Aircraft Roll Control Using Wheel Force Feedback for Jam Response
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Solution Overview
Problem
Larger aircraft wing designs with improved aerodynamic performance increase the difficulty for pilots to manually control aircraft roll operations due to increased complexity and the need for more precise control of flight surfaces.
Innovation Solution
An aircraft roll operation control system that includes a control wheel position determiner, a control wheel force determiner, and a spoiler controller to map control wheel positions to forces based on nominal aircraft characteristics, allowing for automatic adjustment of flight control surfaces to counteract mechanical jams and ensure safe operation even when hydraulic systems are non-responsive.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If larger aircraft wing designs with increased aerodynamic performance are used, then payload capacity and flight range are improved, but manual control difficulty increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces direct mechanical control linkages with an electronic control system that uses sensors to detect control wheel position and hydraulic actuators to move flight control surfaces. This substitution reduces the mechanical complexity and physical effort required for manual control while maintaining precise control authority on larger aircraft wings.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a control system with position sensors and hydraulic actuators as intermediaries between the pilot's control wheel input and the flight control surfaces. This intermediary system translates small pilot inputs into precise surface movements, reducing manual control difficulty while preserving aerodynamic performance.
2Device complexity
If control wheel force is not monitored, then system complexity is reduced, but ability to detect and respond to mechanical jams is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a feedback mechanism where sensors continuously monitor control wheel position and force, and this information is fed back to the control system. The system compares actual force with expected force based on position, enabling automatic detection of mechanical jams and triggering appropriate safety responses without requiring complex additional hardware.
3Ease of operation
If automatic control systems are implemented, then pilot workload is reduced, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a self-monitoring control system that automatically detects mechanical jams by comparing sensor readings with expected values and autonomously triggers safety responses. This self-service capability reduces pilot workload by eliminating the need for manual monitoring while using relatively simple comparison logic rather than complex control algorithms.
Data Source
AI summary
Systems, methods, and apparatus to control aircraft roll operations are disclosed herein. An example system includes a control wheel position determiner to determine a control wheel position based on an input from a control wheel of the aircraft, a control wheel force determiner to determine a first control wheel force based on a sensor measurement, and a spoiler controller to map the control wheel position to a second control wheel force, the second control wheel force based on nominal characteristics of the aircraft, determine a first difference between the first control wheel force and the second control wheel force, and in response to determining that the first difference does not satisfy a threshold, move a flight control surface based on a third control wheel force, the third control wheel force based on a second difference between the first difference and the threshold.