Flight Management Display With Weather Uplink for Runway Visibility
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing aircraft systems struggle to accurately identify runway structures and lighting in low visibility conditions, and manual entry of weather data into flight management systems can lead to incorrect calculations for takeoff and landing parameters.
Innovation Solution
A flight management system that receives weather data from remote sources, calculates flight parameters based on this data, and provides real-time updates to the pilot through enhanced vision systems using radar reflectors and weather radar to enhance runway structure detection and lighting visibility, even in low visibility conditions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If manual entry of weather data is used, then the system is simple to operate, but incorrect information may be entered leading to inaccurate flight parameter calculations
Solution Approach 1:
The FMS automatically requests and receives weather data from remote sources via communications system, eliminating the need for pilot manual entry. The system serves itself by autonomously acquiring, validating, and utilizing weather information for flight parameter calculations.
Solution Approach 2:
The manual mechanical process of pilot data entry is replaced with an automated electronic communications system that retrieves weather data digitally from remote sources, substituting human action with automated electronic data exchange.
2Illumination intensity
If passive sensors are used, then higher quality video imagery is provided, but required visual references cannot be identified in heavy fog
Solution Approach 1:
The system merges passive sensor data (FLIR, visible light cameras) with active sensing system data (weather radar, millimeter wavelength radar) to create a composite enhanced vision system that overcomes the limitations of either system alone in low visibility conditions.
Solution Approach 2:
The enhanced vision system integrates multiple sensing modalities that can operate across different weather conditions - passive sensors provide high-quality imagery in clear conditions, while active sensing systems maintain detection capability in heavy fog and low visibility, making the system universally effective across all conditions.
3Difficulty of detecting and measuring
If active sensing systems are used, then detection capability in low visibility is improved, but accurate identification of runway structures and positions becomes difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The system combines active sensing data with passive sensor imagery and synthetic vision system data to compensate for the reduced precision of active sensing in identifying runway structures, creating a multi-source fusion that restores measurement accuracy.
Solution Approach 2:
The enhanced vision system acts as an intermediary processing layer that receives raw data from active sensing systems, processes and enhances it through multiple algorithms, and presents improved runway structure identification to the pilot, mediating between the imperfect sensor output and the required precision.
4Reliability
If enhanced vision systems are implemented, then situational awareness is improved, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system integrates multiple sensing systems that serve multiple functions - weather radar provides both weather detection and runway structure detection, FLIR provides thermal imaging and enhanced night vision, creating a multi-functional system that improves situational awareness without proportionally increasing complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The enhanced vision system merges multiple data streams and processing functions into a unified display system that presents integrated situational awareness information to the pilot, consolidating complexity into a single coherent interface rather than separate independent systems.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables accurate detection of runway structures and lighting in low visibility conditions, reduces manual errors in weather data entry, and provides real-time flight parameter adjustments for safe takeoff and landing operations.
Implementation Method 1
Active sensing systems, such as, millimeter wavelength (MMW) (e.g., 94 GHz) and weather radar systems (e.g., X-band or C-band), transmit electromagnetic energy into the environment and receive return electromagnetic energy reflected from the environment.
Implementation Method 2
transmit electromagnetic energy into the environment and receive return electromagnetic energy reflected from the environment
Implementation Method 3
A typical passive sensor, such as, a forward looking infrared (FLIR) camera or visible light spectrum camera, receives electromagnetic energy from the environment and outputs data that may be used by the system to generate video images
Data Source
AI summary
A flight management system includes a communications system configured to receive weather data from a remote source, a display system configured to generate an output for a flight display of an aircraft, and at least one processor with a non-transitory processor-readable medium storing processor-executable code. The output includes weather information based on the received weather data. The processor-executable code causes the processor to receive a user input from a user interface element of the aircraft where the user input requests updated weather information. The processor-executable code causes the processor to retrieve, via the communications system and in response to the user input, updated weather data from the remote source; calculate a departure or arrival performance flight parameter based at least in part on the updated weather data; and provide, via the display system, an output for the flight display of the aircraft where the output includes the flight parameter.