Onboard system for the prevention of collisions of an aircraft with the ground with end-of-conflict indication

• US 7,881,867 B2
• Filed: 03/08/2007
• Issued: 02/01/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 03/08/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Thales SA
• Original Assignee: Thales SA
• Inventors: Lorido, Didier, Marty, Nicolas, Salmon, Philippe
• Primary Examiner(s): Black; Thomas G
• Assistant Examiner(s): MARC-COLEMAN, MARTHE Y
• Application Number:
  US11/683,989
• Publication Number:
  US 20100274486A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,426 Days
• Field of Search: 701/301, 701/9, 701/7, 701/3, 340/961, 340/963, 340/964, 340/967, 340/974, 340/975, 340/995.1
• US Class Current: 701/301
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0086 for monitoring terrain radar or analogous systems specially adapted for terrain avoidance G01S13/935

Abstract

The TAWS system, in addition to an FTLA function for detecting the risk of collision with the terrain, has an end-of-conflict announcement function COT which is activated after the cessation of a warning or alarm concerning the risk of collision with the ground originating from the FTLA function. This COT function, when activated, checks that the aircraft (A) is observing minimum vertical and lateral safe distances, and estimates the lower vertical speed margin with which a new ground collision risk warning will not be retriggered. After confirming the observance of the minimum safe distances, the COT function has an end-of-conflict message (“Clear of terrain”) sent with a lower vertical speed margin indication.

Claims

1. An onboard system for the prevention of collisions of an aircraft with a terrain, the system comprising:

a navigation instrument configured to transmit a plurality of flight parameters of the aircraft;

a database device configured to store cartographic data;

a message generator; and

a computer coupled to the navigation instrument, database device, and the message generator, and configured to;

receive the flight parameters from the navigation instrument;

detect a risk of collision within a predetermined prediction period by detecting penetration of a topographic representation of the terrain being flown over generated based on the cartographic data into at least one maneuver protection volume associated with the aircraft;

instruct the message generator, if the risk of collision is detected, to generate a warning corresponding to the detected risk of collision;

determine if the aircraft is observing a minimum safe distance from the terrain being flown over;

calculate a vertical speed margin according to a vertical speed margin protection volume associate with the aircraft, the vertical speed margin protection volume having a lower longitudinal profile with a path that is extrapolated from a current path of the aircraft and tilted downward until the topographic representation of the terrain being flown over penetrates into the vertical speed margin protection volume; and

instruct the message generator, after the generation of the warning corresponding to the detected risk of collision, an end of conflict message, with indication of the vertical speed margin indication.

2. The system according to claim 1, wherein the minimum safe distance is determined based on a flight phase of the aircraft that is defined as a function of a flight level of the aircraft, a speed of the aircraft, and a distance from the aircraft to an airport.

3. The system according to claim 1, wherein the computer is configured to determine if the aircraft is observing the minimum safe distance according to a current position of the aircraft and predicted positions extrapolated based on the flight parameters within a preset period.

4. The system according to claim 3, wherein the preset period is twenty seconds.

5. The system according to claim 1, wherein the lower longitudinal profile is determined based on a potential leveling-off path initiated from a current position of the aircraft with an estimated steep descent close to a limit allowable by the aircraft in normal operating conditions.

6. The system according to claim 5, wherein the vertical margin protection volume has a modeling lower surface profile on the leveling-off path over a period of two minutes.

7. The system according to claim 1, wherein the minimum safe distance is determined based on a lateral distance needed for the aircraft to describe a holding pattern.

8. The system according to claim 1, wherein the vertical speed margin protection volume has, initially, the same configuration as the at least one maneuver protection volume.

9. The system according to claim 1, wherein the vertical speed margin protection volume comprises a maneuver protection volume progressively tilted overall downward.

10. The system according to claim 1, wherein the lower longitudinal profile is determined by tilting the path downward, in successive steps and in a dichotomic manner, until the path is penetrated by the topographic representation of the terrain being flown over.