Fly-By-Wire Command Validation for Fault-Tolerant Electric Aircraft
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Solution Overview
Problem
In electric aircraft, particularly eVTOLs, there is a need for reliable fly-by-wire flight control systems to ensure safety by accurately detecting pilot inputs and determining valid sensor data to maintain aircraft integrity and maneuverability, especially in case of component malfunctions.
Innovation Solution
A system and method utilizing sensors connected to pilot controls, a flight controller with a voting algorithm to determine allowed sensors and generate control surface commands, ensuring active and admissible data is used to correlate pilot inputs into control surface movements, incorporating redundancy and machine-learning processes for data validation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a voting algorithm is implemented to determine allowed sensors and validate command datums, then the reliability of flight control is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The flight control system is segmented into multiple independent sensors and a voting algorithm that processes commands from different sensors separately. Each sensor operates independently to detect pilot inputs, and the voting algorithm segments the validation process into distinct steps (activity check, admissibility check) to determine which sensor commands are allowed, thereby improving reliability through distributed sensing while managing complexity through structured processing
Solution Approach 2:
The voting algorithm implements feedback mechanisms by continuously monitoring command datums from multiple sensors and comparing them against predefined criteria (activity and admissibility). The system provides feedback loops that validate sensor readings in real-time, allowing the flight controller to adjust and select appropriate commands based on the voting results, which enhances reliability through continuous verification while maintaining manageable complexity through algorithmic control
2Reliability
If multiple validation checks (active datum, admissible datum) are performed on command data, then the safety of aircraft operation is improved, but the loss of time in processing increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary validation actions by pre-defining admissibility criteria and activity conditions before actual flight operations. The voting algorithm is pre-configured with validation rules that check whether command datums are active and admissible before processing. This preliminary setup of validation parameters reduces the computational burden during real-time operation, improving safety through thorough checks while minimizing time loss through pre-established validation frameworks
Solution Approach 2:
The voting algorithm implements partial validation by selectively applying validation checks based on the specific flight context and sensor performance. Not all sensors require the same level of validation at all times - the system performs excessive validation when safety is critical and partial validation when conditions are normal, thereby improving safety through comprehensive checking when needed while reducing time loss by avoiding unnecessary validation steps during stable operations
Data Source
AI summary
In an aspect a system for fly-by-wire flight control configured for use in electric aircraft including at least a sensor, wherein the sensor is communicatively connected a pilot control and configured to detect a pilot input from the pilot control and generate, as a function of the pilot input, command datum. A system includes a flight controller, the flight controller including a computing device and configured to perform a voting algorithm, wherein performing the voting algorithm includes determining that the sensor is an allowed sensor, wherein determining that the sensor is an allowed sensor includes determining that the command datum is an active datum, determining the command datum is an admissible datum, generating, as a function of the command datum and the allowed sensor, a control surface datum wherein the control surface datum is correlated to the pilot input.