DEVICE FOR ASSISTING AIRCRAFT CREW WHEN PERFORMING FLIGHT LEVEL CHANGES

• US 20120095623A1
• Filed: 09/21/2011
• Published: 04/19/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 09/21/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Dassault Aviation (Groupe Industriel Marcel Dassault)
• Original Assignee: Dassault Aviation (Groupe Industriel Marcel Dassault)
• Inventors: BARRAL, JEROME, LE CORRE, NICOLAS, KERVELLA, AUDREN
• Granted Patent: US 9,214,087 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/4
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 23/005 Flight directors indicating arrangements specially adapted for rotary gyroscopes G01C19/32
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0008 with other aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0013 with a ground station
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0021 located in the aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0039 Modification of a flight plan
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0052 for cruising combined instruments indicating more than one navigational value G01C23/00
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0078 for monitoring traffic from the aircraft radar or analogous systems specially adapted for traffic control G01S13/91

Abstract

This device providing assistance to aircraft crew for a flight level change of the aircraft in air traffic, comprising means for viewing the position of the aircraft in the vertical plane, is wherein the viewing means comprise: display means capable of displaying an image comprising at least one zone corresponding to a target altitude (FL) for the aircraft, and in that it comprises: selection means for selecting said zone in the image.

Claims

1. A device providing assistance to an aircraft crew for changes in flight level of the aircraft in air traffic, comprising means for viewing the position of the aircraft in the vertical plane, wherein the viewing means comprise:

display means capable of displaying an image comprising at least one zone corresponding to a target altitude for the aircraft,

and where the viewing means further comprises;

selection means for selecting said zone in the image.

2. The device according to claim 1, wherein said display means are also capable of displaying a symbol in the image individually identifying the aircraft and any surrounding aircraft.

3. The device according to claim 2, wherein said display means are also capable of displaying in the image a system of axes comprising a Y-axis representative of altitude and an X-axis representative of the distance separating the aircraft from any surrounding aircraft.

4. The device according to claim 2, wherein the display means are capable of displaying a symbol identifying an aircraft considered as reference aircraft in order to perform the flight level change to the selected target altitude.

5. The device according to claim 2, wherein the display means are capable of displaying a symbol identifying an aircraft making it impossible to perform an immediate flight level change to the selected target altitude.

6. The device according to claim 1, wherein said display means are also capable of displaying means in the image for translating in the vertical plane the zones corresponding to the target altitudes.

7. The device according to claim 1, further comprising computing means capable of determining in real-time, in accordance with an opportunity estimation function, the feasibility of a flight level change procedure to the targeted altitude, as a function of air traffic for a given time horizon.

8. The device according to claim 7, wherein the computing means are also capable of performing a set of processing operations to produce data intended for the crew on the said feasibility of performing a flight level change procedure to the selected target altitude.

9. The device according to claim 8, wherein said data produced by the computing means comprise:

a remaining feasibility time for said procedure when said procedure is possible, or

a feasibility waiting time for said procedure when said procedure is not possible immediately but possible later,

and in that said display means are capable of displaying in the image this data intended for the crew.

10. The device according to claim 7, wherein the computing means are also capable of verifying the performance level of the aircraft during said procedure.

11. The device according to claim 7, wherein the computing means are also capable of determining, from the selected target altitude, a pre-formatted request intended to be sent to the air traffic controller, the computing means being capable of instructing the display means to display this request in the image when the procedure for flight level change to the selected target altitude is possible.

12. The device according to claim 1, wherein the selection means comprise pointer means allowing a cursor to be moved over the image, and validation means for validating the zone on which the cursor is pointed.

13. The device according to claim 12, wherein the pointer means are included in the group comprising a mouse, a lever, a keypad and a touch screen, and in that the selection means comprise at least one button.

14. The device according to claim 12, wherein the selection means for each target altitude comprise a key arranged in the vicinity of the zone in the image associated with the corresponding target altitude.

15. The device according to claim 1, wherein the flight level changes are implemented in accordance with procedure of ITP type.