning the vehicle  112  to the passenger carriage mission at the target origin  212 . 
     Similarly, cargo handling may be scheduled by the fleet scheduler  104 , with cargo vehicles  112  being sent to staging locations  210  near post offices, warehouses, distribution points, or the like according to predicted demand. The fleet scheduler  104  may be tied into data inputs such as retailers, distributors, package delivery logistic systems, third party request or scheduling systems, cargo terminal systems, or the like, and may use the data inputs, solely or in combination with, environmental monitoring, historical data, and the like to determine predicted and or actual package delivery demand. For example, cargo vehicles  112  may be staged near restaurants near meal times to handle food deliveries without requiring that the vehicles  112  be routed to the pickup point after the cargo mission is requested. In another example, cargo vehicles  112  may be sent to staging locations  210  near retail warehouses, package delivery hubs, or the like, to handle delivery of cargo or packages, with the number of vehicles  112 , staging locations  210  and arrival times determined by the fleet scheduler  104  according to anticipated and/or actual demand. 
       FIG. 3A  illustrates an embodiment of a master schedule  106 .  FIG. 3B  illustrates an embodiment of a mission entry  302  in the master schedule  106 . The master schedule  106  may have one or more mission entries  302 A . . .  302 N set by the fleet scheduler  104 . Each mission entry  302  may include data fields such as a mission identifier (ID) field  308 , a vehicle ID field  310 , a priority field  312 , a flight origin field  314 , a flight destination field  316 , and one or more other data fields  318 . The mission ID field  308  may uniquely identify a specific mission which is stored in the master schedule  106 . The vehicle ID field  310  identifies a specific vehicle which will perform the specific mission. The vehicle ID field  310  may uniquely identify the specific vehicle  112  to allow the fleet controller  108  to control the specific vehicle  112  and permit the fleet scheduler  104  to track usage and anticipated location of the specific vehicle  112 . 
     The priority field  312  may include data identifying a priority of the mission so that the fleet controller  108  handles mission entries  302  in the priority order. In some embodiments, the priority field  312  may indicate that the mission is an immediate mission instructing the fleet controller  108  to handle the mission entry  302  with the highest priority or immediately. 
     The mission entry  302  may also have locations in the flight origin field  314  identifying where the vehicle  112  should be sent for the mission. In some embodiments, the flight destination field  316  may also have a location for the end location of the mission. However, in further embodiments, the flight destination field  316  may be left blank at the beginning of the mission. Leaving the flight destination field  316  blank may indicate that the mission route or destination is to be determined on-the-fly. For example, in a passenger carriage mission, a passenger may identify a destination after the mission is scheduled, or after the mission begins. The mission entry  302  may also include other data fields  318  with maybe used for supplemental data, or additional mission data such as data identifying mission start or end time, a particular flight route, account number for a particular mission, a mission identifier, requirements for the mission, or the like. 
       FIG. 4  illustrates operation of a system  400  using the fleet controller  108  according to some embodiments. The system  400  includes an IoT backbone no connecting one or more vehicles  112  to a control side subsystem that includes the fleet controller  108 . In some embodiments, the vehicles  112  may be in communication with the IoT backbone no by way of a wireless connection to an access point  420  of the IoT backbone no. The access point  420  may be a cellular system provided by a third party, may be a dedicated system for control of the vehicles  112 , or may be a hybrid system, or another communications system. The access point  420  communicates with an IoT gateway  422  of the IoT backbone no, which provides communication with the control side subsystem and routing of messages and commands to the appropriate destinations. 
     The vehicles  112  may include one or more connected components such as a motor  426  or a battery  424 . In some embodiments, the connected components may have one or more sensors that measure operational parameters of the connected components. In other embodiments, a separate device, such as a monitoring circuit, may monitor the operational parameters of the connected components. For example, a vehicle may have an electric motor  426  and may also have current and revolutions per minute (RPM) monitoring circuits that are either disposed on the motor  426  or as part of one or more monitoring circuits separate from the motor  426 . The current and RPM monitoring circuits may monitor the current and RPM operational parameters of the motor  426 , and the vehicle  112  may report the operational parameter data as telemetry through the IoT gateway  422  back to the control side subsystem for storage and analysis. In other embodiments, the vehicles  112  may report operational parameters such as location, altitude, airspeed, and the like, for use by the control side subsystem in tracking and verifying the location and control of the vehicles  112 . 
     The vehicles  112  may generate event messages or request information from the control side subsystem. The vehicles  112  transmit reporting data such as the telemetry, events, and requests to the access point  420 , which communicates the reporting data to the IoT gateway  422  for routing to the appropriate control side element. Events may include, for example, emergency events such as an unexpected lack of battery charge or component failure, an accident, an unexpected or uncontrollable deviation from the assigned flight path or mission, or the like. An event many also include mission related events such as reaching a designated start point, end point, or transit point in a mission, completion of a mission, acceptance of, or delivery of, a cargo package, loading or unloading of a passenger, a change to an anticipated or current mission such as a passenger changing a passenger carriage destination, or the like. 
     One or more vertiport sensors  460  may also be connected to the access point  420 , and may report telemetry  204  and event data  402  through the IoT backbone no to the control side subsystem. For example, a vertiport, such as a storage facility, maintenance facility, service facility, regular staging location, or the like, may have sensors that detect and report the arrival of a vehicle  112  so that the control side subsystem may verify the arrival of a vehicle  112 . In other embodiments, the vertiport may have weather monitoring equipment, and may report environmental conditions at the vertiport to provide finer grained weather reporting than may be available from third party services. In yet another embodiment, the vertiport may report on the conditions of vehicles  112  at the vertiport, demand for cargo or passenger missions at the vertiport, or the like. The IoT backbone no communicates telemetry, events and requests from the vertiport sensors  460  and the vehicles to the IoT gateway  422  for distribution to the relevant elements of the control side subsystem. The IoT backbone no also communicates command and control instructions  202  received at the IoT gateway  422  to the relevant access point  420  for delivery to the appropriate vehicle  112 . 
     In some embodiments, the IoT backbone no includes one or more access points  420  and one or more IoT gateways  422 . The access points  420  may be, for example, cellular access points, micro, macro, or femto cell base stations, WiFi base stations, Bluetooth stations, or any other communications transmission system. Thus, an IoT gateway  422  may connect to one or more existing wireless communications networks, or may connect to a dedicated wireless network, or a combination of a dedicated wireless network and an existing wireless network to provide broad coverage and bandwidth capabilities for the system  400 . 
     The access point  420  may, in some embodiments, provide edge decision making and edge services  430  such as offline services  432  for maintaining the vehicles in a safe state if the control side subsystem disconnects from the IoT backbone no, telemetry analysis  440  to rapidly determine and address of emergencies with the vehicles  112 , message routing  438  for directing messages to an appropriate IoT gateway  422  or vehicle  112 , and connection management  436  for handling connections to the vehicles  112  or monitoring for loss of a connection to the vehicles  112 . The access point  420  may analyze the classification of events and requests  402  to determine whether a priority of the event or request  402  is of a predetermined level, or whether the severity or type of event or request  402  falls into a category handled by the access point  420 . For events handled by the access point  420 , the access point  420  may apply a predetermined rule or procedure. Additionally, the access point  420  may hold or forward a message according to the classification of the event or request  402 . For example, a vehicle  112  may detect that an assigned landing space at a target location is occupied or obscured, and may request permission to land at a different location. The access point  420  may determine that it has an assigned rule for handling such a request and may grant that request if the access point  420  determines that the different location is available. The access point  420  may check with another element such as a traffic management system, unmanned aircraft system (UAS) traffic management (UTM), or the like, and the permission or denial of the request to change the landing locations may be based on the access point check. 
     The IoT gateway  422  may, in some embodiments, provide gateway services  450  such as digital twin services  452  for recording the last state of a vehicle  112  and reporting the last state or status of the vehicle  112  back to the control side subsystem in the case of loss of a connection with the vehicle  112 . In some embodiments, the last vehicle status is a most recent status of the vehicle, and may include one or more of a location, a speed, an altitude, a heading, or vehicle telemetry. The IoT gateway  422  may also provide other gateway services  450  such as access management services  454  for handling security and controlling access to the vehicles or control side subsystem. 
     The IoT gateway  422  routes messages sent by the vehicles  112  through the access point  420  to the relevant elements in the control side subsystem. In some embodiments, events and requests  402  may be routed to an event manager  406 , and telemetry  204  data may be routed to a telemetry manager  404 . The IoT gateway  422  may also route control message or command instructions  202  from a control arbitrator  414  through the IoT backbone no to the relevant vehicle  112 . 
     The telemetry manager  404  and event manager  406  may each provide data to a dashboard  408  for presentation to a user monitoring the status of the system  400 , including missions and vehicles  112 . Thus, relevant events and requests  402  and telemetry  204  may be presented to a user at the dashboard  408  as a data visualization. 
     The telemetry manager  404  may also provide the telemetry  204  data to storage  444 , where current telemetry  204  is stored with past telemetry to permit the fleet scheduler  104  to access historical data or operational history data in generating the master schedule  106 . The operational history data may include flight duration, payload loading time, a history of on-time or delayed flights, and the like. Additionally, the telemetry manager  404  may provide live, current telemetry  204  directly to the fleet scheduler  104  for generation of mission entries for the master schedule  106 . In some embodiments, the event manager  406  provides event and request  402  data to the fleet controller  108 . 
     The fleet controller  108  obtains entries from the master schedule  106  for execution as a next mission  428 . In some embodiments, the fleet controller  108  executes missions in the master schedule  106  according to a priority of the missions, and may pre-empt lower priority missions for higher priority missions or directly submitted missions. 
     In some embodiments, the fleet controller may obtain the next mission  428  from the master schedule  106  through a fleet application programming interface (API)  410 , and in other embodiments, may obtain the next mission  428  directly from the master schedule  106 , or from another schedule or mission source such as a third party scheduling system or as a direct mission request from, for example, a control dashboard  418  or the like. The fleet controller  108  may generate a flight path for the next mission  428  according to information from a traffic management system  442 , the control dashboard  418 , historical mission information, and the like. For example, the fleet controller  108  may retrieve a next mission  428  entry indicating that a particular vehicle should move to arrive at a target location at a predetermined time. The fleet controller  108  may identify a particular flight path for the mission, and may verify the usability of the flight path with the traffic management system  442 , such as a UTM. A UTM may provide data or flight path checking related to traffic in a flight path, availability of a flight path due to flight restrictions or the like, weather, requirements for a flight path such as weight or size, minimum or maximum altitude or airspeed, or the like. For example, the UTM may indicate that the flight path has an unexpected volume of traffic, and the fleet controller  108  may determine an alternative flight path using data from the UTM, historical flight data, predetermined flight paths, or the like, or a combination of any of the same. Alternatively, the fleet controller  108  may determine that flight conditions, such as weather, wind, or the like, indicate that the flight path is unacceptable for flight operations, the fleet controller  108  may attempt to find a new, more acceptable flight path, may delay the mission, or may replace or cancel the mission. 
     In some embodiments, the control dashboard  418  may be an interface that permits a user to submit mission entries directly to the fleet controller  108 , or to take manual control, through a manual control system  416 , of a particular vehicle  112 . The manual control system  416  permits operator-in-the-loop control, which may allow for precise control of a particular vehicle  112 . 
     The fleet controller  108  may send command and control messages  202  to the IoT gateway  422  through a control arbitrator  414 . The control arbitrator  414  may receive control messages or command instructions  202  from the manual control system  416  after receiving or executing an existing set of command instructions  202  from the fleet controller  108 , or may receive command instructions  202  from the fleet controller  108  and manual control system  416  substantially simultaneously. The control arbitrator  414  determines which set of command instructions  202  has greater authority, and forwards the command instructions  202  with greater authority to the IoT gateway  422 . In some embodiments, the control arbitrator  414  may use a predetermined set of rules to determine which command instructions  202  have greater authority. For example, in an embodiment, the control arbitrator  414  may use a predetermined rule that give any command instructions with an emergency priority the highest priority, any non-emergency manual command the next highest priority, and any scheduled control instruction the lowest priority. 
     The elements of the system  400  may, in some embodiments, be implemented by a computer system. The computer system may have one or more processors and a non-transitory computer readable medium having a program stored thereon. The program may include instructions for performing the processes described herein. Additionally, one or more elements of the system  400  may be implemented as separate processes, programs or portions of one or more programs, or as separate programs on a computer or computer system having multiple computers. For example, the fleet controller  108  may be integrated with the control arbitrator  414 , event manager  406 , telemetry manager  404  or one or more other elements of the system  400 . In another embodiment, the fleet controller  108  may be implemented on a first computer system, network, or in a first program, and any one or more of the control arbitrator  414 , event manager  406 , telemetry manager  404  may be disposed together, or separately on a second, separate computer system, network or in a second, separate program. Additionally, the fleet scheduler  104  and the fleet controller  108  may be integrated together, disposed on a same computer system in separate programs or processes, or disposed on separate computer systems or networks. 
       FIG. 5  is a flow diagram illustrating a method  500  for handling vehicles missions in a fleet management system according to some embodiments. Initially, in block  502 , the fleet controller obtains a next mission. In some embodiments, the fleet controller retrieves, or receives, a next mission from a master schedule, either directly, through an API, or through another element. In some embodiments, the next mission is a mission having a highest priority in the master schedule, and in other embodiments, the next mission is a mission submitted directly to the fleet controller by a user through the control dashboard. 
     In block  504 , the mission is verified against monitored parameters or mission impact data. In an embodiment, the fleet controller compares the requirements of the next mission against monitored parameters such as traffic in a potential travel path, weather, flight restrictions or requirements along the potential travel path, capabilities of the assigned vehicle, geographic restrictions, and the like. For example, the mission may be verified using a UTM to verify that the potential flight path for the next mission is available and safe for the assigned vehicle. The fleet controller may attempt to modify the mission, select a new travel path that can be verified against the monitored parameters, reject the mission, reschedule the mission, or the like. The fleet controller may also apply geofencing restrictions on the vehicles using predetermined boundaries, using UTM data, or the like. 
     In block  506 , vehicle commands are generated in response to the mission being verified against the monitored parameters. In some embodiments, generating the vehicle commands includes, but is not limited to, assigning one or more of a flight or travel path, speed, altitude, arrival or departure time, target origin or target destination, mission type, setting a flight path according to geofencing restrictions, or the like. 
     In block  508 , the vehicle commands are sent to the vehicle. In some embodiments, the vehicle commands may be sent to a control arbitrator, and in block  510 , the control arbitrator may verify that the vehicle associated with the vehicle commands is subject to single source control, and after verifying that the vehicle commands have proper authority, or are a single source of control for the relevant vehicle, may be forwarded to the vehicle, in block  530  to control the vehicle. In other embodiments, the vehicle commands may be sent or forwarded to the vehicle in block  530  without a control arbitrator to control the vehicle. The vehicle commands may be sent through the IoT backbone, which routes the vehicle commands to the relevant vehicle. 
     In block  512 , the mission parameters are monitored by a monitoring element. In some embodiments, the fleet controller performs persistent monitoring of the operation of the individual vehicles and mission parameters during the mission to determine whether operation of a vehicle needs to be adjusted. The fleet controller performs persistent connection monitoring, and in block  514 , detects connection loss to a particular vehicle by monitoring messaging to and from the vehicle. In block  516 , the last vehicle status is reported when the connection is lost. 
     The fleet controller may use the connection management of the IoT backbone to detect the connection loss, or may use another connection monitoring technique. For example, the fleet controller may send a periodic message to each vehicle and monitor response messages, or may monitor for periodic message initiated by the vehicles. If a lost connection is detected, the last vehicle status reported status may be reported to, for example, the fleet controller, or the like. For example, the access point may perform connection monitoring, and report a lost connection with a last vehicle status, back to the fleet controller. 
     In some embodiments, when the connection between the vehicle and the IoT backbone is lost, the fleet controller may raise an exception, event or message, for example, at the dashboard, for investigation. In some embodiments, the fleet controller may assign a new vehicle to the mission of the vehicle associated with the lost connection, may request further instruction from a user, or the like. 
     In block  518 , the monitoring element receives message events, in block  520 , the monitoring element receives UTM data, and in block  522 , the monitoring element receives exterior condition data. The event messages may include event messages or requests sent by a vehicle, or sent through the control dashboard or another system. The UTM data may include updates to flight paths or flight requirements for particular flight paths, traffic updates or data, and the like. The exterior condition data may include weather data and the like. 
     The monitoring element may verify that the mission parameters are supported during performance of the mission by mission impact data such as the received event messages, UTM data, and exterior condition data, and the like. In block  524 , determines whether the vehicle operation adjustment is needed according to comparison between the mission parameters and the mission impact data. If vehicle operation adjustment is needed, then the fleet controller generates adjusted vehicle commands in block  528 . In some embodiments, the fleet controller adjusts the vehicle commands according to at least one of the event messages, UTM data or exterior condition data so that the vehicle commands reflect mission parameters that are supported by the received data. In some embodiments, the fleet controller performs vehicle deconfliction, for example, by providing control messaging to vehicles to avoid each other in transit. 
     In block  528 , the adjusted vehicles commands are sent to the vehicles. In some embodiments, the adjusted vehicle commands are sent to the control arbitrator, which, in block  510 , verifies that the vehicle is subject to single source control. Once the adjusted vehicle commands are confirmed to be a result of single source control, the adjusted vehicle commands are forwarded to the vehicle in block  530  to control the vehicle. In another embodiment where the control arbitrator is omitted, the adjusted vehicle commands are forwarded to the relevant vehicle in block  530  to control the vehicle. Once the vehicle receives the vehicle commands or adjusted vehicle commands, the vehicle executes the commands to perform the mission. 
     An embodiment method includes obtaining, by a fleet controller, from a master schedule, a mission for a vehicle of a fleet of autonomous vehicles, where the mission is associated with a mission entry of the master schedule, generating vehicle commands according to mission parameters associated with the mission, maintaining a persistent connection with the vehicle, sending the vehicle commands to the vehicle using the connection, the vehicle commands causing the vehicle to execute the mission under control of the fleet controller, and monitoring operation of the vehicle during performance of the mission. 
     In some embodiments, the generating the vehicle commands includes identifying a flight path associated with the mission, verifying a usability of the flight path with a traffic management system, and generating the vehicle commands according to the flight path in response to verifying the usability of the flight path. In some embodiments, the obtaining the mission includes obtaining the mission from the master schedule according to a priority of mission entries in the master schedule. In some embodiments, the monitoring operation of the vehicle includes monitoring a connection of the vehicle to a communications network associated with the fleet controller. In some embodiments, the monitoring the connection includes monitoring, by an access point of the communications network, a connection between the vehicle and the access point, and reporting, by the access point, a last vehicle status to the fleet controller. In some embodiments, the monitoring operation of the vehicle includes determining, during performance of the mission, whether the mission parameters associated with the mission are supported by mission impact data received at the fleet controller, and the method further includes generating, in response to the mission parameters not being supported by the mission impact data, adjusted vehicle commands according to the mission impact data and the mission parameters, and sending the adjusted vehicle commands to the vehicle using the connection, the adjusted vehicle commands causing the vehicle to execute the mission under control of the fleet controller according to the adjusted vehicle command. In some embodiments, the sending the vehicle commands to the vehicle comprises determining whether the vehicle is subject to single source control, and forwarding the vehicle commands to the vehicle in response the vehicle being subject to the single source control or a source of the vehicle commands being assigned an authority greater than any other set of vehicles commands associated with the vehicle. 
     An embodiment device may be a fleet controller, including a processor and a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing a program to be executed by the processor. The program may include instructions for obtaining, from a master schedule, a mission for a vehicle of a fleet of autonomous vehicles, where the mission is associated with a mission entry of the master schedule, generating vehicle commands according to mission parameters associated with the mission, maintaining a persistent connection with the vehicle through a communications network, sending the vehicle commands to the vehicle using the connection, the vehicle commands causing the vehicle to execute the mission under control of the fleet controller, and monitoring operation of the vehicle during performance of the mission. 
     In some embodiments, the instructions for the generating the vehicle commands include identifying a flight path associated with the mission, verifying a usability of the flight path with a traffic management system, and generating the vehicle commands according to the flight path in response to verifying the usability of the flight path. In some embodiments, the instructions for the obtaining the mission include instructions for obtaining the mission from the master schedule according to a priority of mission entries in the master schedule. In some embodiments, the instructions for the monitoring operation of the vehicle include instructions for receiving, from an access point of the communications network, a last vehicle status in response to loss of a connection between the vehicle and the access point hosting the persistent connection. In some embodiments, the instructions for the monitoring operation of the vehicle include instructions for determining, during performance of the mission, whether the mission parameters associated with the mission are supported by mission impact data received at the fleet controller, and the program further includes instructions for generating, in response to the mission parameters not being supported by the mission impact data, adjusted vehicle commands according to the mission impact data and the mission parameters, and sending the adjusted vehicle commands to the vehicle using the connection, the adjusted vehicle commands causing the vehicle to execute the mission under control of the fleet controller according to the adjusted vehicle command. In some embodiments, the mission impact data includes at least one of received event messages, traffic management system data, or exterior condition data. In some embodiments, the instructions for the sending the vehicle commands to the vehicle includes determining whether the vehicle is subject to single source control, and forwarding the vehicle commands to the vehicle in response the vehicle being subject to the single source control or a source of the vehicle commands being assigned an authority greater than any other set of vehicles commands associated with the vehicle. 
     An embodiment system includes a vehicle, a communications network, and a fleet controller in communication with the vehicle by way of the communications network. The fleet controller may be configured to obtain, from a master schedule, a mission for a vehicle of a fleet of autonomous vehicles, where the mission is associated with a mission entry of the master schedule, generate vehicle commands according to mission parameters associated with the mission, maintain a persistent connection with the vehicle through the communications network, send the vehicle commands to the vehicle using the connection, with the vehicle being configured to receive the vehicle command and execute the mission according to the vehicle commands, and monitor operation of the vehicle during performance of the mission. 
     In some embodiments, the fleet controller is configured to identify a flight path associated with the mission, verify a usability of the flight path with a traffic management system, and generate the vehicle commands according to the flight path in response to verifying the usability of the flight path. In some embodiments, the fleet controller is configured to obtain the mission from the master schedule according to a priority of mission entries in the master schedule. In some embodiments, the fleet controller is configured to receive, from an access point of the communications network, a last vehicle status in response to loss of a connection between the vehicle and the access point hosting the persistent connection. In some embodiments, the fleet controller is configured to determine, during performance of the mission, whether the mission parameters associated with the mission are supported by mission impact data received at the fleet controller, generate, in response to the mission parameters not being supported by the mission impact data, adjusted vehicle commands according to the mission impact data and the mission parameters, and send the adjusted vehicle commands to the vehicle using the connection, with the vehicle being configured to execute the mission according to the adjusted vehicle command. In some embodiments, the system further includes a control arbitrator configured to determine whether the vehicle is subject to single source control, and forward the vehicle commands to the vehicle in response the vehicle being subject to the single source control or a source of the vehicle commands being assigned an authority greater than any other set of vehicles commands associated with the vehicle. 
     While this invention has been described with reference to illustrative embodiments, this description is not intended to be construed in a limiting sense. Various modifications and combinations of the illustrative embodiments, as well as other embodiments of the invention, will be apparent to persons skilled in the art upon reference to the description. It is therefore intended that the appended claims encompass any such modifications or embodiments.