Device to aid the positioning of a pilot in an aircraft

• US 7,733,480 B2
• Filed: 06/21/2007
• Issued: 06/08/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 06/22/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Airbus Operations SAS (Airbus SE)
• Original Assignee: Airbus France
• Inventors: Le Texier, Maxime, Duchams, Georges
• Primary Examiner(s): NGUYEN, SANG H
• Application Number:
  US11/766,199
• Publication Number:
  US 20090015828A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,083 Days
• Field of Search: 356/247, 356251-252, 356/141.2, 356614-615, 364/559, 324/207.13, 340/960, 340/973, 340/958, 340/980, 340/968
• US Class Current: 356/247
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 11/0689 specially adapted for pilots

Abstract

A visual aid is used by a pilot in an aircraft to position himself in the cockpit by an axial movement, called movement along the X axis, in an aircraft reference coordinate system, and by a vertical movement, called movement along the Z axis, in the aircraft reference system. The visual aid comprises two geometric shapes (3, 4), separated in space and designed to be visually aligned by the pilot; these shapes have the characteristic that each has a visual reference (31, 41) on its surface, approximately in the same horizontal plane perpendicular to the vertical XZ plane.

Claims

1. A device for aiding the positioning of a pilot in an aircraft comprising:

a support for the pilot constructed to allow adjustment of the position of the pilot along horizontal and vertical axes relative to an aircraft reference coordinate system;

a visual aid for identifying the optimum pilot eye position for good visibility further comprising;

a first geometric shape having a first visual reference associated therewith;

a second geometric shape having a second visual reference associated therewith complimentary with the first visual reference;

wherein the second geometric shape is placed between the pilot and the first geometric shape so that their centerlines are aligned with the optimum pilot eye position along an axis of view of the pilot; and

wherein the first and second visual references are positioned on their respective geometric shapes to assist the pilot in visually aligning the first and second geometric shapes along the axis of view of the pilot in both the vertical and horizontal planes by adjusting the position of the support.

2. The device according to claim 1 wherein at least one visual reference is created by a concave shape.

3. The device according to claim 1 wherein at least one visual reference is created by a convex shape.

4. The device according to claim 1 wherein at least one visual reference is created by a mark in a color contrasting to the surface color of geometric shape.

5. The device according to claim 1 wherein each of the geometric shapes and their associated visual references are made of a single piece.

6. The device according to claim 1 wherein the visual references are joined to their respective geometric shapes.

7. The device according to claim 1 wherein the geometric shapes are roughly spherical.

8. The device according to claim 1 wherein geometric shapes are roughly cylindrical relative to the vertical axis.

9. The device according to claim 1 wherein said device has three geometric shapes to aid in the simultaneous positioning of two pilots, one of the three geometric shapes being common to both pilots, each of the three geometric shapes having a visual reference on their surface, approximately in the same horizontal plane perpendicular to the vertical plane.

10. The device according to claim 9 wherein the common geometric shape, for each pilot, corresponds to the geometric shape closest to the position of said pilot.

11. The device according to claim 9 wherein the common geometric shape, for each pilot, corresponds to the geometric shape furthest from the position of said pilot.