Priority-Based Weather Radar Data Routing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current onboard weather radar systems face limitations in data transmission due to memory size constraints, particularly when using lower bandwidth channels like VHF datalink, which restricts the availability and relevance of radar data for aircraft connectivity during missions.
Innovation Solution
A system and method that utilize a processor onboard the aircraft to assess the priority needs of end-user devices for weather radar data, reducing data size or amount as needed, and routing it via a datalink, allowing for efficient transmission even over low-bandwidth channels by compressing or decimating data, thereby optimizing data transmission based on available bandwidth and user requirements.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If weather radar data is transmitted over low-bandwidth channels like VHF datalink, then data transmission becomes possible, but the data functionality and relevance are severely limited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments weather radar data into different priority levels (high-priority threats such as clear air turbulence, wind shear, microbursts, and low-priority data). Only high-priority segmented data is transmitted over low-bandwidth VHF channels, preserving critical functionality while enabling transmission.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts and transmits only the most critical threat information from the complete weather radar dataset. By taking out only high-priority data elements relevant to flight safety, the system enables meaningful transmission over limited bandwidth channels without sending the entire dataset.
2Loss of information
If complete weather radar data is transmitted, then full data functionality is maintained, but transmission requires high-bandwidth channels that are not always available
Solution Approach 1:
The patent dynamically adjusts the data transmission strategy based on available datalink bandwidth and flight conditions. The system can switch between transmitting compressed high-priority data over VHF, partial data over medium bandwidth, or complete data over high bandwidth channels, making the system adaptable to varying communication availability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the data parameter set being transmitted based on channel capacity. For low-bandwidth channels, it transmits only high-priority threat parameters; for higher bandwidth, it transmits more complete datasets. This parameter adaptation enables transmission across diverse datalink conditions.
3Reliability
If high-priority weather radar data is transmitted over low-bandwidth channels, then critical information is delivered, but data amount is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies partial action by transmitting only the necessary subset of weather radar data (high-priority threats) rather than the complete dataset. This partial transmission over low-bandwidth channels delivers critical safety information while accepting that not all radar data will be transmitted.
Data Source
AI summary
A system including a radar receiver and a processor onboard an aircraft. The processor may be configured to: receive or generate weather radar data; identify an end user computing device to receive the weather radar data; determine whether the end user computing device has a high priority or low priority need for the weather radar data; reduce a size and/or an amount of the weather radar data to be a portion of the weather radar data; and upon a determination that the end user computing device has the low priority need for the weather radar data, route, via a datalink, the portion of the weather radar data having the reduced size and/or reduced amount of the weather radar data to the end user computing device.