NAVIGATION SYSTEM

• US 20090291418A1
• Filed: 05/20/2008
• Published: 11/26/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 05/20/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Honeywell International Inc.
• Original Assignee: Honeywell International Inc.
• Inventors: Raman, Raghu, Srivastav, Amit
• Granted Patent: US 9,354,077 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 434/43
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/26 specially adapted for navigation in a road network
• 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 that permits a user to interactively and graphically design a company route to be traveled by a vehicle such as an airplane. Alternatively or additionally, a system and method are disclosed that permits a user to interactively and graphically conduct a virtual travel through, such a virtual fly through, a company route to be traveled by a vehicle such as an airplane.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

a display monitor; and

,

a processor, wherein the processor has access to data corresponding to a vehicle route that can be used by the processor to graphically and interactively represent on the display monitor the data corresponding to the vehicle route, and wherein the processor has access to stored terrain and obstacle features that can be used by the processor to graphically configure on the display monitor a map with terrain and obstacle features along the vehicle route.

2. The system of claim 1 further comprising a database, wherein the database is accessible by the processor, and wherein the database contains terrain, obstacle, and navigation data.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein the processor graphically renders on the display monitor the map with the terrain and obstacle features in three dimension.

4. The system of claim 1 further comprising a cursor controlled device coupled to the processor to interactively provide inputs to the processor.

5. The system of claim 1 wherein the processor is configured to interact with a user to permit the user to interactively design the vehicle route by selecting fixes from an origin to a destination.

6. The system of claim 1 wherein the processor is configured to interact with a user to permit the user to interactively design the vehicle route as a company air route by selecting fixes from an origin airport to a destination airport.

7. The system of claim 1 wherein the processor is configured to permit a user to add, delete and/or modify a selected waypoint or leg along the vehicle route in a coded route record.

8. The system of claim 1 wherein the processor is configured to display on the display monitor a first fix within a selected range of a second fix.

9. The system of claim 1 wherein the processor is configured to display on the display monitor a leg of the vehicle route such that the leg includes a fix of the vehicle route.

10. The system of claim 1 wherein the processor is configured to display on the display monitor a procedure relevant to the vehicle route.

11. The system of claim 1 wherein the processor is arranged to simultaneously display on the display monitor a selection window and the map, and wherein the selection window contains fixes applicable the vehicle route in a manner that permits a user to interactively select the desired one of the fixes.

12. The system of claim 1 wherein the processor is arranged to simultaneously display on the display monitor a record window and the map, and wherein the record window contains data of the vehicle route as it is being designed.

13. The system of claim 1 wherein the processor is arranged to simultaneously display on the display monitor a selection window, a record window, and the map, wherein the selection window contains fixes applicable the vehicle route in a manner that permits a user to interactively select the desired one of the fixes, and wherein the record window contains data of the vehicle route as it is being designed.

14. The system of claim 1 wherein the processor is arranged to display on the display monitor a simulated virtual fly through of a design of the vehicle route.

15. The system of claim 1 wherein the processor is arranged to display on the display monitor conflicts between the vehicle route and the terrain and obstacles.

16. The system of claim 1 wherein the processor is arranged to highlight a fix when a simulated flight is about to cross the fix.

17. The system of claim 1 wherein the processor stores a record of the vehicle route data in a format comprising the following elements:

record type, customer ID, origin of route, destination of route, route ID, record sequence number, type of route, sid/star/app/awy ID for type of route, termination of route corresponding to the sid/star/app/awy ID, runway transition, enroute transitions, cruise altitude, and cycle date.

18. The system of claim 1 wherein the processor is arranged to validate the vehicle route against a set of conditions to validate the correctness of the coded path.

19. A computer implemented method of interactively and graphically designing a desired company route between first and second points comprising:

displaying a map on a display monitor, wherein the map contains at least the first point along the desired company route to be designed by a user;

offering the user a selection of first data, wherein the first data is relevant to the first point;

displaying second data on the map depending upon the selection of the first data by the user;

iteratively selecting and displaying additional data corresponding to the desired company route until the company route includes the second point of the desired company route; and

,

storing at least one of the first, second, and additional data as a record to the company route.

20. The computer implemented method of claim 19 wherein the first point comprises an origin of the desired company route, and wherein the second point comprises a destination of the desired company route.

21. The computer implemented method of claim 19 wherein the at least one of the first, second, and additional data comprises a fix.

22. The computer implemented method of claim 19 wherein the at least one of the first, second, and additional data comprises an airway.

23. The computer implemented method of claim 19 wherein the at least one of the first, second, and additional data comprises a procedure.

24. A computer implemented method of graphically and interactively displaying a virtual fly through of a company route comprising:

(a) displaying a map on a display monitor;

(b) displaying terrain and obstacles on the map in relation to at least a leg of the company route;

(c) determining a selection by the user of a next leg of the company route

(d) updating the display of terrain and obstacles on the map in relation to the next leg of the company route; and

, (e) repeating (c) and (d) as determined by the user.

25. The computer implemented method of claim 24 wherein the display of terrain and obstacles on the map and the update of the display of terrain and obstacles on the map are rendered in three dimension.