This paper analyses the increasing trend of using modern machine learning technologies to analyze... more This paper analyses the increasing trend of using modern machine learning technologies to analyze flight data efficiently. Flight data offers an important insight into the operations of an aircraft. This paper reviews the research undertaken so far on the use of Machine Learning techniques for the analyses of flight data by evaluating various anomaly detection algorithms and the significance of feature selection in Flight Data Monitoring. These algorithms are compared to determine the best class of algorithms for highlighting significant flight anomalies. Furthermore, these algorithms are analyzed for various flight data parameters to determine which class of algorithms is sensitive to continuous parameters and which is sensitive to discrete parameters of flight data. The paper also addresses the ability of each anomaly detection algorithm to be easily adaptable to different datasets and different phases of flight, including take-off and landing.
ACARS aircraft communications addressing and reporting system AFTN aeronautical fixed telecommuni... more ACARS aircraft communications addressing and reporting system AFTN aeronautical fixed telecommunication network ANSP air navigation service provider AOC air operators certificate ATC air traffic control ATCO air traffic control officer ATM air traffic management CFOA clean flight optimisation application Con-Ops concept of operations COTS commercial off-the-shelf FDO flight dispatch officer FL flight level FMS flight management system LCO load control officer OCC operations control centre PF pilot flying PM pilot monitoring SID standard instrument departure SOP standard operating procedures STAR standard terminal arrival route TBO trajectory based operations TOW take-off weight UML unified modelling language VHF very high frequency ZFW zero fuel weight ZFWCG zero fuel weight centre of gravity
Cette invention concerne un procede et un systeme, ainsi que des outils d'optimisation d'... more Cette invention concerne un procede et un systeme, ainsi que des outils d'optimisation d'une trajectoire de vol d'aeronef qui determinent un profil de vol avantageux qui prend en compte les conditions de fonctionnement en cours, les contraintes du trafic de l'air et les performances de l'aeronef, de maniere assez rapide pour permettre d'integrer des changements tactiques de plan de vol sans entrainer des penalites financieres ou de fonctionnement excessives pour l'operateur.
2018 IEEE/AIAA 37th Digital Avionics Systems Conference (DASC), 2018
To date, most of the interactions between pilots and avionic systems of commercial passenger airc... more To date, most of the interactions between pilots and avionic systems of commercial passenger aircraft are carried out using physical controls. This paper discusses the evaluation of a multimodal interface which allows pilots to control various avionic systems using a combination of touchscreen gestures (via a single touchscreen interface) and voice commands. This interface was evaluated by eight commercial airline pilots in a fixed-based flight simulator. Although various improvements can be made to the interface, the evaluations successfully demonstrated the feasibility and potential benefits of using a multimodal interface in commercial flight.
2015 IEEE/AIAA 34th Digital Avionics Systems Conference (DASC), 2015
Touch screen technology is already present on the flight deck of various categories of aircraft, ... more Touch screen technology is already present on the flight deck of various categories of aircraft, with the majority of current solutions based on the use of multiple touch screen displays situated on the main instrument panel and/or the central pedestal. This often requires the crew to lean forward or sideways to interact with different displays and makes it harder to make accurate selections, particularly in turbulent conditions. This paper proposes a novel touch screen concept which enables the crew of single and dual pilot aircraft to interact with various avionic systems throughout a flight using a single tablet-like device positioned in front of each crew member. Such a device could be fitted to current flight deck environments and used as an alternative method of interacting with the aircraft, i.e. while retaining all existing controls and displays. The concept focusses on the use of touch screen techniques within each of the following functional areas: autopilot control, navigation, aircraft performance, and systems. This paper describes the requirements, design, and pilot evaluation of this concept (developed to a technology readiness level of 3) and discusses the results.
Touch screen technology has already been introduced on the flight deck of different categories of... more Touch screen technology has already been introduced on the flight deck of different categories of aircraft and its use is set to increase with the development of larger displays and the introduction of greater avionics functionality in the cockpit. To date, exploitation of this technology has primarily focussed on flight and mission management, with applications in the civil environment focussing on relatively strategic functions such as flight planning and system configuration. The next step is to extend the use of touch technologies to more tactical functions of flight such as autopilot control. This paper proposes a new solution for autopilot control of single and dual pilot aircraft, developed to a technology readiness level of 3 (proof of concept), taking into account the safety-critical nature of the application, standard operating procedures and crew resource management issues. It briefly addresses key system requirements that have been identified at the beginning of the desi...
This paper describes the methodology adopted in designing a quasi-real-time groundbased trajector... more This paper describes the methodology adopted in designing a quasi-real-time groundbased trajectory optimization tool for use by air traffic control officers. The tool is primarily intended for the optimization of aircraft trajectories during the climb and descent phases in which the user can define the trajectory in four dimensions. The optimized trajectories would then contribute to a reduction in fuel burn and emissions. The designed tool takes into account different aircraft types and subtypes through BADA performance and engine coefficients. A simple case study for an approach in Malta International Airport has also been presented to illustrate the use of the tool.
A lot of work has been carried out over the last decade to apply touchscreen technology to the fl... more A lot of work has been carried out over the last decade to apply touchscreen technology to the flight deck of large commercial passenger aircraft. In fact, several industry solutions are now available and aircraft equipped with touchscreen solutions will be flying in the very near future. In contrast, Direct Voice Input (DVI) technology is still several years away from entering commercial service on large transport aircraft; nevertheless, it has a lot of potential and can even overcome some of the limitations associated with touchscreen technology. This paper presents a prototype application based on DVI which enables pilots to interact with the autopilot by means of voice commands. This application is composed of a speaker dependent speech recognition module and a command recognition module. The results of an evaluation of the DVI application are presented and discussed in detail and areas of improvement are outlined. The DVI application is part of a bigger solution which is intend...
Touch screen technology is already present on
the flight deck of various categories of aircraft, ... more Touch screen technology is already present on the flight deck of various categories of aircraft, with the majority of current solutions based on the use of multiple touch screen displays situated on the main instrument panel and/or the central pedestal. This often requires the crew to lean forward or sideways to interact with different displays and makes it harder to make accurate selections, particularly in turbulent conditions. This paper proposes a novel touch screen concept which enables the crew of single and dual pilot aircraft to interact with various avionic systems throughout a flight using a single tablet-like device positioned in front of each crew member. Such a device could be fitted to current flight deck environments and used as an alternative method of interacting with the aircraft, i.e. while retaining all existing controls and displays. The concept focusses on the use of touch screen techniques within each of the following functional areas: autopilot control, navigation, aircraft performance, and systems. This paper describes the requirements, design, and pilot evaluation of this concept (developed to a technology readiness level of 3) and discusses the results.
This paper describes the methodology adopted in designing a quasi-real-time ground-based trajecto... more This paper describes the methodology adopted in designing a quasi-real-time ground-based trajectory optimization tool for use by air traffic control officers. The tool is primarily intended for the optimization of aircraft trajectories during the climb and descent phases in which the user can define the trajectory in four dimensions. The optimized trajectories would then contribute to a reduction in fuel burn and emissions. The designed tool takes
into account different aircraft types and sub- types through BADA performance and engine coefficients. A simple case study for an approach in Malta International Airport has also been
presented to illustrate the use of the tool.
Touch screen technology has already been introduced on the flight deck of different categories of... more Touch screen technology has already been introduced on the flight deck of different categories of aircraft and its use is set to increase with the development of larger displays and the introduction of greater avionics functionality in the cockpit. To date, exploitation of this
technology has primarily focussed on flight and mission management, with applications in the civil environment focussing on relatively strategic functions such as flight planning and system configuration. The next step is to extend the use of touch technologies to more tactical functions of flight such as autopilot control. This paper proposes a new solution for autopilot control of single and dual pilot aircraft, developed to a technology readiness level of 3 (proof
of concept), taking into account the safety-critical nature of the application, standard operating procedures and crew resource management issues. It briefly addresses key system requirements that have been identified at the beginning of the design before presenting the details of the design. It then discusses a preliminary qualitative and quantitative evaluation of the human machine interface and interaction (HMI 2 ) concept using flight crew in a laboratory environment, presenting the outcome and perceived value of the concept.
This paper analyses the increasing trend of using modern machine learning technologies to analyze... more This paper analyses the increasing trend of using modern machine learning technologies to analyze flight data efficiently. Flight data offers an important insight into the operations of an aircraft. This paper reviews the research undertaken so far on the use of Machine Learning techniques for the analyses of flight data by evaluating various anomaly detection algorithms and the significance of feature selection in Flight Data Monitoring. These algorithms are compared to determine the best class of algorithms for highlighting significant flight anomalies. Furthermore, these algorithms are analyzed for various flight data parameters to determine which class of algorithms is sensitive to continuous parameters and which is sensitive to discrete parameters of flight data. The paper also addresses the ability of each anomaly detection algorithm to be easily adaptable to different datasets and different phases of flight, including take-off and landing.
ACARS aircraft communications addressing and reporting system AFTN aeronautical fixed telecommuni... more ACARS aircraft communications addressing and reporting system AFTN aeronautical fixed telecommunication network ANSP air navigation service provider AOC air operators certificate ATC air traffic control ATCO air traffic control officer ATM air traffic management CFOA clean flight optimisation application Con-Ops concept of operations COTS commercial off-the-shelf FDO flight dispatch officer FL flight level FMS flight management system LCO load control officer OCC operations control centre PF pilot flying PM pilot monitoring SID standard instrument departure SOP standard operating procedures STAR standard terminal arrival route TBO trajectory based operations TOW take-off weight UML unified modelling language VHF very high frequency ZFW zero fuel weight ZFWCG zero fuel weight centre of gravity
Cette invention concerne un procede et un systeme, ainsi que des outils d'optimisation d'... more Cette invention concerne un procede et un systeme, ainsi que des outils d'optimisation d'une trajectoire de vol d'aeronef qui determinent un profil de vol avantageux qui prend en compte les conditions de fonctionnement en cours, les contraintes du trafic de l'air et les performances de l'aeronef, de maniere assez rapide pour permettre d'integrer des changements tactiques de plan de vol sans entrainer des penalites financieres ou de fonctionnement excessives pour l'operateur.
2018 IEEE/AIAA 37th Digital Avionics Systems Conference (DASC), 2018
To date, most of the interactions between pilots and avionic systems of commercial passenger airc... more To date, most of the interactions between pilots and avionic systems of commercial passenger aircraft are carried out using physical controls. This paper discusses the evaluation of a multimodal interface which allows pilots to control various avionic systems using a combination of touchscreen gestures (via a single touchscreen interface) and voice commands. This interface was evaluated by eight commercial airline pilots in a fixed-based flight simulator. Although various improvements can be made to the interface, the evaluations successfully demonstrated the feasibility and potential benefits of using a multimodal interface in commercial flight.
2015 IEEE/AIAA 34th Digital Avionics Systems Conference (DASC), 2015
Touch screen technology is already present on the flight deck of various categories of aircraft, ... more Touch screen technology is already present on the flight deck of various categories of aircraft, with the majority of current solutions based on the use of multiple touch screen displays situated on the main instrument panel and/or the central pedestal. This often requires the crew to lean forward or sideways to interact with different displays and makes it harder to make accurate selections, particularly in turbulent conditions. This paper proposes a novel touch screen concept which enables the crew of single and dual pilot aircraft to interact with various avionic systems throughout a flight using a single tablet-like device positioned in front of each crew member. Such a device could be fitted to current flight deck environments and used as an alternative method of interacting with the aircraft, i.e. while retaining all existing controls and displays. The concept focusses on the use of touch screen techniques within each of the following functional areas: autopilot control, navigation, aircraft performance, and systems. This paper describes the requirements, design, and pilot evaluation of this concept (developed to a technology readiness level of 3) and discusses the results.
Touch screen technology has already been introduced on the flight deck of different categories of... more Touch screen technology has already been introduced on the flight deck of different categories of aircraft and its use is set to increase with the development of larger displays and the introduction of greater avionics functionality in the cockpit. To date, exploitation of this technology has primarily focussed on flight and mission management, with applications in the civil environment focussing on relatively strategic functions such as flight planning and system configuration. The next step is to extend the use of touch technologies to more tactical functions of flight such as autopilot control. This paper proposes a new solution for autopilot control of single and dual pilot aircraft, developed to a technology readiness level of 3 (proof of concept), taking into account the safety-critical nature of the application, standard operating procedures and crew resource management issues. It briefly addresses key system requirements that have been identified at the beginning of the desi...
This paper describes the methodology adopted in designing a quasi-real-time groundbased trajector... more This paper describes the methodology adopted in designing a quasi-real-time groundbased trajectory optimization tool for use by air traffic control officers. The tool is primarily intended for the optimization of aircraft trajectories during the climb and descent phases in which the user can define the trajectory in four dimensions. The optimized trajectories would then contribute to a reduction in fuel burn and emissions. The designed tool takes into account different aircraft types and subtypes through BADA performance and engine coefficients. A simple case study for an approach in Malta International Airport has also been presented to illustrate the use of the tool.
A lot of work has been carried out over the last decade to apply touchscreen technology to the fl... more A lot of work has been carried out over the last decade to apply touchscreen technology to the flight deck of large commercial passenger aircraft. In fact, several industry solutions are now available and aircraft equipped with touchscreen solutions will be flying in the very near future. In contrast, Direct Voice Input (DVI) technology is still several years away from entering commercial service on large transport aircraft; nevertheless, it has a lot of potential and can even overcome some of the limitations associated with touchscreen technology. This paper presents a prototype application based on DVI which enables pilots to interact with the autopilot by means of voice commands. This application is composed of a speaker dependent speech recognition module and a command recognition module. The results of an evaluation of the DVI application are presented and discussed in detail and areas of improvement are outlined. The DVI application is part of a bigger solution which is intend...
Touch screen technology is already present on
the flight deck of various categories of aircraft, ... more Touch screen technology is already present on the flight deck of various categories of aircraft, with the majority of current solutions based on the use of multiple touch screen displays situated on the main instrument panel and/or the central pedestal. This often requires the crew to lean forward or sideways to interact with different displays and makes it harder to make accurate selections, particularly in turbulent conditions. This paper proposes a novel touch screen concept which enables the crew of single and dual pilot aircraft to interact with various avionic systems throughout a flight using a single tablet-like device positioned in front of each crew member. Such a device could be fitted to current flight deck environments and used as an alternative method of interacting with the aircraft, i.e. while retaining all existing controls and displays. The concept focusses on the use of touch screen techniques within each of the following functional areas: autopilot control, navigation, aircraft performance, and systems. This paper describes the requirements, design, and pilot evaluation of this concept (developed to a technology readiness level of 3) and discusses the results.
This paper describes the methodology adopted in designing a quasi-real-time ground-based trajecto... more This paper describes the methodology adopted in designing a quasi-real-time ground-based trajectory optimization tool for use by air traffic control officers. The tool is primarily intended for the optimization of aircraft trajectories during the climb and descent phases in which the user can define the trajectory in four dimensions. The optimized trajectories would then contribute to a reduction in fuel burn and emissions. The designed tool takes
into account different aircraft types and sub- types through BADA performance and engine coefficients. A simple case study for an approach in Malta International Airport has also been
presented to illustrate the use of the tool.
Touch screen technology has already been introduced on the flight deck of different categories of... more Touch screen technology has already been introduced on the flight deck of different categories of aircraft and its use is set to increase with the development of larger displays and the introduction of greater avionics functionality in the cockpit. To date, exploitation of this
technology has primarily focussed on flight and mission management, with applications in the civil environment focussing on relatively strategic functions such as flight planning and system configuration. The next step is to extend the use of touch technologies to more tactical functions of flight such as autopilot control. This paper proposes a new solution for autopilot control of single and dual pilot aircraft, developed to a technology readiness level of 3 (proof
of concept), taking into account the safety-critical nature of the application, standard operating procedures and crew resource management issues. It briefly addresses key system requirements that have been identified at the beginning of the design before presenting the details of the design. It then discusses a preliminary qualitative and quantitative evaluation of the human machine interface and interaction (HMI 2 ) concept using flight crew in a laboratory environment, presenting the outcome and perceived value of the concept.
In this paper, a detailed Concept of Operations (Con-Ops) associated with a trajectory optimisati... more In this paper, a detailed Concept of Operations (Con-Ops) associated with a trajectory optimisation tool is presented. Operational scenarios are included for both climb and descent phases. The paper also includes a description of the tests used to assess the Con-Ops and the ATC tool. Finally, an overview of the safety assessment procedure to be carried out for the Con-Ops is provided.
Uploads
the flight deck of various categories of aircraft, with
the majority of current solutions based on the use of
multiple touch screen displays situated on the main
instrument panel and/or the central pedestal. This
often requires the crew to lean forward or sideways to
interact with different displays and makes it harder to
make accurate selections, particularly in turbulent
conditions.
This paper proposes a novel touch screen
concept which enables the crew of single and dual
pilot aircraft to interact with various avionic systems
throughout a flight using a single tablet-like device
positioned in front of each crew member. Such a
device could be fitted to current flight deck
environments and used as an alternative method of
interacting with the aircraft, i.e. while retaining all
existing controls and displays. The concept focusses
on the use of touch screen techniques within each of
the following functional areas: autopilot control,
navigation, aircraft performance, and systems. This
paper describes the requirements, design, and pilot
evaluation of this concept (developed to a technology
readiness level of 3) and discusses the results.
into account different aircraft types and sub- types through BADA performance and engine coefficients. A simple case study for an approach in Malta International Airport has also been
presented to illustrate the use of the tool.
technology has primarily focussed on flight and mission management, with applications in the civil environment focussing on relatively strategic functions such as flight planning and system configuration. The next step is to extend the use of touch technologies to more tactical functions of flight such as autopilot control. This paper proposes a new solution for autopilot control of single and dual pilot aircraft, developed to a technology readiness level of 3 (proof
of concept), taking into account the safety-critical nature of the application, standard operating procedures and crew resource management issues. It briefly addresses key system requirements that have been identified at the beginning of the design before presenting the details of the design. It then discusses a preliminary qualitative and quantitative evaluation of the human machine interface and interaction (HMI 2 ) concept using flight crew in a laboratory environment, presenting the outcome and perceived value of the concept.
the flight deck of various categories of aircraft, with
the majority of current solutions based on the use of
multiple touch screen displays situated on the main
instrument panel and/or the central pedestal. This
often requires the crew to lean forward or sideways to
interact with different displays and makes it harder to
make accurate selections, particularly in turbulent
conditions.
This paper proposes a novel touch screen
concept which enables the crew of single and dual
pilot aircraft to interact with various avionic systems
throughout a flight using a single tablet-like device
positioned in front of each crew member. Such a
device could be fitted to current flight deck
environments and used as an alternative method of
interacting with the aircraft, i.e. while retaining all
existing controls and displays. The concept focusses
on the use of touch screen techniques within each of
the following functional areas: autopilot control,
navigation, aircraft performance, and systems. This
paper describes the requirements, design, and pilot
evaluation of this concept (developed to a technology
readiness level of 3) and discusses the results.
into account different aircraft types and sub- types through BADA performance and engine coefficients. A simple case study for an approach in Malta International Airport has also been
presented to illustrate the use of the tool.
technology has primarily focussed on flight and mission management, with applications in the civil environment focussing on relatively strategic functions such as flight planning and system configuration. The next step is to extend the use of touch technologies to more tactical functions of flight such as autopilot control. This paper proposes a new solution for autopilot control of single and dual pilot aircraft, developed to a technology readiness level of 3 (proof
of concept), taking into account the safety-critical nature of the application, standard operating procedures and crew resource management issues. It briefly addresses key system requirements that have been identified at the beginning of the design before presenting the details of the design. It then discusses a preliminary qualitative and quantitative evaluation of the human machine interface and interaction (HMI 2 ) concept using flight crew in a laboratory environment, presenting the outcome and perceived value of the concept.