SYSTEM AND METHODS FOR RENDERING TAXIWAY AND RUNWAY SIGNAGE IN A SYNTHETIC DISPLAY OF AN AIRPORT FIELD
First Claim
1. A method of displaying airport field features on a flight deck display element of an aircraft, the method comprising:
- obtaining geographic position data and heading data for the aircraft;
accessing airport feature data associated with synthetic graphical representations of an airport field; and
rendering a dynamic synthetic display of the airport field on the flight deck display element, the dynamic synthetic display being rendered in accordance with the geographic position data, the heading data, and the airport feature data;
wherein the dynamic synthetic display comprises graphical representations of;
a taxiway having an exposed taxiway surface; and
taxiway/runway signage conformally rendered on the exposed taxiway surface in a stationary location relative to the taxiway.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
A system and methods of displaying airport field features on a flight deck display element of an aircraft are provided. The flight deck display system obtains geographic position data and heading data for the aircraft, accesses airport feature data associated with synthetic graphical representations of an airport field, and renders a dynamic synthetic display of the airport field on the flight deck display element. The dynamic synthetic display is rendered in accordance with the geographic position data, the heading data, and the airport feature data. In certain embodiments the synthetic display includes graphical representations of taxiways/runways, along with signage that is conformally rendered on the exposed taxiway surfaces. Display characteristics of the signage may be influenced by the actual physical and/or temporal proximity of the aircraft relative to reference locations on the airport field. In some embodiments, the taxiway/runway signage includes dynamic directional indicators corresponding to the intended directions of travel on the taxiways/runways. Moreover, the taxiway/runway signage can be dynamically rendered in a forward-facing manner at all times on the flight deck display element.
72 Citations
44 Claims
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1. A method of displaying airport field features on a flight deck display element of an aircraft, the method comprising:
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obtaining geographic position data and heading data for the aircraft; accessing airport feature data associated with synthetic graphical representations of an airport field; and rendering a dynamic synthetic display of the airport field on the flight deck display element, the dynamic synthetic display being rendered in accordance with the geographic position data, the heading data, and the airport feature data; wherein the dynamic synthetic display comprises graphical representations of; a taxiway having an exposed taxiway surface; and taxiway/runway signage conformally rendered on the exposed taxiway surface in a stationary location relative to the taxiway. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. A flight deck display system for an aircraft, the system comprising:
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a source of geographic position and heading data for the aircraft; a source of airport feature data associated with synthetic graphical representations of an airport field; a processor architecture operatively coupled to the source of geographic position and heading data and to the source of airport feature data, the processor architecture being configured to process the geographic position and heading data, process the airport feature data, and, based upon the geographic position and heading data and the airport feature data, generate image rendering display commands; and a display that receives the image rendering display commands and, in response thereto, renders a synthetic representation of the airport field that comprises conformal graphical representations of taxiways, runways, and signage rendered on the taxiways. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16)
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17. A method of displaying airport field features on a flight deck display element of an aircraft, the method comprising:
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obtaining geographic position data and heading data for the aircraft; accessing airport feature data associated with synthetic graphical representations of an airport field; and rendering a dynamic synthetic display of the airport field on the flight deck display element, the dynamic synthetic display being rendered in accordance with the geographic position data, the heading data, and the airport feature data; wherein the dynamic synthetic display comprises graphical representations of; a plurality of taxiways conformally rendered in accordance with a plurality of real-world counterpart taxiways; and taxiway signage including taxiway identifiers for the plurality of taxiways, wherein display characteristics of the taxiway signage are influenced by actual physical and/or temporal proximity of the aircraft relative to the real-world counterpart taxiways. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24)
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25. A flight deck display system for an aircraft, the system comprising:
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a source of geographic position and heading data for the aircraft; a source of airport feature data associated with synthetic graphical representations of an airport field; a processor architecture operatively coupled to the source of geographic position and heading data and to the source of airport feature data, the processor architecture being configured to process the geographic position and heading data, process the airport feature data, and, based upon the geographic position and heading data and the airport feature data, generate image rendering display commands; and a display that receives the image rendering display commands and, in response thereto, renders a synthetic representation of the airport field that comprises graphical representations of taxiways and corresponding taxiway signage; wherein the graphical representations of taxiways are conformally rendered in accordance with a plurality of real-world counterpart taxiways, the graphical representations of taxiway signage include taxiway identifiers for the plurality of taxiways, and display characteristics of the graphical representations of taxiway signage are influenced by actual physical and/or temporal proximity of the aircraft relative to the real-world counterpart taxiways. - View Dependent Claims (26, 27, 28)
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29. A method of displaying airport field features on a flight deck display element of an aircraft, the method comprising:
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obtaining geographic position data and heading data for the aircraft; accessing airport feature data associated with synthetic graphical representations of an airport field; and rendering a dynamic synthetic display of the airport field on the flight deck display element, the dynamic synthetic display being rendered in accordance with the geographic position data, the heading data, and the airport feature data; wherein the dynamic synthetic display comprises graphical representations of; a taxiway; and a taxiway sign that includes an identifier of the taxiway and a dynamic directional indicator corresponding to an intended direction of travel for the aircraft on the taxiway, wherein orientation of the dynamic directional indicator changes as a function of the geographic position and heading data. - View Dependent Claims (30, 31, 32)
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33. A flight deck display system for an aircraft, the system comprising:
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a source of geographic position and heading data for the aircraft; a source of airport feature data associated with synthetic graphical representations of an airport field; a processor architecture operatively coupled to the source of geographic position and heading data and to the source of airport feature data, the processor architecture being configured to process the geographic position and heading data, process the airport feature data, and, based upon the geographic position and heading data and the airport feature data, generate image rendering display commands; and a display that receives the image rendering display commands and, in response thereto, renders a synthetic representation of the airport field that comprises graphical representations of a taxiway and a taxiway sign, the graphical representation of the taxiway sign including an identifier of the taxiway and a dynamic directional indicator corresponding to an intended direction of travel for the aircraft on the taxiway, wherein heading of the dynamic directional indicator changes as a function of the geographic position and heading data. - View Dependent Claims (34, 35, 36)
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37. A method of displaying airport field features on a flight deck display element of an aircraft, the method comprising:
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obtaining geographic position data and heading data for the aircraft; accessing airport feature data associated with synthetic graphical representations of an airport field; and rendering a dynamic synthetic display of the airport field on the flight deck display element, the dynamic synthetic display being rendered in accordance with the geographic position data, the heading data, and the airport feature data; wherein the dynamic synthetic display comprises graphical representations of; a taxiway; and a dynamic taxiway sign that includes an identifier of the taxiway, wherein the dynamic taxiway sign is rendered such that it is always facing forward on the flight deck display element. - View Dependent Claims (38, 39, 40)
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41. A flight deck display system for an aircraft, the system comprising:
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a source of geographic position and heading data for the aircraft; a source of airport feature data associated with synthetic graphical representations of an airport field; a processor architecture operatively coupled to the source of geographic position and heading data and to the source of airport feature data, the processor architecture being configured to process the geographic position and heading data, process the airport feature data, and, based upon the geographic position and heading data and the airport feature data, generate image rendering display commands; and a display that receives the image rendering display commands and, in response thereto, renders a synthetic representation of the airport field that comprises graphical representations of a taxiway and a dynamic taxiway sign, the graphical representation of the dynamic taxiway sign including an identifier of the taxiway, wherein the dynamic taxiway sign is rendered in an always-forward-facing manner. - View Dependent Claims (42, 43, 44)
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Specification