Fiber-Optic Sensor System for Aircraft Weight and Reliability
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Solution Overview
Problem
Traditional sensing and communication systems for aircraft structures, such as wire harnesses, are heavy, difficult to install, and lack advanced fault tolerance and high-bandwidth capabilities.
Innovation Solution
A fiber-optic sensor system where optical fibers are embedded within or connected to aircraft structures, using sensing elements like Fiber Bragg Gratings to monitor characteristics and a network controller with optical components for data transmission and reconfiguration, enabling low-weight, low-cost, high-bandwidth, and fault-tolerant sensing and communication networks.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If wire harnesses are used for sensing and communication, then the system is reliable and established, but the weight increases and installation becomes difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines sensing and communication functions into a single integrated fiber-optic network. The fiber-optic cable serves dual purposes: transmitting sensor data and providing communication pathways, eliminating the need for separate wire harnesses for each function. This merging reduces overall system weight while maintaining reliability through the robust nature of fiber-optic technology.
Solution Approach 2:
The fiber-optic network is designed to perform multiple functions simultaneously: structural health sensing, data communication, and fault detection. The same infrastructure that monitors structural integrity also serves as the communication backbone for the aircraft, making the system more weight-efficient compared to dedicated separate systems.
2Reliability
If wire harnesses are used for sensing and communication, then the system is established and reliable, but the installation complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
By merging sensing and communication into a single fiber-optic infrastructure, the patent reduces the number of installation steps. Instead of installing separate wire harnesses for sensing and communication, the system uses one integrated network, significantly simplifying the installation process while maintaining system reliability.
3Device complexity
If traditional sensing systems are used, then the system is simple, but the fault tolerance capability is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements continuous monitoring and feedback mechanisms within the fiber-optic network. Sensors distributed along the structure provide real-time data about structural health and network integrity. The system uses this feedback to detect faults early, isolate affected segments, and maintain operational capability through redundant pathways, thereby enhancing fault tolerance.
Solution Approach 2:
The system incorporates redundant fiber-optic pathways and sensing elements distributed throughout the structure. This redundancy is built in beforehand to cushion against potential failures. If one pathway fails, the system can switch to alternative routes, maintaining operational reliability without requiring complex real-time decision-making.
4Reliability
If fiber-optic networks are made redundant and reconfigurable, then the fault tolerance improves, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The fiber-optic network is divided into multiple independent segments or zones along the aircraft structure. Each segment can be monitored and controlled independently. This segmentation allows the system to isolate faults to specific segments while maintaining functionality in other segments, providing fault tolerance without requiring a completely complex reconfiguration of the entire network.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The system reduces weight, cost, and maintenance requirements by providing a redundant, reconfigurable, and high-bandwidth network that can detect and mitigate faults without physical access, minimizing mission aborts and downtime.
Implementation Method 1
using sensing elements like Fiber Bragg Gratings to monitor characteristics
Data Source
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AI summary
A fiber-optic sensor system includes a structure having a fiber-optic cable operatively connected thereto. The system includes a network controller with an interrogator operatively connected to the fiber-optic cable to receive optical energy indicative of a characteristic of the structure therefrom and convert optical energy to electrical energy and electrical energy to optical energy for data communication. A sensor and/or a data source are operatively connected to the fiber-optic cable through the network controller to transmit data through the fiber-optic cable and receive data therefrom.