Method of Developing Flight Infrastructure in Conjunction with a Sale of an Aircraft

• US 20160131765A1
• Filed: 07/30/2015
• Published: 05/12/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 05/12/2010
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Textron Innovations Incorporated (Textron Inc)
• Original Assignee: Textron Innovations Incorporated (Textron Inc)
• Inventors: Fulton, William W., Lappos, Nicholas D.
• Application Number:
  US14/814,211
• Publication Number:
  US 20160131765A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/40 Correcting position, velocity or attitude
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0047 Navigation or guidance aids for a single aircraft details of equipment G08G5/0017

Abstract

A method for providing WAAS infrastructure in conjunction with the sale of a WAAS enabled aircraft includes developing a sales package for a customer. The price of the sales package preferably includes a WAAS enabled aircraft and a WAAS infrastructure. The method further includes assembling a WAAS enabled aircraft and developing the WAAS infrastructure using a computer. The method also includes providing the customer with the WAAS enabled aircraft and the WAAS infrastructure.

Claims

1. An aircraft, the aircraft being associated with a Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS) infrastructure, the aircraft comprising:

a WAAS compatible avionics system, including a WAAS compatible navigation unit; and

a Global Positioning System (GPS) antenna for receiving GPS signals and providing the received GPS signals to the navigation unit,

wherein the navigation unit includes a WAAS flight procedure that is private to a customer thereby allowing the customer to operate the WAAS enabled aircraft in a private WAAS environment.

2. The aircraft according to claim 1, wherein the WAAS infrastructure allows the customer of the WAAS enabled aircraft to operate the WAAS enabled aircraft in a WAAS environment.

3. The aircraft according to claim 1, wherein at least a portion of the WAAS infrastructure was created during the manufacturing of the aircraft.

4. The aircraft according to claim 3, wherein at least a portion of the WAAS flight procedure includes data generated during the manufacturing of the aircraft.

5. The aircraft according to claim 4, wherein the manufacturing the WAAS enabled aircraft and the generating of the WAAS flight procedure are performed by a persons under the direction of a single entity.

6. The aircraft according to claim 1, further comprising a Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) card for transferring the WAAS flight procedure to the navigation unit.

7. The aircraft according to claim 1, wherein the WAAS flight procedure includes a flight path between an operator desired departure area and an operator desired landing area.

8. The aircraft according to claim 1, wherein the WAAS flight procedure includes a WAAS route through airspace that is exclusive to the customer.

9. The aircraft according to claim 1, wherein the navigation unit is configured for receiving GPS and WAAS geospatial satellite correction data from the antenna.

10. The aircraft according to claim 1, wherein the aircraft is a rotorcraft.