DISPLAY DEFINITIONS INTERFACE FOR AVIONICS COMMUNICATIONS SYSTEMS

• US 20090157703A1
• Filed: 12/18/2007
• Published: 06/18/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 12/18/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Honeywell International Inc.
• Original Assignee: Honeywell International Inc.
• Inventors: Hasenyager, Mark, Shavshin-Strong, Tatyana, Buckley, Diane, Henninger, Mark, Earnest, Marcus, Bibby, David
• Granted Patent: US 8,209,351 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2380/12 Avionics applications
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 5/14 Display of multiple viewports

Abstract

A method for displaying data in an avionics communications system is disclosed. The method generates an ARINC 661 definition file and a user database from one or more user-defined inputs for a communications management function of an aircraft. To convey information relating the one or more user-defined inputs with at least one display of the aircraft, the method links one or more display attributes of the user database with the ARINC 661 definition file. Based on user interactions with the at least one display, the method updates display data of the at least one display using the contents of the ARINC 661 definition file and the user database.

Claims

1. A method for displaying data in an avionics communications system, the method comprising:

generating an Aeronautical Radio, Incorporated (ARINC) 661 definition file and a user database from one or more user-defined inputs for a communications management function of an aircraft;

linking one or more display attribute objects of the user database with the ARINC 661 definition file to convey information relating the one or more user-defined inputs with at least one display of the aircraft; and

based on user interactions with the at least one display, updating display data of the at least one display using the contents of the ARINC 661 definition file and the user database.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein generating the ARINC 661 definition file and the user database comprises generating the ARINC 661 definition file and the user database based on ARINC 661 display interface standards.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein generating the ARINC 661 definition file and the user database further comprises creating the ARINC 661 definition file and the user database in a ground-based software tool in operative communications with the communications management function.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein creating the ARINC 661 definition file and the user database in the ground-based software tool further comprises:

allocating the ARINC 661 definition file to a common display system in the aircraft; and

allocating the user database to the communications management function.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein linking the one or more display attribute objects of the user database further comprises accessing the user database to reference a selected display object with a supported ARINC 661 display attribute.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein updating the display data of the at least one display comprises communicating the information relating the one or more user-defined inputs with the at least one display in near real time.

7. A computer program product comprising program instructions, embodied on a machine-readable storage medium, the program instructions cause at least one programmable processor having a communications management function to:

update aircraft display data with display attributes from an Aeronautical Radio, Incorporated (ARINC) 661 definition file generated in a ground-based software tool, the ARINC 661 definition file generated in compliance with ARINC 661 display system interface standards; and

using a display definitions interface, link the updated aircraft display data with a common display system having the ARINC 661 definition file.

8. The computer program product of claim 7, wherein the program instructions that update the aircraft display data cause the at least one programmable processor to receive a display selection event in the communications management function from the display definitions interface.

9. The computer program product of claim 7, wherein the program instructions that link the updated aircraft display data with the common display system cause the at least one programmable processor to communicate the updated aircraft display data between the communications management function and the common display system in near real time.

10. The computer program product of claim 7, wherein the program instructions that link the updated aircraft display data with the common display system further cause the at least one programmable processor to access at least one object reference between a selected user interface object associated with a flight crew interaction and display attributes of the selected user interface object.

11. An avionics communication system, comprising:

a ground-based software tool;

a common display system in operative communications with the ground-based software tool, the common display system including an Aeronautical Radio, Incorporated (ARINC) 661 definition file provided by the ground-based software tool; and

a communication management function in operative communications with the ground-based software tool, the communication management unit including a user database provided by the ground-based software tool;

wherein the communication management function receives display attributes from the common display system using a display definitions interface, the display definitions interface operable with the user database and the definition file for near real time communication updates between the communication management function and the common display system.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the ground-based software tool is further operable to provide user-defined data for the user database in compliance with ARINC 661 display system interface standards.

13. The system of claim 11, wherein the ground-based software tool is configured to generate the ARINC 661 definition file and the user database.

16. The system of claim 11, wherein the common display system is operable to manage rendering of the plurality of display objects.

17. The system of claim 11, wherein the common display system comprises a widget library operable to store the plurality of display objects, each of the display objects corresponding to a displayable entity of the common display system.

14. The system of claim 11, wherein the communication management function is operable on at least one of a microprocessor, a microcontroller, a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), a field-programmable object array (FPOA), a programmable logic device (PLD), or an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC).

15. The system of claim 11, wherein the communications management function is operable to monitor flight crew interactions with the common display system.

18. The system of claim 11, wherein the communication management function further comprises:

a widget reference table operable to support the display definitions interface between the communications management function and the ARINC 661 definition file; and

a display object file operable to contain a widget identification of a selected display object.

19. The system of claim 18, wherein the communication management function provides the widget reference table as a link between the widget identification of the selected object and the display attributes of the selected display object.

20. The system of claim 18, wherein the communications management function is operable to retrieve the display attributes for the selected display object from the display object file.