Technical field
The present invention relates to a system and a method for a vehicular display
system.
The present invention relates in particular to a system and a method for a
vehicular display system associated to avionics.
Furthermore, the invention relates to software adapted to perform steps of the
display method when executed on a computer.
Background of the Invention
In control systems of today, developments in digital technology have enabled
complex functionality. However as a direct result from the development, the need
of additional system capacity and functionality provided by software and various
components such as sensors, processors, display systems, data buses and memory
units is increasing.
Real-time systems for critical control applications, wherein typically data from
sensor/s are acquired, communicated and processed to provide a control signal to
an actuator pose strict demands regarding bandwidth, data delivery time,
redundancy, fail-safety and integrity. Failure to meet one or several of these
demands can in applications including "brake-by-wire" or "steer-by-wire" prove
potentially dangerous.
One such area wherein reliable high-speed real-time execution and
communication of data is of outmost importance is within avionics systems.
Advances in technology during late 1960 and early 1970 made it necessary to
share information between different avionics subsystems in order to reduce the
number of functional modules. A single sensor such as a position sensor provided
information to for example weapon systems, display system, autopilot and
navigation system.
The possibilities gained by the development within the field of computer
technology have also increased the amount of processed data available to a pilot
containing situation awareness information, relevant for decision making. This in
combination with presentation of flight critical data, related to for example
navigation, adds to the number of interactive presentations that are necessary
and/or desired to provide in a cockpit display system.
Operating an aerial vehicle based on interacting with avionics arranged to control
the operations of the aerial vehicle in a safe fashion typically require access to
the flight critical data such as for example data associated to an altimeter, attitude
indicator, heading indicator, and airspeed indicator. Operators typically depend
upon the flight critical data and data provided from other instruments to provide
the information necessary for controlling the aerial vehicle under all stages of
flight. Access to the flight critical data is particularly important during operations
when visibility is limited and when the pilot does not have a horizon, a view of
land, or any other visual references. Hence, a failure to provide the flight critical
data to the operator during any stage of flight could prove disastrous. In order to
assure safe operations of the aerial vehicle the display system typically comprise
some sort of built in redundancy mechanism to enable displaying the flight
critical data in the event of a failure of the display system.
However, the display systems according to prior art tends to require complex
redundancy configurations in order to provide for an operator interacting with
avionics via the display systems in a safe fashion.
Accordingly, there is a need to present improvements in the art of avionics and
displays.
Objective of the Invention
It is therefore an objective of the present invention to provide a system, a method
and a computer program performing said method, that require less hardware to
implement and which improves safety concerning a display system i.e. an
interface between an operator and avionics.
Summary of the Invention
This objective is achieved according to the present invention by a display system
for interaction between an operator and at least one subsystem of a vehicle via at
least one data bus. The display system comprising: display means comprising: a
physical display unit operable to display flight data,
a display processing device arranged to process information provided via the at
least one data bus related to a set of display attributes associated to a set of
displayable entities associated to the flight data, a graphics driver and a graphics
processing device, wherein the display processing device is arranged to interface
with the graphics processing device via the graphics driver so as to generate a
voltage signal to drive the physical display unit. The display system further
comprises fault detection means arranged to detect at least one fault condition
associated to the display system. The display processing device is arranged to
process a first task set associated to a normal operation mode and in parallel
process a second task set associated to an emergency operation mode and
wherein said display processing device is arranged to activate the emergency
operation mode by transmitting information provided from the second task set to
the graphics processing device in response to the detected at least one fault
condition.
By this is achieved a system wherein redundancy can be assured without using
additional hardware by processing two task sets associated to a normal operation
mode and an emergency mode in one display control computer. Hence,
malfunctions resulting from software associated to the display system or parts of
hardware associated to the system can be handled without using back-up
hardware.
The system is in one option further characterized in that said graphics driver
comprise configurable bits arranged to determine a client data priority associated
to each of the first and second task set, wherein the client data priority associated
to the second task set is configured to be higher than the client data priority
associated to the first task set.
By this is achieved a system wherein it can be assured that the information
provided from processing the second task set associated to the emergency
operation mode is the only information transmitted to the graphics processing
device in response to the detected at least one fault condition.
The system is in one option further characterized in that the first task set is
arranged to interface with the graphics driver by providing information via said
second set task set and wherein the second task set is arranged to transmit the
information provided from the first task set to the graphics driver and wherein the
second task set comprise at least one task arranged to discard the information
provided from the first task set in response to the detected at least one fault
condition.
The system is in one option further characterized in that the first task set is
arranged to perform compilation of the set of displayable entities based on
display configuration information stored on a display memory unit and the
information provided via the at least one data bus and wherein the second task set
is arranged to perform compilation of a subset of the set of displayable entities
based on display configuration information stored on the display memory unit
and the information provided via the at least one data bus.
The system is in one option further characterized in that the display means
comprise physical activation means arranged to activate and/or de-activate the
emergency operation mode in response to activation input information provided
from an operator of the display system.
By this is achieved a system wherein an operator of the system can determine by
visual inspection if there exist at fault condition in the display system and act
accordingly in order to activate the emergency operation mode.
The system is in one option further characterized in that the physical activation
means is arranged to be directly coupled to display processing device and
wherein the physical activation means are arranged to directly provide activation
input information to the second task set.
By this is achieved a system wherein malfunction due to a fault condition
associated to communication of activation information can be handled.
The system is in one option further characterized in that the display processing
device is arranged to process the first task based on information provided from
the control computer via the at least one data bus and to process the second task
set based on information provided from the control computer device via a
separate communication channel.
By this is achieved a system wherein a malfunction due to a fault condition
associated to communication of data from the control computer using the at least
one data bus can be handled.
The system is in one option further characterized in that display means are
arranged to display a minimal display representation corresponding to the subset
of the set of displayable entities comprising at least one display representation
selected from a group comprising at least an altimeter, an attitude indicator, a
heading indicator, and an airspeed indicator in the emergency operation mode.
By this is achieved a system wherein visualization of a minimum number of
display indicators corresponding to flight critical data necessary for controlling
the aerial vehicle under all stages of flight always can be displayed by the display
system.
The system is in one option further characterized in that the display means
comprise a partitioning operating system arranged to divide memory and CPU
time among statically allocated partitions in a fixed manner so that each partition
has a certain amount of memory and CPU time allocated to it, and in that the first
task set and second task set are arranged to be processed in separated partitions.
By this is achieved a system wherein isolation between first and second task set
can be assured in order to avoid a fault condition associated to the first task set to
propagate and affect the functioning of the second task set.
The system is in one option further characterized in that display system is
conformant with ARTNC 661 specifications.
This objective is also achieved according to the present invention by a method
for interaction between an operator and at least one subsystem of a vehicle via at
least one data bus, the method comprising the steps of: processing in a display
processing device information provided via the at least one data bus related to a
set of display attributes associated to a set of displayable entities associated to
flight data, providing the processed information to a graphics processing device
via a graphics driver so as to generate a voltage signal to drive a physical display
unit to display the flight data, detecting at least one fault condition in the display
system. The method step of: processing in the display processing device
information provided via the at least one data bus comprises processing a first
task set associated to a normal operation mode and in parallel processing a
second task set associated to an emergency operation mode, and wherein the
method comprise the further step of: transmitting information provided from the
second task set to the graphics processing device in response to the detected at
least one fault condition.
The dependent claims define optional characterizing features corresponding to
those described in relation to the system.
This objective is also achieved by a computer program comprising a program
code for performing the above described method steps, when said computer
program is run on a computer.
This objective is also achieved by a computer program product comprising a
program code stored on a computer readable media for performing the above
described method steps, when said computer program is run on the computer.
This objective is also achieved by a computer program product directly storable
in an internal memory of a computer, comprising a computer program for
performing the above described method steps, when said computer programme is
run on the computer.
Brief Description of the Drawings
Fig. 1. shows schematically a block diagram of a vehicular display system
according to an example of the present invention.
Fig.2. shows schematically software and hardware architecture of a vehicular
display system according to an example of the present invention.
Fig.3. shows schematically a block diagram of a vehicular display system
according to an example of the present invention.
Fig.4. shows a flow diagram of a method for controlling the vehicular display
system according to an example of the present invention.
Detailed Description
Typically in display systems according to prior art redundancy is handled using
back-up hardware and software. The present invention presents a novel display
system, method and computer program for facilitating designing display system
for critical display application requiring redundancy without the use of additional
hardware requiring less complex configuration, with resulting lower cost and
weight.
The following examples relates to the case where a display system is described
with reference to aerial vehicles. However, various different applications are
possible, e.g. for use in land, sea or space vehicles.
With reference to the drawings and initially to fig. 1 a flight display system 1,
adapted to be mounted in an aerial vehicle is provided. The flight display system
1 comprises at least one flight display 2 arranged to provide means for at least
one operator of said flight display system to interact with systems and/or
subsystems associated to the aerial vehicle, in order to supervise and control the
operation of the aerial vehicle. The flight display system is arranged with built-in
redundancy to provide safe operation of the system in case of a malfunction
associated to the display system. The built-in redundancy allows the display
system to operate in one of two operational modes corresponding to a normal
operation mode and an emergency operation mode. The normal operation mode
may provide a full display representation of flight data using different display
indicators when the flight display system is determined to be fully functional.
The emergency operation mode may provide a minimal display representation of
flight data using different display indicators when the flight display system
exhibits one or more malfunctions. The features of the two operational modes
will be explained in more detail below.
In the shown example with further reference to fig. 1, the flight display system
may comprise at least one flight display 2, such as at least one multi functional
display unit (MFDU). The at least one flight display 2 comprise at least one
display processor 11 such as for example a central processing unit (CPU)
arranged to process data, received via at least one communication bus 4. The at
least one flight display comprises a power supply (not shown) arranged to
provide power to various components of the flight display. As an example the
power supply may comprise one or more outputs comprising an alternating
current (AC) or a direct current (DC) such as for example a 28V DC output or a
5V AC output. The processing of the received data in the display processor 11
can be based on configuration data stored in a memory 12, coupled to the display
processor 11 via a backplane (not shown). The at least one communication bus 4
may be bi-directional and based on protocols such as the Institute of Electrical
and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Ethernet, IEEE 1394 Firewire, MIL-STD-
1553, Aeronautical Radio, Incorporated (ARINC) 664, ARINC 429, ARINC,
Small Computer Systems Interface (SCSI), Recommended Standard (RS)232,
RS422 or other protocols known in the art or any combination thereof. The
received data may be data transmitted from systems and/or subsystem of the
aerial vehicle comprising devices such as for example sensors, remote data
concentrators (RDC:s), video processing units (VPU:s), and/or at least one flight
control computer (FCC) 5 arranged to control functions of the aerial vehicle such
as propulsion, flight controls, payload, hydraulics and power. The received data
may be related to properties of displayable entities. The received data may
comprise for example a parameter associated to a sensor reading, a position of an
actuator and/or a location received by an ADS-B transponder.
The flight display system 1 comprises a fault detection module 8 and/or software
routines arranged to detect at least one fault condition associated to the display
system 1. More details on the fault detection module 8 and/or software routines
will be explained below.
In one example the flight display may comprise an input/output I/O data
processing device (not shown) such as for example at least one data bus interface
adapter arranged to provide data traffic processing associated to data to be
transferred from the flight display and data to be received by the flight display.
In one example with reference to fig. 2, the at least one display processor 11
being part of module hardware 30 of the flight display 2 may be arranged to
orchestrate a Module Operating System (MOS) 20. The MOS 20 may be
arranged to provide a set of services to enable orchestrating one or more
applications within the flight display. The set of services may for example relate
to providing the one or more applications with services related to
communication, scheduling, memory management, and timing. In providing the
services the module operating system may be arranged to interact with module
hardware 30 associated to the flight display by means of a hardware interface
system. The hardware interface system may comprise a set of interface drivers
arranged to provide access to specific module hardware 30 such as for example
the memory 12, the at least one display processor 11 and a graphics processing
unit 35 or any other hardware of the flight display 2. The set of interface drivers
may for example comprise at least a graphics driver 25. The set of interface
drivers also referred to as the set device drivers is a set computer routines
allowing higher-level computer programs such as the one or more applications to
interact with one or more module hardware device.
The one or more applications arranged to be orchestrated by the display
processor 11 of the flight display may be arranged to perform operations relating
to generating graphics. The operations relating generating graphics include
compiling data received from the at least one communication bus 4 in order to
provide one or more display representation. The one or more display
representation may for example be compiled by processing at least one
application of the one or more applications within the flight display based on data
received from the at least one communication bus and based on configuration
data stored on the memory 12. The configuration data may for example
determine a visual appearance of one or more flight display representations. The
mentioned configuration data and flight display representations will be explained
in more detail below. Each application of the one or more applications deployed
in the flight display may comprise one or more tasks, also referred to as
processes. Each of the one or more tasks may denote a logical unit of
computation with a single thread of control.
In one example with further reference to fig. 2 the flight display may comprise a
graphics processing unit (GPU) 35 arranged to perform graphics computations.
As an example the graphics processing unit may be arranged to perform
operations relating to vector and/or raster graphics generation or other types of
graphics processing operations known in the art. The processing of the GPU 35
may be arranged to be performed on data resulting from processing the one or
more applications in the display processor 11. The GPU 35 may be arranged to
receive data from the display processor via a suitable connector to a system bus
arranged to interconnect various components associated to the module hardware
30. The suitable connector may for example be AGP, PCI or PCI-Express.
Output data resulting from the operations of the GPU may be transmitted to a
physical display surface 13 coupled to the flight display via a suitable connection
to the GPU. The suitable connection to the physical display surface may be a
pixel bus. As an example the suitable connection between the display surface and
the GPU may a low voltage differential signalling interface (LVDS), digital
visual interface (DVI), video graphics array (VGA), high definition multimedia
interface (HDMI), DisplayPort or other suitable types of connections known in
the art. The output data provided from the GPU may be one or more generated
voltage signals corresponding to a display representation. The one or more
generated voltage signals is arranged to drive the physical display surface
causing the physical display surface to display the display representation
corresponding to the one or more generated voltage signals.
In one example the module operating system 20 arranged to be orchestrated by
the flight display is a partitioning operative system. The partitioning operative
system is arranged to divide memory and CPU time associated to the flight
display. The partitioning process may be applied to other hardware resources
associated to the flight display. The partitioning process can also be referred to as
"brick-wall partitioning". One or more partitions can be set up for each part of
the system wherein each partition has a certain amount of memory and CPU time
slice allocated to it. Each partition is limited to its initial fixed memory
allocation. The initial fixed memory and CPU-time allocation for a partition can
neither be increased nor decreased after the initial system configuration. Each
partition may be assigned with multiple threads or processes, or both, if the
operating system supports them. As an example the operating system may be
arranged to support time partitioning. In this example the time partitioning may
be arranged to be fixed. In case the operative system is an ARINC 653 compliant
partitioning system assigned with three partitions and a total major allocation of
40 ms per cycle, a fixed cyclic scheduler could be set to run the first partition for
10 ms, then the second partition for 20 ms, and then the third for 40 ms.
In one example the one or more applications arranged to be processed by the
display processor 11 may be partitioned using a partitioning operative system as
the module operative system. The one or more applications with their associated
tasks or set of tasks may be partitioned based on which functionality the
respective tasks are arranged to perform.
In one example a first task set NM associated to at least a first application of the
one or more of applications arranged to be processed by the display processor 11
may be arranged in a first partition associated to the flight display 2. The first
task set is associated to a normal operation mode. The first task set NM
associated to the normal operation mode is arranged to perform compilation of
received data from the at least one communication bus 4 based on a first flight
data display representation. The first flight data display representation may be
configured based on first configuration data associated to the first partition. Thus,
when operating the flight display system 1 in the normal operation mode, data
provided from processing the first task set is fed to the GPU via the interface
driver 25 to cause the display surface 13 to display the corresponding flight data
representation.
A second task set EM associated to at least a second application of the one or
more of the number of applications arranged to be processed by the display
processor 11 may be arranged in a second partition associated to the flight
display 2. The second task set is associated to an emergency operation mode. The
second task set EM associated to the emergency operation mode is arranged to
perform compilation of received data from the at least one communication bus 4
based on a second flight data display representation also referred to as a back-up
display representation. The second flight data display representation may be
configured based on second configuration data associated to the second partition.
The emergency operation mode is arranged to be activated in case a fault
condition exists in the flight display causing a malfunction and/or in case an
operator of the flight display experiences a malfunction associated to the flight
display. Thus, when operating the flight display system 1 in the emergency
operation mode, data provided from processing the second task set is provided to
the GPU via the interface driver 25 to cause the display surface to display the
corresponding back-up flight data representation.
In one example the second task set comprises different tasks than the first task
set.
In one example one or more tasks of the second task set may comprise one or
more tasks that are substantially identical to one or more tasks of the first task
set. As an example the one or more tasks of the second task set that are
substantially identical to the one or more tasks of the first task set may be
programmed using a different programming language and/or different logic
operators.
In one example a major execution schedule associated to the first and second task
sets may be provided. The major execution schedule determines the amount of
CPU time associated to each of the first and second task set and periodic instants
of time determining when to process each of the first and second task set during a
periodically repeating major time cycle. In one example, the major execution
schedule may be arranged to determine that both the first and second task sets are
arranged to be processed in parallel during each of the periodically repeating
major time cycle. The term in parallel is used to denote that both the first and
second task set is arranged to be processed for at least one time slice each during
each major time cycle. However, the at least one time slice for processing the
first and second task set may occur at different instants of time during the major
time cycle.
In one example, in case the flight display 2 is operated in the normal operation
mode data, provided from processing the second task set associated to the
emergency operation mode may be arranged to be buffered on the memory unit
associated to the flight display 2 for a period of time.
In one example, one or more tasks or task sets of the one or more applications
arranged to be processed by the display processor 11 that are associated to I/O
data processing may be partitioned into a dedicated I/O partition.
In one example the fault detection module 8 and/or fault detection software
routines of the flight display system 1 is arranged to perform various system
status test procedures in order to detect at least one fault condition associated to
the display system 1. The fault detection module 8 may be coupled directly to the
flight display 2. The fault detection software routines may be arranged to be
processed by the display processor 11 or any other additional suitable processing
device. The fault detection module 8 and/or fault detection software routines may
be arranged to perform various monitoring operations relating to data received in
the flight display, data provided by processing the number of applications in the
flight display, and/or execution data such as for example execution timing
associated to processing the number of applications. Examples of such
monitoring are cyclic redundancy checks (C C), data range tests, watchdog
timing, wiring fault detection, application task monitoring and or other
monitoring process known in the art.
As an example the at least one fault condition may comprise deadlocks, race
conditions, wiring faults, power outage, invalid data received from the at least
one communication bus 4. The at least one fault condition may for example arise
due one or more of the following reasons: bird strike, fire, combat, component
wear, hardware resource depletion, software error.
In one example the fault detection module and/or fault detection software
routines are arranged to transmit information to the flight display 2 in response to
detecting at least one fault condition. The information transmitted to the flight
display 2 may comprise information indicating that there exists a fault condition
in the flight display system 1.
In one example, in response to receiving information indicating that there exists a
fault condition in the flight display system 1 the flight display 2 may be arranged
to activate the emergency operation mode. Activation of the emergency operation
mode may cause the flight display 2 to transmit information provided from
processing the second task set to the GPU instead of transmitting information
provided from processing the first task set to the GPU.
In one example, the flight display 2 may be arranged to stop and re-initialize
processing of the first task set in response to receiving information relating to the
detected at least one fault condition provided from the fault detection module
and/or fault detection software routine.
In one example the fault detection module and/or fault detection software
routines may be arranged to detect that a previously detected fault condition
associated to the flight display system 1 has ceased to exist. In case the fault
detection module and/or fault detection software routines detects that the
previously detected at least one fault condition has ceased to exist, the fault
detection module and/or fault detection software routines may be arranged to
transmit information to the flight display 2 that the previously detected at least
one fault condition has ceased to exist. In response to receiving the information
relating to that the previously detected at least one fault condition has ceased to
exist the flight display may be arranged to de-activate the emergency operation
mode and cause the flight display to operate in normal operation mode. De
activation of the emergency operation mode may include transmitting
information provided from processing the first task set to the GPU instead of
transmitting information provided from processing the second task set to the
GPU.
In one example the fault detection module and/or fault detection software
routines is arranged to be implemented in an ARINC 653 partition arranged to be
orchestrated by the display processor 11. As an example the second task set EM
may be arranged to comprise the fault detection software routines.
In one example the interface driver 25 associated to the GPU 35 may be a multiclient
interface driver. The multi-client interface driver may be arranged to
receive data provided from a plurality of interface client applications such as for
example the data provided from a first interface client corresponding to the first
task set and data provided from a second interface client corresponding to the
second task set. The multi-client interface driver comprises one or more
configuration bits arranged to determine an interface client data priority level
associated to each of the interface client applications. The term interface client
application herein denotes which of the one or more application arranged to
interface with the interface driver. The interface client data priority level
indicates from which client data is to be provided to the GPU for processing in
case more than one interface client transmits data to the interface driver
simultaneously and/or substantially simultaneously. The configuration bits may
be configured during initialization of the flight display 2.
In one example the client data priority level is configured to be higher for the
second interface client than the first interface client. Thus, in case data is
provided to the interface driver from both the first and second interface clients,
only data from the second interface client is processed by the GPU so as to cause
the physical display surface 13 to display a flight data display representation
corresponding to processed data of the second interface client. In response to
receiving information from the fault detection module and/or fault detection
software routine that there exists at least one fault condition in the flight display
system 1 the second task set may be arranged to perform transmission of the
information provided from processing the second task set to the multi-client
interface driver.
In one example, in response to receiving information relating to that the
previously detected at least one fault condition has ceased to exist in the flight
display the second task set may be arranged to stop transmitting information to
the GPU via the multi-client interface driver associated to the GPU.
In one example the interface driver associated to the GPU is a single-client
interface driver. In this example the first task set performs transmissions of
processed data to the interface driver associated to the GPU via the second task
set. The second task set may be arranged to discard data provided from the first
task set in response to a detected at least one fault condition.
In one example the display processor 11 is arranged to process the received data
based on the configuration data stored in the memory 12 so as to instantiate
displayable entities. Further, the display processor 11 is in one example arranged
to modify properties associated to the displayable entities on basis of the received
data.
The displayable entities may be a number of predefined graphical elements,
and/or grouping elements. The displayable entities may further be static, dynamic
and/or interactive. Examples of displayable entities may be lines, arcs, text,
rectangles, containers and pushbuttons. The interactive displayable entities may
comprise a plurality of internal states such as in the case of the pushbutton which
may comprise several graphically different states related to the when the button
is in idle state, subjected to a marker passing such as a mouse-over or engaged by
said marker.
As an example, a composition of the displayable entities may form a graphical
representation of an altitude meter. The graphical representation of the altitude
meter indicator may comprise a plurality of graphical objects such as a circle
with a plurality of evenly distributed ticks, each crossing the circle
perpendicularly and associated numbering, providing an altitude scale. A pointer
may be arranged to point from the centre of the circle to the current altitude
provided by received data in accordance with the scale. The property of the
above defined displayable entity may be related to altitude, provided from the
FCC 5, which may be arranged to perform subsequent sensor readings of current
altitude. Other properties of the displayable entities may be related to colouring,
size and positioning.
The at least one FCC 5 may be arranged to provide data via the at least one
communication bus 4 at a periodic basis and/or based on detected events, such as
event relating to when subsequent data exceed predetermined thresholds.
The communication bus 4, may in one example be a switched Ethernet network.
The switched Ethernet network may comprise one or more data switches. The
topology of the Ethernet network may for example be a dual redundant topology
comprising two data switches and thereby also comprise two independent data
paths along which data may be communicated to each device attached to the
network.
In one example the communication bus 4 may be a switched Ethernet network
arranged in broadcast mode, based on implementing broadcast address.
In one example the communication bus 4 may be a switched Ethernet network
arranged in point-to-multipoint mode based on implementing at least one
multicast address.
The configuration data stored in the memory 12 comprises predetermined
information relating to predetermined display content, configuration of the
display content and information relating to a communication protocol. The
configuration data may further comprise information related to information for
interpretation of the received data such as a rendering engine. In one example the
rendering may be based on OpenGL.
In one example, the physical display surface 13 is for example a liquid crystal
display (LCD), organic light emitting diode (OLED), cathode ray tube (CRT) or
any other suitable display surface technique known in the art.
In one example the at least one physical display surface 13 may depending on
intended use and/or physical properties be configured as a head mounted display
(HMD), head down display (HDD), head up display (HUD), side display (SD),
data link control display unit (DCDU) or any other suitable display technology
known in the art.
In one example the flight display 2 comprises at least one physical display
surface 13 arranged in a vehicle control station such as in a cockpit of the aerial
vehicle.
In another example one flight display 2 may be arranged in a front cockpit and an
additional flight display (not shown) may be arranged in a rear cockpit of a two
seated aerial vehicle.
The flight display 2 is further configured to receive user inputs via the
communication bus 4 from an operator of the avionics control system by means
of at least one user interface 10. The user interface is for example at least one
keyboard, mouse, joystick, trackball, bezel key, rotary knob or a combination
thereof. The at least one physical display surfaces 13 may further comprise a
resistive or capacitive touch screen layer to enable user interactions.
The flight display 2 may further be arranged to forward received user inputs to
the FCC 5, in order for the FCC 5 to respond to user inputs. As an example the
operator may detect that a parameter associated with a sensor reading of a
specific engine component exceeds a predetermined temperature threshold and
respond accordingly, by providing a command counteracting the condition. The
counteracting command comprises for example providing an actuator of an
engine cooling system with a command to increase cooling efficiency.
In one example the flight display 2 may be assigned to visualising a primary
flight display (PFD) or Navigation display (ND). The PFD may be arranged to
visualize indicators relating to characteristics of the aerial vehicle hosting the
control system 1, such as for example air speed, attitude, altitude and/or magnetic
heading. The ND may be arranged to visualize indicators relating to
characteristics of the aerial vehicle hosting flight display, such as for example
map, flight path and other aerial vehicles detected in the surrounding air space.
In another example at least one of the flight displays 2 may be assigned to
simultaneously visualising both a PFD and a ND.
In one example explained with reference to fig. 3, the at least one display
processor 11 of the flight display may be arranged to process a predetermined
library of displayable entities and a number of configuration files, also referred to
as definition files, stored in the memory 12. The predetermined library of
displayable entities may comprise a predetermined list of displayable entities
with associated descriptions relating to graphic appearance and behaviour. The
definition files may each comprise configuration information relating to a
selection of displayable entities to instantiate with associated initial properties.
Each of the definition files may comprise information describing the displayable
entities, constituting each of a set of layers L1-L3, displayable in the at least one
physical display surface 13 of the flight display 2. By processing the definition
files, a set of layers L1-L3 each comprising one or more specific instances of the
displayable entities may be provided in the physical display surface 13. A
number of display client systems Cl-CN may be arranged to handle the logic of
the displayable entities. The handling of the logic may comprise determining and
providing the parameters associated to the properties of the instantiated
displayable entities during system run-time. As an example one or more of the
display client systems Cl-CN may be arranged to provide one or more of the
instantiated displayable entities with properties related to sensor readings or
positions of actuators. As an example, the logic of one of the display client
systems Cl-CN may be arranged to alter colour of one of its associated
instantiated displayable entities upon detection of an intruding aerial vehicle
breaching a proximity threshold. Each of the number of display client system Cl-
CN may be associated to one or more of the layers L1-L3. Each of the layers Ll-
L3 may be associated to one of the display client systems Cl-CN.
It is to be understood that the exemplified number of layers L1-L3, available to
the flight display system 1 is by no means limited to three. The flight display
system 1 may as well comprise at least as many of the layers as the
corresponding number of available display client systems Cl-CN, determined to
have a need for displaying information.
In one example the definition files may be created using the format extensible
mark-up language (XML), on basis of the A NC 661 specifications. The
definition files may further be compiled from the XML format to binary and
subsequently uploaded to the memory 12 of the flight display 2.
In one example the predetermined library of displayable entities may be based on
the widget library as defined by the ARTNC 661 specifications.
In one example the definitions of the client systems Cl-CN may be based on
user applications (UA) as defined by the ARTNC 661 specifications.
Typically avionics subsystems, such as sensors, actuators, controllers and display
units communicate with each other using standardized communication protocols.
The commercial Aeronautical Radio Inc. (ARTNC) 661, specification is a civil
protocol standard for the definition of a cockpit display system and its
communication with a client system arranged to manage avionics functions. Each
independent client system is provided with a separate layer of a display surface.
The protocol provides a safe implementation for several independent client
systems to simultaneously present data on a single display surface of display
system. Furthermore implementation of the ARTNC 661 facilitates software
certification in accordance with the Radio Technical Commission for
Aeronautics (RTCA) DO-178B guidance document. Software re-certification
resulting from system modifications such as additions of new client systems or
modifications to the existing client systems is also facilitated.
In one example a display server can be provided in the flight display 2. The
display server may provide a set of services related to handling of user input data,
instantiating displayable entities and handling of hierarchy of the displayable
entities on basis of the configuration data. The display server may be
implemented in software executed on the at least one display processor 11 of the
flight display 2. The operating instructions for the display server may be
provided by information stored on the memory 12.
In one example the display server is implemented as the first task set or portions
thereof.
In one example the emergency operation mode can be arranged to modify the
appearance of displayable entities of the flight display 2.
The emergency mode may be arranged to modify the appearance of the flight
display 2 to correspond to a minimum set of flight data indicators and
supervision functions required for continued vehicular operation, in case of a
display failure. The emergency mode may further be arranged to modify the
appearance of displayable entities of a least one of the flight displays 2
irrespective of the visible display objects prior to activation.
In one example the minimal display representation corresponding to the
minimum set of flight data indicators may comprise at least one display
representation selected from a group comprising at least an altimeter, an attitude
indicator, a heading indicator, and an airspeed indicator.
With further reference to fig. 3 the emergency mode can manually be activated
by a pilot pressing an activation button 40 in response to detecting failure of the
flight display 2. Alternatively the emergency mode may be activated
automatically by the fault detection module and/or fault detection software
routine detecting a fault condition as mentioned above.
In one example the activation button 40 may be arranged to enable manually de
activating the emergency mode EM. As an example the operation of pressing the
activation button 40 may be arranged to cause a transition from the normal mode
NM to the emergency mode EM when the flight display is operated in normal
mode NM and to cause a transition from the emergency mode EM to the normal
mode NM when the flight display is operated in the emergency mode EM.
In one example a separate de-activation button may be arranged to cause a
transition from the emergency mode EM to the normal mode NM when the flight
display is operated in the emergency mode EM.
In one example the flight display may comprise the activation button 40 or the
fault detection module and/or fault detection software routines, in order to enable
activation of the emergency mode EM.
In one example the flight display may comprise the activation button 40 and the
fault detection module and/or fault detection software routines to enable
activation of the emergency mode EM, by using either the activation button 40
or the fault detection module and/or fault detection software routines.
In one example the activation button 40 may be directly coupled to the flight
display 2 and arranged to provide information directly to the second task set EM.
Thus the information can be provided directly to the second task set without
being transmitted via the at least one communication bus 4.
In one example the emergency operation mode i.e. second task set may be
provided with a separate communication link to associated avionics subsystems
of the aerial vehicle providing flight data necessary to provide the minimum set
of flight data indicators for enabling display of control and supervision functions.
The separate communication link may be point to point links such as S-485 or
ARINC 429.
In one example the emergency operation mode i.e. second task set may be
provided with a separate communication link to additional components
associated to the flight display such as for example user interface (the at least one
keyboard, mouse, joystick, trackball, bezel key, rotary knob) and/or one or more
light sensors coupled to the flight display system 1 arranged to determine light
conditions in the cockpit in order to safely control a suitable level of backlighting
and/or night vision mode (NVIS) associated to the physical display surface.
In one example, one or more of the components coupled to the flight display
system 1 may be configured to be compatible with industry standard
specifications such as the A INC 661, cockpit display interface specifications.
In one example the display processor 11 may comprise a non-volatile memory, a
data processing device such as a microprocessor and a read/write memory. The
non-volatile memory has a first memory portion wherein a computer program,
such as an operating system, is stored for controlling the function of the flight
display system 1. Further, the display processor 11 comprises a bus controller, a
serial communication port, I/O-means, an A/D-converter, a time date entry and
transmission unit, an event counter and an interrupt controller. The non-volatile
memory also has a second memory portion.
A computer program comprising routines for controlling the flight display
system 1 of an aerial vehicle is provided. The program may be stored in an
executable manner or in a compressed state in a separate memory and/or in the
read/write memory.
When it is stated that the data processing device performs a certain function it
should be understood that the data processing device performs a certain part of
the program which is stored in separate memory, or a certain part of the program
which is stored in read/write memory.
The data processing device may communicate with a data port by means of a first
data bus. The non-volatile memory is adapted for communication with the data
processing device via a second data bus. The separate memory is adapted to
communicate with data processing device via a third data bus. The read/write
memory is adapted to communicate with the data processing device via a fourth
data bus.
When data is received on the data port it is temporarily stored in the second
memory portion. When the received input data has been temporarily stored, the
data processing device is set up to perform execution of code in a manner
described above. According to one example, data received on the data port
comprises information regarding properties associated to instances of displayable
entities provided from for example the flight control computer 5 and/or
configuration data from the memory storage device 12 and/or information
provided from the fault detection module and/or fault detection software routine
relating to a detected at least one fault condition. This information can be used by
the display processor 11 so as to provide a flight display 2 with updated
parameters associated with properties of instantiated displayable entities and to
provide activation of emergency operation mode.
An example of the invention relates to a computer programme comprising a
programme code for performing the method steps depicted with reference to fig.
4, when the computer programme is run on a computer.
An example of the invention relates to a computer programme product
comprising a program code stored on computer-readable media for performing
the method steps depicted with reference to fig. 4, when the computer
programme is run on the computer.
An example of the invention relates to a computer programme product directly
storable in an internal memory of a computer, comprising a computer programme
for performing the method steps depicted with reference to fig. 4, when the
computer programme is run on the computer.
Fig. 4 schematically illustrates an example of a method for displaying flight data
in a vehicular display system. This example relates to provide a flight display
system 1 with means to be operated in a normal mode and in an emergency
mode.
In a first method step SI00 information provided via the at least one data bus 4 is
processed in a display processor 11. This means that information related to a set
of display attributes associated to a set of displayable entities associated to flight
data is processed. After the method step S100 a subsequent method step SI 10 is
performed.
In the method step SI 10 the processed information is provided to a graphics
processing 35 device via a graphics driver 25. In more detail the information is
provided to the graphics processing unit so as to generate a voltage signal to
drive a physical display unit 13 to display the flight data. After the method step
SI 10 a subsequent method step S120 is performed.
In the method step S120 at least one fault condition is detected in the display
system 1. After the method step S120 a subsequent method step S130 associated
to the method step si 10 is performed.
In the method step S130 a first task set NM associated to a normal operation
mode and a second task set EM associated to an emergency operation mode is
processed in parallel in the display processor 11. After the method step S130 a
subsequent method step S140 is performed.
In the method step S140 information provided from the second task set EM is
transmitted to the graphics processing device 35 in response to the detected at
least one fault condition. After the method step S130 the method ends.
In one example in the method step S120 the at least one fault condition is
detected manually by an operator of the display system 1. The at least one fault
condition may be detected by the operator by means of visual inspection. The
operator may respond to the detected at least one fault condition by pressing an
activation button 40 to provide indication of a detection of at least one
experienced fault condition.
Many modifications and variations will be apparent to practitioners skilled in the
art without departing from the scope of the invention as defined in the appended
claims. The examples were chosen and described in order to best explain the
principles of the invention and its practical applications, thereby enabling others
skilled in the art to understand the invention for various examples and with
various modifications as suited to the particular use contemplated.
Claims
1. A display system (1) for interaction between an operator and at least one
subsystem of a vehicle via at least one data bus (4), the display system (1)
comprising:
- display means (2) comprising:
- a physical display unit (13) operable to display flight data,
- a display processing device ( 11) arranged to process information
provided via the at least one data bus related to a set of display attributes
associated to a set of displayable entities associated to the flight data,
- a graphics driver (25) and a graphics processing device (35),
wherein the display processing device ( 11) is arranged to interface with the
graphics processing device (35) via the graphics driver (25) so as to generate a
voltage signal to drive the physical display unit,
- fault detection means (8) arranged to detect at least one fault condition
associated to the display system (1), characterized in that
the display processing device ( 11) is arranged to process a first task set (NM)
associated to a normal operation mode and in parallel process a second task set
(EM) associated to an emergency operation mode and wherein said display
processing device ( 11) is arranged to activate the emergency operation mode by
transmitting information provided from the second task set (EM) to the graphics
processing device (35) in response to the detected at least one fault condition.
2. The display system (1) according to claim 1, wherein said graphics driver (25)
comprise configurable bits arranged to determine a client data priority associated
to each of the first (NM) and second task set (EM), wherein the client data
priority associated to the second task set (EM) is configured to be higher than the
client data priority associated to the first task set (NM).
3. The display system (1) according to claim 1, wherein the first task set (NM) is
arranged to interface with the graphics driver (25) by providing information via
said second set task set (EM) and wherein the second task set (EM) is arranged to
transmit the information provided from the first task set (NM) to the graphics
driver (25) and wherein the second task set (EM) comprise at least one task
arranged to discard the information provided from the first task set in response to
the detected at least one fault condition.
4. The display system (1) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the
first task set (NM) is arranged to perform compilation of the set of displayable
entities based on display configuration information stored on a display memory
unit (12) and the information provided via the at least one data bus (4) and
wherein the second task set (EM) is arranged to perform compilation of a subset
of the set of displayable entities based on display configuration information
stored on the display memory unit (12) and the information provided via the at
least one data bus (4).
5. The display system (1) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the
display means (2) comprise physical activation means (40) arranged to activate
and/or de-activate the emergency operation mode in response to activation input
information provided from an operator of the display system (1).
6. The display system (1) according to claim 5, wherein the physical activation
means (40) is arranged to be directly coupled to display processing device ( 11)
and wherein the physical activation means (40) are arranged to directly provide
activation input information to the second task set (EM).
7. The display system (1) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the
display processing device ( 11) is arranged to process the first task (NM) based on
information provided from the control computer via the at least one data bus (4)
and to process the second task set (EM) based on information provided from the
control computer device via a separate communication channel.
8. The display system (1) according to claim 4, wherein display means (2) are
arranged to display a minimal display representation corresponding to the subset
of the set of displayable entities comprising at least one display representation
selected from a group comprising at least an altimeter, an attitude indicator, a
heading indicator, and an airspeed indicator in the emergency operation mode.
9. The display system (1) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the
display means (2) comprise a partitioning operating system arranged to divide
memory and CPU time among statically allocated partitions in a fixed manner so
that each partition has a certain amount of memory and CPU time allocated to it,
and in that the first task set (NM) and second task set (EM) are arranged to be
processed in separated partitions.
10. The system display system (1) according to any of the preceding claims,
wherein the system is conformant with A NC 661 specifications.
11. A method for interaction between an operator and at least one subsystem of a
vehicle via at least one data bus (4), the method comprising the steps of:
- processing in a display processing device ( 11) information provided via the at
least one data bus (4) related to a set of display attributes associated to a set of
displayable entities associated to flight data,
- providing the processed information to a graphics processing (35) device via a
graphics driver (25) so as to generate a voltage signal to drive a physical display
unit (13) to display the flight data,
- detecting at least one fault condition in the display system (1), characterized
by that the step of:
- processing in the display processing device ( 11) information provided via the at
least one data bus (4) comprises processing a first task set (NM) associated to a
normal operation mode and in parallel processing a second task set (EM)
associated to an emergency operation mode, and wherein the method comprise
the further step of:
- transmitting information provided from the second task set (EM) to the graphics
processing device (35) in response to the detected at least one fault condition.
12. The method according to claim 11, wherein the method comprise the further
step of:
- configuring configurable bits of the graphics driver (25) determining a client
data priority associated to each of the first (NM) and second task set (EM),
wherein the client data priority associated to the second task set (EM) is
configured to be higher than the client data priority associated to the first task set
(NM).
13. The method according to claim 11, wherein the method comprise the further
steps of:
- providing information from the first task set (NM) to said second set task set
(EM),
- transmitting from the second task set (EM) the information provided from the
first task set (NM) to the graphics driver (25),
- transmitting information from the second task set (EM) to the graphics
processing device and discarding the information provided from the first task set
(NM) in response to the detected at least one fault condition.
14. The method according to any of the claims 11-13, wherein the step of
processing in the display processing device ( 11) a first task set (NM) associated
to a normal operation mode and in parallel processing a second task set (EM)
associated to an emergency operation mode comprises the further step of
processing the first task set (NM) arranged in a first partition having a certain
amount of memory in a certain memory region and a certain CPU time allocated
to it and processing the second task set (EM) arranged in a second partition
having a certain amount of memory a certain memory region and a certain CPU
time allocated to it.
15. A computer program product stored on a computer readable media for
performing the method steps of any of claims 11-14, when the computer program
is run on the computer.