Indicating system for warning airspace or threatening aircraft in aircraft collision avoidance system

• US 4,853,700 A
• Filed: 06/30/1986
• Issued: 08/01/1989
• Est. Priority Date: 10/29/1984
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Miyazaki Epson Corp.
• Original Assignee: Miyazaki Epson Corp.
• Inventors: Kita, Kazuyuki, Funatsu, Chuhei
• Primary Examiner(s): Tarcza, Thomas H.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Swann, Tod R.
• Application Number:
  US06/882,977
• Time in Patent Office: 1,128 Days
• Field of Search: 364/461, 364/460, 342/29, 342/30
• US Class Current: 342/30
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/933 of aircraft or spacecraft
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/066 with means for showing the history of the radar trails, e.g. artificial remanence
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0008 with other aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0021 located in the aircraft
• 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

The present invention relates to a indicating system for warning airspace or threatening aircraft in aircraft collision avoidance system which provides simply and inexpensively information required for safe cruising of aircraft with respect to range of warning airspace of aircraft, positions of other aircraft involving threatening of collision, and flight courses of proximate said other aircraft involving threatening of collision.

The present system can provide simply and inexpensively information indispensable for safe cruising of aircraft with respect to range of warning airspace of aircraft, positions of other aircraft involving threatening of collision, and flight courses of proximate said other aircraft involving threatening of collision by such manner that the warning airspace is changed into a required shape in response to speed of a subject aircraft, and indication range for the threatening aircraft is changed in response to angle of climb or descent of the subject aircraft, besides detected data of distances and bearings with respect to the other aircraft are indicated by a prescribed afterglow time.

Claims

1. A warning airspace indicating system belonging to an aircraft collision avoidance system of a subject aircraft having a function of determining the existence of danger of aircraft collision by receiving response signals from other aircraft in response to interrogation signals delivered from said subject aircraft, said indicating system for warning airspace or threatening aircraft in said aircraft collision avoidance system including a means for defining a warning airspace arranged around said subject aircraft, wherein the range of the warning airspace expands and contracts along the flight direction of said subject aircraft in dependence upon the speed of said subject aircraft, said warning airspace defined to have a shape including a cylindrical shape of fixed diameter centered on said subject aircraft and another cylindrical shape of variable diameter which varies in accordance with the speed of the subject aircraft and whose center is disposed along the flight direction of said subject aircraft at a distance from said subject aircraft which varies in dependence upon the speed of said subject aircraft.

2. A warning airspace indicating system belonging to an aircraft collision avoidance system as recited in claim 1, further comprising a means for detecting an angle of climb or descent θ

of said subject aircraft, a relative distance θ and

an altitude difference Δ

H between said subject aircraft and other aircraft, such that either only said other aircraft the Δ

H of which is within a range of γ

θ

±

h, within h is a prescribed altitude, are judged so as to indicate them as threatening aircraft, or these threatening aircraft are indicated in a different manner from that used for indicating other surrounding aircraft.

3. A warning airspace indicating system belonging to an aircraft collision avoidance system as recited in claim 2, wherein a prescribed altitude H is variable dependent upon a relative distance γ

of said subject aircraft to other aircraft.

4. A warning airspace indicating system belonging to an aircraft collision avoidance system as recited in claim 2, wherein when a relative distance γ

of said subject aircraft to other aircraft is larger than a prescribed value, said other aircraft within said range of γ

θ

±

h are indicated as threatening aircraft.

5. A warning airspace indicating system belonging to an aircraft collision avoidance system as recited in claim 2, wherein said range for indicating threatening aircraft with respect to said other aircraft within said range of γ

θ

±

h varies in dependence upon the speed of said subject aircraft.

6. A warning airspace indicating system belonging to an aircraft collision avoidance system as recited in claim 2, wherein, unlike the other aircraft, said threatening aircraft are indicated by means of either a different color tone from that for indicating said other aircraft, or by means of flickering display.