Resilient enhancement of trajectory-based operations in aviation

• US 10,074,283 B1
• Filed: 03/09/2017
• Issued: 09/11/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 03/09/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: The Boeing Co.
• Original Assignee: The Boeing Co.
• Inventors: de Oliveira, Italo Romani, Fregnani, Jose A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Zanelli, Michael J
• Application Number:
  US15/454,524
• Publication Number:
  US 20180261103A1
• Time in Patent Office: 551 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0631 Resource planning, allocation, distributing or scheduling for enterprises or organisations
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/08 Auctions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/40 Business processes related to the transportation industry shipping G06Q10/083
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0008 with other aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0013 with a ground station
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0026 located on the ground
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0034 Assembly of a flight plan
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0039 Modification of a flight plan
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0043 Traffic management of multiple aircrafts from the ground G08G5/003 takes precedence; data processing specially designed for resource management, e.g. scheduling or allocating time, human or machine resources G06Q10/06
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/006 in accordance with predefined flight zones, e.g. to avoid prohibited zones
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0082 for monitoring traffic from a ground station radar or analogous systems specially adapted for traffic control G01S13/91
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0091 for monitoring atmospheric conditions radar or analogous systems specially adapted for meteorological use G01S13/95; meteorology G01W
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/025 Navigation or guidance aids radar or analogous systems specially adapted for landing purposes G01S13/913

Abstract

An example method includes determining a probable flight trajectory for each respective flight; modifying the probable flight trajectory based on constraints imposed by Air Traffic Controller (ATC) rules to generate a modified flight trajectory; assigning respective arrival slots for modified flight trajectories; receiving trajectory exchange information indicating that two aircraft operators have exchanged two respective flight trajectories associated with two respective flights operated by the two aircraft operators; based on the trajectory exchange information, modifying: (i) the two respective flight trajectories, and (ii) respective arrival slots assigned to the two respective flight trajectories; and transmitting, by the computing device, the modified two respective flight trajectories to respective aircraft assigned to perform the two respective flights.

Claims

1. A method for determining flight trajectories for respective flights, the method comprising:

determining, by a computing device, a probable flight trajectory for each respective flight based on (i) information indicative of weather conditions, (ii) information indicative of airspace and airport constraints, (iii) information indicative of performance parameters of a respective aircraft assigned to perform the respective flight, and (iv) information indicative of a starting point and an ending point of the respective flight;

modifying, by the computing device, the probable flight trajectory based on constraints imposed by Air Traffic Controller (ATC) rules to generate a modified flight trajectory;

assigning, by the computing device, respective arrival slots for modified flight trajectories, wherein each arrival slot indicates a time window of arrival at the ending point of the respective flight;

receiving, at the computing device, trajectory exchange information indicating that two aircraft operators have exchanged two respective flight trajectories associated with two respective flights operated by the two aircraft operators;

based on the trajectory exchange information, modifying, by the computing device, (i) the two respective flight trajectories, and (ii) respective arrival slots assigned to the two respective flight trajectories; and

transmitting, by the computing device, the modified two respective flight trajectories to respective flight management computing devices of respective aircraft to execute the modified two respective flight trajectories.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the trajectory exchange information indicates a change in aircraft models of aircraft assigned to perform the two respective flights, wherein modifying the two respective flight trajectories is based on a change in performance parameters corresponding to the change in aircraft models.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining that the probable flight trajectory approaches another flight trajectory at a given spatial-temporal point in airspace such that a distance therebetween is less than a safe distance imposed by the ATC rules, wherein modifying the probable flight trajectory comprises;

generating the modified flight trajectory such that the distance meets the constraints imposed by the ATC rules.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the computing device has access to a database including information indicating assumptions related to how an ATC reacts to different flight conditions, and wherein determining the probable flight trajectory is further based on the information indicating the assumptions.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the computing device has access to a database comprising information indicating flight parameters including position, speed, acceleration, altitude, and heading direction of aircraft traversing an airspace, and wherein determining the probable flight trajectory is further based on the information indicating the flight parameters.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

generating, by the computing device, a mesh of flight trajectories for a geographic region using modified flight trajectories for the respective flights; and

based on the trajectory exchange information, modifying at least a portion of the mesh of flight trajectories.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

generating a scenario tree predicting various scenarios for each respective flight based on an estimation of future flight condition changes within a particular period of time during flight, wherein determining the probable flight trajectory for each respective flight comprises;

determining a respective probable flight trajectory for each branch of the scenario tree.

8. A non-transitory computer readable medium having stored therein instructions that, in response to execution by a computing device, cause the computing device to perform operations to determine flight trajectories for respective flights, the operations comprising:

determining a probable flight trajectory for each respective flight based on (i) information indicative of weather conditions, (ii) information indicative of airspace and airport constraints, (iii) information indicative of performance parameters of a respective aircraft assigned to perform the respective flight, and (iv) information indicative of a starting point and an ending point of the respective flight;

modifying the probable flight trajectory based on constraints imposed by Air Traffic Controller (ATC) rules to generate a modified flight trajectory;

assigning respective arrival slots for modified flight trajectories, wherein each arrival slot indicates a time window of arrival at the ending point of the respective flight;

receiving trajectory exchange information indicating that two aircraft operators have exchanged two respective flight trajectories associated with two respective flights operated by the two aircraft operators;

based on the trajectory exchange information, modifying;

(i) the two respective flight trajectories, and (ii) respective arrival slots assigned to the two respective flight trajectories; and

transmitting the modified two respective flight trajectories to respective flight management computing devices of respective aircraft to execute the modified two respective flight trajectories.

9. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 8, wherein the trajectory exchange information indicates a change in aircraft models of aircraft assigned to perform the two respective flights, wherein modifying the two respective flight trajectories is based on a change in performance parameters corresponding to the change in aircraft models.

10. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 8, wherein the operations further comprise:

determining that the probable flight trajectory approaches another flight trajectory at a given spatial-temporal point in airspace such that a distance therebetween is less than a safe distance imposed by the ATC rules, wherein modifying the probable flight trajectory comprises;

generating the modified flight trajectory such that the distance meets the constraints imposed by the ATC rules.

11. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 8, wherein the computing device has access to a database including information indicating assumptions related to how an ATC reacts to different flight conditions, and wherein determining the probable flight trajectory is further based on the information indicating the assumptions.

12. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 8, wherein the computing device has access to a database comprising information indicating flight parameters including position, speed, acceleration, altitude, and heading direction of aircraft traversing an airspace, and wherein determining the probable flight trajectory is further based on the information indicating the flight parameters.

13. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 8, wherein the operations further comprise:

generating a mesh of flight trajectories for a geographic region using modified flight trajectories for the respective flights; and

based on the trajectory exchange information, modifying at least a portion of the mesh of flight trajectories.

14. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 8, wherein the operations further comprise:

generating a scenario tree predicting various scenarios for each respective flight based on an estimation of future flight condition changes within a particular period of time during flight, wherein determining the probable flight trajectory for each respective flight comprises;

determining a respective probable flight trajectory for each branch of the scenario tree.

15. A system for determining flight trajectories for respective flights, comprising:

a flight management computing device coupled to a first aircraft and having one or more processors configured to send thrust and attitude commands for the first aircraft to follow an assigned flight trajectory;

one or more databases including information indicative of (i) weather conditions, (ii) airspace and airport constraints, and (iii) performance parameters of a respective aircraft assigned to perform a respective flight; and

a trajectory management module that is ground-based and in communication with the one or more databases and in communication with the flight management computing device via an air-ground data link, wherein the trajectory management module comprises;

one or more processors, and

memory storing thereon instructions, that when executed by the one or more processors of the trajectory management module, cause the trajectory management module to perform operations comprising;

determining a probable flight trajectory for each respective flight based on the information of the one or more databases and information indicative of a starting point and an ending point of the respective flight,

modifying the probable flight trajectory based on constraints imposed by Air Traffic Controller (ATC) rules to generate a modified flight trajectory,

assigning respective arrival slots for modified flight trajectories, wherein each arrival slot indicates a time window of arrival at the ending point of the respective flight,

receiving trajectory exchange information indicating that a first aircraft operator of the first aircraft and a second aircraft operator of a second aircraft have exchanged two respective flight trajectories associated with the first and second aircraft,

based on the trajectory exchange information, modifying;

(i) the two respective flight trajectories, and (ii) respective arrival slots assigned to the two respective flight trajectories, and

transmitting a respective flight trajectory of the two respective flight trajectories to the flight management computing device to execute the respective flight trajectory by the first aircraft.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the trajectory exchange information indicates that an aircraft model of the first aircraft is different from a respective aircraft model of the second aircraft, wherein modifying the two respective flight trajectories is based on a change in performance parameters corresponding to difference in aircraft models between the first and second aircraft.

17. The system of claim 15, wherein the operations further comprise:

determining that the probable flight trajectory approaches another flight trajectory at a given spatial-temporal point in airspace such that a distance therebetween is less than a safe distance imposed by the ATC rules, wherein modifying the probable flight trajectory comprises;

generating the modified flight trajectory such that the distance meets the constraints imposed by the ATC rules.

18. The system of claim 15, wherein the one or more databases further include information indicating assumptions related to how an ATC reacts to different flight conditions, and wherein determining the probable flight trajectory is further based on the information indicating the assumptions.

19. The system of claim 15, wherein the one or more databases further include information indicating flight parameters including position, speed, acceleration, altitude, and heading direction of aircraft traversing an airspace, and wherein determining the probable flight trajectory is further based on the information indicating the flight parameters.

20. The system of claim 15, wherein the operations further comprise:

generating a mesh of flight trajectories for a geographic region using modified flight trajectories for the respective flights; and

based on the trajectory exchange information, modifying at least a portion of the mesh of flight trajectories.