US 2019/0378419 A1 · AIRCRAFT CONTROL SYSTEM WITH RESIDUAL ERROR CONTAINMENT

Abstract

The aircraft control systems and methods disclosed herein are configured to detect a residual error associated with a flight control computer of an aircraft and mitigate the effect(s) of such residual error in order to maintain safe operation of the aircraft. In some embodiments, the systems and methods are configured to detect an out-of-flight-envelope situation of the aircraft and determine whether or not the flight control computer is attempting to recover the aircraft from the out-of-flight-envelope situation. If the flight control computer is perceived as attempting to recover the aircraft from the out-of-flight-envelope situation, the flight control computer is permitted to continue controlling the aircraft. Otherwise, the excursion outside of the normal flight envelope is perceives as potentially having been caused by a residual error and the flight control computer is prevented from continuing to control the aircraft.

Claims23

Dependent claims

A control system for an aircraft, the control system comprising:

a sensor configured to sense a flight parameter of the aircraft;
a flight control computer operatively coupled to receive one or more signals representative of the flight parameter sensed by the sensor and configured to control one or more aspects of operation of the aircraft at least partially based on the flight parameter;
and
a monitoring apparatus configured to:
receive the one or more signals representative of the flight parameter sensed by the sensor;
determine that the flight parameter is indicative of an out-of-flight-envelope situation of the aircraft;
while the aircraft is in the out-of-flight-envelope situation, evaluate one or more control commands output by the flight control computer and associated with the flight parameter;
conditioned upon the one or more control commands being indicative of the flight control computer attempting to cause the aircraft to return within its flight envelope, allow the flight control computer to continue controlling the one or more aspects of operation of the aircraft;
and
conditioned upon the one or more control commands being indicative of the flight control computer not attempting to cause the aircraft to return within its flight envelope, prevent the flight control computer from controlling the one or more aspects of operation of the aircraft.

7 more elements

A monitoring apparatus for a control system of an aircraft, the monitoring apparatus comprising:

one or more data processors;
and
non-transitory machine-readable memory storing instructions executable by the one or more data processors and configured to cause the one or more data processors to:
determine that a flight parameter of the aircraft is indicative of an out-of-flight-envelope situation of the aircraft while one or more aspects of operation of the aircraft are controlled using a flight control computer;
while the aircraft is in the out-of-flight-envelope situation, evaluate one or more control commands output by the flight control computer and associated with the flight parameter;
conditioned upon the one or more control commands being indicative of the flight control computer attempting to cause the aircraft to return within its flight envelope, allow the flight control computer to continue controlling the one or more aspects of operation of the aircraft;
and
conditioned upon the one or more control commands being indicative of the flight control computer not attempting to cause the aircraft to return within its flight envelope, prevent the flight control computer from controlling the one or more aspects of operation of the aircraft.

5 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Aircraft control system with residual error containment

Life of this patent

Aircraft control system with residual error containment

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims23