Aircraft monitoring and analysis using edge computing

• US 9,824,595 B1
• Filed: 11/15/2016
• Issued: 11/21/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 11/15/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Jeremiah T. Pate
• Original Assignee: Jeremiah T. Pate
• Inventors: Pate, Jeremiah T.
• Primary Examiner(s): Barakat, Mohamed
• Application Number:
  US15/352,362
• Time in Patent Office: 371 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 2045/0065 Black boxes, devices automatically broadcasting distress signals
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 45/00 Aircraft indicators or protectors not otherwise provided for camouflage F41H3/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/24578 using ranking
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/008 communicating information to a remotely located station transmission systems for measured values G08C
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/0808 Diagnosing performance data testing of vehicles G01M17/00; testing of electrical installation on vehicles G01R31/005
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/0841 Registering performance data recording measured values G01D; information storage G11B
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0013 with a ground station
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0021 located in the aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0056 in an emergency situation, e.g. hijacking
• 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 multi-layered edge computing method for aircraft monitoring and analysis includes providing an aircraft having a plurality of sensors connected to a flight data acquisition unit (FDAU), and providing a processing device having a processor, a non-transitory computer-readable memory, and a transmitter, wherein the processing device is in communication with the FDAU, wherein sensor data stored within the FDAU is communicated to the processing device, wherein, during flight of the aircraft, the processor analyzes the sensor data from the FDAU to detect an occurrence of at least one emergency event. The processing device ranks the at least one emergency event for transmission priority according to sensor type and severity and provides a signal transmitted to a flight control authority upon ranking of the at least one emergency event, wherein the signal has an alert sequence according to the ranking.

Claims

1. A method for monitoring aircraft safety, comprising the steps of:

providing an aircraft having a plurality of sensors connected to a flight data acquisition unit (FDAU);

providing a processing device having a processor, a non-transitory computer-readable memory, and a transmitter, wherein the processing device is in communication with the FDAU, wherein sensor data stored within the FDAU is communicated to the processing device, wherein, during flight of the aircraft, the processor analyzes the sensor data from the FDAU to detect an occurrence of at least one emergency event;

ranking the sensor data for transmission priority according to the following steps;

a) assigning to the sensor data a first coefficient according to sensor data type;

b) assigning to the sensor data a second coefficient according to the severity of the at least one emergency event;

c) multiplying said first and second coefficients to determine an urgency number of the sensor data; and

d) ordering the sensor data from highest to lowest urgency numbers; and

providing a signal transmitted to a flight control authority upon ranking of the sensor data, wherein the signal has an alert sequence according to the ranking.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the signal is transmitted over a satellite network.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the sensor data is compressed before the signal is transmitted to a flight control authority.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein an emergency event is detected when the value of the sensor data lies outside a pre-determined range having a low bound and a high bound.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the first coefficient is assigned to give high priority to sensor data from sensors within the airframe of the aircraft.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the second coefficient is assigned to give high priority to sensor data that is at least 5% higher than the high bound.

7. The method of claim 4, wherein the second coefficient is assigned to give high priority to sensor data that is at most 5% lower than the low bound.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the signal is transmitted from the aircraft.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the processing device is connected to the FDAU by wires.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the processing device is wirelessly connected to the FDAU.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the wireless connection is encrypted.

12. The method of claim 1, further comprising the steps of:

assigning to the sensor data a third coefficient according to the relationship between multiple sensors; and

multiplying the product of said first and second coefficients with the third coefficient to determine an urgency number of the sensor data.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the signal is additionally transmitted to an electronic database of responses to emergency events, wherein upon receiving the signal, a processor in the electronic database selects a response from the electronic database according to a heuristic method, and wherein the selected response is conveyed to at least one of:

an aircraft control system, a pilot of the aircraft, and a flight control authority.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the aircraft control system automatically implements the selected response.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the response is conveyed to the pilot of the aircraft by at least one of:

visual, auditory, and tactile methods.

16. The method of claim 1 further comprising providing a second signal transmitted to at least one of:

an aircraft control system, a pilot of the aircraft, and a flight control authority, wherein the processing device also has an electronic database of responses to emergency events, wherein upon detection of the at least one emergency event, the processor selects a response from the electronic database according to a heuristic method, and wherein the second signal conveys the selected response.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the aircraft control system automatically implements the selected response.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein the second signal is conveyed to the pilot of the aircraft by at least one of:

visual, auditory, and tactile methods.

19. A system for monitoring aircraft safety, comprising:

an aircraft having a plurality of sensors connected to a flight data acquisition unit (FDAU); and

a processing device having a processor, a non-transitory computer-readable memory, and a transmitter, wherein the processing device is in communication with the FDAU, wherein sensor data stored within the FDAU is communicated to the processing device, wherein, during flight of the aircraft, the processor analyzes the sensor data from the FDAU to detect an occurrence of at least one emergency event, wherein the processing device provides a ranking of the sensor data for transmission priority according to the following steps;

a) assigning to the sensor data a first coefficient according to sensor data type;

b) assigning to the sensor data a second coefficient according to the severity of the at least one emergency event;

c) multiplying said first and second coefficients to determine an urgency number of the sensor data; and

d) ordering the sensor data from highest to lowest urgency numbers;

and wherein the transmitter transmits a signal to a flight control authority upon ranking of the sensor data, the signal having an alert sequence according to the ranking.

20. The system of claim 19, further comprising an electronic database of responses to emergency events in communication with the processing device, wherein the electronic database selects a response from the electronic database according to a heuristic method, and wherein the selected response is conveyed to at least one of:

an aircraft control system, a pilot of the aircraft, and a flight control authority.