Eurocopter

Airbus Helicopters

Richard Pire

Francois-Xavier Filias

Marianne Gillet

Nicolas Pierre Certain

Jean-Paul Petillon

François-Xavier Filias

François Xavier Filias

A piloting assistance method for avoiding an obstacle with a rotorcraft flying along a current speed vector (Vect). An alert is generated by using a speed vector of the rotorcraft referred to as a 'calculation' speed vector (Vect) in order to determine whether the rotorcraft might impact an obstacle. During a correction stage and at each calculation iteration, the calculation speed vector (Vect) is determined using a horizontal component and a vertical component, the vertical component being a function of a current vertical speed of the rotorcraft relative to the ground corrected with a corrective term, the corrective term being a function of a product of a current path speed of the rotorcraft multiplied by the derivative of the path speed.

Method and a system for assisting piloting to avoid an obstacle with a rotorcraft

A method of assisting low altitude piloting of an aircraft and comprising determining at least one main guard curve, determining all of the obstacles present in at least one search zone, and performing a comparison between a top of each obstacle of a search zone and the main guard curve. In order to perform the comparison, if at least one 'potentially dangerous' obstacle is situated above the main guard curve in a search zone, then, for each potentially dangerous obstacle, a sight angle (&#x3b1;) is determined for the top of the potentially dangerous obstacle, and it is considered that the most dangerous obstacle is the potentially dangerous obstacle presenting the greatest sight angle (&#x3b1;).

Method and a device for assisting low altitude piloting of an aircraft

A procedure for the detection and display of the ground and of obstacles through the use of detection means installed onboard a vehicle, which detection means send measurement signals toward the ground and receive a plurality of elementary plots (Pe). The procedure makes it possible to create a grid of the ground along a horizontal plane, with each ground cell (Ms(i,j)) consisting of an elementary plot (Pe) having a minimum altitude Zmin(i,j)), and with each other elementary plot (Pe) corresponding to the ground cell (Ms(i,j)) and having a different altitude (Z(i,j)), thereby forming an obstacle plot (Po(i,j)). Each newly received elementary plot (Pe) is then compared against the corresponding ground cell (Ms(i,j)) and processed according to its altitude (Z(i,j)). The ground cells (Ms(i,j)) and/or the obstacle plots (Po(i,j)) are displayed on display means in order to indicate to the pilot of the vehicle the potential obstacles other than the ground.

Procedure for the detection and display of artificial obstacles for a rotary-wing aircraft

The present invention relates to a maintenance method for a piece of equipment () of a vehicle () including an anti-vibration system (). In the method, a device () determines a first number (D) of hours of operation of said equipment () while said anti-vibration system () was operating in a normal mode of operation and a second number (D) of hours of operation while said anti-vibration system () was operating in a degraded mode of operation. Said second number (D) is then converted into a third number (D) by applying a predetermined conversion relationship. Under such circumstances, action is taken on said equipment () when the sum of the first number (D) plus the third number (D) reaches a predetermined threshold (D).

Technical method, a maintenance device, and an aircraft

A method essentially comprising a step of storing each plot mesh. Each plot mesh receiving plots sent thereto by detector means and retaining in memory at least the altitude of the highest plot and the number of plots neighboring said highest plot in said mesh. The altitude and the number of plots neighboring are updated each time a new plot is sent to the plot mesh. A step of rejecting plot meshes is presenting a number of neighboring plots that is less than a predetermined rejection threshold value. The rejection threshold value is a function of the position of the mesh relative to the detector means. A step is preparing the local terrain elevation database from the plot meshes (M(i,j)) that are not rejected.

Method of obtaining a local terrain elevation database from detector means on board a vehicle

A method of detecting at least one suspended threadlike object by telemetry, the object lying in the detection field of a telemeter on board a vehicle. The method wherein in step iii), for each vertical plane taken into consideration, and for each set of at least four candidate points close to the vertical plane in question, using the least squares method to calculate the values of three parameters a, b, and c of a catenary having an equation of the form:cos[()/the catenary containing the projections on the vertical plane of the points in the set under consideration; and determining that at least one suspended threadlike object is present as a function of the value of the correlation coefficient associated with said least squares method for all of the sets of at least four candidate points close to the vertical plane under consideration.

Method of using telemetry to detect at least one suspended threadlike object, the object lying in the detection field of a telemeter mounted on board a vehicle

The present invention relates to a method of flying safely and at low altitude in an aircraft, in which method unsafe relief (R) of terrain is determined as is the position of at least one high point () representing an obstacle (') overlying said unsafe relief (R). A main volume (V) is added to said unsafe relief (R), the main volume being defined between a main volume base () placed on the unsafe relief (R) and an envelope (), thereby obtaining safe relief (R) for overflying that contains at least said unsafe relief (R) and said main volume (V), said main volume base () having an area (&#x2032;) defined by a closed peripheral curve () resting on said unsafe relief (R), said envelope () being generated using a moving segment (S) of predetermined length (L) extending from said high point () to a second point (&#x2032;) moving along said peripheral curve ().

Method and a device for flying safely at low altitude in an aircraft

The invention relates to a method of determining an estimated speed of an aircraft relative to ground being overflown by the aircraft, in which use is made of the sum of an acceleration measurement of the aircraft plus a difference value, the difference value being obtained from observation data or signals relating to a region of the ground.

System for estimating the speed of an aircraft, and an application thereof to detecting obstacles

In a method of the invention for assisting the piloting of an aircraft, a guard curve (CGS) is determined as a function of the resources of the aircraft, the position of an obstacle (O) or a terrain point situated in front of the aircraft is measured by telemetry, the distance D between the guard curve and the obstacle (O) or the terrain point is calculated, and a pull-down order or a pull-up order is produced as a function of the distance D.

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Istres, France

Richard Pire