Aircraft Obstacle Avoidance Guidance Law Generation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current obstacle avoidance systems for aircraft, particularly rotary-wing aircraft, require manual intervention from pilots which can lead to increased workload, human errors, and reduced safety due to the need for automatic disconnection of guidance systems and potential surprise automatic maneuvers, especially when flying close to terrain.
Innovation Solution
A method and system that generate alerts based on obstacle proximity, allowing for a graduated response where the crew can initiate manual maneuvers or receive assistance from an automatic avoidance guidance mode, with automatic activation only if no manual action is taken after a predetermined duration, ensuring a controlled evasive maneuver.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If manual avoidance maneuver is required, then crew control is maintained, but pilot workload increases and human errors may occur
Solution Approach 1:
The electronic avoidance system acts as an intermediary between the alert system and the pilot. It receives alert information, calculates appropriate avoidance maneuvers, and presents them to the pilot for execution. This intermediary role reduces the cognitive burden on the pilot while maintaining human oversight and control, thereby reducing workload without compromising safety.
Solution Approach 2:
The system provides feedback to the pilot by displaying calculated avoidance maneuvers and their expected outcomes. This feedback loop allows the pilot to understand the situation better and make informed decisions, reducing the mental effort required while maintaining situational awareness and safety.
2Reliability
If entirely automatic avoidance maneuver is implemented, then safety is improved, but crew is left outside decision loop causing surprise and inappropriate response for rotary-wing aircraft
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically adjusts the level of automation based on the situation and aircraft type. For rotary-wing aircraft flying close to terrain, it provides maneuver suggestions that require pilot confirmation, maintaining crew control. The system adapts its automation level to match the operational context, ensuring safety while preserving appropriate crew involvement.
Solution Approach 2:
Different levels of automation are applied to different aspects of the avoidance system. The calculation of avoidance maneuvers is fully automatic, but the execution requires pilot approval for rotary-wing aircraft. This local differentiation of automation quality ensures safety through automatic calculation while maintaining crew control for final decision-making.
3Loss of time
If automatic avoidance system is activated, then response time is reduced, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary calculations of avoidance maneuvers as soon as an alert is detected, preparing multiple options in advance. This preliminary action reduces the time required for decision-making and execution, as the maneuvers are already calculated and ready for pilot review, without requiring complex real-time computations during the critical response phase.
Data Source
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Figure 3
AI summary
The invention relates to a method and an electronic system for obstacle avoidance by an aircraft 10, such as a rotary-wing aircraft, finding in particular an application in the field of flight control systems and the guidance of an aircraft when a risk of collision with the terrain or an obstacle is identified by an alert system 12. The aircraft includes the system 12 capable of generating alerts according to the proximity of an obstacle and an electronic avoidance system 30 which implements the method.The method includes generating an alert by system 12 upon detection of an obstacle, and, if no manual avoidance maneuver is detected for a certain period following the issuance of the alert and if the alert is maintained for that period, automatic activation of an automatic avoidance guidance mode to determine an obstacle avoidance guidance law by setting a speed and/or heading command, and then calculating the avoidance guidance law based on the command. If an autopilot device 16 is coupled with the automatic avoidance guidance mode, the determined avoidance guidance law is transmitted to the autopilot device to automatically perform an obstacle avoidance maneuver by acting on the aircraft's primary control elements 20, 22, with the aim of achieving the command.