Device for flight plan display with displacement based on jumps

• US 8,825,401 B2
• Filed: 03/26/2010
• Issued: 09/02/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 03/27/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Thales SA
• Original Assignee: Thales SA
• Inventors: Deker, Guy, Roux, Emmanuel, Roger, Michel
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, John Q
• Assistant Examiner(s): WHALEN, MICHAEL F
• Application Number:
  US12/732,658
• Publication Number:
  US 20100250117A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,621 Days
• Field of Search: 701/3, 701/4, 701/26, 701/411, 701/418, 701/428, 701/429, 701/431, 701/439, 701/440, 701/454, 701/467, 701/528, 701/538
• US Class Current: 701/533
• 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: G01C 23/005 Flight directors indicating arrangements specially adapted for rotary gyroscopes G01C19/32
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/03549 Trackballs G06F3/03541 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0485 Scrolling or panning
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0017 Arrangements for implementing traffic-related aircraft activities, e.g. arrangements for generating, displaying, acquiring or managing traffic information head-up displays G02B27/01; ground or aircraft-carrier-deck-installations B64F
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0026 located on the ground
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/003 Flight plan management
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0047 Navigation or guidance aids for a single aircraft details of equipment G08G5/0017
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0052 for cruising combined instruments indicating more than one navigational value G01C23/00

Abstract

A device for displaying a flight plan of an aircraft is disclosed. The device includes a control unit with at least one first display area including a textual list of identifiers of points, a textual list of identifiers of segments, or both that are representative of a portion of the flight plan. A display of the textual lists are centered around a current central display point, the current central display point corresponding to a point of the flight plan or a segment of the flight plan. The device further includes means for displacing by jumps the flight plan portion displayed in the first display area by selecting a new point different from the current central display point, the selected new point becoming a new central display point after selection thereof.

Claims

1. A device for displaying a flight plan of an aircraft, comprising:

a control unit with a first display area including a textual list of identifiers of waypoints that are representative of a portion of the flight plan, a display of the textual list being centered around a current central display point, the current central display point corresponding to a waypoint of the flight plan;

means for displacing by jumps the portion of the flight plan displayed in the first display area by selecting a new point different from the current central display point, the selected new point becoming a new central display point after selection thereof,

wherein the control unit further includes a second display area comprising a textual list of navigation procedures representative of the flight plan as well as means for changing the current central display point by selecting one of the navigation procedures, and

wherein when a current navigation procedure is selected, the new central display point is a next point of the flight plan situated just in front of a current position of the aircraft.

2. The device according to claim 1, further comprising means for selecting the new central display point from among the points of the textual lists of the flight plan portion displayed in the first display area.

3. The device according to claim 1, wherein when a navigation procedure different from a current navigation procedure is selected, the new central display point is a first point of the navigation procedure different from the current navigation procedure.

4. The device according to claim 1, wherein the current central display point is emphasized by using one of the following display techniques:

framing, underlining, application of a second color that contrasts with a first color used for other points, reverse video, or display in bold.

5. The device according to claim 1, wherein a navigation procedure corresponding to the current central display point is emphasized by using one of the following display techniques:

framing, underlining, application of a first color that contrasts with a second color used for other navigation procedures, reverse video, or display in bold.

6. The device according to claim 1, wherein a current navigation procedure is emphasized by using one of the following display techniques:

framing, underlining, application of a first color that contrasts with a second color used for other navigation procedures, reverse video, or display in bold.

7. The device according to claim 1, further comprising:

a navigation screen, the navigation screen enabling graphical display of at least one portion of the flight plan, the display of the portion of the flight plan being centered around the current central display point; and

means for selecting a new point of the flight plan portion displayed on the navigation screen, the selected new point of the flight plan portion displayed on the navigation screen becoming the new central display point.

8. The device according to claim 7, further comprising a scrolling key whose activation enables advancing the displayed portion of the flight plan in a downstream direction from a current central display position, doing so as far as a last displayed point of the flight plan situated at a distance equal to at most a display radius from the current central display position.

9. The device according to claim 7, further comprising a scrolling key whose activation makes enables advancing the displayed portion of the flight plan as far as a last point of the flight plan.

10. The device according to claim 7, further comprising a scrolling key whose activation enables retreating the displayed portion of the flight plan in an upstream direction from the current central display point as far as a most remote displayed point situated at a distance equivalent to at most a display radius from the current central display point.

11. The device according to claim 7, further comprising a scrolling key whose activation enables retreating the displayed portion of the flight plan as far as a point corresponding to a current position of the aircraft.

12. The device according to claim 1, further comprising a pointing ball associated with at least one selection key whose activation enables selecting by displacing a cursor and by pressing the selection key an element of the first display area of the control unit, a navigation procedure for the second display area, or a point of the portion of flight plan displayed on the navigation screen.