Aircraft brake control system
AssigneeAirbus Operations GmbH
InventorsCarlos Cuesta Castro, Andrew Hebborn
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An aircraft brake control system for controlling a plurality of brakeable wheels of a landing gear. Each brakeable wheel includes a brake actuator and a wheel speed sensor. The system includes a controller configured to receive aircraft control parameters and provide brake commands to the brake actuator of each wheel. The controller being configured to activate pre-retraction braking in response to an aircraft control parameter indicating that landing gear retraction is required and execute a functional brake test during pre-retraction braking.
Claims20
An aircraft brake control system for controlling a plurality of brakeable wheels of a landing gear on an aircraft, each of the brakeable wheels comprising a brake actuator and a wheel speed sensor, wherein the aircraft brake control system comprises:
- a controller configured to receive aircraft control parameters and provide brake commands to the brake actuator of each of the brakeable wheels,
- wherein the controller is configured to:
- activate pre-retraction braking in response to an aircraft control parameter received after take-off, wherein the pre-retraction braking occurs during a period which starts with the take-off and ends at a first initial retraction of the landing gear following the take-off, and wherein the aircraft control parameter indicates that landing gear retraction is required;
- and
- execute a functional brake test during the pre-retraction braking, wherein the functional brake test starts after the take-off and is completed during the period;
- and
- during the execution of the functional brake test, determine whether each of the brakeable wheels are spinning above a rotational speed threshold, the brakeable wheels include the wheels being braked during the functional brake test and the wheels not being braked or not yet braked during the functional brake test, and
- wherein the functional brake test comprises:
- issuing sequential brake commands to the brake actuators of at least a first brakeable wheel and a second brakeable wheel of the plurality of brakeable wheels to command and cause the braking of at least two of the brakeable wheels to begin in sequence, wherein the brake actuators command and cause the first brakeable wheel to begin braking before braking begins of the second brakeable wheel;
- and
- independently monitoring the wheel speed sensors of each of the brakeable wheels to monitor a response of a wheel speed of each of the brakeable wheels to the braking in sequence of the at least two of the brakeable wheels.
A method of operating an aircraft braking system, the aircraft braking system including a plurality of brakeable wheels on an aircraft, each of the brakeable wheels comprising a brake actuator and a wheel speed sensor, the method comprising:
- performing a functional brake test during pre-retraction braking in response to a landing gear retraction command after take-off of the aircraft, wherein the functional brake test is completed before commencement of an initial retraction of the landing gear in response to the landing gear retraction command,
- wherein the functional brake test comprises:
- monitoring a speed of each of the brakeable wheels;
- sequentially activating the brake actuators of the brakeable wheels to sequentially begin braking a first brakeable wheel of the brakeable wheels before braking begins in a second brakeable wheel of the brakeable wheels;
- monitoring a response of the wheel speed of each of the brakeable wheels to the sequential brake actuation, and
- during the execution of the functional brake test, determining whether each of the brakeable wheels are spinning above a rotational speed threshold, the brakeable wheels include the wheels being braked during the functional brake test and the wheels not being braked or not yet braked during the functional brake test.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.