METHODS OF OPTIMIZING THE LOCATION OF AN AIRCRAFT ON THE GROUND AND IN THE TAKE-OFF AND LANDING PHASES

• US 20090201197A1
• Filed: 02/06/2009
• Published: 08/13/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 02/08/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Thales SA
• Original Assignee: Thales SA
• Inventors: Cordonnier, Alain, Marty, Nicolas, Coulmeau, Francois
• Granted Patent: US 8,190,310 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 342/357.590
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/14 specially adapted for specific applications
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/15 Aircraft landing systems
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/48 by combining or switching between position solutions derived from the satellite radio beacon positioning system and position solutions derived from a further system
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0065 for taking-off
• 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

The present invention relates to the field of methods and systems for optimizing the locating of an aircraft in airports and, more particularly, in the take-off and landing phases, and notably in the air-ground and ground-air transition phases. The method of optimizing the locating of an aircraft during the take-off or landing phase comprising a transition step (21), the latter being defined between two events (A0, AS), the first event being a condition of contact between the aircraft and the runway and the second event being a threshold condition defining a stabilized flight phase, is wherein the transition step (21) comprises the determination of at least one “transition position” of the aircraft by a weighting between the “ground position” (LOC_SOL) determined by the ground locating system and the “flight position” (LOV_VOL) determined by the in-flight locating system.

Claims

1. Method of optimizing the locating of an aircraft during the take-off or landing phase, the aircraft comprising an in-flight locating system and an ground locating system, the method comprising a transition step, the latter being defined between two events, the first event being a condition of contact between the aircraft and the runway and the second event being a threshold condition defining a stabilized flight phase, wherein the transition step comprises the determination of at least one transition position of the aircraft by a weighting between the ground position determined by the ground locating system and the flight position determined by the in-flight locating system.

2. Method of optimizing the locating of an aircraft during the take-off phase according to claim 1, wherein:

a first step, at the moment of throttle-up, comprises the determination of at least one position of the aircraft by the onboard computer, denoted starting position;

a second step preceding the transition step, when the aircraft accelerates, comprises the calculation of at least one ground position of the aircraft by the ground locating system;

a final step following the transition step, beyond the threshold condition, comprises the determination of at least one flight position of the aircraft by the in-flight locating system.

3. Method of optimizing the locating of an aircraft during the landing phase according to claim 1, wherein:

a preliminary step, preceding the transition step, comprises the calculation of a threshold position of the aircraft, beyond which the position of the aircraft is calculated in a hybrid manner;

a landing step, following the transition step, when the aircraft is in contact with the runway, comprises the calculation of at least one ground position of the aircraft by the ground locating system.

4. Method according to claim 2, wherein the first step comprises the automatic realigning of the starting position in the onboard computer based on a calculation of the difference measured between the designated take-off point, denoted theoretical take-off position, and the actual position of the aircraft obtained, just before throttle-up, by the ground locating system.

5. Method according to claim 3, wherein the take-off position is determined by the designation, in the onboard computer, of an element of the airport database, the designation being produced in the preparation of the flight by the crew.

6. Method according to claim 1, wherein the first event used to calculate the position of the aircraft in the transition step is triggered for a change of altitude of the aircraft.

7. Method according to claim 1, wherein the first event is triggered for a change of pressure on the aircraft landing gears.

8. Method according to claim 1, wherein the threshold condition is validated by a crossed altitude threshold.

9. Method according to claim 1, wherein the threshold condition is validated by a crossed rolling threshold.

10. Method according to claim 1, wherein the threshold condition is validated by a predetermined duration.

11. Method according to claim 1, wherein a transition position in the transition phase is calculated on the basis of a percentage of the ground position and a percentage of the flight position.

12. Method according to claim 11, wherein the latitude of the aircraft, in the transition phase, is determined by the relation:

Lat(aircraft)=[PCT_VOL·

Lat_VOL]+[(100−

PCT_VOL)·

Lat_ROU],

in which the latitude calculated on the basis of the ground locating system is denoted Lat_ROU and the latitude calculated on the basis of the in-flight locating system is denoted Lat_VOL and in which PCT_VOL represents the percentage of the weighting of the position obtained from the in-flight locating system.

13. Method according to claim 11, wherein the longitude of the aircraft, in the transition phase, is determined by the relation:

Long(aircraft)=[PCT_VOL×

Long_VOL]+[(100−

PCT_VOL)×

Long_ROU],

in which the longitude calculated on the basis of the ground locating system is denoted Long_ROU and the latitude calculated on the basis of the in-flight locating system is denoted Long_VOL, and in which PCT_VOL represents the percentage of the weighting of the position obtained from the in-flight locating system.

14. Method according to claim 11, wherein the percentage of the first position and the percentage of the second position are determined on the basis of an altitude-dependent linear relation.

15. Method according to claim 14, wherein the latitude and the longitude of the current position of the aircraft are determined by the following relations:

16. Method according to claim 11, wherein the percentage of the first position and the percentage of the second position are determined on the basis of a time-dependent linear relation.

17. Method according to claim 16, wherein the latitude and the longitude of the current position of the aircraft are determined by the following relations:

18. Method according to claim 2, wherein the first event used to calculate the position of the aircraft in the transition step is triggered for a change of altitude of the aircraft.

19. Method according to claim 2, wherein the first event is triggered for a change of pressure on the aircraft landing gears.

20. Method according to claim 2, wherein the threshold condition is validated by a crossed altitude thereshold.