Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation

Vineet Sahasrabudhe

Aaron L Greenfield

Anthony Litwinowicz

Alex Faynberg

Margaret A Macisaac

Matthew A White

Jonathan K Garhart

James J Howlett

William Arthur Welsh

Phillip J Gold

Lorren Stiles

John H Judge

Derek H Geiger

John J Occhiato

Preston R Bates

James Rigsby

Naji S Yakzan

Steven D Weiner

Ole Wulff

Stephen T Kubik

David G Matuska

John Knag

Ashok K Agnihotri

William P Fell

Karim Khial

Charles W Clarke

John Rucci

Donald S Anttila

Glen A Knaust

Stella Jang

Jennifer D Goss

Philip J Gold

Derek Geiger

Loren Stiles

A system and method of controlling flight of an aircraft is disclosed. The system includes a first inceptor that provides a direct mode command for controlling a control axis of the aircraft according to a direct mode and a second inceptor that provides a stable mode command for controlling the control axis of the aircraft according to a stable mode. A processor receives the direct mode command and the stable mode command, forms a combined command for controlling the control axis of the aircraft based on a combination of the direct mode command and the stable mode command, and controls the control axis of the aircraft according to the combined command.

Simultaneous flight path control and attitude control with control axis splitting

A rotary wing aircraft includes a rotor system rotatable about an axis relative to an airframe. A plurality of blade assemblies is mounted to the rotor system. A higher harmonic control system is operable to generate a harmonic load at the rotor system according to a higher harmonic control signal. An active vibration control system is operable to generate vibration forces about the aircraft according to an active vibration control signal. A controller is operable to issue the higher harmonic control signal and the active vibration control signal to coordinate the higher harmonic control system and the active vibration control system to reduce vibration within the airframe.

Higher harmonic control augmented with active vibration control

A method for directing formation flying of an aircraft includes sensing a relative position of a leader to a follower aircraft by one or more sensors disposed at the follower aircraft. The relative position is compared to a selected relative position, and a follower velocity of the follower aircraft necessary to move the follower aircraft to the selective relative position is determined via a flight control computer of the follower aircraft. The follower velocity is transformed into flight control inputs and the follower aircraft is moved to the selected relative position via the flight control inputs.

Formation flying method and system

A control system for a rotary wing aircraft having a reconfigurable element. The control system includes a model predictive control module receiving operator commands, objectives and constraints; and a dynamic inversion module receiving an output of the model predictive control module, the dynamic inversion module providing control commands to reconfigure the reconfigurable element of the rotary wing aircraft.

Control system for reconfigurable rotary wing aircraft

A method and system for controlling maneuverability of an aircraft includes receiving one or more signals indicative of commanded peak rotary acceleration at a first timeperiod; determining a signal indicative of an actual peak rotary acceleration for the first timeperiod in response to the receiving of the one or more signals for commanded pilot acceleration; and determining signals indicative of actual rotary acceleration for a second timeperiod.

Acceleration smoothing holding overall kinetic energy control

Embodiments of the disclosure are directed to measuring, via at least one sensor, at least one of a damage and a compromise associated with a vehicle, determining at least one of a region and a location of the at least one of a damage and a compromise and a level of the at least one of a damage and a compromise, and adapting an operational envelope for the vehicle based on the determined at least one of a region and a location of the at least one of a damage and a compromise and the level of the at least one of a damage and a compromise.

Damage adaptive control

A method and system of controlling a rotorcraft for sea-based operations includes receiving sensed information indicative of an operation of the rotorcraft; receiving operator commands, ship models and system constraints; and determining a solution to an optimization function that avoids violating the system constraints, the solution being representative of control command signals for augmenting a flight response of the rotorcraft to a ship.

Rotorcraft control laws for sea-based operations

A method for sensing a takeoff of an aircraft includes receiving a rate of change in vertical motion of the aircraft, determining whether the rate of change in vertical motion of the aircraft exceeds a first threshold, integrating the rate of change in vertical motion of the aircraft and outputting a virtual altitude signal, responsive to receiving the indication that a portion of the aircraft is contacting a surface, delaying the virtual altitude signal through a discrete low pass filter and outputting a delayed virtual altitude signal, subtracting the delayed virtual altitude signal from the virtual altitude signal to output an altitude perturbation signal, determining whether the altitude perturbation signal exceeds a second threshold value, and outputting an indication that the portion of the aircraft is not contacting the surface responsive to the rate of change in the vertical motion of the aircraft and the altitude perturbation signal.

Method and system for detecting forces on aircraft

A control system for a rotor assembly includes a plurality of sensors configured to detect a lead-lag rate of each rotor blade of a plurality of rotor blades rotatable around a shaft and a flight control computer configured to generate lead-lag compensation signals based on the detected lead rate and lag rate of each rotor blade to control each rotor blade.

Compensating for lead-lag in rotor system

A helicopter is provided and includes an air frame formed to accommodate a pilot, flight control elements disposed on the airframe to generate lift and thrust in accordance with control commands issued by the pilot and a current control mode, a sensor disposed on the airframe to sense helicopter proximity to terrain and obstacles and a flight computer configured to change the current control mode based on sensed helicopter proximity to the terrain and the obstacles.

Terrain adaptive flight control

Embodiments of the disclosure are directed to obtaining, by a device, data associated with an aircraft, processing, by the device, the data, determining, by the device, that the aircraft is likely to impact an object with a probability greater than a threshold within a second threshold amount of time based on the processed data, and causing, by the device, a change in an orientation of the aircraft based on the determination.

Hard landing detection and orientation control

A flight control system includes a command model modified in response to a Life Improving Control (LIC) algorithm. An inverse aircraft model is in communication with the command model to generate a flight control system command to command an aircraft state. A feedback path from the command model and the aircraft state is also modified in response to the Life Improving Control (LIC) algorithm.

Life improving flight control system

A method for sensing a force applied to an aircraft includes receiving a derivative of the acceleration of a motion of a portion of the aircraft, determining whether the derivative of the acceleration of the motion of the portion of the aircraft exceeds a threshold, and outputting an indication that a force has been applied to the portion of the aircraft responsive to determining that the derivative of the acceleration of motion of the portion of the aircraft exceeds the threshold.

A method of controlling the flight of a rotorcraft in a feed-forward/feedback architecture includes utilizing an aircraft plant model to control the rotorcraft performance; determining when an external load is coupled to the rotorcraft; and modifying an inverse plant when the external load is present.

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Cheshire, CT, United States of America

Vineet Sahasrabudhe