Planet Labs, Inc.

Skybox Imaging, Inc.

Planet Labs Pbc

Terra Bella Technologies Inc.

Planet Labs Tb, Inc.

Sean Augenstein

Julian M Mann

Daniel Berkenstock

Julian Mann

Systems and methods are provided for scheduling objects having pair-wise and cumulative constraints. The systems and methods presented can utilize a directed acyclic graph to increase or maximize a utilization function. The objects can comprise satellites in a constellation of satellites. In some implementations, the satellites are imaging satellites, and the systems and methods for scheduling can use human collaboration to determine events of interest for acquisition of images. In some implementations, dominant edges are removed from the directed acyclic graph. In some implementations, dynamic weights are assigned to nodes associated with downlink events in the directed acyclic graph.

Satellite scheduling system

Systems and methods are provided for calculating satellite access windows for a constellation of imaging satellites. In some implementations, systems and methods are provided for managing execution of native programs on high performance computing systems.

Parallel calculation of satellite access windows and native program implementation framework

Systems and methods are provided for selecting, pricing, and prioritizing images obtained by a constellation of imaging satellites. The systems and methods presented can determine whether an imagery collection request should be accepted or rejected. If the imagery collection request is accepted, the systems and methods presented can determine an appropriate pricing option for the imagery collection request and how the imagery collection request should be prioritized in relation to other outstanding imagery collection requests.

Pricing of imagery and collection priority weighting

Systems and methods are provided for scheduling objects having pair-wise and cumulative constraints. The systems and methods presented can utilize a directed acyclic graph to increase or maximize a utilization function. Violation of cumulative constraints can be identified at the moment of constraint violation such that events resulting in constraint violations can be removed from the schedule while the schedule is being determined. By removing the events triggering constraint violations at the point of constraint violation, the systems and methods provided can determine optimal or near-optimal schedules in a relatively quick and efficient manner compared to systems and methods that check for violations of cumulative constraints after determining a schedule. The objects can comprise satellites in a constellation of satellites. In some implementations, the satellites are imaging satellites, and the systems and methods for scheduling can use crowd-sourced data to determine events of interest for acquisition of images.

Systems and methods are provided for calculating satellite access windows for a constellation of imaging satellites. In some implementations, systems and methods are provided for managing execution of native programs on high performance computing systems. In one embodiment a system can determine, for each time interval within a first period of time, a position of each imaging satellite of a constellation of imaging satellites. The system can transform, for each time interval within the first period of time, the position of each imaging satellite from a first coordinate system to a second coordinate system. The system can determine an access window for at least one imagining satellite based at least in part on a determined angle between the vector to the respective location and a determined vector to the respective satellites. The system can schedule the at least one imaging satellite to perform a task within the access window.

Examples of satellite scheduling systems are provided that use crowd-sourced data to generate image acquisition events for a network of imaging satellites. A crowd-sourcing system may utilize crowd-sourced data (e.g., messages generated by users of social network services) to determine events of interest and geographic locations of such events. Event data may then be used to create or update image acquisition tasks and/or task priorities which are automatically provided to a scheduling system to facilitate timely and responsive acquisition of overhead images of the geographic location of the event. The scheduling system can utilize a directed acyclic graph to increase or maximize a utilization function, which can lead to determination of optimal or near-optimal schedules in a relatively quick and efficient manner.

Growing community of inventors

Palo Alto, CA, United States of America

Sean Augenstein