Textron Innovations Inc.

Clifton L Harrell

Thomas Earl Johnson, Jr

Christos Bais

David Adjei

Curtis R Higgens

Jillian Samantha Alfred

Lan Nam Hoang

In an embodiment, a rotorcraft includes a control element; a first detent sensor connected to the control element, the first detent sensor being operable to generate detent slip rate data indicating movement of the control element and detent state data indicating pilot control of the control element; a first trim motor connected to the control element and operable to generate trim rate data; and an FCC in signal communication with the first detent sensor and the first trim motor, the FCC including an error monitor operable to compare the detent slip rate data with the trim rate data and determine whether the first detent sensor is functional or defective, operable to provide a first flight management function when the first detent sensor is determined to be functional, and operable to provide a second flight management function when the first detent sensor is determined to be defective.

Error monitors for collective and cyclic sticks

In an embodiment, an aircraft includes an actuator and a flight control computer interfaced with the actuator. The flight control computer is configured to: increase an initiating force output by an initiating channel of the actuator; stop the increasing of the initiating force in response to observing restraining forces on restraining channels of the actuator; hold the initiating force at a quiescent initiating value while the restraining channels hold the restraining forces at quiescent restraining values; increase the initiating force to a target initiating value while the restraining channels increase the restraining forces to target restraining values; calculate a force fight test result by summing a difference between the target initiating value and the quiescent initiating value with differences between the target restraining values and the quiescent restraining values; and indicate the actuator failed verification in response to the force fight test result being greater than a first predetermined threshold.

Aircraft actuator verification system and method

In an embodiment, a method of managing force equalization (FEQ) on a vehicle utilizing redundant actuation systems for one or more control surfaces includes determining, via a force sensor, a measured force applied by a first actuation system in relation to a control surface, where the control surface is redundantly serviced by a plurality of actuation systems. The method also includes updating a measured-force time series for the first actuation system with the measured force. The method also includes analyzing movement over at least a portion of the measured-force time series. The method also includes identifying a force-fight cycle in the measured-force time series. The method also includes indicating the force-fight cycle in cumulative force-fight cycle data for the first actuation system.

Managing force equalization via force-fight cycle detection

In an embodiment, a method of monitoring force equalization (FEQ) sensors on a vehicle utilizing redundant actuation systems for one or more control surfaces includes determining, via a force sensor, a first measured force applied by a first actuation system in relation to a control surface, where the control surface is redundantly serviced by a plurality of actuation systems that include the first actuation system. The method also includes updating a measured-force time series for the first actuation system with the first measured force. The method also includes determining variation in at least a portion of the measured-force time series responsive to the updating. The method also includes identifying a first static condition in the measured-force time series in response to a determination that the variation in the measured-force time series is no greater than a minimum amount of variation.

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Arlington, TX, United States of America

Clifton L Harrell