System and method for detecting and displaying wind shear

• US 6,356,843 B1
• Filed: 08/06/2001
• Issued: 03/12/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 10/20/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Baron Services Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Baron Services Incorporated
• Inventors: Baron, Robert O., Wilson, Gregory S., Meyer, Paul J., Thompson, Tom S., Phillips, Ronald J.
• Primary Examiner(s): McElheny, Jr., Donald E.
• Application Number:
  US09/923,068
• Time in Patent Office: 218 Days
• Field of Search: 702/3, 702/4, 702/5, 342/26, 342/460, 706/931, 340/949, 340/968
• US Class Current: 702/3
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/58 Velocity or trajectory determination systems; Sense-of-movement determination systems
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/951 ground based
• CPC Class Codes: Y02A 90/10 Information and communication technologies [ICT] supporting adaptation to climate change, e.g. for weather forecasting or climate simulation

Abstract

A computer based method of detecting and displaying rotational wind shear. Radial wind velocities within first and second adjacent gate sweeps produced by a radar system are detected in a predetermined geographic area, and are compared at points of equal radial distance from the radar system. The radial location of gate to gate wind shear at positions between the radar system and the boundary of the radar systems range are identified and compared to a predetermined threshold wind velocity value to determine the location of high priority gate to gate wind shear. The high priority gate to gate wind shear is then graphically displayed relative to its geographic location on a graphical representation of the predetermined geographic area. A computer based system for detecting and displaying rotational wind shear is also disclosed.

Claims

1. A method of processing meteorological data to determine the location of wind shear, said method comprising the steps of:

receiving meteorological data corresponding to a geographic area, said meteorological data comprising a plurality of components of data; and

comparing adjacent components of data to determine the location of gate-to-gate wind shear affecting the geographic area.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising the step of displaying the gate-to-gate wind shear on a display device.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein the displaying step includes the step of graphically indicating the location of the gate-to-gate wind shear with a shear marker.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the adjacent components of data include radial wind velocities and wherein said comparing step further comprises the step of determining the velocity difference between adjacent radial wind velocities at locations substantially radially equidistant from the source of the meteorological data.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein said comparing step further comprises the step of comparing the gate-to-gate wind shear to a threshold wind velocity value to determine the location of high velocity gate-to-gate wind shear.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the gate-to-gate wind shear comprises winds circumferentially adjacent one another traveling in opposite radial directions, and wherein said comparing step includes the step of calculating the difference in velocity between said adjacent winds.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein the gate-to-gate wind shear comprises winds circumferentially adjacent one another and traveling in the same radial direction at different velocities, and wherein said comparing step includes the step of calculating the velocity difference between said adjacent winds.

8. A system for processing meteorological data to determine the location of wind shear, said system comprising:

a central processing unit configured to receive radial wind velocity data from a radar source having an area of coverage, said central processing unit instructed to divide the area of coverage into a plurality of adjacent radar gate sweeps and to compare the radial wind velocities of adjacent radar gate sweeps to determine the velocity difference between the adjacent radial wind velocities.

9. A system of claim 8 wherein said central processing unit is further configured to compare the determined velocity difference to a threshold value to identify the high velocity wind shear.

10. The system of claim 8 further comprising a database including geographic data corresponding to and representative of the area of coverage of the radar source.

11. The system of claim 10 wherein said central processing unit is configured to communicate with said database to associate the wind shear with the geographic data.

12. The system of claim 11 further comprising at least one shear marker for indicating the location of wind shear.

13. The system of claim 12 further comprising a display device for graphically depicting the location of the wind shear with said shear marker.

14. A method of indicating a location of wind shear, said method comprising the steps of:

receiving radial wind velocity data;

processing said received radial wind velocity data to identify the location of wind shear; and

associating a shear marker with the location of the wind shear.

15. The method of claim 14 further comprising the step of displaying the shear marker together with geographic data corresponding to a geographic area affected by the wind shear.

16. The method of claim 15 further comprising the step of associating a graphical representation of a storm cell with the geographic area.

17. The method of claim 16 wherein the shear marker comprises an animated swirling circle, and wherein the associating step comprises the step of superimposing the animated swirling circle over the storm cell.