Aircraft Pylon Integrating Wireless Combat Cloud Data
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Solution Overview
Problem
Legacy aircraft lack the capability to integrate with collaborative air combat infrastructures, such as the 'air combat cloud,' which requires direct interconnection for sharing information and resources with modern systems.
Innovation Solution
An improved pylon equipped with electronic equipment, including a computer and communication modules for wireless communication, is mounted on the aircraft to establish connections with the data bus and collaborative air combat infrastructure, enabling operational services and interoperability with future aircraft.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If legacy aircraft are used without modification, then operational simplicity is maintained, but capability to integrate with collaborative air combat infrastructure is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The integration capability is segmented into a separate, removable pylon module rather than being built into the aircraft structure. This allows the legacy aircraft to maintain its original simplicity while optionally integrating modern capabilities through the attachable pylon containing electronic equipment and communication interfaces.
Solution Approach 2:
The pylon acts as an intermediary device between the legacy aircraft and the collaborative air combat infrastructure. It provides the necessary communication interfaces and electronic equipment to enable data exchange with the air combat cloud without requiring modifications to the aircraft's core systems.
2Adaptability or versatility
If communication equipment is added to enable air combat cloud integration, then interoperability with future aircraft is improved, but aircraft system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The pylon is designed as a universal platform that can be mounted on legacy aircraft to provide multi-functional capabilities including communication interfaces, electronic equipment, and data bus connections. This single modular unit enables interoperability with both current and future aircraft systems without requiring multiple separate modifications.
3Adaptability or versatility
If electronic equipment is housed in pylon fairing, then integration capability is achieved, but aerodynamic drag may increase
Solution Approach 1:
The pylon fairing is designed as a streamlined enclosure that houses the electronic equipment and communication interfaces. The fairing's aerodynamic shape minimizes drag while providing protective housing for the integrated systems, balancing the need for equipment integration with aerodynamic efficiency.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
AI summary
This improved pylon (22), which is intended to be mounted on a carrier platform (2) for the carriage of a payload (4), integrates electronic equipment (24), housed inside a fairing (8) of the pylon (22), and which includes a computer (29, 35), an internal interface (27) adapted to establish a communication link between the electronic equipment (24) and a data bus (31, 33) of the carrier platform (2) and/or the payload (4), and communication means (37, 36, 38, 36) adapted to establish a wireless communication link with transceiver means of a collaborative air combat infrastructure (50), the computer being programmed to contribute to operational services on the basis of the data exchanged with the carrier platform (2) and/or the payload (4) and in cooperation with the collaborative air combat infrastructure (50).