Automatic strategic offset function

• US 7,698,026 B2
• Filed: 06/14/2007
• Issued: 04/13/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 06/14/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: The Boeing Co.
• Original Assignee: The Boeing Co.
• Inventors: Gunn, Peter D., Cornell, Bradley D., Dey, Michael E., Myers, Robert J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Hellner; Mark
• Assistant Examiner(s): Algahaim; Helal A
• Application Number:
  US11/763,327
• Publication Number:
  US 20080312777A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,034 Days
• Field of Search: 701/3, 701/205, 701/301
• US Class Current: 701/3
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0034 Assembly of a flight plan
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0052 for cruising combined instruments indicating more than one navigational value G01C23/00

Abstract

Embodiments of methods and systems for providing an automatic strategic offset function are disclosed. In one embodiment, a method for enhancing the collision avoidance capability of an aircraft includes determining a flight plan, determining a boundary for the flight plan, generating a variable offset from the flight plan that is within the boundary, the variable offset including a lateral offset distance, and navigating an aircraft based on the variable offset.

Claims

1. A method for enhancing the collision avoidance capability of an aircraft, comprising:

determining a published flight plan;

determining a boundary for the published flight plan;

generating two or more flight plan;

wherein the offset is determined based on a random multiplier segments, each flight plan segment to include an origination point that is proximate a termination point of a preceding segment, the two or more segments being contained within the boundary and offset from the published flight plan;

generating a modified flight plan by connecting the two or more flight plan segments to create a continuous navigable flight plan that includes varying offsets from the published flight plan; and

navigating an aircraft, via an aircraft flight controller, along the modified flight plan.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the two or more flight plan segments are generated by a flight management computer, and wherein the two or more flight plan segments are offset from corresponding segments of the published flight plan that are defined between successive published waypoints.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the offset is calculated for a segment between the successive published waypoints, the offset being a distance perpendicular to a line connecting the respective published waypoints.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising causing the display of the offset.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the offset includes a vertical offset distance.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the offset is based on a user-generated offset value.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein navigating the aircraft along the modified flight plan includes navigating the aircraft using an autoflight system.

8. A method for providing an automatic strategic offset function, the method performed by the program comprising:

determining a published flight plan segment between two successive published waypoints, the published flight plan being a flight path within a boundary;

creating an offset flight plan at an offset distance from the published flight plan segment and within the boundary, the offset distance to include a vertical offset distance and a lateral offset distance from the published flight plan segment, wherein the offset flight plan is parallel to a trajectory defined between the two successive published waypoints;

wherein the offset distances are determined based on a random offset distance multiplier; and

navigating an aircraft, via an aircraft flight controller, substantially along the offset flight plan segment.

9. A computer-implemented method comprising:

identifying a published flight plan that is located within a boundary that is established for the published flight plan;

generating a first flight plan segment that is offset from the published flight plan, the first flight plan segment being within the boundary and having a termination point;

generating a second flight plan segment within the boundary and proximate the termination point of the first flight plan segment, the second flight plan segment being offset from the published flight plan and noncontiguous with the first flight plan segment; and

navigating an aircraft, via an aircraft flight controller, substantially along the first flight plan segment;

wherein the offset distances are determined based on a random offset distance multiplier from the first flight plan segment to the second flight plan segment, and substantially along the second flight plan segment.

10. The computer-implemented method of claim 9, wherein the published flight plan includes a first segment defined between two published waypoints, and wherein the first flight plan segment includes a trajectory that is substantially parallel to a trajectory of the first segment.

11. The computer-implemented method of claim 9, wherein offsets of the first flight plan segment and the second flight plan segment include different offset distances.

12. The computer-implemented method of claim 9, wherein the published flight plan includes a plurality of segments that are defined between successive published waypoints, and wherein the first flight plan segment and the second flight plan segment correspond to respective ones of the plurality of segments.

13. The computer-implemented method of claim 9, wherein each of the plurality of segments is a linear trajectory between corresponding published waypoints.

14. The computer-implemented method of claim 9, wherein the navigating an aircraft from the first flight plan segment to the second flight plan segment includes creating a transition flight path between the first flight plan segment and the second flight plan segment.

15. The computer-Implemented method of claim 14, wherein the transition flight path is an arced path that excludes the termination point of the first flight path segment.