U.S. patent application number 11/474724 was filed with the patent office on 2007-03-29 for airborne based monitoring.
This patent application is currently assigned to Honeywell International Inc.. Invention is credited to Anthony Vernon Brama, Mark Manfred, Lucius Orville JR. Taylor.
Application Number | 20070073485 11/474724 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 34972956 |
Filed Date | 2007-03-29 |
United States Patent
Application |
20070073485 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Manfred; Mark ; et
al. |
March 29, 2007 |
Airborne based monitoring
Abstract
A weather monitoring and prediction system that uses a fleet of
aircraft to obtain data. Each aircraft has a local air data system
that facilitates the measurement, recordation, and transmittal of
local atmospheric data such as barometric pressure, and the
corresponding temporal, positional, and altitudinal data. The data
is electronically transmitted from each aircraft to a ground based
processing system where it is stored. The data may then be
transmitted to subscribing users such as aircraft, other weather
data systems or to air traffic control centers in either a compiled
form or in a raw form. Another embodiment also provides for
measuring barometric pressure as a function of altitude at an
in-flight aircraft.
Inventors: |
Manfred; Mark; (Edina,
MN) ; Taylor; Lucius Orville JR.; (Minnetonka,
MN) ; Brama; Anthony Vernon; (Lakeville, MN) |
Correspondence
Address: |
HONEYWELL INTERNATIONAL INC.
101 COLUMBIA ROAD
P O BOX 2245
MORRISTOWN
NJ
07962-2245
US
|
Assignee: |
Honeywell International
Inc.
Morristown
NJ
|
Family ID: |
34972956 |
Appl. No.: |
11/474724 |
Filed: |
June 26, 2006 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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11113710 |
Apr 25, 2005 |
7069147 |
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11474724 |
Jun 26, 2006 |
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10937724 |
Sep 9, 2004 |
6937937 |
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11113710 |
Apr 25, 2005 |
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10856288 |
May 28, 2004 |
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10937724 |
Sep 9, 2004 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
702/2 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G01W 1/10 20130101; G01W
1/08 20130101; G01K 2203/00 20130101; G01W 2001/003 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
702/002 |
International
Class: |
G01V 7/00 20060101
G01V007/00; G01V 3/00 20060101 G01V003/00; G06F 19/00 20060101
G06F019/00 |
Claims
1. An apparatus for measuring weather conditions, including
barometric pressure as a function of altitude of an in-flight
aircraft, said apparatus comprising: an atmospheric pressure
transducer for measuring outside air pressure and generating
signals relating said outside air pressure; an altimeter for
determining altitude and generating signals relating said altitude
without regard to atmospheric pressure; a set of tertiary sensors
for measuring at least one of the following tertiary data of static
air temperature, wind speed, and wind direction, and for generating
signals relating to said tertiary data; a computer for receiving
said signals respectively from the transducer, the tertiary
sensors, and the altimeter, said computer being configured to
co-record said signals from the transducer and altimeter, with
those from the tertiary sensors, as data; and a transmitter, in
communication with said computer, for transmitting said co-recorded
data from the computer to a ground-based station at least while
said aircraft is in flight.
2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said computer further said
comprises: a data storage for recording a recordset of data,
wherein each recordset includes a datapoint from the transducer
co-recorded with a datapoint from the altimeter.
3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein each said recordset further
includes a datapoint representing a time of measurement.
4. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein each said recordset further
includes a datapoint representing a position of the aircraft at the
time of measurement.
5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein said transmitter for
transmitting recorded data from the computer to said ground-based
station while the aircraft is in flight includes electronic
transmission equipment for autonomously transmitting digital
data.
6. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein said transmitter substantially
overcomes data bandwidth limitations by implementing a data
transfer technique selected from the group consisting of message
prioritization and group transmission delay.
7. The apparatus of claim 6, further comprising, a means for
determining navigation position and providing the same to said
computer as navigation signals for said co-recording within said
data at said computer.
8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein said altimeter comprises a GPS
receiver.
9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein said altimeter comprises a
radio altitude sensor used in conjunction with a digital terrain
database.
10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said transmitter further
transmits an indication of turbulence.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application is a continuation of application Ser. No.
11/113,710, filed Apr. 25, 2005, which is a continuation of
application Ser. No. 10/937,724, filed Sep. 9, 2004, which is a
continuation of application Ser. No. 10/856,288, filed May 28,
2004. Both the Ser. No. 10/937,724 application and the Ser. No.
10/856,288 application are hereby incorporated by reference.
FIELD
[0002] The present invention relates to a measurement system and
method for determining local atmospheric conditions aboard an
airborne aircraft.
BACKGROUND
[0003] Each day hundreds of scheduled flights operated by the major
airlines, such as United Airlines, America Airlines, Delta,
Northwest, Luftansa, Aer Lingus, and VietNam air traverse routes
between cities throughout the world. In addition, cargo carriers,
such as the United Post Office, DHL, Federal Express, and United
Parcel Service fly routes throughout the world on a daily basis.
Aircraft on these regularly scheduled flights travel generally
predictable routes at generally predictable times. In addition to
these commercial flights, there are numerous charter and general
aviation flights, amounting to thousands of aircraft aloft each
day, covering a large geographic area and encountering a wide
variety of atmospheric and weather conditions at different
locations and altitudes at different times of the day.
[0004] Weather conditions affect many aspects of human life such as
agriculture production and famine, public safety, transportation,
tourism and communications. Thus, improved weather forecasting has
many potential benefits. The combination of ground-based monitoring
and satellite imagery have substantially enhanced weather
prediction, however, weather forecasting can be further enhanced
with more accurate weather data of conditions aloft.
[0005] In addition, aircraft generally use static barometric
pressure meters for determining altitude above sea level or
relative to ground level. Such pressure altimeters operate by
measuring local static pressure and comparing the measured pressure
to a lookup table or calibration curve (correlating barometric
pressure to altitude) in order to determine the corresponding
altitude. This measure of altitude is referred to as pressure
altitude because it is based upon a reading from an atmospheric
pressure measurement device such as a static port and pressure
transducer. A pressure altitude measurement, however, may not
reflect the true altitude of the aircraft because the measurement
is based on the assumption that atmospheric pressure is solely a
function of altitude. This assumption may be incorrect--as other
factors may alter the atmospheric pressure. Thus, a reading of
pressure altitude may vary from "true altitude". Barometric
pressure readings (and thus pressure altitude measurements) are
affected by other atmospheric conditions such as wind speed and
temperature. Thus, circularity problems arise when attempting to
obtain a measure of atmospheric conditions as a function of
altitude.
SUMMARY
[0006] An improved system and method for monitoring and
accumulating atmospheric weather conditions is provided through the
use of atmospheric, positional, altitudinal, and temporal data
collection equipment aboard in-flight aircraft. According to an
aspect of the invention, measurement equipment is placed aboard a
plurality of monitoring aircraft and is configured to record local
atmospheric conditions relative to the location of the aircraft.
Preferably, each record of local atmospheric conditions is
corecorded with 1) a date/time stamp representing the time of
measurement, 2) a position reading representing the location of the
aircraft at the time of measurement, and 3) an altitude reading
representing the altitude of the aircraft at the time of
measurement.
[0007] According to an embodiment, any number of weather or
inertial parameters, such as atmospheric pressure, outside air
temperature, wind speed, and wind direction are measured from
equipment aboard a plurality of airborne aircraft. For convenience
these atmospheric/inertial measures are termed primary
measurements.
[0008] Preferably, secondary measurement means are also utilized to
provide an independent measure of aircraft altitude and position.
For instance, a global positioning system GPS receiver may be used
to provide the location of the aircraft, including its altitude.
According to an embodiment, a primary measurement, such as a
barometric pressure reading, is correlated with a secondary
measurement, such as true altitude information from a GPS
receiver.
[0009] Recorded data may be transmitted in real time to ground
monitoring stations. In an embodiment, ground monitoring stations
are capable of compiling data from a plurality of aircraft to
generate real-time three-dimensional maps of weather conditions
aloft. Weather forecasters, for example, could use this more
detailed and accurate meteorological data to improve weather
forecasts. The data could also provide excellent information to
help optimize aircraft routing.
[0010] According to another embodiment, an apparatus is provided
for measuring barometric pressure as a function of altitude at an
in-flight aircraft. The apparatus has an atmospheric pressure
transducer for measuring outside air pressure and a second
altimeter for determining altitude without regard to atmospheric
pressure. A server is configured for receiving signals from the
transducer and altimeter. Likewise, a transceiver is configured for
transmitting recorded data from the server to a ground-based
station while the airplane is in-flight. Thus, the ground-based
station is provided with data reflecting barometric pressure as a
function of altitude.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0011] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an embodiment of a system
for measuring and transmitting data between airplanes, users, and a
server;
[0012] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of an organization of
measuring equipment aboard a monitoring aircraft;
[0013] FIG. 3 shows a process flow within a monitoring
aircraft;
[0014] FIG. 4 shows an exemplary data organization; and
[0015] FIG. 5 shows a preferred processes flow within a base
station.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0016] FIG. 1 is a schematic illustration of an exemplary
embodiment of an airborne monitoring system. In particular, FIG. 1
demonstrates the communication pathways of the exemplary
embodiment. Three aircraft 104, 106, and 108 are shown and are
labeled M, SM, and S to designate their respective functionality.
M-aircraft 104 is labeled M because it operates as a monitoring
airplane that monitors weather conditions and transmits recorded
conditions and the corresponding date, time, location and altitude
tags to a ground based processing center 102 via a wireless
downlink 112.
[0017] In comparison, S-aircraft 108 is labeled S to indicate that
it operates as a subscriber or user. S-aircraft 108 receives
indicia of upcoming weather conditions via a wireless uplink 116
from the ground based processing center 102. SM-aircraft 106
operates as both a subscriber and a monitor and is thus labeled SM.
SM-Aircraft 106 both sends and receives weather information and
thus has a two-way data communication 114 with the ground based
processing center 102.
[0018] There are a variety of different ways of transmitting data
from aircraft 104, 106, 108 to ground stations 102. The connections
shown in FIG. 1 are merely exemplary and are simplified for ease of
illustration and explanation. In a preferred embodiment, on-board
data communications equipment such as Airline Communications
Addressing and Reporting System (ACARS) or SATCOM communications
systems, can be used to communicate data from aircraft to ground
station. In a system using SATCOM, for example, data would be sent
to the ground-based station 102 through a path passing through a
communications satellite and a satellite receiver before reaching
the ground-based station.
[0019] Although a high bandwidth communication channel is
preferred, the system could utilize a very low-speed data stream
from each aircraft. For example, one message may be transmitted
every 10 seconds (i.e. approximately one data point per mile). In
one embodiment, each message would comprise 112 bits as follows:
Aircraft ID (16 bits), Time/Date (16 bits), Position (32 bits),
Altitude (16 bits), Barometric Pressure (8 bits), Windspeed (8
bits), Wind Direction, (8 bits), and Temperature (8 bits). This
configuration may be operated in a bandwidth requirement of, for
example, less than 12 bits per second. Other information may also
be added to the data-stream such as aircraft type, aircraft weight,
and accelerometer readings. In a further embodiment, multiple
messages may be bundled for very low priority transmission over
ACARS or other communication facility.
[0020] Additionally, even in aircraft that are purely monitoring
104, or purely subscribing 108 some data or control messages will
still be transmitted in the opposite direction shown in data links
112 and 116. Such reverse direction data may, for example, indicate
the state of the receiving equipment, indicate a request for
predictive indicia, or indicate success or error in
transmission.
[0021] In other embodiments, it is possible to have multiple
ground-based processing centers rather than a single center as
shown in FIG. 1. Geographic regions or political boundaries may
serve as likely demarcation sites between the regions monitored by
the various processing centers. For example, if the Air Traffic
Control is a subscribing user, it may be advantageous to divide
regions based on the various regional Air Traffic Control
locations.
[0022] A further embodiment provides a ground-based user 110 that
receives weather indicia from the ground-based processing center
102. The ground-based user 110 may then broadcast the information
to its own set of private subscribers or may use the information
for other aviation or non-aviation related purposes. The
ground-based user 110 may be an entity such as the FAA that uses
the data to assist air traffic controllers, the National Weather
Service, or other commercial weather information service
providers.
[0023] Many commercial aircraft are equipped with an Air Data
Inertial Reference System ("ADIRS") or other local air data system
to measure conditions such as outside air temperature, wind speed
and wind direction, and barometric pressure. For example, two ARINC
429 standard data busses can provide ADIRS capability to measure
position, altitude, normal accelerations, wind direction, wind
speed, and outside air temperature among other parameters.
[0024] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of the organization of
measuring equipment (such as a modified ADIRS) aboard a monitoring
aircraft in an embodiment. An air data inertial reference unit
(ADIRU) 202 is connected with a data store 204 though a data bus
212. The data store 204 is configured to, among other functions,
store locally generated data. Primary measuring devices 208 are
labeled .alpha..sub.1, .alpha..sub.2, and .alpha..sub.3 and are
configured to measure local atmospheric conditions. Although this
schematic only shows three measuring devices, it is likely that
more would be available, or as few as one could be used. For
example, the various measuring devices may include a static air
temperature gauges, total air temperature probes, air data modules,
wind-direction measurement devices, total pressure gauges, static
pressure gauges, a relative humidity gauge, and orthogonally
positioned accelerometers. In a further embodiment, orthogonally
positioned gyroscopes for measuring angular rates and
accelerometers are included as measuring devices.
[0025] Alternatively, a subset of the described primary measurement
devices or other devices may be used. The ADIRU 202 is also
connected to corecordation devices 210 through the bus 212. These
corecordation devices 210 are labeled GPS and CHRON in FIG. 2 and
are configured to generate positional data, altitudinal data, and
temporal data. The corecordation devices 210 are also known as
secondary measurement devices because they obtain measurements that
are independent of quantities measured by the primary measurement
devices 208. Each time that a record is generated from a primary
measuring device 208, records are also created from each of the
corecordation devices 210 and stored in the data store 204. When
records are to be sent to a ground-based station, data from the
data store 204 is delivered to the communications device 206, which
transmits the record. As one skilled in the art will understand,
other arrangements are available to perform the function of
obtaining, recording and transmitting primary and secondary
measurements at an in-flight aircraft. The embodiments described
should be seen as instructional rather than limiting.
[0026] Preferably, atmospheric pressure readings is implemented
through air data modules (ADMs) using atmospheric probes to measure
both total pressure and static pressure and wind speed as well. An
ADM would serve as a pressure transducer to measure both static and
total pressure and convert those readings to a digital format. More
than one ADM may be used on a single aircraft. This redundancy can
provide for more accurate readings as well as provide a safeguard
in case of failure of an individual element.
[0027] Static barometric pressure is used in aviation to determine
altitude above sea level or a known airfield. An aircraft
determines its altitude by ascertaining the atmospheric pressure
reading of the nearest airfield at a known distance above sea
level. From the barometric pressure reading at the known altitude
of the nearest field, the aircraft can ascertain its own altitude
by comparing its measured barometric pressure reading to a chart of
barometric pressure, which is adjusted according to the barometric
pressure at the known airfield. Using GPS as a secondary
measurement means, however, aircraft altitude can be determined
independent of variances in barometric pressure. Using a secondary
measurement means for altitude, such as GPS, barometric pressure
readings can be correlated and compared to altitude measurements to
provide more detailed and accurate barometer/altitude
information.
[0028] FIG. 3 shows a preferred process flow of measuring equipment
within one of a plurality of monitoring aircraft such as M-aircraft
104 of FIG. 1. In one mode of operation, a time sensitive automatic
trigger begins a measurement sequence at step 302. Preferably,
triggering is controlled by a microprocessor or CPU on an ADIRS.
Triggering may be activated by a programmable timer or other
electronic or mechanical means. At predetermined intervals, the
microprocessor is programmed to trigger the operation of
measurement equipment according to the prescribed criteria.
[0029] A wide variety of intervals and trigger conditions can be
selected and programmed by those of skill in the art according to
the desired data collection results. For instance, the various
atmospheric measurement devices (.alpha.) may be triggered using
different time sequences. For example, temperature may be recorded
at one-minute intervals while barometric pressure recorded at
intervals of two minutes. In addition, rather than being linked to
time, the automatic trigger can also be based on trigger
consitions, such as the distance traveled by the aircraft. As an
example, one measurement for device a would be recorded each K
miles traveled by the aircraft.
[0030] In an alternate embodiment, the measurement sequence is
triggered by a change in certain conditions. For example, a sharp
increase in lateral vibrations or local light refraction may
indicate clear air turbulence. A tighter set of data would be
beneficial for determining the size and extent of an area of
turbulence. Thus, the trigger may increase the rate of recordation
in the face of such conditions. Similarly, a sharp decrease in
barometric pressure seen as a function of altitude or position may
indicate a weather front. The rate of triggering at step 302 could
thus be set to increase in that circumstance. Increasing the
frequency of recordation allows more detailed atmospheric data to
be collected during times of particular interest. In another
example, barometric pressure readings can be triggered to be
recorded during change of the aircraft's altitude to collect
barometric pressure readings over a range of different altitudes.
The altitude of the aircraft is monitored and during changes in
altitude the frequency of barometric pressure readings can be
increased to develop a comprehensive profile of barometric pressure
readings across different altitudes.
[0031] In addition to an automated trigger, a manual trigger may
also be available. In a region or time of specific interest, a
crewmember may be able to start the measurement process or increase
the rate of recordation in order to increase the available measured
data. In another embodiment, the manual trigger may simply alter
the settings of the automated trigger manager. Once a measurement
is triggered at step 302, at least one primary measurement is
recorded at step 304. As discussed, a primary measurement may, for
example, record an atmospheric condition such as temperature, winds
aloft, or barometric pressure.
[0032] With each recordation of a primary atmospheric condition,
the air data system corecords temporal, positional, and altitudinal
measures at step 306. In an embodiment, secondary measurement means
are utilized to provide an independent measurement of aircraft
altitude, position, and time. The term secondary measurement means
to refer to measurements recorded without reference to local
atmospheric conditions. For example, Global Navigation Systems
(GNS) such as GPS may be used to communicate with geosynchronous
satellites to calculate both position and altitude. Secondarily,
radio altitude can be calculated by correlating a measurement of
the aircraft height above the ground to terrain elevation data.
More generally, both GNS and radio altitude sensors are forms of
radiofrequency altitude sensors. Other secondary measurement means
may be available. A single device need not measure altitude,
position, and time. Rather, a secondary altimeter may measure
altitude using radar or GNS or other means. In addition, a
secondary chronometer may measure time using an internal clock
within the local air data system or ADIRU.
[0033] The record-set (comprising primary and secondary
measurements) is processed for transmission at step 308 and
transmitted to a base station at step 310. Depending upon the
communication system, data compression, delayed transmission, or
data batching may be necessary in the processing step 308.
[0034] FIG. 4 shows an example of a data record correlating
atmospheric condition readings, in particular barometric pressure
readings, to 3 dimensional GPS positional (latitude and longitude)
and altitude data, barometric pressure and temporal data. Also
shown in FIG. 4, just for example, is outside temperature, winds
aloft and ground speed. Using the combined data record, barometric
pressure readings each atmospheric reading becomes more valuable
through the linkage of the various data sets. Measured barometric
readings and other atmospheric conditions can then be correlated to
GPS and temporal readings. An aircraft identifier (air_unit) is
also shown to identify the particular aircraft taking the readings.
Other identifiers may be transmitted as well. As will be understood
by those skilled in the art, other measurements and measuring units
can be used.
[0035] FIG. 5 shows a preferred processes flow within a base
station. The base station first receives measured data from a
monitoring aircraft (denoted A.sub.m) at step 502. The data is
stored in a data store and precompiled at step 504. In one
embodiment, additional data may also be received from a 3.sup.rd
party at step 506. For example, the national weather service may
provide satellite or other weather information to the base station.
A set of predictive indicia is then created for a subscriber such
as a subscribing aircraft at step 506. In some cases, the
predictive indicia may be requested by the subscriber as shown by
step 510. When requesting predictive indicia, the subscribing
aircraft may indicate information such as, for example, its current
location, altitude, heading, flight-path, desired bandwidth,
desired batch size, and other options so that the predictive
indicia can be specifically tailored to the needs of the
subscribing aircraft in the precompiling process of step 504. This
request may be made along the same pathway as the data flows of
FIG. 1 or along another pathway. Because it is expected that the
size of data-batches uploaded to subscribing users will be greater
than that downloaded from requesting users or from monitoring
airplanes, it may be more efficient to implement the system with
high bandwidth for uploads but lower bandwidth for downloads.
[0036] In another embodiment, a turbulence prediction data service
is disclosed that provides a map of regions of airspace where
turbulence is predicted. The turbulence predictions would come from
previously experienced turbulence data from aircraft flying in the
area. Data collection would come from the Inertial Reference
Systems flying in commercial airliners and business jets. An IRS
calculates a normal acceleration component. Based on frequency and
amplitude, a normal acceleration algorithm could be created to
interpret acceleration as turbulence. An aircraft sensing
turbulence would transmit the information to the ground where it
would be combined with the same information from all other aircraft
in a region. In an embodiment, data records are enhanced through
other atmospheric condition measurements that are correlated with
altitude, position, and time.
[0037] With data coming in from an entire fleet of aircraft, an
on-ground algorithm may predict turbulence for regions of the
airspace. A ground service could transmit turbulence predictions
back to subscribing aircraft. The aircraft may display such
forecast information in a map display or in some other format. In
addition, the information could be used by a flight path calculator
to route a new path around expected turbulence. The turbulence
information from the network could be available electronically in
the cockpit for anyone who subscribes. The ambiguity of pilot
reports and the unreliability of a relay from ATC thus, could be
eliminated. In addition, the service could provide a standardized
categorization of turbulence instead of relying on a pilot's
subjective interpretation.
[0038] In another embodiment of the present invention, additional
information may be provided to the system by a flightcrew. For
example, a keypad may be provided for a crewmember to enter a
weather reading. In one embodiment, the keypad would allow
one-touch activation. A crewmember may push a first button to
indicate level-one weather, a second button to indicate level-two
weather, or a third button to indicate level-three weather. These
would be considered as primary measurements by the system such as
those shown as element(s) 208 in FIG. 2.
[0039] It is expected that the data garnered by the present
invention will be used by meteorologists to improve their weather
forecasts for industries outside aviation. In this embodiment, the
parallel readings achieved by each of a plurality of aircraft are
received and compiled by a ground based monitoring system then
electronically delivered to meteorologists at, for example, the
National Weather Service. Those meteorologists would then
incorporate the new data into weather forecasting or other
models.
[0040] In terms of monitoring airplanes, the preferred embodiment
places the system aboard commercial fleet of aircraft. However, the
present invention is also applicable to use on other aircraft such
as general aviation, private business airplanes, and military
airplanes. Military airplanes already have on-board sophisticated
information recordation devices as well as communications devices.
In one embodiment of the invention, both the monitoring aircraft
and subscribing users would be government controlled aircraft and
facilities respectively. In that case, military could retain a
tactical advantage by retaining control over information flow.
[0041] In the case of general aviation airplanes and business jets,
these aircraft may not already be equipped with ADIRU or other
measurement control devices. By modifying the functionality of
onboard systems and adding processing, storage, communications and
measurement devices, these airplanes could also perform as elements
in the current invention. Secondarily, all monitoring aircraft need
not measure all possible local measurements to add functionality to
the system. In particular, many aircraft are already equipped with
a static air pressure sensor that is currently being used for
calculation of altitude and groundspeed. At the same time, GPS or
other global navigational system or secondary position sensor can
serve to generate the co-recorded positional data. In one
embodiment of the present invention, a subscribing user may request
weather indicia indicative of weather at a lower altitude than that
flown by traditional commercial jets. For example,
non-aviation-related users such as local travelers and
agriculturalists may be more interested in low-lying weather
systems. In this case, general aviation monitoring airplanes may be
well suited to deliver such indicia based on their lower flying
altitudes. In some aircraft, it may be costly to implement the
invention using traditional electronic connections. Thus, in one
embodiment of the invention, measurement transducers communicate to
the local air data system using direct wireless communication. For
example, a static pressure transducer may be attached to a wireless
transmitter. At the same time, the local air data system may be
attached to a wireless receiver. Thus, during flight the static
pressure transducer measures and transmits data via the wireless
transmitter to the local air data system. Alternatively, the
wireless communication may pass through a wireless local area
network (WLAN). These are merely examples measurement devices and
are not meant to limit the scope of the invention.
[0042] A variety of embodiments have been described above. More
generally, those skilled in the art will understand that changes
and modifications may be made to these embodiments without
departing from the true scope and spirit of the present invention,
which is defined by the claims. Drawings have been provided to aid
in understanding embodiments; however, they should not be seen as
scale drawings.
* * * * *