Consolidated Flight Deck Task List Based on Alert Prioritization
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Solution Overview
Problem
Aircraft management systems currently provide pilots with multiple alerts in visual, aural, and haptic formats, leading to confusion and disorganization in the cockpit, particularly during emergency situations, as pilots struggle to prioritize and respond to multiple alerts efficiently.
Innovation Solution
An aircraft management system that receives and prioritizes alerts based on external environmental data, operating data, and electronic checklists, generating a consolidated and prioritized list of tasks to respond to alerts, using an alert consolidator to determine when consecutive steps in a checklist can be interrupted by higher-priority tasks, and presenting these tasks in a single format to pilots.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If multiple alerts are provided in visual, aural, and haptic formats simultaneously, then pilots receive comprehensive alert information, but confusion and disorganization occur in the cockpit environment
Solution Approach 1:
The patent consolidates multiple alerts and their corresponding tasks into a single integrated checklist interface. Instead of presenting alerts through separate visual, aural, and haptic channels that compete for pilot attention, the system merges all alert information and required actions into one unified display, reducing cognitive load and improving situational awareness during emergencies
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments the consolidated checklist into priority-ordered task groups, allowing pilots to address critical alerts first while maintaining awareness of subsequent actions. The checklist is divided into logical sections based on alert priority and task dependency, enabling systematic progression through emergency procedures without overwhelming the pilot with undifferentiated information
2Reliability
If pilots are provided with multiple alerts simultaneously, then comprehensive system monitoring is achieved, but pilots struggle to prioritize and respond to alerts efficiently
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary prioritization and organization of alert tasks before presenting them to pilots. The alert consolidator automatically analyzes incoming alerts, determines priority levels, and pre-sequences required actions in the checklist interface. This preliminary processing eliminates the need for pilots to manually prioritize alerts under stress, significantly improving response efficiency while maintaining comprehensive system monitoring
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements a feedback mechanism where the system continuously monitors pilot interactions with the consolidated checklist and adjusts alert prioritization dynamically. As pilots complete tasks, the system provides feedback by updating the checklist status and re-prioritizing remaining alerts based on current system state, ensuring that the most critical unresolved alerts remain at the top of the pilot's attention hierarchy
3Loss of information
If pilots search through airplane manuals to find solutions to alerts, then comprehensive troubleshooting information is accessed, but significant time is lost in the process
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts essential troubleshooting information from the comprehensive airplane manuals and integrates it directly into the consolidated checklist interface. Instead of requiring pilots to search through thousands of pages of manual content, the system pulls out only the specific procedures and solutions relevant to active alerts, presenting them in contextualized, step-by-step format within the checklist. This extraction approach maintains access to comprehensive troubleshooting capabilities while eliminating time-consuming manual searches
Solution Approach 2:
The alert consolidator acts as an intermediary between the airplane manuals and the pilot. Rather than requiring direct interaction with the manual database, the consolidator queries the manual system, processes the retrieved information, and presents filtered, relevant procedures in the checklist interface. This intermediary layer translates comprehensive manual content into actionable, prioritized tasks, maintaining information completeness while dramatically reducing access time
Data Source
AI summary
An improved aircraft management system for consolidating and prioritizing alerts through the use of an alert consolidator is described herein. According to an embodiment, a method for providing a list of tasks for responding to alerts provided by an aircraft sensing system includes receiving a plurality of alerts provided by an aircraft sensing system prioritizing at least two alerts, generating a prioritized sequential list of tasks for responding to the prioritized alerts, and providing, in a single format, the prioritized sequential list of tasks.