Common bus aircraft retrofit load control

• US 7,701,078 B1
• Filed: 08/06/2007
• Issued: 04/20/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 08/06/2007
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: The United States of America As Represented By The Secretary of Agriculture
• Original Assignee: United States Of America As Represented By The Secretary Of The Air Force
• Inventors: Martin, John J., Johnson, Scott V.
• Primary Examiner(s): Fleming; Fritz M
• Assistant Examiner(s): AMAYA, CARLOS DAVID
• Application Number:
  US11/894,638
• Time in Patent Office: 988 Days
• Field of Search: 307/9.1, 340/538
• US Class Current: 307/9.1
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 2221/00 Electric power distribution systems onboard aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 13/00016 using a wired telecommunication network or a data transmission bus
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 2310/44 for aircrafts
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 2203/5416 by adding signals to the wave form of the power source
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 2203/5445 Local network
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 3/548 the power on the line being DC arrangements for feeding power H04L12/10; extracting feeding power from signals H04L25/02

Abstract

A retrofit energization arrangement especially suitable for an aircraft wherein original factory-placed wiring can be reused in common bus form for plural new loads in order to avoid the expense and hazard of disassembling original wiring bundles for new conductor incorporation. Serviceable wiring possibly earlier retired in place or becoming unneeded from equipment removal can, by way of the invention, be used for plural diverse new loads including loads of disparate operating cycle and current requirements for example, even though energized via a common bus. In the disclosed apparatus both energizing current and load control signals are transmitted via the same electrical bus between control location and load areas of the aircraft where control decoding and energy tap-off occur, the latter by switch mode power supply if needed. Control signals of sinusoidal waveform, minimal electromagnetic and radio frequency interference character and limited existing bus filtering attenuation are disclosed; these may be embodied as the Frequency Shift Keying (FSK) or Continuous Tone Coded Squelch System, CTCSS, frequencies used in the radio communication art. Loads of differing types are disclosed as examples in the described embodiment of the invention; additional loads are feasible. Use of the invention in land vehicles, watercraft and building structures is also contemplated.

Claims

1. Aircraft retrofit remote load controlling apparatus for retrofitting an aircraft having a preexisting conductor bus, the apparatus comprising the combination of:

a newly added electrical energy to alternate form energy transducer load element received in remote location mounting in said aircraft;

a source of transducer load element energizing direct current electrical energy located within said aircraft;

a preexisting electrical conductor in said preexisting conductor bus joining a central location of said aircraft with said remote location, said preexisting conductor connecting said newly added electrical energy to alternate form energy transducer load element through a remote transducer control element to said source of transducer energizing electrical energy; and

a newly added central location electrical conductor energization controller including a source of sinusoidal alternating current electrical energy modulating said transducer energizing direct current electrical energy received in said preexisting electrical conductor and in said remote transducer control element in response to a selection signal input to said newly added energization controller;

said remote transducer control element determining characteristics of said energizing electrical energy received in said new energy transducer load element in accordance with said sinusoidal alternating current electrical energy modulating of said transducer energizing direct current electrical energy received in said preexisting electrical conductor and in said remote transducer control element in response to a selection signal input to said newly added energization controller.

2. The aircraft retrofit remote load controlling apparatus of claim 1 wherein said newly added energization controller is placed at a location other than the cockpit of the aircraft.

3. The aircraft retrofit remote load controlling apparatus of claim 1 wherein said newly added electrical energy to alternate form energy transducer load element includes a light emitting diode element.

4. The aircraft retrofit remote load controlling apparatus of claim 1 wherein said newly added electrical energy to alternate form energy transducer load element includes an aircraft exterior disposed, night vision apparatus compatible, light emitting diode element.

5. The aircraft retrofit remote load controlling apparatus of claim 1 wherein said remote transducer control element determined characteristics of said energizing electrical energy include one of an enabled/disabled load energization characteristic, an amplitude control characteristic, and a time dependent waveform characteristic of said electrical energy.

6. The aircraft retrofit remote load controlling apparatus of claim 1 wherein said source of sinusoidal alternating current electrical energy includes Continuous Tone Coded Squelch System signal frequencies.

7. The aircraft retrofit remote load controlling apparatus of claim 1 wherein said source of sinusoidal alternating current electrical energy includes a plurality of simultaneously present differing sinusoidal frequencies.

8. The aircraft remote load controlling apparatus of claim 1 wherein said source of sinusoidal alternating current electrical energy includes frequency shift keyed sinusoidal waveforms.

9. The aircraft retrofit remote load controlling apparatus of claim 1 further including a plurality of said remote transducer control elements selectively dispersed along a lengthwise extent of said electrical conductor in said array of aircraft original wiring conductors.

10. The aircraft retrofit remote load controlling apparatus of claim 1 wherein said remote transducer control element includes a switch mode power supply intermediate said electrical conductor and said remote load.

11. An existing conductor remotely controlled retrofit method of controlling irradiance output of an aircraft newly mounted electrical energy to radiant energy transducer lamp, the newly mounted transducer lamp being coupled to the aircraft original electrical energy conductor bus, said method comprising the steps of:

coupling a newly added energization controller to the aircraft original electrical energy conductor bus;

energizing said transducer lamp with direct current electrical energy supplied by way of the aircraft original wiring electrical energy conductor bus;

controlling current flow in said transducer lamp and said conductor bus with the newly added energization controller by modulating conductivity level in a transducer lamp-adjacent semiconductor device series connecting with said transducer lamp and said energy conductor bus; and

selecting conductivity level in said semiconductor device in response to differing sinusoidal frequency signals impressed on said aircraft original electrical energy conductor bus by a bus origin end-disposed modulating circuit controlled by the newly added energization controller.

12. The existing conductor remotely controlled retrofit method of controlling irradiance output of an aircraft mounted electrical energy to radiant energy transducer lamp of claim 11 wherein said current level modulating in said controlling step also includes ON and OFF control of said current flow.

13. The existing conductor remotely controlled retrofit method of controlling irradiance output of an aircraft mounted electrical energy to radiant energy transducer lamp of claim 11 wherein said differing sinusoidal frequency signals in said selecting of conductivity level in said semiconductor device step include continuous tone coded squelch system (CTCSS) frequencies or frequency shift keyed frequencies.

14. The existing conductor remotely controlled retrofit method of controlling irradiance output of an aircraft mounted electrical energy to radiant energy transducer lamp of claim 11 wherein said step of controlling current flow in said transducer lamp and said conductor bus includes controlling a plurality of said electrical energy to radiant energy transducer lamps and a resulting summation of conductor bus current flows from said controlled lamps by modulating conductivity level in a plurality transducer lamp-adjacent semiconductor devices each series connecting with selected of said transducer lamps.

15. The existing conductor remotely controlled retrofit method of controlling irradiance output of an aircraft mounted electrical energy to radiant energy transducer lamp of claim 11 wherein said controlled transducer lamps include externally mounted visible and covert spectrum lamps.

16. The existing conductor remotely controlled retrofit method of controlling irradiance output of an aircraft mounted electrical energy to radiant energy transducer lamp of claim 11 wherein said lamp is one of a light emitting diode, an incandescent filament lamp and a gas-filled lamp.