Calculation system of aircraft and calculation method of aircraft

The aircraft computation system offloads advanced calculations to a separate device, reducing computational load, size, and power consumption by using an external computing system.

JP2025122906APending Publication Date: 2025-08-22MITSUBISHI HEAVY IND LTD
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Patent Information

Application Number
JP2024018648
Authority / Receiving Office
JP · JP
Patent Type
Applications
Current Assignee / Owner
Filing Date
2024-02-09
Publication Date
2025-08-22

AI Technical Summary

Technical Problem

The installation of advanced calculation devices on aircraft is hindered by increased size, heat generation, and power consumption, which complicates the integration of such devices due to the additional computational requirements.

Method used

Aircraft computation system that offloads advanced calculation processing to a separate computing device via communication networks, utilizing an information acquisition unit, first and second communication units, and a computation unit to perform computational tasks externally.

Benefits of technology

Reduces the computational load on the aircraft by performing advanced calculations in a separate computing device, thereby minimizing size, heat, and power consumption constraints.

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Abstract

To reduce a load on calculation processing of an aircraft, even when advanced calculation processing is performed.SOLUTION: A calculation system of an aircraft includes: an aircraft having an information acquisition part for acquiring information and a first communication part for transmitting the acquired information as output information to outside, and acquiring input information from the outside; and a calculation device having a calculation part for executing calculation processing based on the output information, and generating the input information as a calculation result, and a second communication part for acquiring the output information output from the aircraft, and transmitting the input information toward the aircraft. The aircraft acquires the output information in the information acquisition part and transmits the acquired output information to the calculation device through the first communication part. The calculation device acquires the output information in the second communication part, and the calculation part executes calculation processing based on the acquired output information, generates the input information, and transmits the generated input information to the aircraft through the second communication part.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2
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Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an aircraft computing system and an aircraft computing method. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, there is known a targeting system using an unmanned aerial vehicle that identifies a predicted landing point of a projectile based on information about the projectile to be projected at the target, provided position data, and a map database (see, for example, Patent Document 1). This targeting system identifies the target position of the target based on a map database, grasps the environmental conditions around the identified target position using images, and identifies the predicted landing point based on the image data and information about the projectile. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Special Publication No. 2016-540949 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] The targeting device of the targeting system described in Patent Document 1 may be installed on an aircraft, and in this case, calculation processing related to the targeting is performed on the aircraft. Furthermore, aircraft are required to perform advanced calculation processing in addition to targeting. For this reason, aircraft are equipped with a calculation device for performing advanced calculation processing, but on the other hand, the size, heat generation, and power consumption of the calculation device increase, making it difficult to install an advanced calculation device on an aircraft.

[0005] Therefore, an object of the present disclosure is to provide an aircraft calculation system and an aircraft calculation method that can reduce the load associated with the aircraft's calculation processing even when performing advanced calculation processing. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The aircraft computation system of the present disclosure comprises: an aircraft having an information acquisition unit that acquires information; and a first communication unit that transmits the acquired information to the outside as output information and acquires input information from the outside; and a computation device having a computation unit that performs computational processing based on the output information to generate the input information as a computation result; and a second communication unit that acquires the output information output from the aircraft and transmits the input information to the aircraft; wherein the aircraft acquires the output information using the information acquisition unit and transmits the acquired output information to the computation device via the first communication unit; the computation device acquires the output information using the second communication unit; the computation unit performs computational processing based on the acquired output information to generate the input information; and transmits the generated input information to the aircraft via the second communication unit.

[0007] The aircraft calculation method disclosed herein is an aircraft calculation method executed by an aircraft calculation system including an aircraft and a calculation device, wherein the aircraft has an information acquisition unit that acquires information, and a first communication unit that transmits the acquired information to the outside as output information and acquires input information from the outside, and the calculation device has a calculation unit that performs calculation processing based on the output information and generates the input information as a calculation result, and a second communication unit that acquires output information output from the aircraft and transmits the input information to the aircraft, and the aircraft acquires the output information using the information acquisition unit and transmits the acquired output information to the calculation device via the first communication unit, the calculation device acquires the output information using the second communication unit, the calculation unit performs calculation processing based on the acquired output information to generate the input information, and transmits the generated input information to the aircraft via the second communication unit. [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] According to the present disclosure, even when performing advanced arithmetic processing, the load associated with the arithmetic processing of an aircraft can be reduced. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a calculation system for an aircraft according to this embodiment. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating the calculation method for an aircraft according to this embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0010] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. However, this disclosure is not limited to these embodiments. Furthermore, the components in the following embodiments include those that are easily replaceable by those skilled in the art, or those that are substantially identical. Furthermore, the components described below can be combined as appropriate, and when there are multiple embodiments, the respective embodiments can also be combined.

[0011] [Present embodiment] The aircraft computing system 10 according to this embodiment is a system that executes computational processing using a computing device separate from the aircraft. First, the computing system 10 will be described with reference to FIG.

[0012] (Aircraft computing system) 1 is a diagram illustrating a computing system for an aircraft according to this embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, computing system 10 includes aircraft 15 and computing device 16, which are communicatively connected via communication network 18.

[0013] The aircraft 15 has a control unit 21 that performs flight control of the aircraft, a memory unit 22 that stores various software and various data, a communication unit (first communication unit) 23, and an information acquisition unit 24.

[0014] The control unit 21 includes an integrated circuit such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit), etc. The control unit 21 executes various data processing related to flight control of the aircraft 15.

[0015] The storage unit 22 is any storage device such as a semiconductor storage device or a magnetic storage device. Various software for executing various data processing and various data used in the various data processing are stored in the storage unit 22. The various data include, for example, information acquired by the information acquisition unit 24, such as sensor information from various sensors mounted on the aircraft.

[0016] The communication unit 23 is a communication module for bidirectional communication with the arithmetic device 16. The communication unit 23 outputs output information acquired by the information acquisition unit 24 to the arithmetic device 16, and acquires input information input from the arithmetic device 16.

[0017] The arithmetic device 16 has a calculation unit 31, a storage unit 32, and a communication unit (second communication unit) 33. The arithmetic device 16 is provided, for example, in ground equipment, but may also be provided in another aircraft.

[0018] The calculation unit 31 includes an integrated circuit such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) in the same manner as the control unit 21. The calculation unit 31 executes various types of calculation processing.

[0019] The storage unit 32 is an arbitrary storage device such as a semiconductor storage device or a magnetic storage device, similar to the storage unit 22. The storage unit 22 stores various software for executing arithmetic processing and various data used in the arithmetic processing.

[0020] The communication unit 33 is a communication module for two-way communication with the aircraft 15. The communication unit 33 acquires output information input from the aircraft 15 and outputs input information to the aircraft 15.

[0021] (Aircraft calculation method) Next, an aircraft calculation method executed by the aircraft calculation system 10 will be described with reference to Fig. 2. Fig. 2 is a flowchart relating to the aircraft calculation method according to this embodiment.

[0022] In the aircraft calculation method, the information acquisition unit 24 of the aircraft 15 acquires output information (step S1). In step S1, the output information is sensor information from various sensors mounted on the aircraft, for example, detection data acquired by a radar detector.

[0023] Next, when the aircraft 15 acquires output information via the information acquisition unit 24, the communication unit 23 transmits the acquired output information to the computing device 16 (step S2). Here, the output information includes, for example, aircraft information such as aircraft motion data related to flight control of the aircraft 15 and collected information collected to achieve a purpose assigned to the aircraft 15. In step S2, the communication unit 23 transmits at least the collected information to the computing device 16. Meanwhile, the control unit 21 of the aircraft 15 executes flight control based on the aircraft information. In other words, the aircraft 15 appropriately selects and transmits output information to the computing device 16 depending on the type of output information acquired via the information acquisition unit 24. This distinguishes between data to be processed on the aircraft 15 side and data to be processed on the computing device 16 side from a safety perspective (e.g., in the event of communication being interrupted). In this embodiment, for example, aircraft motion data is considered to be data to be processed on the aircraft 15 side, and collected information (e.g., detection data) is considered to be data to be processed on the computing device 16 side.

[0024] Thereafter, in the computing device 16, the communication unit 33 acquires the output information (step S3). Then, the computing unit 31 of the computing device 16 executes a computation process based on the acquired output information (step S4). The computing unit 31 generates the processing result of the computation process as input information to the aircraft 1 (step S5). The input information may be, for example, track data of the detected object obtained based on the detection data.

[0025] The calculation unit 31 of the calculation device 16 transmits the generated input information to the aircraft 15 via the communication unit 33 (step S6). Thereafter, the communication unit 23 in the aircraft 15 acquires the input information (step S7). In step S7, when the aircraft 15 acquires the input information, the control unit 21 executes display based on the input information and executes flight control based on the input information. After execution of step S7, the calculation processing related to the calculation method of the aircraft 15 ends.

[0026] In this embodiment, no particular reference is made to the number of aircraft 15 that are the targets of arithmetic processing in the arithmetic device 16, but one or more aircraft 15 may be the target. For example, when the targets are multiple aircraft 15, the arithmetic device 16 may integrate output information acquired from the multiple aircraft 15 and perform arithmetic processing based on the integrated output information. In this case, the arithmetic device 16 may transmit input information as the calculation result to the multiple aircraft 15.

[0027] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the arithmetic device 16 is updated with software related to the arithmetic processing, but the software related to the arithmetic processing of the aircraft 15 does not need to be updated. Therefore, in the arithmetic system 10 of the aircraft 15, the work costs involved in software update work can be reduced.

[0028] Furthermore, in this embodiment, when communication with the arithmetic device 16 is poor, the control unit 21 of the aircraft 15 may execute a simplified arithmetic process that is lighter in load than the arithmetic process executed by the arithmetic device 16, instead of the arithmetic process executed by the arithmetic device 16. In other words, when the control unit 21 of the aircraft 15 determines that communication with the arithmetic device 16 is poor, it acquires output information from the information acquisition unit 24 and executes arithmetic process based on the acquired output information. Then, the control unit 21 of the aircraft 15 executes a display based on the input information as the calculation result of the arithmetic process, or executes flight control based on the input information.

[0029] As described above, the calculation system of the aircraft 15 and the calculation method of the aircraft 15 described in this embodiment can be understood, for example, as follows.

[0030] The calculation system 10 of the aircraft 15 relating to the first aspect comprises an aircraft 15 having an information acquisition unit 24 that acquires information, and a first communication unit 23 that transmits the acquired information to the outside as output information and acquires input information from the outside, and a calculation device 16 having a calculation unit 31 that performs calculation processing based on the output information and generates the input information as a calculation result, and a second communication unit 33 that acquires the output information output from the aircraft and transmits the input information to the aircraft, wherein the aircraft 15 acquires the output information using the information acquisition unit 24 and transmits the acquired output information to the calculation device 16 via the first communication unit 23, the calculation device 16 acquires the output information using the second communication unit 33, the calculation unit 31 performs calculation processing based on the acquired output information to generate the input information, and transmits the generated input information to the aircraft 15 via the second communication unit 33.

[0031] According to this configuration, even when performing advanced arithmetic processing, the arithmetic processing can be performed in a computing device 16 separate from the aircraft 15, thereby reducing the load associated with the arithmetic processing on the aircraft 15.

[0032] In a second aspect, in the calculation system 10 of the aircraft 15 relating to the first aspect, the aircraft 15 further has a control unit 21 that performs flight control of the aircraft, and the output information includes aircraft information related to the flight control of the aircraft 15 and collected information collected to achieve the purpose given to the aircraft 15, the first communication unit 23 transmits at least the collected information to the calculation device 16, and the control unit 21 performs flight control based on the aircraft information.

[0033] According to this configuration, even if communication between the aircraft 15 and the computing device 16 is interrupted, flight control of the aircraft 15 can be continued. Therefore, the flight operation of the aircraft 15 can be made safe even when communication is interrupted.

[0034] As a third aspect, in the computing system 10 of the aircraft 15 according to the first or second aspect, the computing device 16 is provided in a ground facility.

[0035] According to this configuration, even if the calculation device 16 is arranged in the ground facility and the calculation processing capacity of the calculation device 16 becomes large, it is possible to arrange the calculation device 16 appropriately.

[0036] As a fourth aspect, in the computing system 10 of the aircraft 15 according to the first or second aspect, the computing device 16 is provided in another aircraft.

[0037] According to this configuration, by flying another aircraft equipped with the arithmetic unit 16 in accordance with the flight of the aircraft 15, communication between the aircraft 15 and the arithmetic unit 16 can be stabilized.

[0038] A calculation method for an aircraft 15 according to a fifth aspect is a calculation method for an aircraft 15 executed by a calculation system 10 of the aircraft 15 including the aircraft 15 and a calculation device 16, wherein the aircraft 15 has an information acquisition unit 24 that acquires information, and a first communication unit 23 that transmits the acquired information to the outside as output information and acquires input information from the outside, and the calculation device 16 has a calculation unit 31 that executes calculation processing based on the output information and generates the input information as a calculation result, and a calculation unit 32 that outputs output information from the aircraft 15. and a second communication unit 33 that acquires the input information and transmits the input information to the aircraft 15, wherein the aircraft 15 acquires the output information using the information acquisition unit 24 and transmits the acquired output information to the arithmetic device 16 via the first communication unit 23, the arithmetic device 16 acquires the output information using the second communication unit 33, the arithmetic unit 31 performs arithmetic processing based on the acquired output information to generate the input information, and transmits the generated input information to the aircraft 15 via the second communication unit 33.

[0039] According to this configuration, even when performing advanced arithmetic processing, the arithmetic processing can be performed in a computing device 16 separate from the aircraft 15, thereby reducing the load associated with the arithmetic processing on the aircraft 15. [Explanation of symbols]

[0040] 10. Computing Systems 15 Aircraft 16 Arithmetic unit 18. Communication Networks 21 Control section 22 Memory section 23 Communications Department 31 Arithmetic section 32 Storage section 33 Communications Department

Claims

1. an aircraft having an information acquisition unit that acquires information and a first communication unit that transmits the acquired information to an outside as output information and acquires input information from an outside; a calculation device including: a calculation unit that executes calculation processing based on the output information and generates the input information as a calculation result; and a second communication unit that acquires the output information output from the aircraft and transmits the input information to the aircraft; The aircraft The information acquisition unit acquires the output information; transmitting the acquired output information to the arithmetic device via the first communication unit; The computing device The second communication unit acquires the output information; the calculation unit executes calculation processing based on the acquired output information to generate the input information; A computing system of an aircraft that transmits the generated input information to the aircraft via the second communication unit.

2. The aircraft further includes a control unit that performs flight control of the aircraft; the output information includes aircraft information related to flight control of the aircraft and collected information collected to achieve a purpose assigned to the aircraft, the first communication unit transmits at least the collected information to the computing device; The aircraft computing system according to claim 1 , wherein the control unit executes flight control based on the aircraft information.

3. The aircraft computing system according to claim 1 , wherein the computing device is provided in a ground facility.

4. The aircraft computing system according to claim 1 , wherein the computing device is provided in another aircraft.

5. 1. An aircraft computing method executed by an aircraft computing system including an aircraft and a computing device, the method comprising: The aircraft an information acquisition unit that acquires information; a first communication unit that transmits the acquired information to an external device as output information and acquires input information from an external device; The computing device a calculation unit that performs calculation processing based on the output information and generates the input information as a calculation result; a second communication unit that acquires output information output from the aircraft and transmits the input information to the aircraft, The aircraft, The information acquisition unit acquires the output information; transmitting the acquired output information to the arithmetic device via the first communication unit; The computing device The second communication unit acquires the output information; the calculation unit executes calculation processing based on the acquired output information to generate the input information; A calculation method for an aircraft, which transmits the generated input information to the aircraft via the second communication unit.

Citation Information

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