Aircraft Autobrake State Machine Decoupled From Deceleration Rates
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing automatic braking systems for aircraft are complex and difficult to adapt to different types of aircraft, requiring changes to multiple states and transition conditions when deceleration rates or aircraft types change, leading to cumbersome specifications and maintenance challenges.
Innovation Solution
A simplified automatic braking system with separate functional modules that define states and transitions independently of deceleration rates, allowing for easier adaptation and maintenance, using external parameters to determine aircraft states and generate automatic braking commands without depending on specific deceleration rates.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If the state machine includes multiple branches with states defined as a function of deceleration rates, then the automatic braking function can control different deceleration rates, but changing deceleration rates or adding new ones becomes complicated and requires changing all states
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the state machine into two independent parts: (1) a structure defining states and transitions that is independent of deceleration rates, and (2) a separate mapping that associates states with specific deceleration rates. This segmentation allows modification of deceleration rates without changing the state machine structure, resolving the contradiction between adaptability and complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a universal state machine structure that can serve multiple aircraft types and deceleration rate configurations. By making the state definitions independent of specific deceleration rate values, the same state machine can be adapted to different aircraft families (A320, A340, A380, A350) and different deceleration rate requirements without redesign.
2Adaptability or versatility
If separate deceleration rate values are associated with each aircraft type, then the automatic braking function can be tailored to specific aircraft features, but all states must be changed to adapt to different aircraft types
Solution Approach 1:
The patent separates the aircraft-type-specific parameters (deceleration rates) from the state machine structure. This allows each aircraft type to have its own deceleration rate values stored in a configuration table, while the state machine itself remains unchanged, making adaptation to different aircraft types straightforward and reducing modification effort.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the state machine includes multiple branches with common transition conditions, then all deceleration rates can be controlled, but the specifications become complex with multiple duplicates and difficult to retain and amend
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts common transition conditions from multiple branches and defines them once in a separate transition definition section. Each branch then references these common transitions rather than duplicating them, eliminating redundancy and making the specifications easier to maintain and amend while still supporting multiple deceleration rates.
Data Source
AI summary
An aircraft automatic braking system, comprising: a first functional module arranged in order to implement a state machine that includes a first branch comprising first states corresponding to a landing of the aircraft, a second branch comprising second states corresponding to a rejected take-off of the aircraft, and transitions, the first states, the second states and the transitions being defined independently of deceleration rates; a second functional module arranged in order to define a target deceleration of the aircraft at least on the basis of the deceleration rates and a current state of the state machine; and a third functional module arranged in order to define, at least on the basis of the current state and the target deceleration, an automatic braking command in order to control actuators of wheel brakes of the aircraft.