US 12,218,740 B2
Terrestrial based air-to-ground communications system and related methods
Christopher D. Moffatt, Palm Bay, FL (US); and Kevin Carl Gustke, Melbourne, FL (US)
Assigned to SMARTSKY NETWORKS LLC, Morrisville, NC (US)
Filed by SMARTSKY NETWORKS LLC, Morrisville, NC (US)
Filed on Dec. 15, 2021, as Appl. No. 17/552,026.
Application 17/552,026 is a continuation of application No. 16/562,544, filed on Sep. 6, 2019, granted, now 11,233,560.
Application 16/562,544 is a continuation of application No. 16/193,420, filed on Nov. 16, 2018, granted, now 10,461,843, issued on Oct. 29, 2019.
Application 16/193,420 is a continuation of application No. 15/494,659, filed on Apr. 24, 2017, granted, now 10,230,452, issued on Mar. 12, 2019.
Application 15/494,659 is a continuation of application No. 14/875,795, filed on Oct. 6, 2015, granted, now 9,692,499, issued on Jun. 27, 2017.
Claims priority of provisional application 62/060,227, filed on Oct. 6, 2014.
Prior Publication US 2022/0109495 A1, Apr. 7, 2022
This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.
Int. Cl. H04B 7/185 (2006.01); H04B 7/155 (2006.01); H04W 16/14 (2009.01); H04W 72/12 (2023.01)
CPC H04B 7/18506 (2013.01) [H04B 7/1555 (2013.01); H04W 16/14 (2013.01); H04W 72/12 (2013.01)] 16 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A base station of an air-to-ground (ATG) communications system, the base station being configured to communicate with an in-flight aircraft of the ATG communications system, the base station comprising:
a ground-based transceiver;
a ground-based controller operably coupled to the ground-based transceiver; and
a beamforming network operably coupled to the ground-based controller,
wherein the beamforming network is configured to generate a plurality of fixed narrow antenna beams that are formed using unlicensed band frequencies of either from 2.4 GHz to 2.5 GHz or 5.725 GHz to 5.875 GHz,
wherein the narrow antenna beams are each associated with communication of data traffic,
wherein the beamforming network is configured to:
responsive to establishment of access to the aircraft, track position information via a return link from the aircraft, the position information being indicative of aircraft position, and
successively handover communication equipment on the aircraft between respective adjacent ones of the narrow antenna beams based on the position information to communicate the data traffic with the communication equipment on the aircraft,
wherein the establishment of access is performed based on an autonomous time advance determined at the aircraft, and
wherein responsive to a handover event, a new time advance update is provided to the aircraft by the base station prior to the aircraft providing the position information via a line of bearing signal defining a relative position of the aircraft in relation to the base station.