Ground operations and imminent landing runway selection

• US 20050192738A1
• Filed: 12/10/2004
• Published: 09/01/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 05/15/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Honeywell International Inc.
• Original Assignee: Honeywell International Inc.
• Inventors: Poe, John J., Gremmert, Scott R., Khatwa, Ratan, Ishihara, Yasuo, Corcoran, James J. III, Conner, Kevin J.
• Granted Patent: US 7,363,145 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/120
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/15 Aircraft landing systems
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/51 Relative positioning
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/916 Airport surface monitoring [ASDE]
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0013 with a ground station
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/025 Navigation or guidance aids radar or analogous systems specially adapted for landing purposes G01S13/913
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/065 Navigation or guidance aids, e.g. for taxiing or rolling

Abstract

A method for locating aircraft with respect to airport runways and taxiways, generating and annunciating situational awareness advisories as a function of aircraft state parameters relative to a determination of the aircraft location.

Claims

1-47. -47. (canceled)

48. An imminent landing situational awareness computer program residing on a computer usable storage medium, the computer program comprising:

computer-readable program code means for receiving one or more signals representative of current aircraft phase of flight, altitude rate, and height above runway information; and

computer-readable program code means for generating at periodic intervals flare callouts as a function of the current aircraft phase of flight, altitude rate, and height above runway information, including;

computer-readable program code means for determining that the installation aircraft is currently configured in a landing phase of flight;

computer-readable program code means for determining that the installation aircraft is not currently climbing at a altitude rate in excess of a threshold altitude rate;

computer-readable program code means for as a function of height above Funway determining that the installation aircraft has not currently touched-down; and

computer-readable program code means for generating at periodic intervals flare callouts that report the current height above the runway.

50. The computer program of claim 48 wherein the

computer-readable program code means for determining that the installation aircraft is currently in a landing phase of flight further comprises computer-readable program code means for determining that the aircraft height above the runway is less than a first maximum height above the runway for a first minimum time period;

and

computer-readable program code means for determining that the aircraft height above the runway is less than a second maximum height above the runway less than the first maximum height for a second minimum time period.

51. The computer program of claim 50 wherein the second minimum time period further comprises a time period that is less than the first minimum time period.

49. (cancelled)

52. The computer program of claim 49 wherein the computer-readable program code means for determining that the installation aircraft has not currently touched-down further comprises computer-readable program code means for determining that the aircraft height above runway is greater than a maximum threshold.

53. The computer program of claim 49, further comprising computer-readable program code means for suppressing the periodic flare callouts.

54. The computer program of claim 53 wherein the computer-readable program code means for suppressing the periodic flare callouts further comprises computer-readable program code means for determining that a ground speed of the installation aircraft is reduced below a minimum threshold ground speed.

55. The computer program of claim 49, further comprising computer-readable program code means for determining that additional conditions are satisfied, and thereafter generating runway distance remaining callouts.

56. The computer program of claim 55 wherein the computer-readable program code means for determining that additional conditions are satisfied further comprises computer-readable program code means for determining at intervals a runway distance remaining.

57. The computer program of claim 56 wherein the computer-readable program code means for determining the runway distance remaining further comprises:

computer-readable program code means for retrieving runway information from a database of stored runway information; and

computer-readable program code means for computing the aircraft position relative to the end of the runway.

58. The computer program of claim 57, further comprising computer-readable program code means for suppressing the remaining runway distance advisories prior to the installation aircraft passing a midway point of the runway while traveling toward the end of the runway.

59. A computer program product, comprising:

a computer-usable medium having computer-readable code embodied therein for configuring a computer processor, the computer program product comprising;

computer-readable code configured to cause a computer processor to receive at intervals samples of one or more instrument signals reporting updated phase of flight and height above runway information relative to an aircraft; and

computer-readable code configured to cause a computer processor to generate at intervals and as a function of the updated phase of flight and height above runway information a series of callouts for annunciation on a cockpit audio device, the series of callouts reporting the updated height above the runway.

60. The computer program product claim 59 wherein the computer-readable code configured to cause a computer processor to receive samples the instrument signals further comprises computer-readable code configured to cause a computer processor to receive at intervals samples of one or more instrument signals reporting updated altitude rate information relative to the aircraft.

61. The computer program product claim 60, further comprising computer-readable code configured to cause a computer processor to suppress generation of the callouts as a function of the updated altitude rate relative to a maximum threshold altitude rate.

62. The computer program product claim 60, further comprising

computer-readable program code configured to cause a computer processor to determine that the aircraft height above the runway is less than a first threshold height above the runway for more than a first threshold time period;

and

computer-readable program code configured to cause a computer processor to determine that the aircraft height above the runway is less than a second threshold height above the runway less than the first threshold height for more than a second threshold time period.

63. The computer program product claim 62 wherein the second threshold time period further comprises a threshold time period that is less than the first threshold time period.

64. The computer program product claim 59, further comprising computer-readable program code configured to cause a computer processor to suppress the periodic flare callouts as a function of determining that one of a plurality of conditions is TRUE, the conditions including:

the aircraft ground speed is reduced below a threshold ground speed, the aircraft altitude rate exceeds a threshold altitude rate, and the aircraft altitude is reduced below a threshold altitude.

65. The computer program product claim 59 wherein the computer-readable code configured to cause a computer processor to receive samples the instrument signals further comprises computer-readable code configured to cause a computer processor to receive at intervals samples of one or more instrument signals reporting updated aircraft position information;

and further comprising;

computer-readable program code configured to cause a computer processor to retrieve survey information about a runway as a function of the updated aircraft position information;

computer-readable program code configured to cause a computer processor to compute a length of the runway remaining as a function of the updated aircraft position information; and

readable program code configured to cause a computer processor to generate as a callout for annunciation on a cockpit audio device, the callout reporting the length of the runway remaining.

66. The computer program product claim 65 wherein the computer-readable code configured to cause a computer processor to generate the callout reporting the length of the runway remaining further comprises computer-readable code configured to cause a computer processor to suppress the callout reporting the length of the runway remaining when the length of the runway remaining is greater than one-half of an overall runway length.

67. The computer program product claim 59, further comprising a computer processor structured to receive and operate the computer-readable code.

68. An imminent landing situational awareness apparatus, comprising:

a processor structured for receiving samples of one or more signals reporting phase of flight data and altitude above ground level data relative to an aircraft having the processor installed thereon; and

one or more algorithms executable by the processor for generating as a function of phase of flight and altitude above ground level data one or more flare callouts for annunciation on a cockpit audio device.

69. The apparatus of claim 68 wherein the one or more algorithms for generating flare callouts further comprises one or more algorithms for determining that the current phase of flight further comprises a landing phase of flight.

70. The apparatus of claim 69 wherein the one or more algorithms for determining a current landing phase of flight further comprises one or more algorithms for determining that the aircraft height above the runway is less than a first threshold height above the runway for more than a first threshold time period, and for determining that the aircraft height above the runway is less than a second threshold height above the runway less than the first threshold height for more than a second threshold time period.

71. The apparatus of claim 68, further comprising one or more algorithms executable by the processor for suppressing the flare callouts.

72. The apparatus of claim 71 wherein the one or more algorithms executable by the processor for suppressing the flare callouts further comprises one or more algorithms for suppressing the flare callouts as a function of determining that an aircraft ground speed is reduced below a threshold ground speed.

73. The apparatus of claim 71 wherein the one or more algorithms executable by the processor for suppressing the flare callouts further comprises one or more algorithms for suppressing the flare callouts as a function of determining that the aircraft is executing a go-around.

74. The apparatus of claim 73 wherein the one or more algorithms for suppressing the flare callouts as a function of determining that the aircraft is executing a go-around further comprises one or more algorithms for determining that an aircraft altitude rate exceeds a threshold altitude rate.

75. The apparatus of claim 71 wherein the one or more algorithms executable by the processor for suppressing the flare callouts further comprises one or more algorithms for determining that the aircraft is on the ground.

76. The apparatus of claim 75 wherein the one or more algorithms for determining that the aircraft is on the ground further comprises one or more algorithms for determining that the aircraft altitude is reduced below a threshold altitude.

77. The apparatus of claim 68 wherein the processor is further structured for receiving samples of one or more signals reporting aircraft position and orientation data;

and further comprising;

a searchable database of runway survey data;

one or more algorithms for retrieving runway survey data from the database as a function of the aircraft position data; and

one or more algorithms for generating a one or more remaining runway distance advisories as a function of the aircraft position data relative to the retrieved runway survey data.

78. The apparatus of claim 77 wherein the one or more algorithms for generating the one or more remaining runway distance advisories as a function of the aircraft position data relative to the retrieved runway survey data further comprises one or more algorithms for suppressing the one or more remaining runway distance advisories as a function of a midpoint of the runway being situated between the aircraft and an end of the runway determined as a function of the aircraft orientation.

79. The apparatus of claim 77 wherein the one or more algorithms for generating a one or more remaining runway distance advisories further comprises one or more algorithms for generating the remaining runway distance advisories for one or more of 3000, 2000, 1000, and 500 feet of remaining runway length.