Karl D. Bilimoria

TL;DR: An Eulerian approach to modeling air traffic flow is advanced and it is shown that analysis and design methods from linear control theory can be applied to this model to yield useful approaches for characterizing and controlling theAir traffic flow.

TL;DR: This approach utilizes the geometric characteristics of aircraft trajectories, along with intuitive reasoning, to obtain closed-form analytical solutions for optimal combinations of heading and speed commands for conflict resolution in the horizontal plane.

TL;DR: Investigation of the system performance characteristics of centralized and decentralized strategies for air traffic separation indicates that system stability and efficiency both degrade as traffic density increases, for all separation strategies.

TL;DR: In this paper, the authors present mid-term and long-term airspace configuration concepts based on literature reviews, workshops, subject matter expert discussions, and field trips, which focus on three core areas: restructuring airspace, adaptable airspace, and generic airspace.

Abstract: Methods for evaluating and implementing air traffic management tools and approaches for managing and avoiding an air traffic incident before the incident occurs. A first system receives parameters for flight plan configurations (e.g., initial fuel carried, flight route, flight route segments followed, flight altitude for a given flight route segment, aircraft velocity for each flight route segment, flight route ascent rate, flight route descent route, flight departure site, flight departure time, flight arrival time, flight destination site and/or alternate flight destination site), flight plan schedule, expected weather along each flight route segment, aircraft specifics, airspace (altitude) bounds for each flight route segment, navigational aids available. The invention provides flight plan routing and direct routing or wind optimal routing, using great circle navigation and spherical Earth geometry. The invention provides for aircraft dynamics effects, such as wind effects at each altitude, altitude changes, airspeed changes and aircraft turns to provide predictions of aircraft trajectory (and, optionally, aircraft fuel use). A second system provides several aviation applications using the first system. Several classes of potential incidents are analyzed and averted, by appropriate change en route of one or more parameters in the flight plan configuration, as provided by a conflict detection and resolution module and/or traffic flow management modules. These applications include conflict detection and resolution, miles-in trail or minutes-in-trail aircraft separation, flight arrival management, flight re-routing, weather prediction and analysis and interpolation of weather variables based upon sparse measurements. The invention combines these features to provide an aircraft monitoring system and an aircraft user system that interact and negotiate changes with each other.