605results about "Aircraft ground control" patented technology

A system and method is provided for transmitting, receiving, initiating, and displaying textual air traffic control clearance messages simultaneously with a graphic representation of an aircraft flight plan. Data representative of a current aircraft flight plan, and one or more textual clearance message signals representative of air traffic control clearance message, are each processed. One or more images representative of the current aircraft flight plan, and one or more images representative of the textual air traffic clearance messages, are each substantially simultaneously displayed in the same display area of a flight management system display.

A system and method for automating Air Traffic Control operations at or near an airport. as a complete standalone automated system replacing the need for a human controller to make aircraft movement decisions nor the need communicate with pilots, or as semi-automated, where a controller controls how the system operates. The system with related methods and computer hardware and computer software package, automatically manages manned aircraft, remote controlled UAV and airborne-able vehicles traffic at or near an airport, eliminates ATC-induced and reduce pilot-induced runway incursions and excursions, processes control messages related to aircraft or Pilots, communicates with Pilot over ATC radio frequency, receives aircraft positions, communicates control messages with the aircraft avionics, provides pilots a dynamic map with continuous display of nearby traffic operations, shows clearance and information related to runway operations, warns pilot of runway conditions and turbulence from other operations, warns when landing gear is not locked, displays the pilot emergency exits during takeoff roll, shows the pilot when and where to exit from the runway, shows the pilot where and when to cross a junction, calculates and displays pilot optimal speed and timing on taxiways and junctions for saving fuel, calculates congestions, calculates best taxiway routes, calculates when aircraft can cross a runway, provides directives and information to pilot over CPDLC display or dynamic map for airside operations, alerts and triggers breaks of the aircraft on wrong path or when hold-short bar is breached, displays emergency personnel with routing map and final aircraft resting position for emergency operations, takes over an aircraft operation when aircraft is hijacked or deviates from the flight plan, provide standalone or manned Remote Tower functionality, Records and retains all information related to airport airside operations including aircraft positions and conditions from sensors and reports for runways, junctions and taxiways, Records and retains aircraft data and cockpit voice to ground-based servers to eliminate black-box requirements, calculate future weather and airport capacity from aircraft at or nearby airport, coordinates handoff operations with other ATC positions, interfaces with ACDM systems, airport operations center, flow center and network operations center.

An apparatus and method for tracking aircraft wingtip position during taxi operations to prevent wingtip ground incursion. A patterned illumination source is attached proximal the wingtips to project a readily discernable target pattern in the direction of taxi travel. At least a portion of the target pattern is reflected off of any obstructions that lie in the straight-line direction of travel, such that the pilot can maneuver to avoid striking the obstruction. By way of example, the patterned illumination source comprises a laser module positioned with the navigation and / or strobe light of the aircraft. The device may be retrofitted to existing aircraft without additional wiring with the control of activation being selectable via power cycling of existing aircraft lighting controls. One aspect of the invention provides a tip tracking module bulb that may be retrofitted into existing light sockets to simplify system installation.

The present invention relates to a collision prevention device and method for a vehicle in motion on the ground.The collision prevention device 1 notably comprises:means for localizing obstacles 100, 101, 102, 103, 5, 6, 7; means for acquiring obstacle localization data 2, 4; means for localizing 10 the equipped vehicle;a collision prevention computer 3: combining the obstacle localization data coming from the acquisition means 2, 4; taking into account a description of a configuration of the equipped vehicle and also the localization of the equipped vehicle;detecting proximity conflicts between the equipped vehicle and the localized obstacles;generating alerts in the case of proximity of the equipped vehicle and a localized obstacle;generating at least one solution for resolving each conflict detected;presentation means 12, presenting warnings to a driver of the equipped vehicle.This device can notably be installed on board an aircraft in order to warn of potential collisions between the aircraft and an object or another vehicle when the aircraft is on the ground.

A smart airport automation system includes a subsystem that inputs weather and airport configuration data to determine an active runway in use and an airport state. Another subsystem inputs aircraft position and velocity data from available surveillance sources, known flight-intent information, and past aircraft trajectories to project future aircraft unconstrained trajectories. A third subsystem uses the projected trajectories and aircraft intent to determine desired landing and takeoff sequences, and desired adjacent aircraft spacing. A fourth subsystem uses such information to predict potential aircraft conflicts, such as a loss of acceptable separation between adjacent aircraft. A fifth subsystem packages the weather, airport configuration, aircraft state, desired landing / takeoff sequence, and potential conflict detection into a verbal advisory message that is broadcast on a local common radio frequency. A sixth subsystem uses the projected trajectory information to control the runway and taxiway lighting system.

A direct multilateration target tracking system is provided with the TOA time stamp as an input. A technique of tracking targets with varying receiver combinations is provided. Methods of correlating and combining Mode A, Mode C, and Mode S messages to enhance target tracking in a passive surveillance system are provided. A direct multilateration target tracking system is provided by TOA tracking and smoothing. A technique for selecting best receiver combination and / or solution of multilateration equations from a multitude of combinations and / or solutions is provided. A technique for correcting pseudorange values with atmospheric conditions is provided. A technique for improving height determination for regions of poor VDOP in a 3D multilateration system is provided.

The automatic method of tracking and organizing the movements of vehicles on the ground in a zone of an airport comprises the steps consisting in: acquiring data relating to the possible presence of at least one body in the zone; analyzing the acquired data; and where necessary as a result of the analysis, defining an action as a function of the result. The method also makes it possible to detect the presence of a foreign body in zones over which airplanes can travel, and in particular on runways.

Described herein are systems and methods for surface management of an airport. One embodiment of the disclosure of this application is related to a method including receiving airport data from an airport network, receiving surface surveillance data for specific segments of an airport area, identifying predicted conflicts within one of the segments based on the airport data and surface surveillance data, and allocating a taxi time slot for the flight. Another embodiment of the disclosure of this application is related to a system comprising a user interface displaying information related to flight plan data and airport data received from an airport network, and a surface management module receiving the airport data and surface surveillance data for specific segments of an airport area, identifying predicted conflicts within one of the segments based on the airport data and surface surveillance data, and allocating a taxi time slot for the flight.

AirScene™, through a unique fusion process, is the only NOMS system to provide such data, digitally, and in a form that is integrated with flight tracks, noise events, complaint, and operations data. Other systems provide only the flight track, noise event, and complaint, and a manual recording of various ATC frequencies. Therefore other approaches do not offer any type of automated correlation of operational information with noise and flight track data. AirScene™ offers users the ability to record, search and query vast numbers of records using all of the above parameters, where available.

The surveillance system provides a means to augment Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) with “look alike ADS-B” or “pseudo ADS-B” surveillance transmissions for aircraft which may not be ADS-B equipped. The system uses ground based surveillance to determine the position of aircraft not equipped with ADS-B, then broadcasts the identification / positional information over the ADS-B data link. ADS-B equipped aircraft broadcast their own position over the ADS-B data link. The system enables aircraft equipped with ADS-B and Cockpit Display of Traffic Information (CDTI) to obtain surveillance information on all aircraft whether or not the proximate aircraft are equipped with ADS-B.

Status information on plane, passenger, cargo, crew, fuel, food, baggage, maintenance, weather and any other process used to manage airport operations, including expediting aircraft turnaround time for takeoff, is gathered into a common decision support database. The system includes decision support tools to increase the sharing of information between airline, airport, contractors and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), to more efficiently and safely manage the service, maintenance and operations of aircraft.

A system for tracking objects using an Intelligent Video processing system in the context of airport surface monitoring. The system addresses airport surface monitoring operational issues such as all weather conditions, high robustness, and low false report rate. The output can be used to complement existing airport surface monitoring systems. By combining the use of multi-sensors and an adverse weather optimized system, the system is capable of producing an improved stream of information for the target object over traditional computer vision based airport surface monitoring systems.

The invention discloses a flight ground support service commanding and dispatching system. The system can realize the real-time two-way communication of information such as data, voices, video, positioning and the like with a dispatching center by utilizing a broadband wireless communication network, wireless handheld data terminal equipment used by ground service personnel and wireless vehicle-mounted data terminal equipment arranged on a special vehicle, so that the dispatching center can comprehensively monitor all flight support service progresses and service resource positions, publish produced information and dispatch various resources in real time. The system can realize the preplanning, careful dispatching, whole-process monitoring and quantitative management of flight ground support services to fulfill the aims of improving the flight operating efficiency and the working efficiency of the personnel and increasing the utilization rate of the special vehicle.

A computer implemented method for an aviation system to manage, consistent with specified system business goals, the temporal assignment of airport gates for use by a plurality of aircraft which are to-be-serviced by specified ground resources, including ground personnel, equipment and supplies, so as to deliver and receive specified passengers, their baggage and cargo during a specified time period, based upon specified data pertaining to the aircraft, passengers and ground resources, includes the steps of: (a) collecting and storing the specified data, (b) processing the data to predict the trajectories of the aircraft, wherein these trajectories including the expected gate arrival time, required ground servicing period and projected departure time of each of the aircraft, (c) processing the data to predict the loads imposed on the ground resources and gates associated with the movement of the passengers, equipment and supplies in relation to the arrival and departure of the aircraft, (d) processing the data, trajectories and loads to identify the various possible ways to distribute the ground system resources and assign the gates so as to meet the time constraints of the predicted trajectories and loads, and (e) assigning to each of the plurality of aircraft a gate for use for a prescribed period, with these assignments being made in such a manner as to allow the aviation system to optimally meet its business goals.

A method for enhancing ground situational awareness to an aircraft operating at an airport is described. The method includes displaying, within the aircraft, runways and taxiways for the airport and displaying a position of the aircraft with respect to the runways and taxiway. A resolution of at least one of a runway, a taxiway, and an aircraft position is based on at least one of a selected resolution, a position and heading of the aircraft, a taxi speed, and a ground speed of the aircraft.

A Ground Runway Awareness and Advisory System (GRAAS) that provides supplemental position information and airport situational awareness alerts and advisories to pedestrians and vehicle operators during surface operations by providing timely aural, textual, graphic or pictographic alerts and advisory messages to pedestrians and vehicle operators in a significant number of different scenarios that have led to past runway and taxiway incursion occurrences. These messages are optionally supplemented by a situational awareness video display wherein one or more of the user's position, heading and ground speed are superimposed on a graphic display of airport features of interest. The GRAAS thereby satisfies one clear requirement in reducing VPDs: that the pedestrians or vehicle operators have a clear understanding of the airport layout, including designations of runways and taxiways, and their position relative to the airport layout and features, including aircraft, other ground vehicle traffic and pedestrians where position information is available.

The invention relates to a safe airplane approach method based on multisensor information fusion. In the method, space-time registration and fusion are carried out on a flight control radar, a ground surveillance radar, navigation localization information, infrared and visible light image information to obtain space and ground target (barrier, people, vehicle and airplane) information, automatically generate a safe airplane approach channel and display both the targets and safe approach channel information in the three-dimensional airport scene in a fused mode. The concrete implementation steps are as follows: firstly, employing a radar and a navigation positioning system to obtain airplane information and carrying out time-space registration and fusion to obtain three-dimensional airplane information; secondly, carrying out detection, tracking and behavior prediction on ground targets to obtain track information of ground targets by using the information obtained after registration and fusion of visible light and infrared images are performed; thirdly, reestablishing a three-dimensional airplane information scene; and finally, fusing the real time detected target information in the three-dimensional airplane information scene and establishing the safe airplane approach channel and displaying the channel in the three-dimensional airplane information scene in real time so as to provide decision-making information for flight control personnel.

A system and method for avoiding aircraft collisions wherein a ground based monitoring station serves as one port of a wireless LAN operating according to a wireless communications protocol compatible with the IEEE 802.16e standard and derivatives thereof. A mobile unit associated produces respective position-dependent signals of an authorized object that are conveyed to the ground based monitoring station and to respective mobile units associated with other mobile units via the wireless LAN. A collision prediction unit is responsive to the position-dependent signals and to static position data of the airport infrastructure for predicting collisions between mobile objects or between a mobile object and the infrastructure. A warning unit coupled to the collision prediction unit and responsive to a predicted collision involving one or more mobile objects conveys a respective warning to the one or more mobile objects for allowing evasive action.

The disclosed embodiments describe collision warning devices, controllers, and computer readable media. A collision warning device for towing vehicles includes a housing, a scanning sensor, a display, and a controller. The housing is configured to be secured to at least one of a tow operator and a tug during aircraft towing operations. The a scanning sensor is secured to the housing and is configured to scan an aircraft and to scan an object in an environment surrounding the aircraft. The controller is mounted to the housing and is operably coupled with the scanning sensor and the display. The controller is configured to generate a three dimensional (3D) model of the aircraft and the environment based on a signal output from the scanning sensor, and to calculate potential collisions between the aircraft and the object based on the 3D model.

An automatic guidance and control system for aircraft moving on the ground. On-ground taxi control is provided in response to steering commands for nosewheel positioning.

A device, method and computer program product for locating aircraft with respect to airport runways and taxiways, determining if a conflict exists between an aircraft having operating the invention and another aircraft, and generating and annunciating conflict awareness advisories as a function of determining that a conflict exists.

One embodiment of the present invention provides a ground surface location system for identifying an object and its location within a coverage area. The ground surface location system includes a location transmitter and a location identifier. The location transmitter is positioned at a location within the coverage area and has a physical location code corresponding to the location stored therein, and is configured to provide an optical signal representative of the physical location code. The location identifier is adapted to couple to the object and has an object identification code representative of the object stored therein, and is configured to receive the optical signal and to transmit an identification signal representative of the physical location code and the object identification code.

The invention discloses a small and medium-sized unmanned aerial vehicle recycling and positioning device, which is applied in the recycling and positioning of the small and medium-sized unmanned aerial vehicles after the parachute landing. The device comprises a vehicle-carrying GPS receiver, a vehicle-carrying wireless mobile communication module, a recycling controller and a parachute landing recycling device which are arranged on an unmanned aerial vehicle and a ground GPS receiver, a ground wireless mobile communication module and a ground processing display module of a ground recycling and poisoning device, as well as a radio beacon on the unmanned aerial vehicle and a radio direction finding device of the ground recycling and positioning device. The small and medium-sized unmanned aerial vehicle recycling and positioning device utilizes the vehicle-carrying wireless mobile communication module and the ground wireless mobile communication module and uses a civil wireless mobile communication network to expand the coverage of the transmission of the recycling and the positioning information; the radio direction finding positioning is adopted to solve the problem that the positioning is unable when the GPS receiver works abnormally after the parachute landing of the unmanned aerial vehicle; the small and medium-sized unmanned aerial vehicle recycling and positioning device can reduce the recycling working amount of the unmanned aerial vehicle, accelerate the recycling speed and have a wide coverage and low cost of the device, which can not only be applied independently, but also be combined with the prior art for application.

A ground-based CFIT warning system provides pilots with CFIT alerts. The system is based upon a ground-based tracking system, which provides surveillance of aircraft, such as the AirScene™ multilateration system manufactured by Rannoch Corporation of Alexandria, Va. The system monitors both horizontal and vertical positions of aircraft. When an aircraft has been determined to be operating below safe altitudes, or too close to obstructions, the pilot is provided with a warning. The warning may be delivered via the pilot's voice communications and / or a data link or the like.

The surveillance system provides a means to augment Automatic Dependent Surveillance--Broadcast (ADS-B) with "look alike ADS-B" or "pseudo ADS-B" surveillance transmissions for aircraft which may not be ADS-B equipped. The system uses ground based surveillance to determine the position of aircraft not equipped with ADS-B, then broadcasts the identification / positional information over the ADS-B data link. ADS-B equipped aircraft broadcast their own position over the ADS-B data link. The system enables aircraft equipped with ADS-B and Cockpit Display of Traffic Information (CDTI) to obtain surveillance information on all aircraft whether or not the proximate aircraft are equipped with ADS-B.