Sperry Rand Corporation

Puretech Systems Inc.

Larry J Bowe, Jr

Donald H Baker

William C Post

Monroe Milas Thomas

Marvin Wade Barnes

Brant Buchika

Kenzel P Manning

Andrew Giles Tillman

A system and method for processing alarms includes receiving alarm data from a third-party data source, the alarm data having visual data, an area of interest, and a sought target. The system processes the visual data to detect an object in the area of interest, and then classifies the object either in conformance with the sought target or in nonconformance with the sought target. The system issues a positive alarm when the object is in conformance with the sought target, and issuing issues a false alarm when the object is in nonconformance with the sought target. Feedback is received from the third-party data source regarding an accuracy of the respective positive alarm and the false alarm.

Alarm processing and classification system and method

In the vertical path control of an area navigation system when the aircraft ascends or descends to a waypoint with an 'at-or-above' or 'at-or-below' altitude requirement, vertical steering is effected at a constant airspeed with regard to a reference airspeed. An alert device is included to provide a warning to the pilot when the aircraft flight path angle is less than the straight line flight path angle to the waypoint for 'at-or-above' waypoints or when the flight path angle of the aircraft is greater than the straight line flight path angle to the waypoint for waypoints with an 'at-or-below' altitude requirement. Altitude error is displayed on a vertical deviation indicator of an aircraft flight instrument in accordance with the difference between the actual aircraft altitude and the altitude of the next waypoint having a firm altitude requirement. When the aircraft ascends or descends to a waypoint through the pressure-barometric altitude transition, flight path angles are computed and utilized as the vertical steering reference to avoid a steering discontinuity at the transition altitude. When the aircraft is on a descent path to a waypoint and an airspeed reduction is required, vertical angles are computed and utilized for generating the vertical steering signal whereby a speed reduction transition zone is included in the flight path to effect the speed reduction and make good the desired waypoint altitude.

Vertical path control for aircraft area navigation system

Control apparatus for an aircraft area navigation system provides a vertical path control signal to cause the aircraft to ascend or descend along a helical surface as the craft executes a transition laterally from the inbound course to the outbound course of a waypoint whereby the craft attains the waypoint altitude when crossing the course bisector thereof while maintaining a predetermined vertical flight path angle when steered on a predetermined lateral course transition path.

Helical vertical path control apparatus for aircraft area navigation

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Phoenix, AZ, United States of America

Larry J Bowe, Jr