Method and system for aiding the taxiing of an aircraft on an airport domain

• US 8,527,190 B2
• Filed: 11/23/2011
• Issued: 09/03/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 11/30/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Airbus Operations (European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company EADS NV)
• Original Assignee: Airbus Operations (European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company EADS NV)
• Inventors: Mere, Jean-Claude, Revertegat, Lucille
• Primary Examiner(s): Black, Thomas
• Assistant Examiner(s): PAIGE, TYLER D
• Application Number:
  US13/303,866
• Publication Number:
  US 20120136562A1
• Time in Patent Office: 650 Days
• Field of Search: 701/120, 701/1, 340/958, 340/963, 340/972
• US Class Current: 701/120
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0021 located in the aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/065 Navigation or guidance aids, e.g. for taxiing or rolling

Abstract

A method and system for aiding the taxiing of an aircraft on an airport domain enables automatic planning and execution of taxiing. The system includes a trajectory generating device for generating a taxiing trajectory of the aircraft on the airport domain, with the aid of a navigation data base, and piloting aiding devices that use the trajectory for aiding the taxiing of the aircraft. For example, the piloting aiding devices may include an automatic piloting/taxiing device and a display device.

Claims

1. A system for aiding the piloting of an aircraft taxiing on an airport domain, the system comprising:

a trajectory generating device for generating a trajectory for taxiing the aircraft in the airport domain, from an airport database, the trajectory generating device further comprising;

a navigation device for receiving a path, the path comprising a succession of identifiers for surface elements of the airport domain to be followed by the aircraft, each surface element representing a distinct and bounded portion of the airport domain; and

a communication device for providing the trajectory to a piloting aiding device;

a database extraction device for automatically extracting surface elements and a plurality of polylines from the airport database, said airport database containing each of the surface elements relating to the path to be followed by the aircraft;

a connectivity detecting device for providing connectivity information relating to the extracted surface elements and the extracted plurality of polylines, the connectivity information including which of the extracted polylines connect to or traverse said extracted surface elements;

a starting and arrival point detecting device for automatically identifying the starting and arrival points of the path;

a continuous way determining device for automatically determining a continuous way linking the starting and arrival points, the continuous way represented by at least some of the extracted polylines connected to or traversing the extracted surface elements;

a conversion device for automatically converting the polylines into a succession of curves forming the trajectory to be followed by the aircraft; and

the piloting aiding devices, wherein the piloting aiding devices include an automatic piloting/taxiing system that automatically actuates the aircraft to follow the trajectory received from the trajectory generating device.

2. The system according to claim 1,

wherein the connectivity detecting device comprises:

a connectivity testing device for automatically performing a connectivity test in order to check that each of the surface elements extracted by the database extraction device are connected to at least another surface element, wherein when at least one surface element is not connected to another surface element, at least one auxiliary surface element is extracted by the database extraction device, the at least one auxiliary surface element providing a connection between surface elements which could not be connected; and

wherein the database extraction device automatically extracts supplemental polylines associated with the at least one auxiliary surface element.

3. The system according to claim 1, wherein the connectivity detecting device comprises a connectivity extracting device for extracting connectivity information from the database, wherein said connectivity information further comprises at least information indicating, for each surface element, the other of the surface elements which are connected thereto.

13. The system according to claim 1, wherein the piloting aiding devices also include a display device that produces a visual representation of the trajectory on a viewing screen such that a crew of the aircraft can monitor the taxiing of the aircraft.

4. A method for aiding the taxiing of an aircraft on an airport domain, comprising the steps of:

generating a trajectory for the taxiing of the aircraft on the airport domain from an airport database;

wherein generating the trajectory further comprises;

a) receiving a path with a navigation device, the path comprising a succession of identifiers for surface elements of the airport domain that the aircraft is to follow, each of the surface elements of the airport domain representing a distinct and bounded portion of the airport domain; and

b) automatically extracting the surface elements associated with the path from the airport database;

c) extracting a plurality of polylines from the airport database;

d) determining connectivity information, the connectivity information including which of the extracted polylines connect to or traverse the extracted surface elements;

e) automatically identifying starting and arrival points of the aircraft, the aircraft traversing a continuous way between the starting and arrival points;

f) automatically determining the continuous way linking the starting and arrival points, the continuous way represented by at least some of the extracted polylines connected to or traversing the extracted surface elements; and

g) automatically converting the polylines representative of the continuous way into a succession of curves forming the trajectory to be followed by the aircraft;

providing the trajectory to a piloting aiding device, the piloting aiding device including an automatic piloting/taxiing device; and

automatically actuating the aircraft with the automatic piloting/taxiing device to follow the trajectory received from the trajectory generating device.

5. The method according to claim 4, wherein the determining which of the extracted polylines connect to or traverse the extracted surface elements step further comprises:

c1) performing a connectivity test to determine whether each of the surface elements extracted from the airport database are connected to at least another surface element; and

extracting at least one auxiliary surface element which provides a connection between surface elements which could not be connected when at least one surface element is not connected to another surface element; and

c2) extracting supplemental polylines from the airport database, the supplemental polylines associated with the at least one auxiliary surface element.

6. The method according to claim 4, wherein the connectivity information of said airport database further comprises at least information indicating, for each surface element, the other of the surface elements that are connected thereto.

7. The method according to claim 4, wherein extracting surface elements from the airport database further comprises:

eliminating polylines which are distant from a considered surface element; and

for remaining polylines which completely or partially connect to or traverse the considered surface element, calculating the number of intersections between each point of each remaining polyline and the infinite half-line and each length defining a contour of considered surface element.

8. The method according to claim 4, wherein in order to identify the starting and arrival points of the path, each of the ends of each polyline the polylines, located outside the first and last surface elements of the path, are considered.

9. The method according to claim 4, wherein each of the possible continuous ways linking the starting and arrival points are determined by covering each of the extracted polylines, a way being a succession of polylines connected to each other;

and the continuous way being searched is determined and selected amongst the determined continuous ways.

10. The method according to claim 9, further comprising:

for each one of said ways, determining whether an angle between tangents of two successive polylines of said continuous way is part of a predetermined angle domain, wherein only the continuous ways being part of the predetermined angle domain are taken into account.

11. The method according to claim 4, wherein if no continuous way linking starting and arrival points has been found, the method further comprises choosing the longest way up to discontinuity, starting at the starting point and ending at a point being a shortest distance away from the arrival point.

12. The method according to claim 4, wherein the polylines are converted into a succession of Bezier curves which form the trajectory.

14. The method according to claim 4, wherein the piloting aiding devices also include a display device, and the method further comprises:

producing a visual representation of the trajectory with the display device on a viewing screen such that a crew of the aircraft can monitor the taxiing of the aircraft.