Integrated Flight Management System for Tactical Command Trajectory
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current aircraft autoflight systems abandon pre-generated flight paths when receiving tactical commands from air traffic controllers, leading to uncertainty in aircraft intent and increased separation buffers, which results in decreased air traffic capacity and increased fuel burn due to unpredictable flight times and lack of support for trajectory-based operations.
Innovation Solution
A flight management system that integrates tactical commands to generate and maintain a flight path trajectory, allowing air traffic controllers to precisely predict aircraft positions and reduce uncertainty by calculating and adjusting flight paths based on received commands, thereby enabling more efficient aircraft separation and reduced fuel consumption.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the autopilot system abandons the generated flight path to execute tactical commands, then the aircraft can respond to air traffic control instructions, but the aircraft's future position becomes uncertain and separation buffers must be increased
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the flight management system and autopilot system into a single integrated autoflight system. This integration ensures that tactical commands from air traffic control are executed while maintaining a coherent, updated flight path trajectory that reflects the aircraft's true intent. The unified system continuously calculates and updates the trajectory based on both the original flight plan and executed tactical commands, eliminating the uncertainty that arose from separate systems operating independently.
2Reliability
If air traffic controllers increase separation buffers to account for flight time variability, then aircraft safety is improved, but air traffic capacity decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The integrated autoflight system implements continuous feedback by monitoring the actual flight path trajectory against the planned trajectory and automatically adjusting for deviations. The system provides real-time information about the aircraft's true intent and expected arrival times to air traffic control, enabling controllers to reduce separation buffers with confidence. This feedback loop eliminates the need for excessive safety margins while maintaining separation standards.
3Reliability
If manual entry of tactical commands is required, then the pilot maintains control awareness, but the process is time-consuming and introduces human error
Solution Approach 1:
The integrated autoflight system automatically receives, processes, and executes tactical commands from air traffic control without requiring manual pilot intervention. The system self-manages the entire process of trajectory recalculation and command execution, significantly reducing the time required to respond to ATC instructions. The pilot maintains situational awareness through the system's automated updates and confirmations, eliminating the time-consuming manual entry process while preserving awareness through the system's transparent operation.
4Productivity
If trajectory based operation methods are implemented, then air traffic management efficiency is improved, but current autoflight systems cannot support them
Solution Approach 1:
The integrated autoflight system implements dynamic trajectory management by continuously updating the flight path trajectory in real-time based on executed tactical commands and current flight conditions. Unlike static flight path systems, this dynamic approach allows the trajectory to adapt and evolve throughout the flight, providing the flexibility and accuracy required for trajectory-based operations. The system calculates and maintains a living trajectory that reflects the aircraft's true intent at any moment, enabling full compatibility with modern air traffic management systems.
Data Source
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AI summary
A flight management system (24) for use in automatically generating a flight path trajectory (26) for an aircraft (10) is provided. The flight path trajectory including a plurality of waypoints (28) and a plurality of vectors (30) extending between each waypoint of the plurality of waypoints, the flight management system including a processor (302) is configured to calculate a first flight path trajectory (36) including an origin waypoint (40) and a destination waypoint (42), receive a tactical command indicating a change in flight trajectory, and calculate a second flight path trajectory (38) based at least in part on the tactical command, the calculated second flight path trajectory including a departure waypoint along the first flight path trajectory, an intercept waypoint (48) along the first flight path trajectory, and a departure vector from the departure waypoint (46) to the intercept waypoint.