Aircraft weather information system

• US 6,501,392 B2
• Filed: 07/17/2001
• Issued: 12/31/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 02/09/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Honeywell International Inc.
• Original Assignee: Honeywell International Inc.
• Inventors: Conner, Kevin J, Bateman, C. Don, Gremmert, Scott, Hruby, John
• Primary Examiner(s): Tweel, John
• Application Number:
  US09/907,730
• Publication Number:
  US 20020039072A1
• Time in Patent Office: 532 Days
• Field of Search: 340/971, 340/945, 340/949, 340/983, 342/26, 342/460
• US Class Current: 340/971
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/95 for meteorological use
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/003 Transmission of data between radar, sonar or lidar systems and remote stations
• CPC Class Codes: G01W 1/10 Devices for predicting weather conditions computers per se G06; display devices G09
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0013 with a ground station
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0021 located in the aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0039 Modification of a flight plan
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0052 for cruising combined instruments indicating more than one navigational value G01C23/00
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0091 for monitoring atmospheric conditions radar or analogous systems specially adapted for meteorological use G01S13/95; meteorology G01W
• 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 system and method that downlinks weather data, generated by existing weather and data sensors, to a groundstation. The groundstation utilizes data from multiple aircraft to form refined weather information, and uplinks the refined weather information to the aircraft. The refined weather information is stored at the aircraft and picture generating equipment, such as an existing on-board ground proximity terrain picture and symbol generator, generates pictorial information depicting the weather information. The pictorial information is displayed, for example by an existing EFIS or weather radar display, in the form of polygons.

Claims

1. An aircraft-based weather information sharing and display system comprising:

at a ground station;

reception equipment for receiving weather parameters from a plurality of weather-sensing sources;

processing equipment for generating a refined weather information report, based on said received weather parameters, using data compression techniques to reduce the size of said weather information report; and

transmission equipment for uplinking said refined data-compressed weather information report to a plurality of aircraft and

at an aircraft;

standard weather information gathering equipment for detecting local weather parameters characterizing a weather condition in the vicinity of the aircraft;

transmission equipment for transmitting said local weather parameters to said ground station;

reception equipment for receiving said refined data-compressed weather information report uplinked by said ground station;

storage equipment for storing received said weather information report and said detected local weather parameters;

picture generating equipment for generating symbolic pictorial information based on the received refined weather information and said detected local weather parameters; and

weather information display equipment, coupled to the picture generating equipment, for displaying pictorial polygons indicating the dynamic behavior of said weather condition.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein said pictorial polygons display the predicted dynamic behavior of said weather conditions.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein said dynamic behavior comprises the movement of said weather conditions.

4. The system of claim 1 wherein said dynamic behavior comprises the intensity of said weather conditions.

5. The device of claim 1, wherein said data compression technique further comprises a weather parameter rate such that the frequency of said uplinking of said weather information report is reduced.

6. The device of claim 1, wherein the ground station further comprises a broadcast scheduling equipment that tailors said weather information report to each of said plurality of aircraft, based on a position of each of said aircraft, such that the length of said weather information report is reduced.

7. The device of claim 1, wherein said data compression technique comprises extracting salient features of said refined weather information, and inputting said salient features into said weather information report.

8. The device of claim 1, wherein said data compression technique comprises formatting said weather information report in an Aviation Weather Information Network format.

9. The device of claim 1, further comprising equipment on said aircraft that generates an alert to the aircraft pilot when said processing equipment detects a dangerous weather phenomenon.

10. A method for displaying the dynamic behavior of a weather condition on an aircraft display comprising the steps of:

receiving a refined data-compressed weather information report uplinked by a weather ground station;

decompressing said refined data-compressed weather information report;

storing said received refined decompressed weather information report;

generating symbolic pictorial information based on said received weather information report utilizing standard picture generating equipment already installed on the aircraft; and

displaying pictorial symbols indicating the dynamic behavior of said weather condition using EFIS or weather radar display equipment already installed on the aircraft.

11. The method of claim 10 wherein said step of displaying comprises:

displaying the area surrounding the aircraft'"'"'s flight path; and

displaying polygons representing the predicted dynamic behavior of significant weather formations, based on said uplinked weather information, relative to said flight path such that a pilot may navigate away from dangerous weather.

12. The method of claim 10 wherein said step of displaying comprises overlaying said pictorial symbols over a locally-received weather radar return display.

13. A method for providing weather data to an aircraft comprising the steps of:

receiving a weather data including a description of at least one weather phenomenon;

identifying a coasting interval for said weather phenomenon;

transmitting to the aircraft said weather data including said description as a function of said coasting interval.

14. The method of claim 13 wherein said description includes a rate data of said phenomenon.

15. A computer program product for providing weather data to an aircraft comprising:

a computer readable storage medium having computer readable program code means embodied in said medium, said computer readable program code means comprising;

a first computer instruction means for receiving a weather data including a description of at least one weather phenomenon;

a second computer instruction means for identifying a coasting interval for said weather phenomenon;

a third computer instruction means for controlling transmission of said weather data including said description to the aircraft as a function of said coasting interval.

16. The computer program product of claim 15 wherein said description includes a rate data of said phenomenon.

17. An apparatus for providing weather data to an aircraft comprising:

an input coupled to receive signals indicative of a weather data including a description of at least one weather phenomenon;

an output; and

a signal processor, coupled to said input and to said output, for;

identifying a coasting interval for said weather phenomenon; and

controlling transmission of said weather data including said description to the aircraft as a function of said coasting interval.

18. The apparatus of claim 17 wherein said signal processor comprises a general purpose processor.

19. A method for providing weather data to an aircraft comprising:

receiving a plurality of weather data including a description of at least one weather phenomenon and a phenomenon rate data;

forming a weather model from said plurality of weather data;

transmitting said weather model and said rate data to the aircraft.

20. The method of claim 19 wherein said step of forming a weather model further comprises the step of comparing said plurality of weather data to a geo-referenced image.

21. The method of claim 19 wherein said step of forming a weather model further comprises the steps of:

comparing an individual one of said plurality of weather data to another one of said plurality of weather data; and

quantifying an error in said plurality of weather data using said comparing step; and

obtaining a single description of said weather phenomenon.

22. The method of claim 19 wherein said step of transmitting comprises transmitting on an aircraft VHF frequency.

23. The method of claim 19 wherein said step of transmitting a weather model further comprises the step of transmitting a geometric shape description defining at least an area occupied by said weather phenomenon.

24. The method of claim 19 wherein said step of transmitting a weather model further comprises the step of transmitting a compressed image file.

25. A computer program product for providing weather data to an aircraft comprising:

a computer readable storage medium having computer readable program code means embodied in said medium, said computer readable program code means comprising;

a first computer instruction means for reading a plurality of weather data including a description of at least one weather phenomenon and a phenomenon rate data;

a second computer instruction means for forming a weather model from said plurality of weather data;

a third computer instruction means for controlling transmission of said weather model and said rate data to the aircraft.

26. The computer program product of claim 25 wherein said second computer instruction means further includes a fourth computer instruction means for comparing said plurality of weather data to a geo-referenced image.

27. The computer program product of claim 25 wherein said second computer instruction means further includes:

a fourth computer instruction means for comparing an individual one of said plurality of weather data to another one of said plurality of weather data; and

a fifth computer instruction means for quantifying an error in said plurality of weather data using said comparing step; and

a sixth computer instruction means for obtaining a single description of said weather phenomenon.

28. The computer program product of claim 25 wherein said third computer instruction means further includes a fourth computer instruction means for formatting a data message to be transmitted wherein said data message includes a geometric shape description defining at least an area occupied by said weather phenomenon.

29. The computer program product of claim 25 wherein said third computer instruction means includes a fourth computer instruction means for formatting said weather model as a compressed image file.

30. An apparatus for providing weather data to an aircraft comprising:

an input coupled to receive a plurality of weather data including a description of at least one weather phenomenon and a phenomenon rate data;

an output; and

a signal processor coupled to said input and to said output for;

forming a weather model from said plurality of weather data;

outputting a control signal to control transmission of said weather model and said rate data to the aircraft.

31. The apparatus of claim 30 wherein said signal processor comprises a general purpose processor.

32. The apparatus of claim 30 wherein said weather model comprises a compressed image file.

33. The apparatus of claim 30 wherein said control signal comprises a signal useful for controlling transmission of said weather model and said rate data on a VHF transmitter.

34. The apparatus of claim 30 wherein said signal processor further operates to:

compare an individual one of said plurality of weather data to another one of said plurality of weather data; and

quantify an error in said plurality of weather data using said comparing step; and

obtain a single description of said weather phenomenon from said plurality of weather data.

35. The apparatus of claim 30 wherein said control signal includes a data message describing a geometric area containing said weather phenomenon.

36. The apparatus of claim 30 wherein said signal processor further operates to compare said plurality of weather data to a geo-referenced image.