Airbus Operations (s.a.s.)

Airbus Operations Gmbh

Thomas Pastre

Andrea Giovannini

Jérome Arnoux

Miguel Consiglieri Pedroso Mendes Dias

Jean-Claude Mere

Sylvain Raynaud

Nicolas Albert

Fabien Perrin

Thomas Koebel

Jean Guilhamet

Jérôme Arnoux

An automatic trajectory generation system bringing a flying aircraft from a current position to a destination which: obtains polygons representing obstacles potentially encountered, each polygon associated with an altitude layer; defines two first tangential circles relative to a current direction of the aircraft flight, centered on the right and the left, relative to the aircraft current position; defining two second circles tangential relative to a direction to be followed to destination, centered on the right and the left, relative to the georeferenced destination position; defines a third circle around vertices of the polygons; and searches for a flyable lateral trajectory between the aircraft current position and the destination by bypassing the polygons by the vertices in searching for tangential trajectories between the circles, by observing a pre-established vertical trajectory profile, as well as the lateral margin and a vertical margin with the polygons.

Method and system for calculating the lateral trajectory of an aircraft

An aircraft with a unit to transmit information on ability/inability of pilots to fly the aircraft. Guidance avionics include guidance architecture and a flight controller to fly the aircraft. The guidance architecture has two dissimilar guidance chains and a selection unit connected thereto, to the flight controller and to the unit for measuring physical ability/inability, a first guidance chain to compute a main path for the aircraft towards a destination airport based on a current state of the aircraft by following a flight plan and to compute main guidance instructions for following the main path, a second guidance chain to compute an emergency path for the aircraft towards a diversion airport based on an initial portion of the common path with the main path and to compute emergency guidance instructions for following the emergency path. The selection unit receives the main and emergency guidance instructions and transmits either one to the flight controller.

Aircraft comprising a flight management architecture

To bring an aircraft in flight to a runway, an automatic trajectory generation system obtains a procedure, called STARI procedure, which provides a final trajectory flyable by the aircraft to land on the runway, such that from the entry point of the final trajectory or from any point above it, a holding loop pattern of a predefined shape is flyable in order to dissipate energy if necessary. The automatic trajectory generation system then computes a lateral trajectory, avoiding any terrain relief, meteorological obstacles and military zones, between the current position of the aircraft and the entry point or a point above it, based on performance adapted to an operational state of the aircraft. An overall trajectory is thus obtained, by linking the computed lateral trajectory and the final trajectory of the STARI procedure, including iterations of the holding loop pattern if necessary.

Method and system for computing a trajectory for landing an aircraft

A piloting assistance system for an aircraft comprises a flight management computer and a guidance computer. The flight management computer transmits speed setpoints to the guidance computer so as to pilot the aircraft in accordance with an initial speed profile or in accordance with an RTA speed profile following the reception of an RTA constraint. In response to the reception of a setpoint speed selected by a flight crew member in the presence of the RTA constraint, the guidance computer pilots the aircraft at the selected speed and the flight management computer determines a deselection point for returning to a predetermined speed profile while still complying with the RTA constraint. The guidance computer commands the display, on a navigation screen, of a symbol corresponding to the position of the deselection point.

Piloting assistance system and method for an aircraft

A method for assisting in the piloting of an aircraft to observe a required time of arrival at a waypoint during a flight according to a predetermined flight plan comprising a nominal speed profile, comprising at least two flight segments, comprises the steps of determining an effective speed profile of the aircraft, and controlling by a guidance computer of the aircraft according to the effective speed profile. The step of determining an effective speed profile comprises the substeps of computing, for each segment of the nominal speed profile, a corrective term that is a function of a correction coefficient common to all the segments of the nominal speed profile, and computing, for each segment of the effective speed profile, a setpoint speed equal to the sum of a nominal speed of the nominal speed profile and of the corrective term.

Method and device for assisting in the piloting of an aircraft to observe a required time of arrival

A display method comprises a step during which an aircraft flight management computer sends display instructions to a display management system, to control the display of an aircraft flight plan window. The display method also comprises steps comprising acquiring a reference point and a vertical flight profile of the aircraft comprising the reference point, and computing, using the vertical flight profile, an altitude of the reference point. It also comprises steps comprising acquiring an information item relating to a flight phase associated with the reference point, acquiring an information item relating to a selected display range, determining a vertical centering coefficient of a display window relating to the vertical flight profile, as a function of the flight phase and transmitting, to the display management system, instructions for displaying the display window as a function of the altitude of the reference point and of the centering coefficient of the display window.

Method, device and system for displaying a vertical flight profile of an aircraft

The device includes processor elements for determining an optimal flight trajectory, which is free of collision with obstacles, which respects constraints of energy, and which links the current position of the aircraft to a target point defined by an operator. The device minimizes additional crew work required to update and validate a new trajectory when an original flight plan needs to be modified to avoid moving obstacles such as storms or other aircraft.

Method and device for determining an optimal flight trajectory followed by an aircraft

The device includes elements of a processing unit which determine a limit trajectory representing a flight trajectory which is compatible with the aircraft performance during the approach and which shows the limits for the flight of the aircraft. For example, a vertical profile and a horizontal trajectory are determined, with the horizontal trajectory being non-linear so that the energy of the aircraft can be sufficiently dissipated before final approach along an approach axis, while also avoiding obstacles. Thus, a flight trajectory is determined even when the aircraft has deviated from a flight plan and approach axis.

Method and device for aiding the approach of an aircraft during an approach phase for the purpose of landing

A device and method aids the evaluation of a flight trajectory that is intended to be followed by an aircraft within a constrained environment. The method includes receiving information from a processing unit regarding stationary and moving obstacles, implementing a collision trial based on this information, and displaying any collision risks to the pilot on a display device in the cockpit. Consequently, a pilot can know within the constrained environment whether a flight trajectory needs to be modified to avoid potential collisions.

Growing community of inventors

Caluire et Cuire, France

Thomas Pastre