System and method for avionics integrity and protection

• US 9,714,081 B1
• Filed: 08/29/2013
• Issued: 07/25/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 08/29/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Rockwell Collins, Inc. (Rtx Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Rockwell Collins, Inc. (Rtx Corporation)
• Inventors: Mazuk, Daniel E., Hall, III, Ivan N., Jump, Sara A., Sparks, Rachel D., Pate, Jesse B., Stover, Keith A., Anderson, Eric N., Raghu, Kaushik
• Primary Examiner(s): Khatib, Rami
• Assistant Examiner(s): BOOMER, JEFFREY C
• Application Number:
  US14/014,101
• Time in Patent Office: 1,426 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: B64C 19/00 Aircraft control not otherwise provided for
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 2045/0075 Adaptations for use of electronic flight bags in aircraft; Supports therefor in the cockpit
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 43/00 Arrangements or adaptations of instruments arrangements of cameras B64D47/08; aeronautical measuring instruments per se G01C
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 47/00 Equipment 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: G06F 11/0739 in a data processing system embedded in automotive or aircraft systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/31 User authentication
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/57 Certifying or maintaining trusted computer platforms, e.g. secure boots or power-downs, version controls, system software checks, secure updates or assessing vulnerabilities
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04817 using icons graphical or visual programming using iconic symbols G06F8/34
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/14 Digital output to display device ; Cooperation and interconnection of the display device with other functional units
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1423 controlling a plurality of local displays, e.g. CRT and flat panel display
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/147 using display panels
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2380/12 Avionics applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks

Abstract

A computer-implemented method includes determining via a processor in an avionics system that a personal electronic device is in communication with the avionics system, and establishing a limitation on the functionality of the personal electronic device with respect to the avionics system via the processor.

Claims

1. An avionics system, comprising:

an aircraft cockpit display;

an avionics user interface device; and

an electronic avionics controller in communication with the aircraft cockpit display via a first interface and with the avionics user interface device via a second interface, and having a third interface configured for communication with a personal electronic device, the controller further having a processor and machine readable storage media having instructions stored therein that, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to;

display a graphical element on the aircraft cockpit display;

determine that the personal electronic device is in communication with the avionics controller;

after displaying the graphical element, establish a limitation on the functionality of the personal electronic device with respect to the avionics system, wherein the limitation includes preventing the personal electronic device from interacting with the graphical element by granting priority over the personal electronics device to the avionics user interface device such that an instruction to manipulate the graphical element from the avionics user interface device takes priority over an instruction to manipulate the graphical element from the personal electronic device;

transmit avionics data including graphics instructions to the personal electronic device;

determine an expected response to the avionics data from the personal electronic device, the expected response including at least one of a graphics response or a state change response;

receive an actual response to the avionics data from the personal electronic device, the actual response determined based on the graphics instructions, and the actual response including at least one of an actual graphics response or an actual state change response;

compare the actual response to the expected response;

determine a data integrity level of the personal electronic device based on the comparison; and

display a message on the aircraft cockpit display in response to the data integrity level indicating that a loss of data integrity of the personal electronic device has occurred.

2. The system of claim 1, further comprising a switch configured to be selectable by a user via the avionics user interface device and configured to break communications between the avionics controller and the personal electronic device when selected by the user, the switch being inaccessible via the personal electronic device.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the instructions are configured to establish the limitation by preventing the personal electronic device from interacting with a first display area of the aircraft cockpit display while permitting the personal electronic device to interact with a second display area of the aircraft cockpit display.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the instructions are configured to establish the limitation by preventing the personal electronic device from interacting with a first graphical element displayed on the aircraft cockpit display while permitting the personal electronic device to interact with a second graphical element displayed on the aircraft cockpit display.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein the graphical element is one of a button, a cursor, and a window.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the instructions are configured to establish the limitation based on an aircraft parameter.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the aircraft parameter is one of an aircraft speed, a weight on wheels state, and an aircraft phase of flight, and wherein the aircraft phase of flight is one of a takeoff phase and a landing phase.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein granting priority over the personal electronics device to the avionics user interface device is based on the personal electronics device and the avionics user interface device attempting to perform a same task, and wherein the task is a data entry task.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the instructions are configured to determine the data integrity level of the personal electronic device by implementing one of a strike count function, a time delay threshold, and a cyclic redundancy check.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the avionics data includes one of graphics command data, image data, circuit breaker state data, and data link message data.

11. The system of claim 1, wherein the expected response includes one of color data, line data, shape data, location data, final text character data, intermediate state data, and state transition data.

12. The system of claim 1, wherein the actual response is based on one of pixel data, graphics command data, intermediate state data and state transition data.

13. A computer-implemented method, comprising:

determining via a processor in an avionics system that a personal electronic device is in communication with the avionics system;

displaying a graphical element on an aircraft cockpit display;

after displaying the graphical element, establishing a limitation on the functionality of the personal electronic device with respect to the avionics system via the processor, wherein the limitation includes preventing the personal electronic device from interacting with the graphical element by granting priority over the personal electronics device to an avionics user interface device when both the personal electronics device and the avionics user interface device attempt to interact with the at least one component of the avionics system such that an instruction to manipulate the graphical element from the avionics user interface device takes priority over an instruction to manipulate the graphical element from the personal electronic device;

transmitting avionics data including graphics instructions from the avionics system to the personal electronic device;

determining an expected response to the avionics data from the personal electronic device via the processor in the avionics system, the expected response including at least one of a graphics response or a state change response;

receiving an actual response to the avionics data from the personal electronic device, the actual response determined based on the graphics instructions, and the actual response including at least one of an actual graphics response or an actual state change response;

comparing the actual response to the expected response;

determining a data integrity level of the personal electronic device based on the comparison; and

displaying a message on the aircraft cockpit display in response to the data integrity level indicating that a loss of data integrity of the personal electronic device has occurred.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein establishing the limitation includes preventing the personal electronic device from interacting with a first display area of an aircraft cockpit display while permitting the personal electronic device to interact with a second display area of the aircraft cockpit display.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein establishing the limitation includes preventing the personal electronic device from interacting with a first graphical element displayed on an aircraft cockpit display while permitting the personal electronic device to interact with a second graphical element displayed on the aircraft cockpit display.

16. The method of claim 13, wherein the limitation is established based on one of an aircraft speed, a weight on wheels state, and an aircraft phase of flight, and wherein the aircraft phase of flight is one of a takeoff phase and a landing phase.

17. The method of claim 13, wherein granting priority over the personal electronics device to the avionics user interface device is based on the personal electronics device and the avionics user interface device attempting to perform a same task, and wherein the task is a data entry task.

18. The method of claim 13, wherein determining the data integrity level of the personal electronic device includes implementing one of a time delay threshold and a cyclic redundancy check.

19. The method of claim 13, wherein the expected response includes one of color data, line data, shape data, location data, final text character data, intermediate state data, and state transition data.

20. The method of claim 13, wherein the actual response is based on one of pixel data, graphics command data, intermediate state data, and state transition data.