AIRCRAFT PROVIDED WITH A SYSTEM FOR OBSERVING PART OF THE AIRCRAFT'S ENVIRONMENT

• US 20140092206A1
• Filed: 04/02/2012
• Published: 04/03/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 04/01/2011
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Latecoere SA
• Original Assignee: Latecoere SA
• Inventors: Boucourt, Grard, Carrier, Xavier, Groux, Laurent
• Application Number:
  US14/009,177
• Publication Number:
  US 20140092206A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/36
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 2045/0085 Devices for aircraft health monitoring, e.g. monitoring flutter or vibration
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 47/08 Arrangements of cameras
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/0891 Video recorder in combination with video camera
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 17/125 by using a video camera to detect fire or smoke
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/698 for achieving an enlarged field of view, e.g. panoramic image capture

Abstract

An aircraft (11) includes a system for observing part of the external environment of the aircraft. The environment observation system includes a camera, known as a panoramic camera (21, 22, 23), including a stationary camera associated with a lens that can focus a panoramic field of view simultaneously in both azimuth, about an axis of the panoramic camera, and elevation in a plane containing the axis. The panoramic camera is connected to at least one display screen disposed inside the aircraft (11) and is positioned such that part of the external environment of the aircraft (11) is located in its field of view.

Claims

1. An aircraft (11) comprising a system for observing an external environment of said aircraft, characterized in that the environment observation system comprises a camera, referred to as “

panoramic camera”

(21, 22, 23), comprising a fixed camera associated with an objective lens able to focus a field of view which is panoramic both in azimuth, about an axis of the panoramic camera, and in elevation in a plane containing said axis of the panoramic camera, said panoramic camera being connected to at least one display screen situated inside the aircraft and being sited in such a way that part of the external environment of the aircraft (11) is in its field of view.

2. The aircraft (11) as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that the panoramic camera (21) is sited in such a way that at least part of a wing structure (14, 15) of the aircraft (11) is in its field of view.

3. The aircraft (11) as claimed in claim 2, characterized in that, with the aircraft being of the airplane type, the panoramic camera (21) has a field of view that is wide enough to observe a distal end (14b, 15b) of each of the wings (14, 15) of the wing structure of the aircraft (11).

4. The aircraft (11) as claimed in claim 2, characterized in that the panoramic camera (21) is sited in a vertical stabilizer (16) of the aircraft (11).

5. The aircraft (11) as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that the panoramic camera (22) is sited in such a way that at least part of a landing gear (17) of the aircraft (11) is in its field of view.

6. The aircraft (11) as claimed in claim 5, characterized in that the panoramic camera (22) is sited in such a way that a forward landing gear (17) and a rear landing gear (17) of the aircraft (11) are in its field of view.

7. The aircraft (11) as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that the panoramic camera (23) is positioned in such a way that part of the rear environment of the aircraft (11) on the opposite side to a flight deck (13) of the aircraft (11), is in its field of view.

8. The aircraft (11) as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that the panoramic camera (21, 22, 23) has a field of view in azimuth of an angular width of 360 degrees.

9. The aircraft (11) as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that the panoramic camera (21, 22, 23) is a camera that is sensitive in the infrared wavelengths.

10. The aircraft (11) as claimed in claim 3, characterized in that the panoramic camera (21) is sited in a vertical stabilizer (16) of the aircraft (11).