Apparatus and methods for displaying arrival, approach, and departure information on a display device in an aircraft

• US 7,693,621 B1
• Filed: 06/27/2006
• Issued: 04/06/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 06/27/2006
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Toyota Motor Sales USA, Inc. (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toyota Motor Sales USA, Inc. (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Chamas, Bassam H.
• Primary Examiner(s): Beaulieu; Yonel
• Application Number:
  US11/475,041
• Time in Patent Office: 1,379 Days
• Field of Search: 701/1, 701/16, 701/200, 701/211, 340/947, 340/951, 342 33- 35, 731/78.T
• US Class Current: 701/16
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0021 located in the aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0065 for taking-off
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/025 Navigation or guidance aids radar or analogous systems specially adapted for landing purposes G01S13/913

Abstract

Systems and methods of the present disclosure are used to determine and display arrival, approach, and departure information on a display device in an aircraft, such as a moving map on a multi-function display. An arrival, approach, and/or departure may be received by a flight computer such that the arrival, approach, and/or departure information may be determined based on related approach procedures. Adjustments to navigational instruments may also be made. A pilot may then use the arrival, approach, and/or departure information to safely fly the arrival, approach and/or departure.

Claims

1. A method for determining and displaying information related to an approach for an aircraft, the method comprising:

receiving a flight plan;

determining flight plan information based on the flight plan;

receiving an approach for an airport;

determining approach information based on the approach including navigation information, wherein the navigation information includes at least one navigational fix and an identification for the navigational fix;

comparing the flight plan information with the approach information to confirm the approach is appropriate based on the flight plan;

displaying the approach information on a display device in the aircraft relative to a position of the aircraft;

presenting the navigational fix on the display during the approach; and

providing the identification for the navigational fix on the display during the approach.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein displaying the approach information includes displaying a graphical representation of the approach information relative to a geographical representation of an aircraft location and a vertical representation of an aircraft elevation on a display device in the aircraft.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the navigation information includes at least one of lateral guidance information and vertical guidance information.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the vertical guidance information includes at least one of aircraft altitude information, glideslope information, descent rate information, altitude deviation information, and altitude correction information.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein the lateral guidance information includes at least one of heading information, heading deviation information, and heading correction information.

6. The method of claim 3, wherein navigation of an aircraft according to the at least one of lateral guidance and vertical guidance results in an approach compliant with specified approach procedures.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the approach is an ILS approach, a VOR approach, a GPS approach, an NDB approach, or a Localizer approach.

8. The method of claim 2, wherein the aircraft location is displayed relative to approach plate information.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the approach information further includes a missed approach point.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the approach information further includes an estimated time of arrival at the missed approach point.

11. The method of claim 10, further including:

receiving an indication of a missed approach;

identifying missed approach navigation information related to the destination airport; and

displaying the missed approach navigation information on the display device.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the missed approach navigation information includes a missed approach checklist.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the missed approach checklist includes at least one of gear information, throttle information, flaps information, and velocity information.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the missed approach navigation information further includes at least one of ascent altitude, a heading, and a waypoint.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the indication is received as a result of manual input.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the indication is received automatically as a result of calculations performed by a flight computer.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein the approach information further includes terrain information.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the terrain information includes at least one of terrain maximum altitude, a terrain indicator, a terrain photograph, and a terrain video.

19. The method of claim 1, wherein the approach information further includes one or more frequencies related to at least one navigational aid.

20. The method of claim 19, further including receiving a selection of the one or more frequencies.

21. The method of claim 19, further comprising:

automatically tuning at least one aircraft device to the received selection.

22. The method of claim 21, further comprising:

updating at least one aircraft instrument according to the approach information.

23. The method of claim 3, further comprising:

providing information to an auto-pilot to fly the approach.

24. The method of claim 1, further including:

displaying at least one approach option as a selectable hotspot on the display device.

25. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the approach is manual.

26. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the approach is provided via vocal commands converted to digital data using vocal recognition.

27. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the approach is received in an analog format.

28. The method of claim 27, further comprising:

converting the selection received in an analog format to digital data.

29. The method of claim 28, wherein the digital data is provided directly to a device configured to determine the approach information.

30. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the approach is provided by digital data.

31. The method of claim 30, wherein the digital data is provided via datalink.

32. The method of claim 31, wherein the datalink is ADB-S.

33. The method of claim 28, further comprising:

receiving the approach manually;

comparing the approach with the airport information based on navigational data;

and;

confirming that the approach is correct based on the navigational data.

34. The method of claim 1, wherein the display device is a multi-function display.

35. The method of claim 1, wherein the display device is a heads-up display.

36. The method of claim 1, wherein the approach is an instrument approach to an airport, a departure procedure from an airport, or an arrival procedure to an airport.

37. The method of claim 1, further including providing information related to the at least one navigational fix.

38. The method of claim 37, wherein the information related to the at least one navigational fix includes at least one of a frequency, a latitude, a longitude, a GPS coordinate, an identifier, a type, and a status.

39. The method of claim 1, further including:

displaying one or more amenities at the airport on the display device.

40. The method of claim 39, wherein the one or more amenities displayed on the display device are selectable.

41. The method of claim 40, wherein the one or more amenities include at least one of an FBO, a fuel facility, a restaurant, a repair facility, and a lodging facility.

42. The method of claim 41, wherein selecting one of the one or more amenities causes display of additional information related to the selected amenity.

43. The method of claim 42, wherein the additional information includes at least one of a fuel price, a fuel grade, a restaurant cuisine, repair facility information, and lodging information.

44. The method of claim 1, wherein the approach information further includes weather information including at least a ceiling and a visibility at the airport.

45. The method of claim 1, further including:

providing an alert when a result of the comparison indicates the approach is not appropriate.

46. A system for determining and displaying information related to an approach for an aircraft, the system comprising:

a flight plan receiving component configured to receive a flight plan;

a flight plan determining component configured to determine flight plan information;

a receiving component configured to receive an approach for an airport;

a determining component configured to determine approach information based on the approach including navigation information, wherein the navigation information includes at least one navigational fix and an identification for the navigational fix;

a comparison component configured to compare the flight plan information with the approach information to confirm the approach is appropriate based on the flight plan;

a displaying component configured to display the approach information on a display device in the aircraft relative to a position of the aircraft;

a presenting component configured to present the navigational fix on the display during the approach; and

a providing component configured to provide the identification data for the navigational fix on the display during the approach.

47. The system of claim 46, wherein displaying the approach information includes displaying a graphical representation of the approach information relative to a geographical representation of an aircraft location and a vertical representation of an aircraft elevation on a display device in the aircraft.

48. The system of claim 46, wherein the navigation information includes at least one of lateral guidance information and vertical guidance information.

49. The system of claim 48, wherein the vertical guidance information includes at least one of aircraft altitude information, glideslope information, descent rate information, altitude deviation information, and altitude correction information.

50. The system of claim 48, wherein the lateral guidance information includes at least one of heading information, heading deviation information, and heading correction information.

51. The system of claim 48, wherein navigation of an aircraft according to the at least one of lateral guidance and vertical guidance results in an approach compliant with specified approach procedures.

52. The system of claim 46, wherein the approach is an ILS approach, a VOR approach, a GPS approach, an NDB approach, or a Localizer approach.

53. The system of claim 47, wherein the aircraft location is displayed relative to approach plate information.

54. The system of claim 46, wherein the approach information further includes a missed approach point.

55. The system of claim 54, wherein the approach information further includes an estimated time of arrival at the missed approach point.

56. The system of claim 55, further including:

a missed approach receiving component configured to receive an indication of a missed approach;

an identifying component configured to identify missed approach navigation information related to the destination airport; and

a missed approach displaying component configured to display the missed approach navigation information on the display device.

57. The system of claim 56, wherein the missed approach navigation information includes a missed approach checklist.

58. The system of claim 57, wherein the missed approach checklist includes at least one of gear information, throttle information, flaps information, and velocity information.

59. The system of claim 58, wherein the missed approach navigation information further includes at least one of ascent altitude, a heading, and a waypoint.

60. The system of claim 59, wherein the indication is received as a result of manual input.

61. The system of claim 60, wherein the indication is received automatically as a result of calculations performed by a flight computer.

62. The system of claim 46, wherein the approach information further includes terrain information.

63. The system of claim 62, wherein the terrain information includes at least one of terrain maximum altitude, a terrain indicator, a terrain photograph, and a terrain video.

64. The system of claim 46, wherein the approach information further includes one or more frequencies related to at least one navigational aid.

65. The system of claim 64, further including:

a frequency receiving component configured to receive a selection of the one or more frequencies.

66. The system of claim 64, further comprising:

a tuning component configured to automatically tune at least one aircraft device to the received selection.

67. The system of claim 66, further comprising:

an updating component configured to update at least one aircraft instrument according to the approach information.

68. The system of claim 48, further comprising:

an auto-pilot providing component configured to provide information to an auto-pilot to fly the approach.

69. The system of claim 46, further including:

a hotspot providing component configured to provide at least one approach option as a selectable hotspot on the display device.

70. The system of claim 46, wherein receiving the approach is manual.

71. The system of claim 46, wherein receiving the approach is provided via vocal commands converted to digital data using vocal recognition.

72. The system of claim 46, wherein receiving the approach is received in an analog format.

73. The system of claim 72, further comprising:

a converting component configured to convert the selection received in an analog format to digital data.

74. The system of claim 73, wherein the digital data is provided directly to a device configured to determine the approach information.

75. The system of claim 46, wherein receiving the approach is provided by digital data.

76. The system of claim 75, wherein the digital data is provided via datalink.

77. The system of claim 76, wherein the datalink is ADB-S.

78. The system of claim 73, further comprising:

an approach receiving component configured to receive the approach manually;

a comparing component configured to compare the approach with the airport information based on navigational data; and

;

a confirming component configured to confirm that the approach is correct based on the navigational data.

79. The system of claim 46, wherein the display device is a multi-function display.

80. The system of claim 46, wherein the display device is a heads-up display.

81. The system of claim 46, wherein the approach is an instrument approach to an airport, a departure procedure from an airport, or an arrival procedure to an airport.

82. The system of claim 46, further including:

a fix providing component configured to provide information related to the at least one navigational fix.

83. The system of claim 82, wherein the information related to the at least one navigational fix includes at least one of a frequency, a latitude, a longitude, a GPS coordinate, an identifier, a type, and a status.

84. The system of claim 46, further including:

an amenities displaying component configured to display one or more amenities at the airport on the display device.

85. The system of claim 84, wherein the one or more amenities displayed on the display device are displayed as selectable hotspots.

86. The system of claim 85, wherein the one or more amenities include at least one of an FBO, a fuel facility, a restaurant, a repair facility, and a lodging facility.

87. The system of claim 86, wherein selecting one of the one or more amenities causes display of additional information related to the selected amenity.

88. The system of claim 87, wherein the additional information includes at least one of a fuel price, a fuel grade, a restaurant cuisine, repair facility information, and lodging information.

89. The system of claim 46, wherein the approach information further includes weather information including at least a ceiling and a visibility at the airport.

90. The system of claim 46, wherein the approach is an instrument approach to an airport, a departure procedure from an airport, or an arrival procedure to an airport.

91. The system of claim 46 further comprising:

an alert providing component configured to provide an alert when a result of the comparison indicates the approach is not appropriate.