Air navigation and landing aid system
AssigneeThomson-CSF
InventorsRobert Gendreu, Maurice Chabah
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An air navigation and landing aid system wherein a pair of transponder beacons are located at known positions adjacent an airport runway. The aircraft carries a weather pulse radar system and an antenna for furnishing information affording a navigation aid during the flight stage. Switching means are inserted between the antenna and the weather radar for switching, during the landing stage, the received pulses relating to each beacon, in response to the interrogation of the weather radar, to a special receiver and a processing circuit which furnishes information affording a landing aid.
Claims18
An air navigation and landing aid system comprising on the ground:
- at least one transponder beacon for receiving pulses having a predetermined frequency and retransmitting said pulses with at least one frequency which is different from said predetermined frequency, each beacon being located at a predetermined position with respect to a landing runway,
- and in an aircraft;
- an antenna;
- a mechanical drive device for the antenna;
- a weather transmitter-receiver coupled to the antenna, for emitting pulses at said predetermined frequency, for receiving echo signals having said predetermined frequency in response to said emitted pulses and for furnishing information affording a navigation aid during the flight stage;
- a special receiver for receiving the pulses re-transmitted by each beacon in response to the interrogation of the weather transmitter during the landing stage;
- switching means, inserted between said antenna and the weather transmitter-receiver, for switching, during the landing stage, the received pulses, relating to each beacon, to said special receiver, and
- a process circuit connected to said special receiver and to the mechanical drive device for the antenna, for furnishing information about at least the relative position and the relative path of the aircraft with respect to the landing runway, for affording a landing aid.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.