Aerodynamic control surface movement monitoring system for aircraft

A method of controlling and monitoring an aerodynamic control surface of an aircraft, the method comprising:

• sending an first actuator input from a controller to a first actuator to drive a movement of a first linear translation element that is operably connected to a first portion of the aerodynamic control surface;
• sending an second actuator input from the controller to a second actuator to drive a movement of a second linear translation element that is operably connected to a second portion of the aerodynamic control surface;
• generating a first sensor output with a first sensor assembly disposed relative to the first actuator, the first sensor output being based an amount of linear motion of the first linear translation element;
• generating a second sensor output with a second sensor assembly disposed relative to the second actuator, the second sensor output being based an amount of linear motion of the second linear translation element;
• comparing expected sensor outputs to the first and second sensor outputs using the controller to determine if an error condition exists;
• and
• generating an error indication when the error condition exists,
• wherein the first linear translation element is a magnetic shaft formed from alternating magnetic elements that is driven by an electromagnetic stator, the method further comprising detecting variations in magnetic field that correlate to linear motion of the first and second linear translation elements, and
• wherein the first sensor assembly comprises a first magnetic sensor and a second magnetic sensor, wherein the first and second magnetic sensors are at least one of (i) positioned relative to the first linear translation element to detect the alternating magnetic elements of the first linear translation element or (ii) positioned with an axial offset relative to the first linear translation element.

An actuator system for controlling an aerodynamic control surface of an aircraft, the system comprising:

• a first actuator receiving a first actuator input and a first linear translation element that moves based on the first actuator input, the first linear translation element operably connected to a first portion of the aerodynamic control surface to move the first portion of the aerodynamic control surface;
• a first sensor assembly disposed relative to the first actuator that generates a first sensor output based on a displacement of the first linear translation element;
• a second actuator receiving a second actuator input and a second linear translation element that moves based on the second actuator input, the second linear translation element operably connected to a second portion of the aerodynamic control surface to move the second portion of the aerodynamic control surface;
• a second sensor assembly disposed relative to the second actuator that generates a second sensor output based on a displacement of the second linear translation element;
• and
• a controller that generates the first and second actuator inputs and receives the first and second sensor outputs and determines if an error condition exists for the system based on the first and second sensor outputs,
• wherein the first linear translation element is a threaded ball screw shaft that is driven by a ball nut, and
• wherein the first sensor assembly comprises a first optical sensor and a second optical sensor, wherein the first and second optical sensors are positioned relative to the first linear translation element to detect the threads of the first linear translation element.