Avionics
Avionics (a
History
The term "avionics" was coined in 1949 by
The civilian market has also seen a growth in cost of avionics. Flight control systems (fly-by-wire) and new navigation needs brought on by tighter airspaces, have pushed up development costs. The major change has been the recent boom in consumer flying. As more people begin to use planes as their primary method of transportation, more elaborate methods of controlling aircraft safely in these high restrictive airspaces have been invented.[citation needed]
Modern avionics
Avionics plays a heavy role in modernization initiatives like the Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) Next Generation Air Transportation System project in the United States and the Single European Sky ATM Research (SESAR) initiative in Europe. The Joint Planning and Development Office put forth a roadmap for avionics in six areas:[8]
- Published Routes and Procedures – Improved navigation and routing
- Negotiated Trajectories – Adding data communications to create preferred routes dynamically
- Delegated Separation – Enhanced situational awareness in the air and on the ground
- LowVisibility/CeilingApproach/Departure – Allowing operations with weather constraints with less ground infrastructure
- Surface Operations – To increase safety in approach and departure
- ATM Efficiencies – Improving the air traffic management (ATM) process
Market
The
Aircraft avionics
The cockpit or, in larger aircraft, under the cockpit of an aircraft, is a typical location for
International standards for avionics equipment are prepared by the Airlines Electronic Engineering Committee (AEEC) and published by ARINC.
Communications
Communications connect the flight deck to the ground and the flight deck to the passengers. On‑board communications are provided by public-address systems and aircraft intercoms.
The VHF aviation communication system works on the
Monitoring
The first hints of
Aircraft flight-control system
Aircraft have means of automatically controlling flight.
The first simple commercial auto-pilots were used to control
Fuel Systems
Fuel Quantity Indication System (FQIS) monitors the amount of fuel aboard. Using various sensors, such as capacitance tubes, temperature sensors, densitometers & level sensors, the FQIS computer calculates the mass of fuel remaining on board.
Fuel Control and Monitoring System (FCMS) reports fuel remaining on board in a similar manner, but, by controlling pumps & valves, also manages fuel transfers around various tanks.
- Refuelling control to upload to a certain total mass of fuel and distribute it automatically.
- Transfers during flight to the tanks that feed the engines. E.G. from fuselage to wing tanks
- Centre of gravity control transfers from the tail (trim) tanks forward to the wings as fuel is expended
- Maintaining fuel in the wing tips (to help stop the wings bending due to lift in flight) & transferring to the main tanks after landing
- Controlling fuel jettison during an emergency to reduce the aircraft weight.
Collision-avoidance systems
To supplement
To help avoid controlled flight into terrain (
Flight recorders
Commercial aircraft cockpit data recorders, commonly known as "black boxes", store flight information and audio from the cockpit. They are often recovered from an aircraft after a crash to determine control settings and other parameters during the incident.
Weather systems
Weather systems such as
Lightning detectors like the Stormscope or Strikefinder have become inexpensive enough that they are practical for light aircraft. In addition to radar and lightning detection, observations and extended radar pictures (such as NEXRAD) are now available through satellite data connections, allowing pilots to see weather conditions far beyond the range of their own in-flight systems. Modern displays allow weather information to be integrated with moving maps, terrain, and traffic onto a single screen, greatly simplifying navigation.
Modern weather systems also include wind shear and turbulence detection and terrain and traffic warning systems.[12] In‑plane weather avionics are especially popular in Africa, India, and other countries where air-travel is a growing market, but ground support is not as well developed.[13]
Aircraft management systems
There has been a progression towards centralized control of the multiple complex systems fitted to aircraft, including engine monitoring and management. Health and usage monitoring systems (HUMS) are integrated with aircraft management computers to give maintainers early warnings of parts that will need replacement.
The
Mission or tactical avionics
Military aircraft have been designed either to deliver a weapon or to be the eyes and ears of other weapon systems. The vast array of sensors available to the military is used for whatever tactical means required. As with aircraft management, the bigger sensor platforms (like the E‑3D, JSTARS, ASTOR, Nimrod MRA4, Merlin HM Mk 1) have mission-management computers.
Police and EMS aircraft also carry sophisticated tactical sensors.
Military communications
While aircraft communications provide the backbone for safe flight, the tactical systems are designed to withstand the rigors of the battle field.
Radar
Airborne
The military uses radar in fast jets to help pilots fly at low levels. While the civil market has had weather radar for a while,[14] there are strict rules about using it to navigate the aircraft.[15]
Sonar
Dipping sonar fitted to a range of military helicopters allows the helicopter to protect shipping assets from submarines or surface threats. Maritime support aircraft can drop active and passive sonar devices (sonobuoys) and these are also used to determine the location of enemy submarines.
Electro-optics
Electro-optic systems include devices such as the
ESM/DAS
Electronic support measures and defensive aids systems are used extensively to gather information about threats or possible threats. They can be used to launch devices (in some cases automatically) to counter direct threats against the aircraft. They are also used to determine the state of a threat and identify it.
Aircraft networks
The avionics systems in military, commercial and advanced models of civilian aircraft are interconnected using an avionics databus. Common avionics databus protocols, with their primary application, include:
- Aircraft Data Network (ADN): Ethernet derivative for Commercial Aircraft
- Avionics Full-Duplex Switched Ethernet (AFDX): Specific implementation of ARINC 664 (ADN) for Commercial Aircraft
- ARINC 429: Generic Medium-Speed Data Sharing for Private and Commercial Aircraft
- ARINC 664: See ADN above
- ARINC 629: Commercial Aircraft (Boeing 777)
- ARINC 708: Weather Radar for Commercial Aircraft
- ARINC 717: Flight Data Recorder for Commercial Aircraft
- Boeing 787 and Airbus A350)
- Commercial Standard Digital Bus
- IEEE 1394b: Military Aircraft
- MIL-STD-1553: Military Aircraft
- MIL-STD-1760: Military Aircraft
- Boeing 787, Airbus A380, Fly-By-Wire Actuation Platforms from Parker Aerospace
See also
- Astrionics, similar, for spacecraft
- ACARS – Aircraft digital message communication system
- Acronyms and abbreviations in avionics
- ARINC – Aeronautical Radio, Incorporated (1929–2018)
- Avionics software
- DO-178C – International aeronautics software standard
- Emergency locator beacon
- Emergency position-indicating radiobeacon station
- Flight recorder – Aircraft electronic recording device
- Integrated modular avionics
Notes
- ISBN 9780850451634.
- ^ McGough, Michael (August 26, 2005). "In Memoriam: Philip J. Klass: A UFO (Ufologist Friend's Obituary)". Skeptic. Archived from the original on September 22, 2015. Retrieved April 26, 2012.
- ISBN 9780801895043. Archivedfrom the original on October 1, 2021. Retrieved November 24, 2020.
- ^ "Directing Airplanes by Wireless". Telephony. 77 (8). Chicago, IL: Telephony Publishing Corp.: 20 August 23, 1919. Archived from the original on October 1, 2021. Retrieved November 24, 2020.
- ^ ISBN 0-945903-25-1. Published by Write Stuff Syndicate, Inc. in 1995. "The Legend of Honeywell."
- ISBN 978-1-85326-699-7.
- ^ Douglas Nelms (April 1, 2006). "Rotor & Wing: Retro Cockpits". Archived from the original on April 17, 2019. Retrieved April 17, 2019.
- ^ "NextGen Avionics Roadmap" (PDF). Joint Planning and Development Office. September 30, 2011. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 17, 2012. Retrieved January 25, 2012.
- ^ Chad Trautvetter (November 20, 2017). "AEA: Retrofits Lift Avionics Sales through 3Q". AIN. Archived from the original on December 1, 2017. Retrieved November 21, 2017.
- ^ "400 Hz Electrical Systems". Archived from the original on October 4, 2018. Retrieved March 19, 2008.
- ^ a b Avionics: Development and Implementation by Cary R. Spitzer (Hardcover – December 15, 2006)
- ^ Ramsey, James (August 1, 2000). "Broadening Weather Radar's Scope". Aviation Today. Archived from the original on January 18, 2013. Retrieved January 25, 2012.
- ^ Fitzsimons, Bernard (November 13, 2011). "Honeywell Looks East While Innovating For Safe Growth". Aviation International News. Archived from the original on November 16, 2011. Retrieved December 27, 2011.
- ^ Woodford, Chris (August 7, 2007). "How radar works | Uses of radar". Explain that Stuff. Retrieved June 24, 2022.
- ^ "14 CFR § 121.357 - Airborne weather radar equipment requirements". Legal Information Institute. Retrieved October 20, 2022.
Further reading
- Avionics: Development and Implementation by Cary R. Spitzer (Hardcover – December 15, 2006)
- Principles of Avionics, 4th Edition by Albert Helfrick, Len Buckwalter, and Avionics Communications Inc. (Paperback – July 1, 2007)
- Avionics Training: Systems, Installation, and Troubleshooting by Len Buckwalter (Paperback – June 30, 2005)
- Avionics Made Simple, by Mouhamed Abdulla, Ph.D.; Jaroslav V. Svoboda, Ph.D. and Luis Rodrigues, Ph.D. (Coursepack – Dec. 2005 - ISBN 978-0-88947-908-1).