Class / Patent application number | Description | Number of patent applications / Date published |
342029000 | AIRCRAFT COLLISION AVOIDANCE SYSTEM (CAS) | 86 |
20090027253 | Collision and conflict avoidance system for autonomous unmanned air vehicles (UAVs) - A collision and conflict avoidance system for autonomous unmanned air vehicles (UAVs) uses accessible on-board sensors to generate an image of the surrounding airspace. The situation thus established is analyzed for imminent conflicts (collisions, TCAS violations, airspace violations), and, if a probable conflict or collision is detected, a search for avoidance options is started, wherein the avoidance routes as far as possible comply with statutory air traffic regulations. By virtue of the on-board algorithm the system functions independently of a data link. By taking into account the TCAS zones, the remaining air traffic is not disturbed unnecessarily. The system makes it possible both to cover aspects critical for safety and to use more highly developed algorithms in order to take complicated boundary conditions into account when determining the avoidance course. | 01-29-2009 |
20090033540 | Accident Avoidance Systems and Methods - Accident avoidance system for a host vehicle includes a global positioning system residing on the host vehicle for determining the host vehicle's location as the host vehicle travels, a communication system residing on the host vehicle operative to receive signals including information received directly from other vehicles indicating the locations thereof and traffic information received from an infrastructure-based station indicating the locations of other vehicles, and a navigation system residing on the host vehicle coupled to the global positioning system and the communication system. The navigation system displays images representing a vicinity associated with the host vehicle and showing indications of the locations of the other vehicles within the vicinity derived from the information received directly from the other vehicles and the traffic information received from the infrastructure-based station to thereby reduce the likelihood of a collision occurring between the host vehicle and the other vehicles. | 02-05-2009 |
20090174591 | OBSTACLE DETECTION SYSTEM NOTABLY FOR AN ANTICOLLISION SYSTEM - The present invention relates to system for detecting obstacles ( | 07-09-2009 |
20090212991 | Systems and methods of providing whisper shout surveillance with a TCAS - A collision avoidance system is delineated comprising a TCAS transmitter having a feed forward path with a plurality amplifiers for providing to a TCAS transmitter output a TCAS transmitter output transmission, a feedback path coupled to the TCAS transmitter output for providing a feedback signal, and a controller for receiving the feedback signal and generating control signals for providing to one or more of the plurality of amplifiers for controlling the respective outputs of the one or more amplifiers to drive the TCAS transmitter output transmission to a predefined level. | 08-27-2009 |
20090231181 | TARGET RANGING USING INFORMATION FROM TWO OBJECTS - In an embodiment, an apparatus includes a detector, direction finder, receiver, and range finder. The detector is operable to detect a target, and the direction finder is operable to determine a first direction to the target from the apparatus. The receiver is operable to receive a second direction to the target from a remote object, and the range finder is operable to determine from the first and second directions a range of the target from the apparatus. For example, the apparatus may be a first fighter jet, and the remote object may be a second fighter jet. By using directional information from both the first and second jets, a computer system onboard the first jet may compute a range to the target from the first jet more quickly and more accurately than by using directional information from only the first jet. | 09-17-2009 |
20090273503 | SYSTEMS AND METHODS EMPLOYING A COLLISION AVOIDANCE SYSTEM TO ENHANCE PILOT AWARENESS - Systems and methods relate to an aircraft with a CAS that may be employed to enhance pilot awareness. The CAS may be employed on a formation member aircraft to provide a TA that is distinctive for an intruding formation member aircraft, as opposed to a TA provided as a result of an intruding nonmember aircraft. The CAS may also provide a plurality of status indications for aircraft engaged in airborne refueling, as well as aural indications of the present mode of operation for the CAS. | 11-05-2009 |
20100039310 | SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR AIR TRAFFIC SURVEILLANCE - A collision avoidance system according to one aspect of the present invention comprises a user interface, a plurality of sensors, and a computer system in communication with the user interface and the plurality of sensors. The computer system includes a processor and a memory storing instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to receive data pertaining to a target from one or more sensors of the plurality of sensors, determine a position of the target based on the data from the one or more sensors, and present (through the user interface) the position of the target using one or more visual indicators that identify the one or more sensors. | 02-18-2010 |
20100060510 | VIEWING DEVICE FOR AN AIRCRAFT COMPRISING MEANS FOR DISPLAYING AIRCRAFT EXHIBITING A RISK OF COLLISION - The general field of the invention is that of viewing systems of the synthetic vision type SVS, for a first aircraft, the said system comprising at least one cartographic database of a terrain, position sensors, for the said aircraft, an air traffic detection system calculating the position and the danger rating of at least one second aircraft exhibiting a risk of collision with the said first aircraft on the basis of data originating from sensors or systems such as TCAS or ADS-B, an electronic computer, a man-machine interface means and a display screen, the computer comprising means for processing the various items of information originating from the database, sensors and interface means, the said processing means arranged so as to provide the display screen with a synthetic image of the terrain comprising a representation of the said second aircraft. The said representation comprises a first symbol representing in a stylized manner the said second aircraft and a second symbol, situated to the right of the first symbol when the second aircraft is facing towards the first aircraft and situated to the left of the first symbol when the second aircraft is facing away from the first aircraft | 03-11-2010 |
20100060511 | VIEWING DEVICE FOR AIRCRAFT COMPRISING MEANS OF DISPLAYING TRAJECTORIES OF INTRUDERS PRESENTING A RISK OF COLLISION IN ALL THE SPACE SURROUNDING THE AIRCRAFT - The general field of the invention is that of synthetic vision type viewing systems SVS, for a first aircraft, said system comprising at least position sensors of said aircraft, a traffic detection system calculating the position and the dangerousness of at least one second aircraft, also called intruder, presenting a risk of collision with said first aircraft based on data obtained from sensors or from systems such as the TCAS or ADS-B, an electronic computer, a human-machine interface means and a display screen, the computer comprising means of processing different information obtained from the database, from the sensors and from the interface means, said processing means arranged so as to provide the display screen with a synthetic image of the space surrounding the first aircraft and centred on the latter. Said image comprises at least one first symbol of the first aircraft and a second representation of the past and present trajectory of said second aircraft, said second representation comprising a set of second symbols representative of the different positions occupies in space by the second aircraft at different instants in the past and third symbol representing the predictive trajectory of the second aircraft in a near future. | 03-11-2010 |
20100085235 | RADAR SYSTEM FOR OBSTACLE AVOIDANCE - A radar system comprises a transmitter antenna configured to transmit a radio frequency (RF) signal, a first receiver antenna, and a second receiver antenna. Each of the first and second receiver antennas are configured to receive a reflection of the RF signal, wherein the first and second receiver antennas are synchronized and separated by a vertical distance. The radar system also comprises radar processing circuitry configured to control transmission of the RF signal from the transmitter antenna and to determine an elevation of an object reflecting the RF signal based on the phase difference between the reflected RF signal received by the first receiver antenna and the reflected RF signal received by the second receiver antenna; wherein the transmit antenna, first receiver antenna, and second receiver antenna are operable to continuously rotate 360 degrees along an azimuth angle without rotating along an elevation angle. | 04-08-2010 |
20100090881 | FORE/AFT LOOKING AIRBORNE RADAR - An antenna system for an airborne radar system with a dorsal unit having two opposing long sides extending in a height direction (Z) and a longitudinal direction (X), and two opposing short sides extending in a lateral direction (Y) and the height direction (Z), and an upper side opposing a bottom side each extending in the longitudinal direction (X) and the lateral direction (Y). The antenna system comprises antenna devices being interspaced and mounted in connection to one of the short sides or both the short sides and extending in the height direction (Z). Each of the antenna devices comprises a waveguide board. | 04-15-2010 |
20100109935 | Method for Processing Signals of an Airborne Radar with Correction of the Error in the Radar Beam Pointing Angle and Corresponding Device - A method for processing signals of an airborne radar includes a correction of the erroneous angle of pointing of the radar beam, comprising an evaluation of the error in the pointing angle for a constant height of the aerial transporter. For a given angle of scan, the method carrys out at least two series of measurements of the power of the echoes returned following the emission of radar signals, each series being associated with a given distance-bin, the measurements being dependent on the angle of pointing of the radar antenna, formulates a vertical profile of the power of the echoes returned for each series of measurements, and then on the basis of each vertical profile, measures the pointing angle corresponding to a power of the echoes returned by the ground alone, and calculates the error in the pointing angle on the basis of the measured pointing angles. | 05-06-2010 |
20100117886 | DISTRIBUTED AND CABLE REDUCED TCAS - A direction finding antenna system for determining the relative bearing of a second aircraft from a first aircraft in conjunction with Distance Measuring Equipment (DME). The system includes a first antenna and a second antenna located on a top surface of the first aircraft, spaced apart along a first axis, as well as a third antenna and a fourth antenna located on a bottom surface of the first aircraft, spaced apart along a second axis orthogonal to the first axis. The system further includes a transmitting, receiving, and processing system coupled to the first, second, third, and fourth antennas, wherein the transmitting, receiving, and processing system is configured to transmit DME interrogations, receive DME replies, and process the DME replies to determine the relative bearing of the second aircraft from the first aircraft. | 05-13-2010 |
20100156697 | QUANTITY SMOOTHER - In an embodiment, a quantity smoother includes a first stage and a second stage. The first stage is operable to receive a sequence of raw samples of a quantity and to generate from the raw samples intermediate samples of the quantity, the intermediate samples having a reduced level of fluctuation relative to the sequence of raw samples. The second stage is coupled to the first stage and is operable to generate from the intermediate samples resulting samples of the quantity, the resulting samples having a reduced level of fluctuation relative to the sequence of intermediate samples. For example, such a quantity smoother may be part of a target-ranging system on board a fighter jet, and may smooth an error in an estimated target range so that the fighter pilot may more quickly and confidently determine in his head a range window within which the target lies. | 06-24-2010 |
20100214152 | RADAR CABLE DETECTION SYSTEM - Ground clutter is effectively separated from true signals echoed by a cable in the flight path of an aircraft, by encoding a transmitted pulse wave in a radar system with at least one transmit (TX) coding sequence, so that received signals echoed by the cable on which the pulse is incident and associated ground clutter are orthogonal or separable from one another. The TX coding sequence is altered into two receive (RX) coding sequences one of which corresponds to the cable and the other to the ground clutter. The two RX coding sequences are then correlated with the received signals, thereby separating the true signals echoed by the cable from the associated ground clutter. | 08-26-2010 |
20100253565 | Method and apparatus to increase ADS-B squitter reception sensitivity - A TCAS receiver includes an antenna, an analog to digital converter (ADC), and a FPGA. The antenna receives an ADS-B squitter signal. The ADC converts the signal to a digital signal. The FPGA uses matched filters for matching at least a portion of the digital signal to a message, thereby increasing ADS-B squitter sensitivity. | 10-07-2010 |
20110063159 | Aircraft Collision Avoidance Alarm - The present invention provides an aircraft collision alarm system and method. The method includes the steps of collecting aircraft position information for aircraft in a given area and digitally encoding this aircraft position information. This aircraft position information is then transmitted on an audio sub-carrier over the voice communications channel of a VOR to the aircraft. The aircraft receives and processes the digitally encoded information and alerts the pilot if a collision alarm situation is present. | 03-17-2011 |
20110109491 | METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR REDUCING LIGHT POLLUTION - A system for preventing light pollution includes one or more radar units that monitor for vehicles in a volume surrounding or containing one or more obstructions having one or more obstruction lights. A master radar detection processing unit receives sensed radar detection information from the one or more radar units with associated radar signal processing units and determines whether a vehicle is present within the monitored volume. A plurality of obstruction light controller units are interconnected in a network, such as a wireless network. Each obstruction light controller unit turns on an obstruction light when a vehicle enters the monitored volume or a failure condition exists, and turns off the obstruction light when the vehicle has vacated the monitored volume and no failure condition exists. The one or more radar units can transmit sensed radar detection information to a master radar detection processing unit via the network. | 05-12-2011 |
20110133979 | METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR DETECTING GROUND OBSTACLES FROM AN AIRBORNE PLATFORM - This method for detecting ground obstacles from an airborne platform comprises:
| 06-09-2011 |
20110187580 | DEVICE FOR DETECTING A VEHICLE ON AN AIRPORT RUNWAY - The invention relates to a device ( | 08-04-2011 |
20110187581 | Radar Device for Detecting or Tracking Aerial Targets Fitted to an Aircraft - A radar device includes means for emitting microwave-frequency signals; means for receiving signals reflected by a target; computation means; a plurality of antenna systems disposed around the aircraft, an antenna system comprising a set of emission antennas coupled to the emission means and a set of reception antennas coupled to the reception means, each antenna system being dedicated to the coverage of a given angular sector Ω; for a given antenna system, the antenna beam on reception being formed by CBF by the computation means on the basis of the signals received by the reception antennas and the antenna beam on emission is pointed by an electronic scanning system in a number greater than or equal to two of directions inside the given angular sector Ω. The invention applies notably in the field of airborne radars, in particular radars with large angular coverage and short range that are necessary for example for carrying out a function of the “see and avoid” type on drones, which function is also commonly called “Sense & Avoid”. | 08-04-2011 |
20110221625 | Agile-Beam Radar Notably for the Obstacle 'Sense and Avoid' Function - A radar device includes an antenna having at least two linear arrays of radiating elements being orthogonal to one another, a first array being used to focus a transmission beam in a first plane and a second beam being used to focus a reception beam in a second plane, orthogonal to the first plane. The focussing of the beam is obtained in the first plane by coloured emission followed by a reception beam formation by computation, and in that the focussing of the beam is obtained in the second plane using reception beam formation by computation. The coloured emission is carried out by combining antenna transmission sub-arrays in such a manner as to form a sum channel and a difference on reception channel according to the monopulse technique. | 09-15-2011 |
20110298648 | Method and on board device for providing pilot assistance in the lack of air control - A system and method for providing pilot assistance to an aircraft in the lack of air control airspace, within the context of IFBP and TIBA procedures. The system and method includes receiving blind broadcast messages on a dedicated frequency, inputting relevant data regarding the blind broadcast message to a system in which an estimated current position of all broadcasting aircraft within a neighborhood is calculated. In addition, the flight paths being followed as well as direction of flight of the aircraft in the neighborhood extrapolated from the blind broadcast message and preferably displayed to the pilot. In an embodiment, the system displays the trajectories of all broadcasting aircraft in relation to flight path of the pilot's aircraft to determined if a collision is possible. | 12-08-2011 |
20120081247 | RADAR WITH WIDE ANGULAR COVERAGE, NOTABLY FOR THE OBSTACLE AVOIDANCE FUNCTION ON BOARD AUTO-PILOTED AIRCRAFT - A radar includes a transmitting antenna and receiving antenna formed by an array of radiant elements. Antenna beams are calculated in P directions by a BFC function. Detections of a target by secondary lobes of the beams are processed by an algorithm comparing levels received in a distance-speed resolution cell, a single detection at most not being possible for each distance-speed resolution cell. Processing means use the assumption that there may probably be more than one echo with a signal-to-noise ratio that is sufficient to be detectable, for a given resolution cell of the radar, either in speed mode or in distance mode, or, alternatively, a distance-speed depending on the processing implemented; and, if there is more than one echo detectable for each resolution cell out of the plurality of beams formed by BFC, only the echo and BFC that obtain maximum power or maximum signal-to-noise ratio are/is considered valid. | 04-05-2012 |
20120092208 | SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR COLLISION AVOIDANCE IN UNMANNED AERIAL VEHICLES - Systems and methods for collision avoidance in unmanned aerial vehicles are provided. In one embodiment, the invention relates to a method for collision avoidance system for an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), the method including scanning for objects within a preselected range of the UAV using a plurality of phased array radar sensors, receiving scan information from each of the plurality of phased array radar sensors, wherein the scan information includes information indicative of objects detected within the preselected range of the UAV, determining maneuver information including whether to change a flight path of the UAV based on the scan information, and sending the maneuver information to a flight control circuitry of the UAV. | 04-19-2012 |
20120112950 | AUTOMATIC DEPENDANT SURVEILLANCE SYSTEMS AND METHODS - A communications system including an automated dependant surveillance-broadcast system and a global positioning system integrated into a single unit. A radio frequency receiver receives analog automated dependent surveillance-broadcast information at a selected transmission frequency and converts that information into digital form. A global positioning system receiver receives global positioning information including timing information. A processing subsystem decodes the digitized automated dependent surveillance-broadcast information in response to the timing information received by the global positioning system receiver. | 05-10-2012 |
20120200447 | PASSIVE BIRD-STRIKE AVOIDANCE SYSTEMS AND METHODS - Systems and methods for providing passive bird-strike avoidance. A passive L-band receiver system is located on an aircraft. The system includes a processor and an antenna having an array of four or more elements. The antenna configured to receive L-band signals. The processor receives the L-band signals from the antenna, determines if the received L-band signals indicate a target, determines distance, direction of travel and speed of any determined targets, determines if the target is a flock of birds based on the determined speed and determines if a hazard condition exists based on the distance, direction and speed. | 08-09-2012 |
20120229325 | METHOD OF MEASURING HEIGHT AND DETECTING OBSTACLES, A RADIOALTIMETER, AND AN AIRCRAFT - A radioaltimeter ( | 09-13-2012 |
20130106645 | PASSIVE BISTATIC RADAR FOR VEHICLE SENSE AND AVOID | 05-02-2013 |
20130265185 | PROXIMITY WARNING SYSTEM FOR HELICOPTERS - A proximity warning system for a helicopter ( | 10-10-2013 |
20130321192 | COLLISION-AVOIDANCE SYSTEM FOR GROUND CREW USING SENSORS - A ground crew collision-avoidance system includes a plurality of radar sensor modules that each emit a radar signal, receives at a radar detector radar return signals corresponding to reflections of the emitted signal from a ground object, and transmits radar information associated with the received radar signal reflections reflected from the ground object, wherein each of the plurality of radar sensor modules are uniquely located on a surface of an aircraft that is at risk for collision with a ground object while the aircraft is being towed; a gateway unit that receives the radar information transmitted from the radar sensor module and transmits information associated with the received radar information; and a ground crew alert indicator that receives the information transmitted by the gateway unit and that presents a graphical alert icon on a display. The display indicates a likelihood of collision between the aircraft and the ground object. | 12-05-2013 |
20130321193 | SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR FILTERING WINGTIP SENSOR INFORMATION - Systems and methods for providing improved situational awareness for an aircraft while taxiing. An exemplary method generates reflectivity data based on an associated emission at a transceiver located on an aircraft. At a processor, targets are determined if a portion of the generated reflectivity data is greater than a predefined threshold. Then, the analyzed targets are determined as to whether they are within a dynamically defined three-dimensional envelope. The envelope is based on wingtip light module speed and trajectory. On a display device, an indication of the nearest target is presented at the associated range to the nearest target. | 12-05-2013 |
20130321194 | SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR PERFORMING WINGTIP PROTECTION - Systems and methods for creating a narrow vertical pathway of detection that permits the enforcement of a fixed “exclusion zone” that is narrow and does not widen with range. An advantage to this approach is that the zone or corridor does not widen with range, permitting a fixed exclusion zone that will ignore items that will pass above or below the wing. An exemplary system located on a vehicle includes at least two vertically separated antennas that receive radar reflection signals, a processor, and an output device. The processor receives the radar reflection signals received by the antennas, determines vertical position of any obstacles identified in the radar reflection signals and determines if the obstacles are within a predefined alert zone. The output device outputs an alert if any obstacle is within the alert zone. The predefined alert zone is related to a protruding portion of the vehicle. | 12-05-2013 |
20140062756 | COLLISION-AVOIDANCE SYSTEM FOR GROUND CREW USING SENSORS - A ground obstacle collision-avoidance system includes a plurality of radar sensor modules that each receive at a radar detector radar return signals corresponding to reflections of the emitted signal from a ground obstacle, and transmits radar information associated with the received radar signal reflections reflected from the ground obstacle, wherein each of the plurality of radar sensor modules are uniquely located on a surface of an aircraft that is at risk for collision with a ground obstacle if the aircraft is moving; a gateway unit that receives the radar information transmitted from the radar sensor module and transmits information associated with the received radar information; a processing system configured to determine a distance from the installation aircraft to a detected ground object detected; and a display configured to present a plan view indicating an aircraft icon and a graphical ground obstacle icon that is associated with the detected ground obstacle. | 03-06-2014 |
20140070979 | VALIDITY CHECK OF VEHICLE POSITION INFORMATION - A method for validating received positional data in vehicle surveillance applications. A signal carrying a Mode S ES message including positional data indicating an alleged position of a vehicle, transmitted from a radio source is received with a radio direction finding antenna of a receiver. A bearing from the receiver to the radio source is estimated utilizing the radio direction finding antenna and received signal. A distance between the receiver and radio source based on a time of flight for a signal travelling between the receiver and radio source at known speed is estimated with a distance measurer including primary radar, laser detector and ranger, and/or secondary surveillance radar. An estimated position of the radio source is calculated based on the estimated bearing and distance. A deviation value indicating a deviation/coincidence between the alleged position is determined according to the received and estimated position of the radio source. | 03-13-2014 |
20140085124 | SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR USING RADAR-ADAPTIVE BEAM PATTERN FOR WINGTIP PROTECTION - Systems and methods for adaptively steering radar beam patterns for coverage during aircraft turns. The radar sensor system is mechanically or electrically steered to alter the radar sensor's beam pattern in order to adapt the radar sensor's field of view (FOV) to cover the area of anticipated aircraft wingtip trajectory. The anticipated trajectory is derived, for example, from the aircraft groundspeed, acceleration, heading, turn rate, tiller position, attitude, taxi clearance, etc. | 03-27-2014 |
20140292556 | OBSTACLE AND TERRAIN WARNING RADAR SYSTEM FOR A ROTORCRAFT - Obstacle and terrain warning radar system ( | 10-02-2014 |
20150097714 | ADS-B Radar - The reliability and safety of Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) are improved by using the signals transmitted from an ADS-B unit as a radar transmitter with a receiver used to receive reflections. | 04-09-2015 |
20160033633 | ADJUSTING WEIGHT OF INTENSITY IN A PHD FILTER BASED ON SENSOR TRACK ID - In one embodiment, a method for tracking multiple objects with a probabilistic hypothesis density filter is provided. The method includes comparing second track IDs corresponding to newly obtained measurements to one or more first track IDs corresponding to a T | 02-04-2016 |
20160069994 | SENSE-AND-AVOID SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR UNMANNED AERIAL VEHICLES - A sense-and-avoid system, for an unmanned air vehicle (UAV), configured to detect and estimate the relative position and velocity of a nearby object and to enable determination whether the nearby object poses a collision threat to the UAV. In one embodiment, the sense-and-avoid system is provided with a frequency modulated continuous wave (FMCW) synthesizer adapted to generate at least one swept-frequency waveform. The sense-and-avoid system may also be included with an RF subassembly. In some embodiments, the RF subassembly may include at least one transmit antenna adapted to transmit the at least one swept-frequency waveform. The at last one swept-frequency waveform may illuminate the nearby object. The sense-and-avoid system may be further provided with a plurality of receive antennas adapted to receive an echo signal from the nearby object. In some embodiments, the echo signal results from the illumination of the nearby object by the swept-frequency waveform. Additionally, the sense-and-avoid system may be provided with a signal processor configured to analyze the received echo signal and to derive object data for the nearby object. The object data may include at least range, radial velocity, and two-dimensional angle of arrival. | 03-10-2016 |
20160170016 | SECTORIZED ANTENNAS FOR IMPROVED AIRBORNE RECEPTION OF SURVEILLANCE SIGNALS | 06-16-2016 |
342030000 | With transponder | 45 |
20080284637 | DIGITAL TAS TRANSMITTER AND RECEIVER SYSTEMS AND METHODS - A directional receiver is provided for an aircraft collision avoidance system. The receiver may include input channels that are configured to receive uncompressed linear analog signals from antenna elements that are arranged within a predetermined antenna element geometry. The receiver may further include Analog to Digital (A/D) converter modules, a quadrature converter module and a combiner module. The A/D converter modules can convert each of the analog signals to uncompressed linear digital data and output separate digital data streams that correspond to each of the input channels. The quadrature converter module can mix the digital data streams with corresponding digital reference signals to produce digital In-phase (I) and Quadrature (Q) streams. | 11-20-2008 |
20090027254 | METHOD AND APPARATUS TO IMPROVE THE ABILITY TO DECODE ADS-B SQUITTERS THROUGH MULTIPLE PROCESSING PATHS - A system is delineated comprising a TCAS receiver having one or more filters, one or more amplifiers and one or more A/D converters, the one or more A/D converters for digitizing analog data into digital data for decoding one or more of an ADS-B message and a TIS-B message; and circuitry for receiving the digital data and decoding the one or more of an ADS-B message and a TIS-B message, wherein the circuitry includes two or more paths for the decoding. | 01-29-2009 |
20090073024 | SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR AUTOMATICALLY DISABLING A TCAS BROADCAST - Systems and methods for automatically disabling the TCAS Broadcast when aircraft join up in formation. A Traffic Collision Avoidance System (TCAS) determines if the aircraft is approaching formation flight with other aircraft or flying in formation with other aircraft and disables a TCAS interrogation signal if the aircraft is determined to be approaching a formation or flying in formation. The TCAS receives TCAS interrogation signals from one or more other aircraft and receives aircraft configuration information from one or more other aircraft systems. The TCAS determines the aircraft is approaching formation flight or flying in formation based on the received TCAS interrogation signals, a mode of TCAS operation, and/or the received aircraft configuration information. The TCAS also automatically switches into Traffic Advisory Only mode if the aircraft is determined to be approaching formation flight or flying in formation. | 03-19-2009 |
20090184862 | Systems and methods for multi-sensor collision avoidance - An embodiment of the present invention provides a collision avoidance system for a host aircraft comprising a plurality of sensors for providing data about other aircraft that may be employed to determine one or more parameters to calculate future positions of the other aircraft, a processor to determine whether any combinations of the calculated future positions of the other aircraft are correlated or uncorrelated, and a collision avoidance module that uses the correlated or uncorrelated calculated future positions to provide a signal instructing the performance of a collision avoidance maneuver when a collision threat exists between the host aircraft and at least one of the other aircraft. | 07-23-2009 |
20090195436 | SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR OBTAINING AIRCRAFT STATE DATA FROM MULTIPLE DATA LINKS - Systems and methods are delineated that may provide for a system for use in a merging and spacing application for an aircraft. An exemplary system may comprise a TCAS and a processor for executing the merging and spacing application using ADS-B data and data received by the aircraft in response to an interrogation of another aircraft from the TCAS. In a disclosed embodiment, a lead aircraft responds to the TCAS interrogation from a following aircraft to provide EHS heading and/or speed of the lead aircraft to the following aircraft, which uses the received EHS data as well as ADS-B data to determine merging and spacing control parameters for the following aircraft. | 08-06-2009 |
20090219189 | GROUND COLLISION INSTRUMENT FOR AIRCRAFT AND MARINE VEHICLES - Radar return processing systems and methods are operable to process radar information when an installation vehicle is operating in proximity to a surface area of interest. An exemplary embodiment reduces energy of an output pulse emitted from a radar system; receives a plurality of radar returns from a plurality of objects that reflect the reduced energy output pulses emitted from the radar system; determines a surface area of interest based upon at least a current location of the installation vehicle; and filters the radar returns generated by objects that are located outside of the surface area of interest. Optionally, some systems and methods may reduce a sweep range of an antenna from which the reduced energy output pulses are emitted. | 09-03-2009 |
20100052973 | Device and Method for Monitoring the Location of Aircraft on the Ground - The invention relates to a monitoring device and method allowing surveillance of the location and the displacement of an aircraft in relation to aircraft and/or craft on an airport displacement zone. | 03-04-2010 |
20100085236 | TRANSPONDER-BASED BEACON TRANSMITTER FOR SEE AND AVOID OF UNMANNED AERIAL VEHICLES - A transponder-based beacon transmitter system in an unmanned aerial vehicle is provided. The transponder-based beacon transmitter system comprises a global positioning system interface communicatively coupled to receive position information indicative of a current location of the unmanned aerial vehicle, a message formatter communicatively coupled to the global positioning system interface, and a transponder-based beacon transmitter. The message formatter formats vehicle identification of the unmanned aerial vehicle and the position information indicative of the current location of the unmanned aerial vehicle into an automatic dependent surveillance broadcast mode-select squitter message. The message formatter operates in one of a military mode, a National Airspace System mode, and a combined military/National Airspace System mode. The transponder-based beacon transmitter transmits the automatic dependent surveillance broadcast mode-select squitter messages from the unmanned aerial vehicle. Receivers in the vicinity of the unmanned aerial vehicle receive unsolicited vehicle identification and location of the unmanned aerial vehicle. | 04-08-2010 |
20100103022 | AUTOMATIC DEPENDENT SURVEILLANCE-BROADCAST (ADS-B) NETWORK INFRASTRUCTURE, GROUND STATION AND SITUATION DISPLAY SOFTWARE DEPLOYMENT AND EVALUATION ACTIVITY - A method and system that receives and processes ADS-B data from one or more aircraft is disclosed. The system may include one or more ground stations that receives data from one or more aircraft and converts the received aircraft ADS-B data to XML format, determines the lowest cost communication mode available, and transmits the XML data over TCP/IP to an aircraft data server. The aircraft data server receives the aircraft ADS-B data in XML format from the one or more ground stations, processes the received ADS-B data to extract aircraft data and eliminate duplicate aircraft data; determines aircraft data missing from the processed aircraft data, receives supplemental aircraft data from other sources to provide aircraft data missing from the processed aircraft data, and outputs the processed aircraft data and the received supplemental aircraft data to one or more processing devices for processing and display. | 04-29-2010 |
20100109936 | AIRCRAFT ANTI-COLLISION SYSTEM AND METHOD - A system and method for avoiding aircraft collisions wherein a ground based monitoring station serves as one port of a wireless LAN operating according to a wireless communications protocol compatible with the IEEE 802.16e standard and derivatives thereof. A mobile unit associated produces respective position-dependent signals of an authorized object that are conveyed to the ground based monitoring station and to respective mobile units associated with other mobile units via the wireless LAN. A collision prediction unit is responsive to the position-dependent signals and to static position data of the airport infrastructure for predicting collisions between mobile objects or between a mobile object and the infrastructure. A warning unit coupled to the collision prediction unit and responsive to a predicted collision involving one or more mobile objects conveys a respective warning to the one or more mobile objects for allowing evasive action. | 05-06-2010 |
20100149019 | METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR ADS-B VALIDATION, ACTIVE AND PASSIVE MULTILATERATION, AND ELLIPTICAL SURVEILLANCE - A system and method are disclosed to track aircraft or other vehicles using techniques including multilateration and elliptical surveillance. Unlike conventional approaches that use time difference of arrival for multilateration at a fixed set of reception points, this technique allows targets to be tracked from a number of dynamic or moving reception points. This allows for triangulation/multilateration and elliptical surveillance of targets from combinations of fixed, fixed and moving or only moving ground-based receivers, sea-based receivers, airborne receivers and space-based receivers. Additionally this technique allows for ADS-B validation through data derived from only two receivers to assess the validity and integrity of the aircraft self-reported position by comparing the time of arrival of the emitted message at the second receiver to the predicted time of message arrival at the second receiver based on the self-reported position of the aircraft and the time of arrival at the first receiver. The benefits of using less than three receivers for validation include greater validation coverage areas using a smaller set of ground stations at a lower infrastructure cost. | 06-17-2010 |
20100259439 | SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR GENERATING A REFERENCE SIGNAL FOR PHASE CALIBRATION OF A SYSTEM - A two-element array antenna system includes a first antenna element and a second antenna element. The first and second antenna elements respectively include first and second frequency multipliers. A transmitting, receiving, and processing (TRP) system is coupled to the first and second antenna elements via, respectively, a single first transmission element and a single second transmission element. The TRP system is configured to transmit to the first antenna element a first input signal at a sub-multiple of a first frequency, receive from the first frequency multiplier a first calibration signal based on the first input signal, transmit to the second antenna element a second input signal at a sub-multiple of the first frequency, receive from the second frequency multiplier a second calibration signal based on the second input signal, and determine, based on the calibration signals, a relative phase difference between the first and second transmission elements. | 10-14-2010 |
20100283661 | Observability of unmanned aircraft and aircraft without electrical systems - The present invention relates to a lightweight beacon system, affixable, for example, to UAS, aircraft without electrical systems, airport surface vehicles, skydivers, gliders, and/or balloons. The lightweight beacon system uses a small, low-powered, portable radio beacon to broadcast the location of the aircraft, vehicle, or person to which the beacon system is attached. The lightweight beacon system is compatible with the FAA's Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) service, thereby providing a means for unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), aircraft without electrical systems, airport surface vehicles, or persons to be observable to other general aviation aircraft operating in their proximity. | 11-11-2010 |
20100315281 | AIRSPACE RISK MITIGATION SYSTEM - An airspace risk mitigation system includes a plurality of airspace input sources, an airspace data fusion and sensor coordination system, a communications link, and a risk mitigation support system. The airspace input sources includes a radar for generating radar data for an airspace, and an Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) receiver for generating additional data for the airspace. The airspace data fusion and sensor coordination system is configured to receive airspace data from the plurality of airspace input sources, correlating airspace data with new or known objects in the airspace, fusing airspace data into a common airspace data set, and generating target and system status information. The risk mitigation support system is configured to calculate a risk associated with aircraft operation in the airspace as a function of the target and system status information. | 12-16-2010 |
20110001653 | METHOD AND APPARATUS TO IMPROVE THE ABILITY TO DECODE ADS-B SQUITTERS THROUGH MULTIPLE PROCESSING PATHS - A system is delineated comprising a TCAS receiver having one or more filters, one or more amplifiers and one or more A/D converters, the one or more A/D converters for digitizing analog data into digital data for decoding one or more of an ADS-B message and a TIS-B message; and circuitry for receiving the digital data and decoding the one or more of an ADS-B message and a TIS-B message, wherein the circuitry includes two or more paths for the decoding. | 01-06-2011 |
20110001654 | PROCESS AND A DEVICE FOR DETECTING AIRCRAFTS CIRCULATING IN AN AIR SPACE SURROUNDING AN AIRPLANE - A process and a device for detecting aircrafts circulating in an air space surrounding an airplane is disclosed. The device ( | 01-06-2011 |
20110148690 | SELF-CONFIGURING ADS-B SYSTEM - Techniques are described that allow information to be acquired by an ADS-B system of an aircraft without the installation of ADS-B dedicated flight crew controls or wired data interfaces in the aircraft. In one or more implementations, a receiver is associated with the ADS-B system in the aircraft. The receiver is configured to receive transmissions from a transponder of the aircraft, such as a radar transponder of a Traffic Collision Avoidance System (TCAS), or the like. Information used by the ADS-B system is extracted from the received transmissions and furnished to the ADS-B transceiver for broadcast over the ADS-B datalink. | 06-23-2011 |
20110169684 | System for sensing aircraft and other objects - A system for sensing aircraft and other objects uses bistatic radar with spread-spectrum signals transmitted from remotely located sources such as aircraft flying at very high altitudes or from a satellite constellation. A bistatic spread spectrum radar system using a satellite constellation can be integrated with a communications system and/or with a system using long baseline radar interferometry to validate the digital terrain elevation database. The reliability and safety of TCAS and ADS-B are improved by using the signals transmitted from a TCAS or ADS-B unit as a radar transmitter with a receiver used to receive reflections. Aircraft and other objects using spread spectrum radar are detected by using two separate receiving systems. Cross-Correlation between the outputs of the two receiving systems reveals whether a noise signal is produced by the receiving systems themselves or is coming from the outside. | 07-14-2011 |
20110221626 | HOUSING FOR AIRCRAFT MOUNTED COMPONENTS - A traffic collision avoidance system device is provided. The device includes a radome having an antenna contained therein. A chassis is bonded to the radome by a layer of bonding material about the chassis periphery. A housing is provided having a substantially flat bottom portion and a wall extended about a periphery to define a interior portion. A second bonding layer disposed between the housing and the radome within the interior portion to form a seal. | 09-15-2011 |
20110267216 | SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR PROVIDING ANTENNA CALIBRATION - Systems and methods for providing antenna calibration can be used in a variety of applications. A method of calibrating an antenna array for use in a traffic advisory system or traffic alert and collision avoidance system provide a mechanism that renders complex combining circuitry unnecessary in the array. A method can include receiving an unsolicited reply that contains absolute position information of an intruder aircraft. The method can also include determining a bearing of a signal encoding the reply based on a phase relationship of the signals from an antenna array not configured to operate with an internal self-test phase calibration mechanism. The method can further include comparing the bearing based on the phase relationship with a bearing calculated by a comparison of the absolute positions of a host aircraft and the intruder aircraft. The method can additionally include calibrating the antenna array based on the result of the comparison. | 11-03-2011 |
20110298649 | NAVIGATION, IDENTIFICATION, AND COLLISION AVOIDANCE ANTENNA SYSTEMS - Antenna embodiments are illustrated that are particularly suited for use in aircraft navigation, identification and collision avoidance systems. An exemplary antenna embodiment operates about a center wavelength and in association with a ground plane and comprises first and second grounded, shortened, and top loaded monopoles. These monopoles are spaced apart above a ground plane and each of them includes a feed post, a shorted post, and a top load wherein the shorted post is spaced from the feed post, is coupled to the ground plane, and has a length less than one fourth of the center wavelength. In addition, the top load is coupled to the feed post and the shorted post and is configured along orthogonal minor and major axes of the top load to have a width along the minor axis and a length along the major axis that exceeds the width. | 12-08-2011 |
20120001788 | TRANSPONDER DECODER - An Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) system for an aircraft and method of automatically harmonizing a transponder squawk code and an ADS-B system such that a squawk code broadcast by the ADS-B system matches the transponder squawk code, includes transmitting the transponder squawk code from a transponder positioned onboard an aircraft and receiving the transmitted transponder squawk code with a device positioned onboard the aircraft. The ADS-B system is updated with the received transmitter squawk code. The squawk code is transmitted using the ADS-B system. | 01-05-2012 |
20120038501 | SELF-CONFIGURING UNIVERSAL ACCESS TRANSCEIVER - Techniques are described that allow information to be acquired by an ADS-B system of an aircraft without the installation of ADS-B dedicated flight crew controls or wired data interfaces in the aircraft. In one or more implementations, a receiver is associated with the ADS-B system in the aircraft. The receiver is configured to receive reply transmissions from a transponder of the aircraft, such as a Mode A/C or Mode S radar, or the like. A transmitter may also be associated with the ADS-B system to transmit an interrogation to the transponder of the aircraft that is configured to cause the transponder of the aircraft to transmit the reply transmission. Information used by the ADS-B system is extracted from the received reply transmissions and furnished to the ADS-B transceiver for broadcast over the ADS-B data link. | 02-16-2012 |
20120068877 | SYSTEMS AND METHODS OF PROVIDING A TCAS PRIMARY RADAR - Systems and related methods are delineated for employing a TCAS to provide a radar function for a UAS. One such system comprises a TCAS having at least a transceiver and an antenna, and a processor coupled to the transceiver for receiving signals generated from receipt of reflected energy received over the antenna, the reflected energy resulting from the one or more of a Mode S interrogation waveform and an ATCRBS interrogation waveform transmitted from the antenna. | 03-22-2012 |
20120133545 | COLLISION AVOIDANCE TRANSPONDER FOR AERIAL HAZARDS AND METHOD FOR REDUCING COLLISIONS WITH AERIAL HAZARDS - Embodiments of a collision-avoidance transponder and method for reducing collisions with an aerial hazard are generally described herein. The collision-avoidance transponder may be configured for location on an aerial hazard and may be configured to regularly transmit a signal that mimics an air traffic control (ATC) transponder reply signal. The regularly-transmitted signal may include an altitude indication, such as the pressure altitude, of the aerial hazard. A collision-avoidance and warning system on an aircraft may receive the regularly-transmitted signal and provide a warning under certain conditions to allow the pilot to avoid the aerial hazard. The collision-avoidance transponder may include an ATC-type transponder and control circuitry to cause the transponder to regularly transmit the signal that includes a pressure altitude of the aerial hazard. | 05-31-2012 |
20120326915 | HOUSING FOR AIRCRAFT MOUNTED COMPONENTS - A traffic collision avoidance system (TCAS) device is provided. The device includes a radome having an antenna. A chassis is bonded to said radome about a periphery by a skirt layer. A housing is adhesively bonded to the radome, the skirt layer and the chassis. The housing has a substantially flat bottom portion with a wall extended about a periphery, the wall forming a lap joint with the chassis and radome. | 12-27-2012 |
20130015998 | MULTICHANNEL, MULTIMODE, MULTIFUNCTION L-BAND RADIO TRANSCEIVERAANM Jones; James B.AACI CarnationAAST WAAACO USAAGP Jones; James B. Carnation WA USAANM Meiyappan; PalAACI BellevueAAST WAAACO USAAGP Meiyappan; Pal Bellevue WA USAANM Ferguson; PaulAACI RedmondAAST WAAACO USAAGP Ferguson; Paul Redmond WA USAANM Virtue; MarkAACI KirklandAAST WAAACO USAAGP Virtue; Mark Kirkland WA USAANM Hastings; Thomas W.AACI WoodinvilleAAST WAAACO USAAGP Hastings; Thomas W. Woodinville WA US - Systems and methods for providing an improved multiradio system. An exemplary system includes first and second antennas and a first receiver that receives a signal from the first antenna, filters the received signal based on bandwidths associated with a traffic collision-avoidance system (TCAS), a transponder, and a universal access transceiver (UAT). The system digitizes the filtered signal and digitally downconverts the digitized signal. A second receiver receives a signal from the second antenna, filters the signal received from the second antenna based on the TCAS, the transponder, the UAT, and distance-measuring equipment (DME), separates the filtered signal into a first signal having a bandwidth associated with the TCAS, the transponder, the UAT and the lower half of the DME RF band, and into a second signal having a bandwidth associated with the upper half of the DME RF band, digitizes the first and second signal, and digitally downconverts the digitized first and second signals. | 01-17-2013 |
20130069815 | Apparatus And Method For Generating Low Latency Position Information From Position Signals Transmitted In A Narrow Bandwidth Channel Of A Radio Frequency - Present novel and non-trivial apparatus and method for generating low latency position information from position signals transmitted in a narrow bandwidth channel of a radio frequency are disclosed. An aircraft (i.e., ownship) and each target (e.g., aircraft) of a time-division multiple access (“TDMA”) network receives its respective position derived from its individual source such as a satellite navigation system. A processing module of a communication device installed in ownship and each target generate position signals, and during the allocated time slots of an interface protocol, exchange position information with the others in the network over a narrow bandwidth channel (e.g., bandwidths of 25 KHz or less) of a radio frequency in the VHF range or lower UHF range. The interface protocol may also be comprised of a voice contention time slot for the transmission of messages and an order wire for the administration of the network. | 03-21-2013 |
20130141268 | MULTI-LINK TRANSPONDER FOR AIRCRAFT AND METHOD OF PROVIDING MULTI-LINK TRANSPONDER CAPABILITY TO AN AIRCRAFT HAVING AN EXISTING TRANSPONDER - A transponder system that is adapted to be positioned in an aircraft includes a transponder that is adapted to transmit information pertaining to the aircraft in which the transponder is positioned includes at least one receiver that is adapted to receive information including information pertaining to another aircraft. The receiver(s) is adapted to receive different types of data on multiple different frequencies. A display, which may be integral with the system housing or remotely mounted, is adapted to display (i) information received by said receiver and/or (ii) information to guide user input selection of information transmitted by said transponder. The housing houses the transponder, the receiver and, in one embodiment, the display. The existing transponder in the aircraft can be removed thereby leaving an opening in the aircraft and the transponder installed in the opening. | 06-06-2013 |
20140118181 | TCAS BEARING ESTIMATION WITH REDUCED ANTENNA ELEMENTS - Systems and methods for calculating coherent bearing that allow one to reduce the number of TCAS antenna elements. In one embodiment, the bearing calculation takes into account signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) difference experienced from top and bottom antennas mounted on a vehicle. | 05-01-2014 |
20180024236 | AERIAL TRAFFIC MONITORING RADAR | 01-25-2018 |
342032000 | Included in Secondary Surveilance Radar (SSR) or Air Traffic Control Radio Beacon System (ATCRBS) | 14 |
20080211709 | DEPLOYABLE PASSIVE BROADBAND AIRCRAFT TRACKING - In a first, preferred embodiment of the present invention, integrated tracking is provided using passive broadband. The invention takes the system for deployable passive broadband detection and extends it by incorporating the capability to decode position for ADS-B, SSR multilateration, and broadband multilateration. In a second embodiment, validation of a self-reported position is provided. The invention takes the system for deployable passive broadband detection and extends it by incorporating the capability to decode self-reported position for ADS-B, and compare it to line of calculated position, or line of precision, derived from multilateration techniques applied to various signals received from the aircraft. In a third embodiment, validation of a self-reported ADS-B position using independent surveillance is provided by the system. | 09-04-2008 |
20080231493 | Method and Device For Filtering a Video Signal Received By a Secondary Radar, Particularly in Order to Eliminate Mode S Replies - The invention applies to secondary radars. It makes it possible to carry out filtering when seeking to detect SSR responses, these SSR responses being overlapped by a mode S response. According to the invention, the pulses of the mode S response are filtered without filtering the pulses of the SSR responses which are of a higher level than the mode S response. For this purpose, the subject of the invention is in particular a method for filtering a video signal, the video signal being received by a secondary radar, the filtering being designed to precede the detection of SSR responses, the received signal comprising samples intended to be analyzed according to the method, in which method for a sample under analysis at least one instantaneous power of the received signal is estimated, the power being estimated on the basis of determined signal samples, said samples at least leading or lagging by a duration greater than a duration T with respect to the sample under analysis, the duration T being the duration of an SSR response; a threshold is determined, the threshold being at least equal to the estimated power; if the power of the sample under analysis is less than the threshold, the sample is filtered. | 09-25-2008 |
20080238758 | Method For Pre-Detecting Responses in a Secondary Radar or Application to the Detection of Mode S Responses - The invention relates to a method for pre-detecting responses in a secondary radar. It applies in particular to the detection of mode S responses. An aim of the invention is to process the signals received before decoding the responses so as to allow the detection of mixed responses, and avoid the detection of ghost responses. For this purpose, the invention has in particular as subject a method for pre-detecting responses in a secondary radar, the responses to be pre-detected comprising a message coded by a modulated signal, characterized in that the presence of a signal exhibiting modulation characteristics in accordance with those of a message of a response to be pre-detected is identified; the duration of the signal identified is measured; this duration is compared with a minimum duration, this minimum duration being determined on the basis of the duration of the messages of the responses to be pre-detected. | 10-02-2008 |
20090201191 | AIRCRAFT TRACKING USING LOW COST TAGGING AS A DISCRIMINATOR - A simplified multilateration and ADS-B Surveillance System is used, to perform tagging for the FAA Low Cost Ground Surveillance program. This system may also be used as the foundation for a full multilateration system, if a customer wants to upgrade. The present invention uses just one active transmitter/receiver unit as opposed to multiple passive receivers. The present invention captures UF 5 and DF 5 data, thus providing Mode A identification, which then acts as the key to obtaining the call sign from a data fusion packages—thus making it an affordable and marketable product for small to medium-sized airports. | 08-13-2009 |
20090295621 | MODE S SECONDARY SURVEILLANCE RADAR SYSTEM - It is related to a mode S secondary surveillance radar system for carrying out a target (aircraft) surveillance with a high reliability, where a surveillance processor | 12-03-2009 |
20100090882 | BI-STATIC RADAR PROCESSING FOR ADS-B SENSORS - A system and technique to derive a position of a non-ADSB equipped aircraft using ADS-B information provided from an ADSB equipped aircraft and bi-static radar processing techniques. | 04-15-2010 |
20100253566 | SECONDARY SURVEILLANCE RADAR AND METHOD OF ANALYZING REPLIES FOR SECONDARY SURVEILLANCE RADAR - Provided is a secondary surveillance radar with an improved capability of eliminating an unnecessary Mode A/C target report, which includes a transmission unit transmitting interrogations, a reception unit receiving replies, from a transponder, corresponding respectively to the interrogations, and a signal processing unit generating a Mode S target report and a Mode A/C target report from the replies. The radar also includes a combiner generating a Mode S track and a Mode A/C track respectively from the Mode S and the Mode A/C reports, and then judging whether the Mode S report and the Mode A/C report are of the same target on the basis of the Mode S and the Mode A/C tracks. When the Mode S and the Mode A/C reports are of the same target, the combiner rejects the Mode A/C report. | 10-07-2010 |
20110140950 | VALIDITY CHECK OF VEHICLE POSITION INFORMATION TRANSMITTED OVER A TIME-SYNCHRONIZED DATA LINK - A method for validating positional data in vehicle surveillance applications wherein vehicles transmit positional data indicating their own position to surrounding vehicles using a data link over which a transmission is initiated at a given transmission point in time that is known by all users of the data link. A signal transmitted from a radio source over the data link is received at a receiving unit. The signal carries positional data indicating an alleged position of a vehicle. The distance between the receiving unit and the radio source is estimated based on the time of flight and the propagation velocity of the received signal. The time of flight is determined based on the time elapsed from the transmission point in time of the signal to the time of reception of at least a first part of the signal. A deviation value is determined. The deviation value indicates the difference between the distance to the position of a vehicle according to the received positional data and the estimated distance to the radio source. | 06-16-2011 |
20130265186 | MODE S ANTI-REFLECTION ALGORITHM FOR ELIMINATING FALSE TRACKS DUE TO REFLECTED REPLIES IN GROUND RADAR SYSTEMS - A Mode S anti-reflection method for eliminating false tracks due to reflected replies in ground radar systems, wherein the information contribution of the replies (at the level of raw video) is analysed with the aim of calculating the position of the reflectors. The possible presence of ADS-B reports can be used, otherwise it will be effectuated a geometrical analysis of the distribution of the replies and will be compared with the plot(s) extracted by the radar sensor. The possibility of correlating along time the moving of the plots, their place of origin and average duration of the tracks generated by them will allow to understand whether the plot is relevant to a reflection or not. In the case of “reflection”, a reflectors map is updated automatically in order to avoid the enabling of the inizialization of the track in that area. | 10-10-2013 |
20140327564 | System and Method to Prevent Misuse of Aircraft Messages - An avionics system allows aircraft to introduce bogus “ADS-B Out” messages that are recognized as false only by authorized users. The system enables aircrafts flying at low altitudes to prevent misuse of their ADS-B Out information by maliciously operated cyber and physical attack tools. Aspects of the illustrative embodiment include the system architecture, including an Airborne ATC Processor and Ground ATM System Processor; a process employed by aircraft for generating authorized bogus ADS-B Out messages; a process employed by aircraft for transmitting authorized bogus ADS-B Out messages; and a process employed by air traffic control and other aircraft for decoding the authorized bogus ADS-B Out messages. | 11-06-2014 |
20150042504 | SYSTEM AND METHOD OF MONITORING TRANSPONDER TRANSMISSIONS - Transponder transmissions may be monitored through a direct, shielded connection of an RF coupler to a transponder antenna cable. The RF coupler may be added on an antenna cable of an older-style transponder to pick up altitude and reply codes, decode the information and transmit it digitally for use by a separate external monitor. As such, the pilot may be afforded the ability to monitor the older-style transponder's altitude and reply code transmissions to air traffic control so as to determine if a failure of the transponder has occurred. By having the direct connection between RF coupler and the transponder antenna cable, no transmissions of other transponders would be received. | 02-12-2015 |
20150331099 | SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR AIRCRAFT NAVIGATION BASED ON DIVERSE RANGING ALGORITHM USING ADS-B MESSAGES AND GROUND TRANSCEIVER RESPONSES - A method of aircraft navigation via receiving signals emitted by other aircraft and corresponding reply message transmitted by ground transceivers and the using a new diverse-ranging algorithm that solves for the positions of a eavesdropping aircraft and the positions of direct-reply aircraft emitting the signals received by the eavesdropping aircraft. | 11-19-2015 |
20160035225 | REMOTE AIR TRAFFIC SURVEILLANCE DATA COMPOSITING BASED ON DATALINKED RADIO SURVEILLANCE - In one example, a method for combining radio surveillance data includes receiving air traffic surveillance data from one or more aircraft via one or more remotely operable data link systems. The method further includes combining the air traffic surveillance data from the one or more aircraft into a composite air traffic surveillance data set. The air traffic surveillance data is based at least in part on radio surveillance messages received by the one or more aircraft from additional aircraft. | 02-04-2016 |
20170236425 | SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR VERIFYING ADS-B MESSAGES | 08-17-2017 |