Rotorcraft Hover Approach Path for Moving Targets in Wind
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current rotorcraft systems face challenges in efficiently establishing an approach path and hovering relative to a mobile target during search and rescue operations at sea, particularly in hostile environments with varying wind conditions and target movements, which increases the workload for the crew and reduces operation efficiency.
Innovation Solution
A method and system that utilize a flight management system with acquisition, locating, and measurement devices to automatically determine and update the approach path, taking into account the target's position, speed, route, and wind conditions, ensuring safe and efficient hovering by defining a descent axis and hover point relative to the target's movement and wind limitations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the rotorcraft manually determines the approach path and tracks a mobile target, then the crew can adapt to target movements and wind conditions, but the workload increases and operation efficiency decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The system enables self-service by implementing automatic target tracking and approach path determination through the flight management system. The rotorcraft automatically monitors target position, calculates optimal approach paths considering wind conditions, and guides the rotorcraft without requiring continuous manual intervention from the crew, thereby reducing workload while maintaining operational efficiency
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements feedback mechanisms by continuously acquiring target position data, monitoring wind conditions, and automatically updating the approach path based on real-time information. The flight management system processes this feedback loop to adjust the rotorcraft's trajectory dynamically, ensuring efficient operations without increasing crew workload
2Reliability
If the rotorcraft performs prior overflights to verify target position, then the safety and accuracy of target acquisition improves, but the time to reach the target increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system replaces manual visual verification through overflights with automated electronic target acquisition systems. The flight management system uses electronic sensors and data processing to verify target position and identity, eliminating the need for time-consuming manual overflights while maintaining or improving acquisition accuracy
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary target verification through automated electronic means before the rotorcraft begins its final approach. The flight management system pre-acquires and validates target data, ensuring accuracy is confirmed in advance without requiring delayed overflights, thus reducing time loss while maintaining reliability
3Device complexity
If the rotorcraft follows a fixed approach path, then the flight control is simplified, but the system cannot adapt to wind variations and target movements
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements dynamic adaptability by enabling the approach path to automatically adjust in real-time based on changing wind conditions and target movements. The flight management system continuously recalculates the optimal path, allowing the flight control to remain relatively simple while achieving high adaptability through automated dynamic reconfiguration
Solution Approach 2:
The flight management system serves multiple functions: it manages the approach path, tracks target position, monitors wind conditions, and automatically integrates all these data streams to adjust the flight path. This multi-functionality allows a single system to handle both the simplicity of fixed-path control and the complexity of adaptive responses without requiring separate dedicated systems for each function
Data Source
AI summary
A method and a system for establishing an approach to hover path for a rotorcraft enabling it to approach a mobile target and to hover relative to the target. An initial approach to hover path is firstly defined from measurements of the characteristics of the respective routes of the target and of the rotorcraft and also of the wind conditions to which the rotorcraft is subjected. During the flight of the rotorcraft, a required approach to hover path is determined in real time as a function of potential variations in the characteristics of the target, of the rotorcraft, and of the wind. Thereafter, the initial path is updated by the required path where necessary in order to guarantee safety of the approach to hover path for the rotorcraft relative to the target.