Flight Plan Update System for Regulated Area Avoidance

Solution Overview

Problem

Aircraft traffic is often delayed due to regulated areas, leading to costly reactionary delays and passenger disruptions, as flights must avoid these areas during specific time windows, causing inefficiencies and increased operational costs.

Innovation Solution

A system that includes processors configured to receive indications of regulated areas and compare them to flight plans, determining alternate routes that avoid these areas during designated time windows, selecting updated flight plans based on criteria such as fuel cost and weather conditions, and sending these updates to relevant devices.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If flights are delayed at departure to avoid regulated geographical areas during time windows, then aircraft traffic safety requirements are met, but flight schedule reliability deteriorates and costly reactionary delays occur

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveaircraft traffic safetyVSAvoidflight schedule reliability

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs preliminary actions by proactively determining alternate flight plans before flights are affected by regulated areas. The processor compares filed flight plans against regulated area data, identifies potential conflicts, and generates alternate routes in advance, allowing airlines to prepare and execute route changes without last-minute delays or reactive disruptions to flight schedules

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The system applies dynamics by enabling flexible, adaptive flight plan modifications. Instead of fixed static routes, the system dynamically generates alternate flight plans that can be selected based on real-time criteria such as fuel cost, weather conditions, and aircraft performance, allowing the flight operations to adapt optimally to regulated area constraints while maintaining schedule reliability

Inventive Principle:

Principle #15Dynamics

2Adaptability or versatility

If flights are delayed at departure to avoid regulated areas, then traffic constraints are satisfied, but operational costs increase due to reactionary delays and passenger disruptions

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvetraffic constraint complianceVSAvoidoperational costs

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSLoss of energy

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs preliminary actions by proactively determining alternate flight plans before flights are affected by regulated areas. The processor compares filed flight plans against regulated area data, identifies potential conflicts, and generates alternate routes in advance, allowing airlines to prepare and execute route changes without last-minute delays or reactive disruptions to flight schedules

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The system applies parameter changes by optimizing alternate flight plans based on multiple selectable criteria including fuel cost, weather conditions, and aircraft performance. This allows operators to balance traffic constraint compliance with operational cost minimization by selecting from multiple candidate routes that satisfy regulatory requirements while minimizing additional operational expenses

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

3Reliability

If alternate flight plans are generated to avoid regulated areas, then route conflicts are resolved, but flight plan complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveroute conflict resolutionVSAvoidflight plan complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs preliminary actions by proactively determining alternate flight plans before flights are affected by regulated areas. The processor compares filed flight plans against regulated area data, identifies potential conflicts, and generates alternate routes in advance, allowing airlines to prepare and execute route changes without last-minute delays or reactive disruptions to flight schedules

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The system applies self-service by enabling automated generation and selection of alternate flight plans. The processor automatically compares routes against regulated areas, identifies conflicts, generates candidate alternate plans, and selects optimal routes based on predefined criteria, reducing the need for manual intervention and simplifying the overall flight plan management process despite the increased complexity of handling multiple routes

Inventive Principle:

Principle #25Self-service

Data Source

PatentUS20230351901A1Systems and methods of updating flight plans based on regulated areas

Publication Date: 2023.11.02 THE BOEING CO

AI summary

A device includes one or more processors configured to receive an indication that a geographical area is expected to be regulated during a particular time window. The one or more processors are also configured to perform a comparison of the geographical area to route segments of a filed flight plan of a flight of an aircraft. The one or more processors are further configured to, based on determining that a route segment of the filed flight plan traverses at least a portion of the geographical area during the particular time window, determine alternate flight plans that do not traverse the geographical area during the particular time window. The one or more processors are also configured to select one of the alternate flight plans that satisfies a selection criterion as an updated flight plan of the flight, and to send the updated flight plan to a second device.