Safety critical system with a common sensor detector

• US 6,285,298 B1
• Filed: 02/24/2000
• Issued: 09/04/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 02/24/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Rockwell Collins, Inc. (Raytheon Technologies Corporation d/b/a RTX)
• Original Assignee: Rockwell Collins, Inc. (Raytheon Technologies Corporation d/b/a RTX)
• Inventors: Gordon, Thomas M.
• Primary Examiner(s): TWEEL JR, JOHN ALEXANDER
• Application Number:
  US09/512,496
• Time in Patent Office: 558 Days
• Field of Search: 340/945, 340/963, 340/442, 340/444, 340/507, 340/508, 340/511, 701/8, 701/9, 701/14, 701/34, 700/21, 700/79, 700/82, 714/47, 714/30
• US Class Current: 340/945
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 9/03 with multiple-channel loop, i.e. redundant control systems

Abstract

An avionics system with a common sensor detector that includes analog sensors for sensing flight parameters of an aircraft and for providing sensor signals indicative of the flight parameters. Avionics computers compute flight parameter data associated with the sensor signals from the analog sensors. A primary flight display receives, processes, and displays the flight parameter data. The primary flight display includes inside limit data comparators to compare the flight parameter data from at least a same pair of flight computers to indicate a common sensor fault condition when the flight parameter data difference is zero or approximately zero for a predetermined period of time. Other safety critical systems may employ the common sensor detector.

Claims

1. A safety critical system capable of detecting a common sensor fault condition comprising:

a plurality of sensors for sensing safety critical system parameters and for providing sensor data associated with the safety critical system parameters;

a plurality of computers for receiving the sensor data and computing system parameter data associated with the sensor data from the plurality of analog sensors; and

a data display for receiving, processing, and displaying the system parameter data wherein the data display further comprises a plurality of inside limit data comparators to compare the system parameter data from at least a same pair of the plurality of computers to detect a common sensor fault condition when the system parameter data difference is zero or approximately zero for a predetermined period of time.

2. The safety critical system of claim 1 further comprising an input/output concentrator for receiving the system parameter data from the plurality of computers and concentrating the system parameter data for transferring to the plurality of data displays.

3. An avionics system capable of detecting a common sensor fault condition and for mounting in an aircraft comprising:

a plurality of analog sensors for sensing flight parameters of the aircraft and for providing sensor signals indicative of the flight parameters;

a plurality of avionics computers for computing flight parameter data associated with the sensor signals from the plurality of analog sensors; and

a primary flight display for receiving, processing, and displaying the flight parameter data wherein the primary flight display further comprises a plurality of inside limit data comparators to compare the flight parameter data from at least a same pair of the plurality of flight computers to detect the common sensor fault condition when the flight parameter data difference is zero or approximately zero for a predetermined period of time.

4. The avionics system of claim 3 further comprising a multifunction display for receiving, processing, and displaying the flight parameter data wherein the multifunction display further comprises a plurality of inside limit data comparators to compare the flight parameter data from at least a same pair of the flight computers to detect the common sensor fault condition when the flight parameter data difference is zero or approximately zero for a predetermined period of time.

5. The avionics system of claim 3 wherein the same pair of avionics computers are air data computers.

6. The avionics system of claim 5 wherein the plurality of analog sensors includes pressure sensors and temperature sensors.

7. The avionics system of claim 3 wherein the same pair of avionics computers are attitude heading computers.

8. The avionics system of claim 7 wherein the plurality of analog sensors includes rate gyros, accelerometers and flux detectors.

9. An avionics system with a common sensor detector comprising:

a plurality of air data systems for measuring air data parameters and providing air data;

a plurality of attitude heading systems for measuring attitude and heading data parameters and providing attitude and heading data; and

a primary flight display for receiving, processing, and displaying the air data and attitude and heading data wherein the primary flight display further comprises a plurality of inside limit data comparators to compare the data from the air data systems or the attitude heading systems and to detect a common sensor fault condition when the data difference is zero or approximately zero for a predetermined period of time.

10. The avionics system of claim 9 wherein the plurality of air data systems further comprise:

a plurality of pressure and temperature sensors for providing pressure and temperature sensor signals; and

a plurality of air data computers for computing air data parameters associated with the pressure and temperature sensor signals from the plurality of pressure and temperature sensors.

11. The avionics system of claim 9 wherein the a plurality of attitude heading systems further comprise:

a plurality of flux detector, rate gyro, and accelerometer sensors for providing flux detector, rate gyro, and accelerometer sensor signals; and

a plurality of attitude heading computers for computing attitude and heading data parameters associated with the flux detector, rate gyro, and accelerometer sensor signals from the plurality of flux detector, rate gyro, and accelerometer sensors.

12. The avionics system of claim 9 wherein the primary flight display further comprises a plurality of outside limit data comparators to compare the data from the air data systems or the attitude heading systems and to detect a miscompare fault condition when a data difference from the air data systems or the attitude heading systems exceeds a predetermined difference.

13. The avionics system of claim 9 further comprising a multifunction display for receiving, processing, and displaying the air data and attitude and heading data wherein the multifunction flight display further comprises a plurality of inside limit data comparators to compare the data from the air data systems and to compare the data from the attitude heading systems and to detect a common sensor fault condition when the data difference is zero or approximately zero for a predetermined period of time.

14. An avionics system with a common sensor detector comprising:

a plurality of air data systems for measuring air data parameters and sending air data;

a plurality of attitude heading systems for measuring attitude and heading data parameters and sending attitude and heading data;

an input/output concentrator for receiving, concentrating, and sending the air data and the attitude and heading data wherein the input/output concentrator further comprise a plurality of inside limit data comparators to compare the data from the air data systems and to compare the data from the attitude heading systems to detect a common sensor fault condition when the data difference is zero or approximately zero for a predetermined period of time; and

a primary flight display for receiving the air data and attitude and heading data from the input/output concentrator and processing and displaying the air data, attitude and heading data, and fault conditions.

15. An avionics system capable of detecting a common sensor and for mounting in an aircraft comprising:

a plurality of analog sensors for sensing flight parameters of the aircraft and for providing sensor signals indicative of the flight parameters;

a plurality of avionics computers for computing flight parameter data associated with the sensor signals from the plurality of analog sensors wherein the flight parameter data comprises a plurality of flight parameter digital words; and

a primary flight display for receiving, processing, and displaying the flight parameter data wherein the primary flight display further comprises a plurality of inside limit data comparators to compare the flight parameter data from at least a same pair of the plurality of flight computers to detect a common sensor fault condition when the flight parameter data difference is zero for corresponding digital words in the plurality of digital words from the same pair of flight computers for at least two comparison cycles.

16. A method of detecting a common sensor fault in a safety critical system comprising the steps of:

sensing safety critical system parameters with two or more analog sensors;

providing analog sensor signals from the analog sensors indicative of the safety critical system parameters;

processing the analog sensor signals received from the analog sensors in at least two safety critical system computers into safety critical system data;

sending the safety critical system data from the safety critical system computers;

receiving the safety critical system data from the safety critical system computers with a safety critical system display;

displaying the safety critical system data on the safety critical system display;

comparing the safety critical system data received from the safety critical system computers in the safety critical system display; and

indicating a safety critical system data fault on the safety critical system display when the comparison of the data results in a zero or approximate zero difference for a predetermined period of time.

17. A method of detecting a common sensor fault in an avionics system comprising the steps of:

sensing air data parameters with two or more air data systems;

processing the sensed air data parameters in the air data systems into air data;

sending air data from the air data systems;

sensing attitude and heading parameters with two or more attitude heading systems;

processing the sensed attitude and heading parameters into attitude and heading data;

sending attitude and heading data from the attitude heading systems;

receiving the air data from the air data system and the attitude and heading data from the attitude heading system with a primary flight display;

displaying the air data and attitude and heading data on the primary flight display;

comparing the air data received from the two or more air data systems;

indicating air data fault on the primary flight display when the comparison of the air data results in a zero or approximate zero difference for a predetermined period of time;

comparing the attitude and heading data received from the two or more attitude heading systems; and

indicating attitude and heading fault on the primary flight display when the comparison of the attitude and heading data results in a zero or approximate zero difference for a predetermined period of time.

18. A method of detecting a common sensor fault in an avionics system installed in an aircraft comprising the steps of:

sensing flight parameters of the aircraft with a plurality of analog sensors;

providing sensor signals indicative of the flight parameters from the plurality of analog sensors;

computing flight parameter data associated with the sensor signals from the plurality of analog sensors with a plurality of avionics computers;

receiving the flight parameter data in a primary flight display;

comparing data sets of the flight parameter data from at least a same pair of the plurality of flight computers in a plurality of inside limit data comparators within the primary flight display;

detecting a zero difference with an inside data comparator when the flight parameter data difference is zero between equal size contiguous data sets of the flight parameter data from the same pair of flight computers; and

annunciating the common sensor fault condition when one or more comparison cycles have a zero difference.

19. The method of claim 18 wherein the step of comparing flight parameter data the inside data comparator further comprises;

recording a first data set from a first avionics computer in the plurality of avionics computers over a predetermined period of time wherein the first data set comprises a first plurality of digital data words;

recording a second data set from a second avionics computer in the plurality of computers starting at a time prior to the predetermined period of time, through the predetermined period of time, and stopping at a time after the predetermined period of time wherein the second data set comprises a second plurality of digital words;

comparing the first data set to an equal sized contiguous subset of the second data set starting at the time prior to the predetermined time wherein the equal sized contiguous subset comprises a number of digital words equal to the first plurality of digital words;

comparing the first data set to a next equal sized contiguous subset of the second data set starting a time later by one digital word than the time prior to the predetermined period of time;

continuing the comparison of the first data set to a next equal sized contiguous subset of the second data set until a last equal sized contiguous subset is compared wherein the last equal sized data subset has a last data word ending at the time after the predetermined period of time; and

repeating the steps of comparing the flight parameter data as claimed above in a next comparison cycle.

20. A method of detecting a common sensor fault in an avionics system with an inside limit data comparator installed within the avionics system comprising the steps of:

recording data words arriving from a first source in the avionics system for a predetermined time interval;

recording data words arriving from a second source in the avionics system for the predetermined time interval;

comparing a data word from the first source to an earlier data word from the second source;

comparing the data word from the first source to a data word arriving at a same time from the second source;

comparing the data word form the first source to a later data word from the second source;

determining a zero offset value if comparing the data word from the first source to the earlier data word, to the data word arriving at the same time, or the later data word from the second source results in a zero data difference wherein the offset value equals the number of words the second data words is earlier, at the same, or later than the first data word;

offsetting the data words arriving from the second data source by the zero offset value;

subtracting the data words from the first source from the offset data words from the second source; and

warning a pilot of the common sensor fault when the subtracting of the data words from the first source from the offset data words from the second source results in a continuous zero value.