Sony Group Corporation

Sony Europe B.v.

Sony Mobile Communications Ab

Sony Mobile Communications Inc.

Pär Spjuth

Anders Isberg

Peter Exner

Hannes Bergkvist

Shaun Lee

Henrik Sundström

A method for integrating a replacement device in a cluster of devices includes, by the replacement device, requesting a contextual data structure from a first device of the cluster of devices and/or at least one outside device; obtaining based on the received contextual data structure, contextual data indicative of an environmental context of the replacement device; and providing the contextual data to at least one device of the cluster and/or the outside device(s). The at least one device and/or outside device(s) determining whether the contextual data meets a context criterion of a stored contextual data indicative of contextual data of a replaced device. If so, the replacement device receives from one or more of the first device, the at least one device, or the outside device(s), state data indicative of a known state of the replaced device, and updating the replacement device with the state data.

Method, system, and device for integrating replacement device

A control system in a delivery system performs a method of controlling unmanned aerial vehicles, UAVs, which are organized in a group or swarm to perform one or more missions to deliver and/or pick up goods. The method includes obtaining drag data indicative of air resistance for one or more UAVs in the group, determining, as a function of the drag data, a respective relative position of at least the one or more UAVs within the group, and controlling at least the one or more UAVs to attain the respective relative position. Such adjustment in the relative position of one or more UAVs enables improved energy efficiency and may be made to reduce energy consumption, increase reach or decrease travel time of at least one UAV in the group.

Controlling a group of unmanned aerial vehicles for delivery of goods

A scheduling device performs a method of scheduling transports by a fleet of unmanned aerial vehicles, UAVs, to enable improved utilization of the fleet. The method includes computing, for the fleet, aggregated cost data, ACM, that associates utilization cost with distributed sub-regions within a geographic region, the utilization cost of a respective sub-region representing an estimated cost for directing at least one of the UAVs to the respective sub-region. The method further includes receiving a query indicative of one or more potential locations for pick-up or delivery of a payload, determining, based on the ACM, a transportation price for at least one potential location, and presenting the transportation price for the at least one potential location. The scheduling device thereby provides an interactive ordering system that enables utilization of the fleet to be automatically optimized by swarm intelligence.

Utilization of a fleet of unmanned aerial vehicles for delivery of goods

A control system in a delivery system performs a method to deliver a payload by an unmanned aerial vehicle, UAV, without requiring presence of the recipient even if the payload comprises sensitive or vulnerable goods. The method comprises obtaining a designated location for delivery of the payload, obtaining at least one payload vulnerability index for the payload, and obtaining a pick-up time indicative of a time point when the payload is expected to be retrieved by the recipient. The method further comprises selecting a final delivery area at or near the designated location as a function of the at least one payload vulnerability index and the pick-up time, and operating the UAV to deliver the payload to the final delivery area.

Safeguarded delivery of goods by unmanned aerial vehicles

A system performs a control method to launch an unmanned aerial vehicle, UAV. The control method includes calculating a selected altitude, relative to a reference level, for launching the UAV, operating a lifting arrangement to vertically elevate the UAV to the selected altitude, and causing the UAV to be launched from the selected altitude. Elevating the UAV may improve the performance of the UAV in terms of range, power consumption, ability to carry payload, transit time to destination, etc. The selected altitude may be calculated as a function of parameter data representing any of the UAV, the lifting arrangement, or surrounding conditions. An apparatus is further provided to determine an optimal location of the system in relation to a plurality of destinations of UAVs to be elevated by the system.

Launching unmanned aerial vehicles

A device includes a memory to store a plurality of instructions and a processor to execute instructions in the memory to determine a location of a mobile communication device, determine a direction of movement of the mobile communication device, identify other mobile communication devices within a particular distance of the mobile communication device, identify other mobile communication devices moving in a particular direction with respect to the mobile communication device, and store, in the memory, a list of the identified other mobile communication devices.

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Södra Sandby, Sweden

Pär Spjuth