Unified Flight Control Mapping for Tilt-Thrust Transitions
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Solution Overview
Problem
Tilt thrust aircraft present control challenges due to changing forces and moments during transitions between hover and airplane flight regimes, leading to high cognitive workloads for pilots, especially in urban air mobility contexts with frequent short flights and transition periods.
Innovation Solution
A unified command system and method that enables independent control of aircraft operations across flight regimes by translating user inputs into consistent control outputs, decoupling control axes, and automatically determining effector states to reduce cognitive workload and prevent modal confusion.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If manual control over tilt angle and thrust is maintained, then pilot control authority is preserved, but cognitive workload increases significantly during regime transitions
Solution Approach 1:
A command model acts as an intermediary between the pilot and the complex effector system. The command model translates simple pilot inputs (collective, cyclic, pedal) into appropriate effector commands based on the current flight regime, preserving pilot authority while filtering out complexity during transitions between hover and airplane regimes
2Device complexity
If traditional control methods are used, then system simplicity is maintained, but pilot cognitive workload becomes unmanageable during frequent transitions
Solution Approach 1:
The control system dynamically adapts its behavior based on the current flight regime. During hover, the command model maps pilot inputs to hover-appropriate effector commands; during airplane flight, it transitions to airplane-appropriate mappings. This dynamic adaptation allows the system to remain simple in each regime while handling complex transitions automatically
3Measurement precision
If effector states are directly controlled, then precise control is achieved, but modal confusion increases during regime transitions
Solution Approach 1:
The command model changes its internal parameters and mapping relationships based on the detected flight regime. When transitioning from hover to airplane flight, the command model adjusts how it interprets pilot inputs and maps them to effector commands, ensuring consistent and intuitive control behavior across different flight modes without causing modal confusion
Data Source
AI summary
The unified command system and/or method includes an input mechanism, a flight processor that receives input from the input mechanism and translates the input into control output, and effectors that are actuated according to the control output. The system can optionally include: one or more sensors, a vehicle navigation system which determines a vehicle state and/or flight regime based on data from the one or more sensors, and a vehicle guidance system which determines a flightpath for the aircraft.