System for piloting an aircraft provided with a performance functions server

• US 9,156,542 B2
• Filed: 01/14/2014
• Issued: 10/13/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 01/15/2013
• 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: Pitard, Fabien, Chaptal, Jerome, Aribert, Matthieu
• Primary Examiner(s): Cheung, Calvin
• Assistant Examiner(s): SHUDY, ANGELINA M
• Application Number:
  US14/154,750
• Publication Number:
  US 20140200750A1
• Time in Patent Office: 637 Days
• Field of Search: 701/3, 701/14
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B64C 19/00 Aircraft control not otherwise provided for
• 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: G08G 5/0004 Transmission of traffic-related information to or from an aircraft airborne radio transmission systems in general H04B7/185; airborne wireless networks H04W84/06
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0008 with other aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0013 with a ground station
• 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 5/0021 located in the aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0026 located on the ground

Abstract

A piloting system including a performance functions server which is linked to all the computers of the piloting system, which hosts all the performance functions of the piloting system and which is able to supply the results of performance functions to at least said computers of the piloting system.

Claims

1. A piloting system for piloting an aircraft, including a plurality of client computers using results of performance functions, comprising:

a single on-board performance functions server;

which is linked to all of said client computers of said piloting system;

which hosts all of the performance functions of said piloting system;

which further includes;

at least one performance database which stores tables of performance data;

a performance computation unit operably coupled to said performance functions server, said performance computation unit performing all of the performance computations; and

a managing unit operably coupled to said s performance computation unit, said managing unit managing the operations of the performance functions server; and

which is configured to supply the results of performance functions to at least one of said client computers of said piloting system,

wherein said performance functions server automatically communicates the results of performance functions in a constant stream so that the results are directly consulted by at least one of said client computers without causing said performance functions server to repeat the performance functions by removing redundancy of related data and performance algorithm computations for establishing consistency of the results of performance functions.

2. The piloting system according to claim 1, wherein

at least one of said client computers includes a request generator which generates a request, via which said at least one of said client computers requests particular results of performance functions, and for communicating said at least one of said client computers to said performance functions server;

and

said performance functions server includes a request receiver which processes a received request, for generating corresponding performance functions and at least for communicating the results to said client computer transmitting the request.

3. The piloting system according to claim 1, further including an enabler which enables a reception by the performance functions server of current values relating to the aircraft.

4. The piloting system according to claim 3, wherein said performance functions server automatically performs performance functions as a function of received current values.

5. The piloting system according to claim 1, wherein said performance functions server includes a recorder which records the results of performance functions, which said performance functions server has performed.

6. The piloting system according to claim 1, wherein said performance functions server is configured to transmit, in response to a current request, the results of performance functions that said performance functions server has performed in response to a prior request.

7. The piloting system according to claim 1, further comprising a data transmission network by way of which the performance functions server is linked to at least one of said client computers of the piloting system.

8. The piloting system according to claim 7, further comprising a network which enables the piloting system to link to said data transmission network at least one computing device external to said piloting system as one of said client computers.

9. The piloting system according to claim 1, wherein the results of performance functions are considered by at least one of said client computers based on a factor exhibiting a predetermined degree of validity as a function of a time elapsed.

10. An aircraft having a piloting system for piloting an aircraft, including a plurality of client computers using results of performance functions, comprising:

a single on-board performance functions server;

which is linked to all of said client computers of said piloting system;

which hosts all of the performance functions of said piloting system;

which further includes;

at least one performance database which stores tables of performance data;

a performance computation unit operably coupled to said performance functions server, said performance computation unit performing all of the performance computations; and

a managing unit operably coupled to said performance computation unit, said managing unit managing the operations of the performance functions server; and

which is configured to supply the results of performance functions to at least one of said client computers of said piloting system,

wherein said performance functions server automatically communicates the results of performance functions in a constant stream so that the results are directly consulted by at least one of said client computers without causing said performance functions server to repeat the performance functions by removing redundancy of related data and performance algorithm computations for establishing consistency of the results of performance functions.