Management System for Aeronautical Information

• US 20130036376A1
• Filed: 08/02/2011
• Published: 02/07/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 08/02/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: The Boeing Co.
• Original Assignee: The Boeing Co.
• Inventors: Williams, Jeffrey Lee
• Granted Patent: US 9,410,819 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/764
• 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 method and apparatus for displaying navigation objects for managing operations of a vehicle. A number of navigation objects for managing the operations of the vehicle is displayed in a graphical user interface to form a display of the number of navigation objects. Responsive to a user input to the number of navigation objects, the display of the number of navigation objects in the graphical user interface is changed to include one or more navigation objects identified based on the user input. The navigation objects in the number of navigation objects have a number of associations with each other. The display of the number of navigation objects includes a number of graphical indicators providing a visualization of the number of associations for the number of navigation objects.

Claims

1. A method for displaying navigation objects for managing operations of a vehicle, the method comprising:

displaying a number of navigation objects for managing the operations of the vehicle in a graphical user interface to form a display of the number of navigation objects; and

responsive to a user input to the number of navigation objects, changing the display of the number of navigation objects in the graphical user interface to include one or more navigation objects identified based on the user input, wherein the one or more navigation objects in the number of navigation objects have a number of associations with each other and the display of the number of navigation objects includes a number of graphical indicators providing a visualization of the number of associations for the number of navigation objects.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the changing step comprises:

displaying a second group of the navigation objects for an navigation object selected in a first group of the navigation objects in the graphical user interface in response to the user input selecting the navigation object, wherein the second group of the navigation objects has an association with the navigation object selected and a display of the navigation object and the second group of the navigation objects has a spatial relationship to each other.

3. The method of claim 2 further comprising:

displaying the number of graphical indicators that visually identify the association of the second group of the navigation objects with the navigation object selected for the first group of the navigation objects.

4. The method of claim 2 further comprising:

displaying information for the navigation object in response to the user input to the navigation object.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the number of navigation objects is displayed on a chart in the graphical user interface.

6. The method of claim 2 further comprising:

displaying a third group of the navigation objects having an association with at least one of the navigation objects selected and the second group of the navigation objects.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the spatial relationship is absent between the third group of the navigation objects and the at least one of the navigation objects selected and the second group of the navigation objects.

8. The method of claim 4, wherein displaying the information for the navigation object in response to the user input of the navigation object comprises:

displaying a portion of the information for the navigation object in response to the user input to the navigation object; and

displaying a remaining portion of the information for the navigation object in response to another user input.

9. The method of claim 2, wherein the navigation object is a first navigation object and further comprising:

responsive to a selection of a second navigation object in the graphical user interface, changing a focus from the first navigation object to the second navigation object.

10. The method of claim 2, wherein the user input is a first user input and wherein the navigation object is a first navigation object and further comprising:

responsive to a second user input to a second navigation object in the graphical user interface, displaying a graphical representation of the second navigation object in the graphical user interface in the spatial relationship to the first navigation object.

11. The method of claim 3, wherein a graphical indicator from the number of graphical indicators is selected from one of a line, an arrow, and a graphical representation of the navigation object.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein an association in the number of associations is selected from one of a hierarchical association, a use association, a relationship association, and an attribute association.

13. The method of claim 2, wherein the navigation object is a first navigation object and wherein a second navigation object in the second group of the navigation objects is selected from one of a particular navigation object having a hierarchical association to the navigation object and the second navigation object that uses the first navigation object.

14. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

performing an operation using a selected object in the number of navigation objects in response to the user input moving the selected object to a work area in the graphical user interface without removing a view of the navigation objects in the graphical user interface.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the operation is selected from one of building a route and performing a calculation.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein the number of navigation objects is located in a navigation database and further comprising:

managing the navigation objects.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein managing navigation objects comprises at least one of creating a navigation object in the navigation objects, deleting the navigation object in the navigation objects, and modifying the navigation object in the navigation objects.

18. The method of claim 1, wherein the vehicle is selected from one of an aircraft, a ship, a spacecraft, and a ground vehicle.

19. An apparatus comprising:

a display system; and

a computer system configured to display a group of navigation objects for managing operations of a vehicle in a chart within a graphical user interface to form a display of the group of navigation objects and change the display of the group of navigation objects in the chart in the graphical user interface to include the navigation objects having associations with each other based on a user input in response to the user input to the group of navigation objects, wherein the display of the group of navigation objects includes a number of graphical indicators providing a visualization of associations within the group of navigation objects.

20. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein in being configured to change the display of the group of navigation objects in the graphical user interface to include one or more navigation objects identified based on the user input to the computer system in response to the user input to the group of navigation objects, the computer system is further configured to display a second group of the navigation objects for a navigation object selected in a first group of the navigation objects in the graphical user interface in response to the user input selecting the navigation object, wherein the second group of the navigation objects has an association with the navigation object selected and a display of the navigation object and the second group of the navigation objects has a spatial relationship to each other.

21. The apparatus of claim 20, wherein the computer system is further configured to display the number of graphical indicators that visually identify the association of the second group of the navigation objects with the navigation object selected for the first group of the navigation objects.

22. The apparatus of claim 20, wherein the computer system is further configured to display a third group of the navigation objects having an association with at least one of the navigation objects selected and the second group of the navigation objects, wherein the spatial relationship is absent between the third group of the navigation objects and the at least one of the navigation objects selected and the second group of the navigation objects.