System and method for economic usage of an aircraft

• US 8,825,237 B2
• Filed: 04/23/2013
• Issued: 09/02/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 04/26/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Bell Helicopter Textron Incorporated (Textron Inc)
• Original Assignee: Bell Helicopter Textron Incorporated (Textron Inc)
• Inventors: Covington, Charles Eric, Tucker, Brian E., Priest, Thomas B., Platz, David A., McCollough, James M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Cheung, Mary
• Assistant Examiner(s): Sweeney, Brian P
• Application Number:
  US13/868,159
• Publication Number:
  US 20130289804A1
• Time in Patent Office: 497 Days
• Field of Search: 701/14, 701/3, 340/946
• US Class Current: 701/14
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 45/00 Aircraft indicators or protectors not otherwise provided for camouflage F41H3/00
• CPC Class Codes: B64F 5/60 Testing or inspecting aircraft components or systems
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 23/00 Combined instruments indicating more than one navigational value, e.g. for aircraft; Combined measuring devices for measuring two or more variables of movement, e.g. distance, speed or acceleration
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0005 with arrangements to save energy

Abstract

The present application relates to a system and method for providing real-time indications of economic impact of aircraft operations to an aircraft operator. The system and method allow the aircraft operator to reduce economic impact during flight of the aircraft. Such an analysis and cue to the aircraft operator allows the operator to make real-time changes during flight to reduce damage of life-limited aircraft components, thereby reducing the economic impact of aircraft operation that is directly associated with maintenance and component replacement. The system and method can also include pre-flight and post-flight analysis methods for reduction of economic impact of flight operations.

Claims

1. A flight instrument panel for an aircraft, the flight instrument panel comprising:

a display;

a gauge located on the display, the gauge having a scale with an indicator configured to communicate a reading by location of the indicator relative to the scale;

a cue indicator on the gauge, the cue indicator being configured to visually communicate to a pilot the opportunity to make an operational change that would decrease a rate of damage during operation of the aircraft.

2. The flight instrument panel according to claim 1, wherein the display is a digitized glass cockpit display.

3. The flight instrument panel according to claim 1, wherein the gauge is an altimeter and the cue indicator is a visual cue conveying a direction of altitude change and a magnitude of altitude change that would decrease a rate of damage during operation of the aircraft.

4. The flight instrument panel according to claim 1, wherein the gauge is an airspeed gauge and the cue indicator is a visual cue conveying a speed change that would decrease a rate of damage during operation of the aircraft.

5. The flight instrument panel according to claim 1, wherein the gauge is a power instrument and the cue indicator is a visual cue conveying a power change that would decrease a rate of damage during operation of the aircraft.

6. The flight instrument panel according to claim 1, wherein the gauge is a rotor speed gauge and the cue indicator is a visual cue conveying a rotor speed change that would decrease a rate of damage during operation of the aircraft.

7. The flight instrument panel according to claim 1, further comprising:

a computer calculation unit configured for performing an algorithm, the algorithm capable of interpreting data to derive the rate of damage during operation of the aircraft.

8. The flight instrument panel according to claim 7, further comprising:

a plurality of sensors configured for communicating real time flight data to the computer calculation unit.

9. The flight instrument panel according to claim 1, wherein the rate of damage is a rate of maintenance inducing operation.

10. The flight instrument panel according to claim 1, wherein the rate of damage is a rate of component replacement inducing operation.

11. The flight instrument panel according to claim 1, further comprising:

a selector configured for a pilot to make an input, the input being a factor for which the pilot considers important to the rate of damage of the aircraft, the factor being at least one of;

a rate of maintenance inducing flight operation; and

a rate of component replacement inducing flight operation.

12. The flight instrument panel according to claim 1, wherein the aircraft is a helicopter.

13. A method of optimizing the economic operation of an aircraft, the method comprising:

inputting an input data to a usage optimization algorithm;

processing the input data in the usage optimization algorithm with a computer processor;

cueing the pilot to make a change in the operation of the aircraft for purposes of decreasing a rate of damage during operation of the aircraft.

14. The method according to claim 13, wherein the step of cueing the pilot occurs prior to flight.

15. The method according to claim 13, wherein the step of cueing the pilot occurs post flight.