RTA Compliance Display Using Clock-Style Graphic Overlay
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current vehicle navigation systems, particularly in aircraft, face challenges in displaying Required Time of Arrival (RTA) compliance in a manner that is easily readable and interpretable by pilots, as numeric displays outside the pilot's forward field of view require increased effort and are not ergonomically convenient.
Innovation Solution
A graphic display system is implemented within the pilot's forward field of view, using a 'clock' type display that graphically represents current estimated time of arrival, RTA tolerance, fastest and slowest speed limits, and uncertainty, integrated into the primary flight display, allowing for real-time monitoring of RTA compliance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of information
If numeric displays are used for RTA compliance monitoring, then information can be presented in a traditional format, but the display becomes difficult to read and interpret without increased pilot effort
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces traditional numeric display mechanisms with a graphical representation system that uses visual metaphors (clock face, hands, zones) to convey RTA compliance information. This substitution transforms the mechanical/numeric display system into a graphical visualization system that is more intuitively readable and requires less cognitive effort from pilots to interpret RTA status.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the parameter representation from numeric values to graphical parameters including angular position of clock hands, color-coded zones (green/yellow/red), and visual distance from center. These parameter transformations make the information more perceptible and easier to interpret at a glance, directly addressing the readability issue.
2Ease of manufacture
If numeric displays are placed outside the pilot's forward field of view, then the display can be positioned in conventional locations, but the pilot must increase effort to read and interpret the information
Solution Approach 1:
The patent integrates the RTA display into the Primary Flight Display (PFD) overlay, utilizing the vertical dimension and graphical space already present in the pilot's forward field of view. By embedding the clock-style RTA indicator within the existing PFD graphical framework, the system eliminates the need for separate numeric displays positioned outside the forward field, thereby maintaining conventional manufacturing while dramatically reducing pilot reading effort.
3Ease of operation
If a graphical display system is implemented within the pilot's forward field of view, then RTA compliance becomes easier to monitor, but the display system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent leverages the existing PFD graphical infrastructure and overlay capabilities to implement the RTA display function. By utilizing the universal graphical display architecture already present in modern flight decks, the system avoids creating a completely new complex device. Instead, it adapts and extends existing multi-functional display capabilities to handle RTA compliance visualization, thereby reducing overall system complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The RTA clock display is nested within the existing PFD graphical framework, with the clock hands and zones overlaid on top of the primary flight information. This nesting approach allows the RTA monitoring function to be embedded within the already-complex PFD system without requiring separate independent systems, thereby managing complexity through hierarchical integration rather than additive complexity.
Data Source
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AI summary
A method and system for a required time of arrival (RTA) performance graphic display is provided. The system includes a processor programmed to receive a required time of arrival and a first visual display communicatively coupled to the processor. The first visual display includes an RTA graphic having a dial substantially symmetric about an axis, a first marker indicative of a current estimated time of arrival (ETA) at a predetermined waypoint, a second marker indicative of a value of the RTA relative to the current ETA value and a selected RTA time tolerance value, a first indication representing a first time the vehicle can attain the predetermined waypoint, a second indication representing a last time the vehicle can attain the predetermined waypoint, a third indication representing the uncertainty of the ETA in an early arrival direction, and a fourth indication representing the uncertainty of the ETA in a late arrival direction.