Aircraft Cockpit Input Decoupling via Contextual Routing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing aircraft cockpit systems lack the flexibility and interoperability needed to effectively decouple user input devices from software applications, making it difficult to accommodate upgrades and retrofits while maintaining reliability and reducing costs.
Innovation Solution
A user input management service that receives an input context message from an interactive application, maintains an association between the anticipated data type and the application, identifies the input data type associated with a received user input, and broadcasts a message to the interactive application when the input data type matches the anticipated data type, allowing the application to respond to the input value.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If user input devices are directly linked to specific avionics systems or software applications, then the system structure is simple and reliable, but the flexibility and interoperability are reduced, making upgrades and retrofits difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a user input management service as an intermediary component between user input devices and avionics systems/software applications. This service receives input context messages from applications, maintains associations between anticipated data types and applications, identifies input data types from received user inputs, and broadcasts matched inputs to the appropriate applications. This intermediary layer enables flexible routing of inputs from various devices to different applications without requiring direct hardwired connections, thereby improving adaptability and interoperability while managing system complexity through a centralized management approach
2Adaptability or versatility
If user input devices are decoupled from software applications to improve flexibility, then interoperability improves, but the complexity of managing input routing and data type matching increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements a feedback mechanism where software applications provide input context messages to the user input management service, specifying the data types they anticipate receiving. The service maintains these associations and uses them to automatically match and route incoming user inputs from various devices to the appropriate applications. This feedback loop enables intelligent, automated input routing that reduces the complexity of managing decoupled devices while maintaining high interoperability
3Reliability
If direct linking is used between input devices and avionics systems, then system reliability is maintained, but the cost of modifications and recertification increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the aircraft cockpit system into distinct modular components: user input devices, the user input management service, and software applications. This segmentation allows individual components to be upgraded, modified, or replaced independently without affecting the entire system. The standardized interface and automated routing mechanism maintained by the service ensure that reliability is preserved during modifications, thereby reducing recertification costs while enabling easier system evolution
Data Source
AI summary
Vehicle systems and methods are provided for decoupling user input devices and software applications using contextual information. One method involves a user input management service receiving an input context message from an interactive application identifying an anticipated data type to be received by the interactive application, maintaining an association between the anticipated data type and the interactive application, identifying an input data type associated with a received user input, and when the input data type matches the anticipated data type, broadcasting, by the user input management service, a message including an indication of the input data type and an input value of the received user input for the input data type to the interactive application, wherein the interactive application responds to the input value for the input data type.