Communication relay system for tunnels using unmanned aerial vehicles and method thereof

Communication Relay System for Tunnels Using Unmanned Aerial Vehicles

This technology provides a wireless communication recovery mechanism. When a communication failure is detected in sensor nodes arranged in a line within a tunnel, the control server calculates the location of the failure and dispatches an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) to that position to receive data from the previous hop sensor node and relay it to the next hop or the sink node.

Due to the linear structure of tunnels, it is difficult to secure alternative communication paths when a specific sensor node fails. Furthermore, existing mobile robot solutions suffer from data transmission delays and accelerated battery depletion due to a lack of disaster-priority-based channel access.

This technology allows the control server to monitor the reception of communication messages (Hello/Beacon) from sensor nodes to detect failed nodes and calculate the UAV's hovering position using triangulation or RSSI. It also controls the UAV to prioritize access to the communication channel by adjusting the Contention Window (CW) value between the UAV and the sensor nodes. It can be applied to unmanned exploration, surveillance, and environmental monitoring, improving the stability and speed of data transmission during tunnel disasters.

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Key Features:

• Multiple sensor nodes equipped with fire detection sensors, arranged in a line at set intervals within the tunnel
• A sink node that collects data and messages transmitted from distant nodes toward adjacent nodes outside the tunnel
• A control server that determines the connection status of sensor nodes via messages, calculates the location of faulty nodes, and generates control signals for the unmanned aerial vehicle
• An unmanned aerial vehicle that moves to the location of the faulty node according to control signals to relay data between the previous hop and the next hop

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This invention was developed with support from the Ministry of Public Safety and Security for the development of USN-based search and rescue equipment technology for tunnel and underground space accident response.