Aircraft Docking Guidance System with Exclusion Zone Avoidance
Solution Overview
Problem
The challenge lies in precisely and securely docking airport vehicles, such as belt baggage loaders, with aircraft to avoid damage and ensure correct service functions, particularly in preventing sudden contact that could harm the aircraft fuselage.
Innovation Solution
An electronic system that determines the position and type of the docking zone, adjusts the guiding trajectory of the vehicle to avoid exclusion zones, and ensures the final portion of the docking line is at least 2 meters long, using sensors and databases to align the vehicle's axles with the docking line at appropriate distances and confidence levels.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If the vehicle speed is limited when approaching the aircraft, then the risk of damage to the aircraft fuselage is reduced, but the docking time and operational efficiency are increased
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by pre-calculating the optimal docking trajectory and identifying exclusion zones before the vehicle approaches the aircraft. This allows the vehicle to follow a pre-planned safe path that minimizes both speed restrictions and collision risk, improving efficiency while maintaining safety.
Solution Approach 2:
The system continuously monitors the vehicle's position, speed, and trajectory during the docking process, providing real-time feedback to adjust the path and speed. This dynamic adjustment allows the vehicle to maintain higher speeds where safe and automatically slow down only when necessary, resolving the contradiction between speed limitation and operational efficiency.
2Reliability
If the docking maneuver requires great precision to avoid damaging the aircraft, then the safety is improved, but the complexity of the control system is increased
Solution Approach 1:
The system introduces an intermediary computational layer that processes sensor data, calculates trajectories, and generates control commands. This intermediary layer abstracts the complex precision control requirements from the vehicle's basic control systems, achieving high docking safety while managing system complexity through modular architecture.
Solution Approach 2:
The system replaces manual mechanical docking operations with automated electronic control based on sensor feedback and computational algorithms. This substitution eliminates the need for complex mechanical control mechanisms while achieving superior precision and safety through software-based trajectory management.
3Manufacturing precision
If the guidance trajectory is adjusted at different times to align axles with the docking line, then the docking precision is improved, but the control algorithm complexity is increased
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements periodic trajectory adjustments at specifically determined moments during the docking sequence. Rather than continuous complex control, the algorithm performs discrete alignment operations at key phases (approach, intermediate positioning, final docking), achieving high precision through timing-based periodic control rather than continuous complex algorithms.
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention concerns an electronic system and method for controlling the automatic or semi-automatic docking of a vehicle (1) with a given docking area (2), applicable, in particular, to the docking of an airport vehicle (1), such as a baggage belt loader, a catering vehicle, etc., to the fuselage of an aircraft (5), for example to the door (2) of such an aircraft. The given docking area (2) comprises at least one target (3, 4). The system comprises first determination means configured to determine the position of the docking area (2) by determining the type of target (3, 4) from a set of given types and its position, second determination means configured to determine a guide path for guiding the vehicle (1) towards the given docking area (2) depending on the position of the docking area (2), and third determination means configured to determine the type of docking destination, the second determination means being capable of determining one or more exclusion areas depending on the type of docking destination (5), by comparing the type of docking destination (5) with types of docking destination, stored in a database in association with exclusion areas, such that the guide path for guiding the vehicle (1) towards the given docking area (2) does not pass into any of said exclusion areas.