Method and system to monitor for conformance to a traffic control instruction

• US 9,443,433 B1
• Filed: 04/23/2015
• Issued: 09/13/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 04/23/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: The Boeing Co.
• Original Assignee: The Boeing Co.
• Inventors: Conway, Sheila Ruth, Adler, Charles Otis
• Primary Examiner(s): FILE, ERIN M
• Application Number:
  US14/694,510
• Time in Patent Office: 509 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0013 with a ground station
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0021 located in the aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0026 located on the ground
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0082 for monitoring traffic from a ground station radar or analogous systems specially adapted for traffic control G01S13/91
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/025 Navigation or guidance aids radar or analogous systems specially adapted for landing purposes G01S13/913
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 15/26 Speech to text systems G10L15/08 takes precedence

Abstract

Method, system, and computer program product for monitoring vehicle compliance with a vehicle operating instruction provided by a traffic controller. A spoken vehicle operating instruction is translated into a computer-readable instruction that can be used for data entry and/or retrieval. The computer-readable instruction is transformed into an expected vehicle operating trajectory by mapping to a published vehicle procedure or by calculating a trajectory based on provided instructions. The vehicle is monitored as it operates. In the event the monitored operation differs or is forecast to differ from conformance limits associated with the expected trajectory, an alert can be provided.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method, comprising:

receiving a first audio communication that includes at least one spoken vehicle operating instruction to an operator of a vehicle;

performing speech-to-text translation on the first audio communication, using a computer processor, to convert at least one spoken vehicle operating instruction from the first audio communication into at least one computer-readable vehicle operating instruction;

transforming the at least one computer-readable vehicle operating instruction into a first expected vehicle operating trajectory for the vehicle, using the computer processor;

monitoring operation of the vehicle; and

upon the monitored operation of the vehicle differing from the expected vehicle operating trajectory by a first threshold amount, providing a first alert.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a second audio communication that includes at least one spoken confirmation readback by the operator of the vehicle;

performing speech-to-text translation on the second audio communication, using the computer processor, to convert the at least one spoken confirmation readback from the second audio communication into at least one computer-readable confirmation readback; and

upon the at least one computer-readable confirmation readback differing in key elements from the at least one computer-readable vehicle operating instruction, providing a second alert.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the first audio communication is an instruction from an air traffic controller to one aircraft among a plurality of aircraft, wherein the first audio communication includes a first call sign for the aircraft, wherein the second audio communication includes a second vehicle call sign, and wherein the method determines whether the at least one computer-readable confirmation readback in the second audio communication differs from the at least one computer-readable vehicle operating instruction in the first audio communication if the first call sign at least partially matches the second call sign.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the first audio communication is an instruction from an air traffic controller to an aircraft, and wherein the method further comprises:

transforming the at least one computer-readable vehicle operating instruction into a data entry for an air traffic control system;

providing an acceptance prompt to the air traffic controller; and

upon receiving an affirmative response to the acceptance prompt, entering the data entry into the air traffic control system.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the vehicle is an aircraft, and wherein monitoring operation of the vehicle comprises receiving broadcast data from an aircraft surveillance system onboard the aircraft.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the first alert is suppressed upon the monitored operation of the vehicle differing from the expected vehicle operating trajectory by more than the threshold amount but the received broadcast from the aircraft surveillance system onboard the aircraft indicates that the vehicle is complying with the expected vehicle operating trajectory.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving vehicle operation intent data from the vehicle; and

suppressing the first alert upon;

the monitored operation of the vehicle differing from the expected vehicle operating trajectory by more than the first threshold amount and less than a second threshold amount; and

the vehicle operation intent data indicating that the vehicle is complying with the expected vehicle operating trajectory.

8. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein transforming the at least one computer-readable vehicle operating instruction into a first expected vehicle operating trajectory for the vehicle comprises identifying a published procedure designation in the computer-readable vehicle operating instruction and retrieving an expected vehicle operating trajectory associated with the published procedure designation from a data structure;

and

wherein the first threshold amount is based on at least one performance requirement associated with the published procedure designation.

9. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the first audio communication comprises at least one spoken vehicle operating instruction to a pilot of an aircraft;

and

further comprising;

transforming the at least one computer-readable vehicle operating instruction into an entry for a flight management system of the aircraft;

providing an acceptance prompt to the pilot of the aircraft; and

upon receiving an affirmative response to the acceptance prompt, executing the entry in the flight management system.

10. A system, comprising:

a receiver configured to receive spoken audio communications between a vehicle traffic controller and an operator of a vehicle;

a tracking module configured to receive information related to operation of the vehicle;

a display module; and

a computer processor configured to;

perform speech-to-text translation on a spoken vehicle operating instruction from the vehicle traffic controller, received in a first audio communication by the receiver, to convert the at least one spoken vehicle operating instruction into at least one computer-readable vehicle operating instruction;

transform the at least one computer-readable vehicle operating instruction into an expected vehicle operating trajectory for the vehicle;

monitor operation of the vehicle, based on information related to operation of the vehicle received by the tracking module; and

output to the display module a first alert upon the monitored operation of the vehicle differing from the expected vehicle operating trajectory by a first threshold amount.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the processor is further configured to:

perform speech-to-text translation on at least one spoken confirmation readback by the operator of the vehicle, received in a second audio communication by the receiver, to convert the at least one spoken confirmation readback into at least one computer-readable confirmation readback; and

output to the display module a second alert upon the at least one computer-readable confirmation readback differing in key elements from the at least one computer-readable vehicle operating instruction.

12. The system of claim 10, wherein the first audio communication is an instruction from an air traffic controller to an aircraft, and wherein the system further comprises an air traffic control system;

and

wherein the processor is further configured to;

transform the at least one computer-readable vehicle operating instruction into a data entry for the air traffic control system;

output to the display module an acceptance prompt; and

entering the data entry into the air traffic control system upon receiving an affirmative response to the acceptance prompt.

13. The system of claim 10, wherein the tracking module is configured to receive vehicle operation intent data from the vehicle, and wherein the processor is further configured to suppress the first alert upon:

the monitored operation of the vehicle differing from the expected vehicle operating trajectory by more than the first threshold amount and less than a second threshold amount; and

the vehicle operation intent data indicating that the vehicle is complying with the expected vehicle operating trajectory.

14. The system of claim 10, wherein the computer processor transforms the at least one computer-readable vehicle operating instruction into a first expected vehicle operating trajectory for the vehicle by identifying a published procedure designation in the computer-readable vehicle operating instruction and retrieving an expected vehicle operating trajectory associated with the published procedure designation from a data structure;

and

wherein the first threshold amount is based on at least one performance requirement associated with the published procedure designation.

15. A computer program product for monitoring vehicle compliance with a spoken operating instruction, the computer program product comprising:

a computer-readable storage medium having computer-readable program code embodied therewith, the computer-readable program code executable by one or more computer processors to;

receive a first audio communication that includes at least one spoken vehicle operating instruction to an operator of a vehicle;

perform speech-to-text translation on the first audio communication to convert the at least one spoken vehicle operating instruction from the first audio communication into at least one computer-readable vehicle operating instruction;

transform the at least one computer-readable vehicle operating instruction into a first expected vehicle operating trajectory for the vehicle using the computer processor;

monitor operation of the vehicle; and

upon the monitored operation of the vehicle differing from the expected vehicle operating trajectory by a first threshold amount, output a first alert.

16. The computer program product of claim 15, wherein the computer-readable program code is further executable to:

receive a second audio communication that includes at least one spoken confirmation readback by the operator of the vehicle;

perform speech-to-text translation on the second audio communication to convert the at least one spoken confirmation readback from the second audio communication into a computer-readable confirmation readback; and

upon the at least one computer readable confirmation readback differing in key elements from the at least one computer-readable vehicle operating instruction, output a second alert.

17. The computer program product of claim 16, wherein the first audio communication is an instruction from an air traffic controller to one aircraft among a plurality of aircraft, wherein the first audio communication includes a first call sign for the aircraft, wherein the second audio communication includes a second vehicle call sign, and wherein the computer program product determines whether the at least one computer-readable confirmation readback in the second audio communication differs from the at least one computer-readable vehicle operating instruction in the first audio communication if the first call sign matches the second call sign.

18. The computer program product of claim 15, wherein the first audio communication is an instruction from an air traffic controller to an aircraft, and wherein the computer-readable program code is further executable to:

transform the at least one computer-readable vehicle operating instruction into a data entry for an air traffic controller control system;

provide an acceptance prompt to the air traffic controller; and

upon receiving an affirmative response to the acceptance prompt, enter the data entry into the air traffic control system.

19. The computer program product of claim 15, wherein the computer-readable program code transforms the at least one computer-readable vehicle operating instruction into a first expected vehicle operating trajectory for the vehicle by identifying a published procedure designation in the computer-readable vehicle operating instruction and retrieving an expected vehicle operating trajectory associated with the published procedure designation from a data structure;

and

wherein the first threshold amount is based on at least one performance requirement associated with the published procedure designation.

20. The computer program product of claim 15, wherein the first audio communication comprises at least one spoken vehicle operating instruction to a pilot of an aircraft;

and

wherein the computer-readable program code is further executable by to;

transform the at least one computer-readable vehicle operating instruction into an entry for a flight management system of the aircraft;

provide an acceptance prompt to the pilot of the aircraft; and

upon receiving an affirmative response to the acceptance prompt, execute the entry in the flight management system.