PROGRAMMABLE PORTABLE ELECTRONIC DEVICE FOR AIRBORNE OPERATIONAL COMMUNICATIONS

• US 20130232237A1
• Filed: 03/01/2012
• Published: 09/05/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 03/01/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Honeywell International Inc.
• Original Assignee: Honeywell International Inc.
• Inventors: Judd, Tom D., Hickman, Stephen Otis, Zulch, Harold Anthony III
• Granted Patent: US 9,571,181 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/220
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/18506 Communications with or from aircraft, i.e. aeronautical mobile service
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0272 Virtual private networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/06 for supporting key management in a packet data network cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for key management H04L9/08
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/10 for controlling access to devices or network resources
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/03 Protecting confidentiality, e.g. by encryption
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/04 Key management, e.g. using generic bootstrapping architecture [GBA]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/08 Access security

Abstract

Embodiments of the present invention provide improved systems and methods for a programmable portable electronic device for airborne operational communications. In one embodiment, a method comprises loading application configuration information onto a storage medium on the portable electronic device from an external storage medium, the application configuration information defining an application configuration for the avionic operational data communications application and configuring an avionic operational data communications application stored in the storage medium on the portable electronic device according to the application configuration information stored in the the storage medium. Further, the method includes receiving avionic operational data from an airborne server; executing the avionic operational data communications application to process the avionic operational data, wherein the execution of the avionic operational data communications application produces operational communications according to the application configuration information stored in the storage medium; and communicating the operational communications with a ground peer.

Claims

1. A communication system, the system comprising:

an external storage medium storing operational application configuration information defining an application configuration for an avionic operational data communications application;

an airborne communication system configured to perform operational communications, the airborne communication system comprising;

a portable electronic device, the portable electronic device hosting the avionic operational data communications application that produces the operational communications from avionic operational data, wherein the avionic operational data communications application is configured by the application configuration information stored on the personal electronic device, wherein the application configuration information is loaded into a storage medium on the portable electronic device from the external storage medium; and

an airborne server coupled to the portable electronic device, wherein the airborne server and the portable electronic device communicate operational data; and

a ground communication system configured to receive the operational communications, the ground communication system comprising;

a ground network configured to communicate the operational communications across a communication link with the airborne server; and

a ground peer application, configured to process the operational communications.

2. The communication system of claim 1, wherein the airborne server further receives the operational communications from the portable electronic device and controls the transmission of the operational communications across the communication link.

3. The communication system of claim 1, wherein the portable electronic device controls communication of the operational communications across the communication link.

4. The communication system of claim 1 further comprising a communication transmitter for receiving operational communications from the portable electronic device and for transmitting the operational communications across the communications link.

5. The communication system of claim 1, wherein security measures prevent an unauthorized electronic device from accessing the avionic operational data and the operational communications.

6. The communication system of claim 1, wherein the external storage medium is accessed by a plurality of portable electronic devices for loading application configuration information into storage mediums on the plurality of portable electronic devices.

7. The communication system of claim 1, wherein the application configuration information stored in the external storage medium is generated using a configuration generation tool.

8. The communication system of claim 1, wherein the airborne server is a communication management unit.

9. A portable electronic device, the device comprising:

a storage medium that stores application configuration information and an avionic operational data communications application, wherein the application configuration information is loaded into the storage medium from an external storage medium that stores the application configuration information defining an application configuration for the avionic operational data communications application;

a network interface configured to receive and transmit the avionic operational data and operational communications; and

a processing unit configured to process the received avionic operational data by executing the avionic operational data communications application as defined by the application configuration information.

10. The portable electronic device of claim 9, wherein the network interface transmits and receives the avionic operational data and the operational communications from an airborne server.

11. The portable electronic device of claim 10, wherein the network interface transmits the avionic operational data to the airborne server to relay the operational communications with a ground server.

12. The portable electronic device of claim 10, wherein the network interface communicates with the airborne server through a secure local network.

13. The portable electronic device of claim 9, wherein the network interface performs operational communications with a ground server.

14. The portable electronic device of claim 9, wherein the application configuration information stored in the external storage medium is generated using a configuration generation tool.

15. A method for processing avionic operational data on a portable electronic device, the method comprising:

loading application configuration information into a storage medium on the portable electronic device from an external storage medium, the application configuration information defining an application configuration for the avionic operational data communications application;

configuring an avionic operational data communications application stored in the storage medium on the portable electronic device according to the application configuration information stored in the storage medium;

receiving avionic operational data from an airborne server;

executing the avionic operational data communications application to process the avionic operational data, wherein the execution of the avionic operational data communications application produces operational communications from the avionic operational data according to the application configuration information stored in the storage medium; and

communicating the operational communications with a ground peer.

16. The method of claim 15, further comprising generating the application configuration information using a configuration generation tool.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein communicating the avionic operational data with a ground peer comprises communicating with the ground peer through an airborne server, wherein the airborne server forms a communication link with the ground peer.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein communicating with a ground peer directly through a communication link.

19. The method of claim 15, further comprising preventing an unauthorized electronic device from accessing the avionic operational data and the operational communications.

20. The method of claim 15, further comprising generating the application configuration information with a configuration generation tool.

21. A system for preventing unauthorized access to operational aircraft data, the system comprising:

a personal electronic device;

a plurality of aircraft systems that produce avionic operational data; and

an airborne server in network communication with the personal electronic device and the plurality of aircraft systems, wherein the airborne server implements security measures to prevent unauthorized electronic devices from accessing the avionic operational data, wherein the airborne server controls the dissemination of avionic operational data to electronic devices.

22. The system of claim 21, wherein the airborne server is in unidirectional communication with the plurality of aircraft systems, wherein the plurality of aircraft systems transmit avionic operational data to the airborne server.

23. The system of claim 21, wherein the airborne server isolates communication between the airborne server and the personal electronic device from communication with the plurality of aircraft systems.

24. The system of claim 21, wherein the airborne server verifies that the personal electronic device is trusted before initiating communication with the personal electronic device.

25. The system of claim 24, wherein the airborne server determines whether the personal electronic device is trusted by receiving an identification key from the personal electronic device.

26. The system of claim 24, wherein the airborne server determines whether the personal electronic device is trusted through the logging in of a user through the personal electronic device.

27. The system of claim 21, wherein the personal electronic device and the airborne server communicate over a virtual private network.

28. The system of claim 21, wherein the airborne server prevents the personal electronic device from establishing communication links with unauthorized electronic devices.