System and method for maintaining aircraft ground travel speed and direction
IPC분류정보
국가/구분
United States(US) Patent
등록
국제특허분류(IPC7판)
B64C-025/40
G05D-001/00
G08G-005/00
G08G-005/06
출원번호
US-0603393
(2012-09-04)
등록번호
US-9676475
(2017-06-13)
발명자
/ 주소
Goldman, Joseph
Cox, Rodney T.
Cox, Isaiah W.
출원인 / 주소
Borealis Technical Limited
인용정보
피인용 횟수 :
3인용 특허 :
13
초록▼
A system and method for setting, controlling, or maintaining a selected taxi speed and route for one or more aircraft equipped with an onboard non-engine powered drive means powering one or more aircraft wheels to move the aircraft during taxi is provided. Taxi speed and/or route can be set, maintai
A system and method for setting, controlling, or maintaining a selected taxi speed and route for one or more aircraft equipped with an onboard non-engine powered drive means powering one or more aircraft wheels to move the aircraft during taxi is provided. Taxi speed and/or route can be set, maintained, or controlled by the aircraft pilot or ground traffic control in conjunction with taxi speed and travel of other aircraft and ground vehicles. A pilot activates a speed control to set and control taxi speed. The aircraft will automatically travel on the ground at that speed without input from the pilot until it is necessary to change the speed manually or automatically. Airport ground traffic control can generate taxi profiles for all non-engine driven aircraft to automatically control, subject to pilot capability to override, the taxi of multiple aircraft at an airport in conjunction with ground vehicle movement.
대표청구항▼
1. A method for setting, controlling, and maintaining a defined taxi speed of an aircraft equipped with onboard non-engine electric drive motors mounted in one or more nose or main landing gear wheels powered to drive the aircraft during taxi without the use of engines and retrofitted with a cockpit
1. A method for setting, controlling, and maintaining a defined taxi speed of an aircraft equipped with onboard non-engine electric drive motors mounted in one or more nose or main landing gear wheels powered to drive the aircraft during taxi without the use of engines and retrofitted with a cockpit controls array kit having a set of components operable to set, control, and maintain the defined aircraft taxi speed, comprising: a. retrofitting a cockpit controls array kit within a cockpit of an aircraft powered for ground travel without aircraft engines by electric drive motors mounted in one or more nose or main landing gear wheels, the cockpit controls array kit comprising a set of controls comprising at least a master power switch in activating communication with a source of electric power operating the electric drive motors, a drive motor control system switch in operative communication with a drive motor control system movable between multiple power and control positions comprising at least test, taxi, override, and off positions, a number of visual indicators corresponding to the multiple power and control positions, and a speed hold control switch operable to set and maintain a taxi speed;b. defining and generating a taxi profile for ground travel of the aircraft comprising at least a desired taxi speed for airport ground conditions;c. activating the master power switch when the aircraft is on the ground after landing or prior to pushback and directing electric power from the source of electric power to the drive motor control system and setting the desired taxi speed to a set taxi speed by activating the speed hold control switch;d. checking the presence of electric power in selected drive motor control system components by moving the drive motor control system switch from the off position to the test position and then moving the drive motor control system switch to the taxi position when the presence of power is detected to direct electric current to the electric drive motors and generating a torque required to move the aircraft at the set taxi speed; ande. maintaining the set taxi speed when the aircraft is driven by the electric drive motors at the torque required to move the aircraft at the set taxi speed. 2. The method of claim 1, wherein said drive motor control system comprises a plurality of speed controls operable to automatically identify and enter the set taxi speed, and to automatically cause the aircraft to accelerate from a taxi speed lower than the set taxi speed to the set taxi speed, to automatically cause the aircraft to decelerate from a taxi speed higher than the set taxi speed to the set taxi speed, and to automatically cause the aircraft to resume the set taxi speed after the aircraft speed has varied from the set taxi speed. 3. The method of claim 1, wherein said desired taxi speed in said defined and generated taxi profile corresponds to an optimum safe ground travel speed for the aircraft's ground environment. 4. The method of claim 1, further comprising, when the aircraft is taxiing at the set taxi speed and an actual or potential hazard to continued ground travel of said aircraft is detected, automatically communicating said detected actual or potential hazard to said drive motor control system and to one of said visual indicators, and automatically or manually interrupting operation of said drive motor control system to stop ground travel of said aircraft when the visual indicator indicates detection of the actual or potential hazard. 5. The method of claim 1, further comprising: a. automatically controlling taxi speed of one or a plurality of aircraft retrofitted with the cockpit controls array kit at a selected airport, electronically generating the defined taxi profile for the desired taxi speed and a selected route of taxi travel between a starting taxi location and an end taxi location as a preset taxi profile for a specific one or more of the one or the plurality of aircraft at said selected airport, and communicating the preset taxi profile to ground control at the selected airport; andb. running said preset taxi profile and automatically driving said specific one or more aircraft with said electric drive motors to follow said preset taxi profile until each of said one or more aircraft reaches said end taxi location or the running of said taxi profile program is manually cancelled by a pilot driving said specific one or more aircraft by moving the drive motor control switch to the override position and overriding said preset taxi profile to cancel said preset taxi profile. 6. The method of claim 1, further comprising, when the torque required to move the aircraft at the set speed exceeds a predetermined maximum torque, moving the drive motor control system switch to the override position and continuing to drive the aircraft and while indicating presence of an override condition with one of said visual indicators. 7. The method of claim 1, further comprising interrupting activation of the speed hold control switch and taxi of the aircraft at the set taxi speed by application of a pilot control or aircraft brakes and automatically or manually resetting a taxi speed with the speed hold control switch. 8. The method of claim 1, further comprising programming software for the drive motor control system to automatically activate the speed hold control switch and to automatically adjust the voltage and frequency of electric current supplied to the electric drive motors to set and maintain the desired taxi speed according to an automatically defined and generated taxi profile for a selected aircraft at a selected airport. 9. A cockpit controls array kit to be added to existing cockpit controls or retrofitted in the cockpit of an aircraft equipped with onboard non-engine electric drive motors mounted in one or more nose or main landing gear wheels powered to drive the aircraft during taxi without use of aircraft engines operable to set, control, and maintain a taxi speed defined in a taxi profile for the aircraft during ground travel at an airport, comprising: a. a cockpit controls array kit retrofitted within a cockpit of an aircraft powered for ground travel by non-engine electric drive motors mounted in one or more nose or main landing gear wheels comprising an integral set of indicator and control elements in interfacing and operative communication between a pilot or cockpit crew of the aircraft, a non-engine electric drive motor control system, and a source of electric power, wherein said non-engine drive motor control system comprises a computer-based controller, electric drive motor and landing gear wheel speed and torque sensors, and control system software programmed to adjust voltage and frequency of current to the electric drive motors in control communication with the source of electric power operating the electric drive and with said cockpit controls array kit: andb. said integral set of indicator and control elements comprises at least a master power switch in activating communication with the source of electric power, a non-engine electric drive motor control system switch movable between multiple power and control positions comprising at least test, taxi, override, and off positions, a number of visual indicators corresponding to at least said multiple power and control positions of said drive motor control system switch, and a speed hold control switch operable automatically or manually to set and maintain or change a taxi speed defined in a taxi profile for the aircraft at an airport where the aircraft is taxiing. 10. The system of claim 9, wherein said non-engine electric drive motors are selected from the group comprising high phase order electric motors, electric induction motors, permanent magnet brushless DC motors, and switched reluctance motors. 11. The cockpit controls array kit of claim 9, wherein said source of electric power comprises an auxiliary power unit on said aircraft, said master power switch is in activating power accessing communication with said source of electric power, said non-engine electric drive motor control system switch is in electric current transmission connection with said non-engine electric drive motors and in electric power indicating communication with said source of electric power.
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이 특허에 인용된 특허 (13)
Cros, Christophe; Brousse, Pierre Henri; Bedarrides, Jeremy, Aircraft including an undercarriage motor.
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