Airport runway collision avoidance system and method
First Claim
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1. A collision avoidance system for an aircraft, the system comprising:
- a position-sensing device operable to determine a position of the aircraft;
a communications system operable to support two-way communications between the aircraft and other aircraft; and
a collision avoidance processor in communication with the position-sensing device and the communications system, the processor being configured to generate an advisory signal if the aircraft is determined to be positioned in a predefined first restricted zone positioned proximate to an airport runway and transmit the generated advisory signal to other similarly configured aircraft via the communications system thereby informing the other aircraft that a current instrument landing system (ILS) landing process may be affected,wherein the generated signal includes the determined positional information for the aircraft,wherein the collision avoidance processor receives signals emitted from another aircraft configured to emit signals when the other aircraft is positioned in a second restricted zone, wherein the transmitted signals include the determined positional information for the other aircraft, the collision avoidance processor compares positional information for the other aircraft to the determined positional information for the aircraft, determines if a collision hazard exists based on the comparison, and outputs an alert if it is determined that a collision hazard exists, the determined position information includes previously stored airport information, and the airport information includes at least one of runway information, taxiway information and approach to landing information.
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Abstract
Systems and methods for avoiding runway collisions. In a disclosed embodiment of the invention, a collision avoidance system includes a position-sensing device that is operable to determine a position of the aircraft, and a communications system operable to support two-way communications between the aircraft and other similarly configured aircraft. A collision avoidance processor is coupled to the position-sensing device and the communications system that is configured to generate a message if the aircraft moves into a restricted zone positioned proximate to the airport.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. A collision avoidance system for an aircraft, the system comprising:
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a position-sensing device operable to determine a position of the aircraft; a communications system operable to support two-way communications between the aircraft and other aircraft; and a collision avoidance processor in communication with the position-sensing device and the communications system, the processor being configured to generate an advisory signal if the aircraft is determined to be positioned in a predefined first restricted zone positioned proximate to an airport runway and transmit the generated advisory signal to other similarly configured aircraft via the communications system thereby informing the other aircraft that a current instrument landing system (ILS) landing process may be affected, wherein the generated signal includes the determined positional information for the aircraft, wherein the collision avoidance processor receives signals emitted from another aircraft configured to emit signals when the other aircraft is positioned in a second restricted zone, wherein the transmitted signals include the determined positional information for the other aircraft, the collision avoidance processor compares positional information for the other aircraft to the determined positional information for the aircraft, determines if a collision hazard exists based on the comparison, and outputs an alert if it is determined that a collision hazard exists, the determined position information includes previously stored airport information, and the airport information includes at least one of runway information, taxiway information and approach to landing information. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 17, 18, 19)
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8. A method of collision avoidance for an aircraft, the method comprising
determining position information for the aircraft; -
determining if the aircraft is within a first restricted zone proximate to an airport runway based on the position information for the aircraft; if the aircraft is determined to be within the first restricted zone, transmitting an advisory signal to at least one other aircraft approaching for landing during an instrument landing system (ILS) landing process on the airport runway thereby informing the other aircraft that a current ILS landing process may be affected; and monitoring for signals emitted from the other aircraft configured to emit signals when positioned in a second restricted zone, wherein the transmitted signals include the determined position information for the aircraft, wherein the collision avoidance processor receives signals emitted from the other aircraft configured to emit signals when the other aircraft is positioned in the second restricted zone, wherein the transmitted signals include the determined positional information for the aircraft and the received signals include the determined positional information for the other aircraft, the collision avoidance processor compares positional information for the other aircraft to the determined positional information for the aircraft, determines if a collision hazard exists based on the comparison, and outputs an alert if it is determined that a collision hazard exists, the determined position information includes previously stored airport information, and the airport information includes at least one of runway information, taxiway information and approach to landing information. - View Dependent Claims (9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 20)
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Specification