Aircraft Vision System Gain Scheduling for Low Visibility
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Solution Overview
Problem
Pilots face challenges during aircraft landing maneuvers, especially in low visibility conditions, as existing vision systems may not provide sufficient or clear vision information to ensure safe landing.
Innovation Solution
An enhanced vision system for aircraft that combines data from infrared and millimeter wave sensors, with automatic gain adjustments based on aircraft position relative to the runway, to merge images and reduce distortions, providing enhanced vision information to the pilot.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a single vision system is used during landing, then the system complexity is low, but the vision information is insufficient in low visibility conditions
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple vision systems (infrared and millimeter wave sensors) into a single integrated enhanced vision system. The processor merges images from both sensors to provide comprehensive vision information that overcomes the limitations of individual systems, particularly in low visibility conditions while maintaining manageable system complexity through unified processing.
Solution Approach 2:
The enhanced vision system performs multiple functions by integrating different sensing modalities. The system can operate effectively across various visibility conditions by switching between and combining infrared and millimeter wave sensing, making it universally applicable for landing operations regardless of environmental conditions.
2Reliability
If multiple vision systems are combined, then the vision information quality improves, but the image distortion increases
Solution Approach 1:
The processor uses gain scheduling based on aircraft position relative to the runway to dynamically adjust the contribution of each sensor. This feedback mechanism optimizes the merged image quality by reducing distortions while maintaining the benefits of multi-sensor integration throughout the landing approach.
Solution Approach 2:
The system dynamically adjusts the gain of individual sensors based on real-time aircraft position. As the aircraft approaches the runway, the processor modifies the weighting of infrared and millimeter wave images to account for their different effective ranges, thereby minimizing distortion and maintaining optimal vision information quality.
3Adaptability or versatility
If manual gain adjustment is required, then the system adaptability is high, but the ease of operation decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs automatic gain scheduling based on aircraft position relative to the runway, eliminating the need for manual pilot intervention. The processor autonomously adjusts sensor gains and merges images according to the aircraft's approach phase, maintaining high adaptability while significantly improving ease of operation.
Data Source
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AI summary
An enhanced vision system is provided for an aircraft performing a landing maneuver. Accordingly to non-limiting embodiments, a processor onboard the aircraft receives data from sensors or systems onboard the aircraft and determines a position of the aircraft relative to a runway using the data. Responsive to this determination, the processor adjusts the gain of a first vision system and a second vision system. Images from the first vision system and the second vision system are merged and displayed to the pilot until the completion of the landing maneuver.