Cell phone users do not like inadequate mobile device cellular phone coverage. However, cell phone companies find it difficult to optimize the spread of the cell phone towers as the number of customers registered to a particular cell varies throughout the day.
The number of active users affects tower range, and the signal strength of a customer can vary dramatically when sampled from the same location at different times/days. Sometimes, people visit the same geographic spot en masse, for example, for public demonstration, sporting events, city celebration, etc.
IBM plans to uses drones that can be automatically deployed in areas where the cellular phone usage demand increases. These drones essentially act as temporary mobile device cellular network towers. The drones carry telecommunications equipment configured to extend cellular phone network usage of an existing land-based cellular phone network to the mismatched area; for example a sporting event.
Patent Information
Publication number: US 20160028471
Patent Title: Deployment Criteria For Unmanned Aerial Vehicles To Improve Cellular Phone Communications
Publication type: Grant
Publication date: 28 Jan 2016
Filing date: 22 Jul 2014
Inventors: Gregory J. Boss; Rick A. Hamilton, III; Maharaj Mukherjee; Monimala Mukherjee;
Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation