System and method for enhancing computer-generated images of terrain on aircraft displays

• US 20070005199A1
• Filed: 06/29/2005
• Published: 01/04/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 06/29/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Honeywell International Inc.
• Original Assignee: Honeywell International Inc.
• Inventors: He, Gang
• Granted Patent: US 8,032,265 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/16
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 23/00 Combined instruments indicating more than one navigational value, e.g. for aircraft; Combined measuring devices for measuring two or more variables of movement, e.g. distance, speed or acceleration

Abstract

A system and method are disclosed for enhancing the visibility and ensuring the correctness of terrain and navigation information on aircraft displays, such as, for example, continuous, three-dimensional perspective view aircraft displays conformal to the visual environment. More specifically, an aircraft display system is disclosed that includes a processing unit, a navigation system, a database for storing high resolution terrain data, a graphics display generator, and a visual display. One or more independent, higher precision databases with localized position data, such as navigation data or position data is onboard. Also, one or more onboard vision sensor systems associated with the navigation system provides real-time spatial position data for display, and one or more data links is available to receive precision spatial position data from ground-based stations. Essentially, before terrain and navigational objects (e.g., runways) are displayed, a real-time correction and augmentation of the terrain data is performed for those regions that are relevant and/or critical to flight operations, in order to ensure that the correct terrain data is displayed with the highest possible integrity. These corrections and augmentations performed are based upon higher precision, but localized onboard data, such as navigational object data, sensor data, or up-linked data from ground stations. Whenever discrepancies exist, terrain data having a lower integrity can be corrected in real-time using data from a source having higher integrity data. A predictive data loading approach is used, which substantially reduces computational workload and thus enables the processing unit to perform such augmentation and correction operations in real-time.

Claims

1. A system for enhancing the visibility and ensuring the correctness of terrain information on a visual display, comprising:

a data storage unit, said data storage unit operable to store a set of terrain data;

a position data source, said position data source operable to determine at least one of a current position, heading and speed of an aircraft, and produce a set of spatial position data; and

a processing unit coupled to said data storage unit and said position data source, said processing unit operable to;

receive at least one of said current position, heading and speed and an attitude of said aircraft;

load a patch of terrain data, said patch of terrain data associated with said at least one of said current position, heading and speed and an attitude of said aircraft, and said patch of terrain data formed as a subset of said set of terrain data;

compare said patch of terrain data with said set of spatial position data; and

if an accuracy value associated with said set of spatial position data is greater than an accuracy value associated with said patch of terrain data, augment said patch of terrain data with said set of spatial position data.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the operation to augment said patch of terrain data with said set of spatial position data comprises an operation to substitute at least a portion of said set of spatial position data for at least a portion of said patch of terrain data.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein said processing unit is further operable to:

generate a first plurality of control signals for a visual display, said first plurality of control signals representing said augmented patch of terrain data for said visual display.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein said set of spatial position data is associated with said at least one of said current position, heading and speed and an attitude of an aircraft.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein said set of spatial position data comprises high precision data.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein said set of spatial position data comprises a set of independent spatial position data including at least one of a subset of said set of terrain data or all of said set of terrain data.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein said processing unit is further operable to:

limit said patch of terrain data so as to minimize a processing duration for verifying an integrity value associated with said patch of terrain data;

verify said integrity value for said limited patch of terrain data; and

load said limited patch of terrain data.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein said processing unit is further operable to:

generate an alert message for display, if said augmented patch of terrain data is substantially different than said patch of terrain data.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein said set of terrain data comprises high resolution terrain data.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein said set of spatial position data comprises high accuracy data.

11. The system of claim 1, wherein said set of spatial position data comprises high priority data.

12. The system of claim 1, wherein said set of spatial position data comprises real-time data.

13. The system of claim 1, wherein said set of spatial position data comprises real-time position data including at least one of a subset of said set of terrain data and all of said set of terrain data.

14. The system of claim 1, wherein said set of terrain data comprises data stored in a terrain database.

15. The system of claim 1, wherein said set of spatial position data comprises a set of independent three-dimensional spatial position data.

16. The system of claim 1, wherein said set of spatial position data comprises high accuracy terrain data including at least one of a subset of said set of terrain data and all of said set of terrain data.

17. The system of claim 1, wherein said set of spatial position data comprises high accuracy terrain data that is independent of said set of terrain data, said set of spatial position data including at least one of a portion of a geographic area defined by said set of terrain data or all of said geographic area defined by said set of terrain data.

18. The system of claim 1, wherein said set of spatial position data comprises high priority terrain data including at least one of a subset of said set of terrain data and all of said set of terrain data.

19. The system of claim 1, wherein said set of spatial position data comprises high priority terrain data that is independent of said set of terrain data, said set of spatial position data including at least one of a portion of a geographic area defined by said set of terrain data or all of said geographic area defined by said set of terrain data.

20. The system of claim 1, wherein said set of spatial position data comprises spatial position information derived from a plurality of data points stored in a navigational database.

21. The system of claim 1, wherein said set of spatial position data comprises spatial position information derived from a ground-based data-link, said spatial position information characterizing at least one three-dimensional spatial location for at least one data point of interest.

22. The system of claim 1, wherein said set of spatial position data comprises spatial position information derived from at least one onboard real-time sensor.

23. The system of claim 1, wherein said set of spatial position data further comprises at least one spatial position of interest, said at least one spatial position of interest including data representing at least one of a navigation waypoint and a runway.

24. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor operation to augment said patch of terrain data with said set of spatial position data comprises a data correction operation, said data correction operation further comprising an operation to compare a plurality of runway end data points for a targeted runway region from a navigational database with said set of terrain data, and correct said set of terrain data with said plurality of runway end data points.

25. The system of claim 1, wherein said visual display comprises a Primary Flight Display.

26. The system of claim 1, wherein said visual display comprises a Heads-Down Display.

27. The system of claim 1, wherein said visual display comprises a Heads-Up Display.

28. A display system for enhancing a visibility and ensuring a correctness of terrain and navigational target information, comprising:

means for storing a set of terrain data;

means for determining at least one of a current position, heading and speed of an aircraft, and producing a set of spatial position data;

means for receiving said at least one of a current position, heading and speed of said aircraft;

means for loading a patch of terrain data coupled to said means for storing, said patch of terrain data associated with said at least one of a current position, heading and speed of said aircraft, and said patch of terrain data formed as a subset of said set of terrain data;

means for comparing said patch of terrain data with said set of spatial position data;

means for augmenting said patch of terrain data with said set of spatial position data if an accuracy value associated with said set of spatial position data is greater than an accuracy value associated with said patch of terrain data; and

means for generating a first plurality of control signals for a visual display, said first plurality of control signals representing said augmented patch of terrain data for said visual display.

29. The system of claim 28, wherein said means for augmenting said patch of terrain data with said set of spatial position data further comprises means for substituting at least a portion of said set of spatial position data for at least a portion of said patch of terrain data.

30. The system of claim 28, further comprising:

means for limiting said patch of terrain data so as to minimize a processing duration for verifying an integrity value associated with said patch of terrain data, verifying said integrity value for said limited patch of terrain data, and loading said limited patch of terrain data.

31. The system of claim 28, further comprising:

means for generating an alert message for display, if said augmented patch of terrain data is substantially different than said patch of terrain data.

32. The system of claim 28, wherein said set of terrain data comprises high resolution terrain data.

33. The system of claim 28, wherein said set of spatial position data comprises high accuracy data.

34. The system of claim 28, wherein said set of spatial position data comprises high priority data.

35. The system of claim 28, wherein said set of spatial position data comprises real-time data.

36. The system of claim 28, wherein said set of terrain data comprises data stored in a terrain database.

37. A method for enhancing the visibility and ensuring the accuracy of terrain information on a visual display, comprising the steps of:

storing a set of terrain data;

determining at least one of a current position, heading and speed of an aircraft;

producing a set of spatial position data;

loading a patch of terrain data, said patch of terrain data associated with said at least one of a current position, heading and speed of said aircraft, and said patch of terrain data formed as a subset of said set of terrain data;

comparing said patch of terrain data with said set of spatial position data; and

augmenting said patch of terrain data with said set of spatial position data, if an accuracy value associated with said set of spatial position data is greater than an accuracy value associated with said patch of terrain data.

38. The method of claim 37, wherein the step of augmenting said patch of terrain data with said set of spatial position data further comprises substituting at least a portion of said set of spatial position data for at least a portion of said patch of terrain data.

39. The method of claim 37, further comprising the step of generating a first plurality of control signals for a visual display if said accuracy value associated with said set of spatial position data is greater than said accuracy value associated with said patch of terrain data, said first plurality of control signals representing said augmented patch of terrain data for said visual display.

40. The method of claim 37, further comprising the steps of:

limiting said patch of terrain data;

minimizing a processing duration for verifying an integrity value associated with said patch of terrain data;

verifying said integrity value for said limited patch of data; and

loading said limited patch of terrain data.

41. The method of claim 37, further comprising the steps of:

generating an alert message for display, if said augmented patch of terrain data is substantially different than said patch of terrain data.

42. 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;

a first executable computer-readable code configured to cause a computer processor to receive said at least one of a current position, heading and speed of an aircraft;

a second executable computer-readable code configured to cause a computer processor to load a patch of terrain data, said patch of terrain data associated with said at least one of a current position, heading and speed of said aircraft, and said patch of terrain data formed as a subset of said set of terrain data;

a third executable computer-readable code configured to cause a computer processor to compare said patch of terrain data with a set of spatial position data; and

a fourth executable computer-readable code configured to cause a computer processor to augment said patch of terrain data with said set of spatial position data, if an accuracy value associated with said set of spatial position data is greater than an accuracy value associated with said patch of terrain data.

43. The computer program product of claim 42, wherein the operation to augment said patch of terrain data with said set of spatial position data further comprises an operation to substitute at least a portion of said set of spatial position data for at least a portion of said patch of terrain data.

44. The computer program product of claim 42, further comprising;

a fifth executable computer-readable code configured to cause a computer processor to generate a first plurality of control signals for a visual display if said accuracy value associated with said set of spatial position data is greater than said accuracy value associated with said patch of terrain data, said first plurality of control signals representing said augmented patch of terrain data for said visual display.

45. The computer program product of claim 42, further comprising:

a sixth executable computer-readable code configured to cause a computer processor to limit said patch of terrain data so as to minimize a processing duration for verifying an integrity value associated with said patch of terrain data;

a seventh executable computer-readable code configured to cause a computer processor to verify said integrity value for said limited patch of terrain data; and

an eighth executable computer-readable code configured to cause a computer processor to load said limited patch of terrain data.

46. The computer program product of claim 42, further comprising:

a ninth executable computer-readable code configured to cause a computer processor to generate an alert message for display, if said augmented patch of terrain data is substantially different than said patch of terrain data.