Required navigation performance

About: Required navigation performance is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 343 publications have been published within this topic receiving 3477 citations. The topic is also known as: RNP.

Analysis of advanced Flight Management Systems (FMS), Flight Management Computer (FMC) field observations trials, Radius-to-Fix path terminators

Abstract: The differences in performance of various manufacturers' flight management systems (FMSs) and their associated flight management computers (FMCs) have the potential for significant impact on the air traffic control system and as such need to be examined and reexamined. While area navigation (RNAV) and required navigation performance (RNP) procedures and routes are designed according to criteria contained in Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) orders, FMC manufacturers build their systems in accordance with Minimum Aviation System Performance Standards (MASPS) and Minimum Operational Performance Standards (MOPS) for area navigation systems, Technical Service Orders and Advisory Circulars. Despite the disconnect it is anticipated that the resulting performance of the aircraft FMC will meet the procedure design requirements identified in the FAA criteria. The goal is procedures where aircraft operations meet expectations for repeatability and predictability to levels of performance sufficient to support performance based operations in the National Airspace System (NAS). Sometimes, due to the nearly independent development of procedure design criteria and aircraft performance standards, the paths of various aircraft on the same procedure do not overlap and do not match the expectancy of the procedure designer. Studies referenced in this paper such as Assessment of Operational Differences Among Flight Management Systems, Analysis of Advanced Flight Management Systems (FMSs), Analysis of Advanced Flight Management Systems (FMSs), FMC Field Observations Trials, Lateral Path, and Analysis of Advanced Flight Management Systems (FMSs), FMC Field Observations Trials, Vertical Path have shown that these differences may result from any or all of the following: variations in FMC equipment installed on the aircraft; variations and errors in procedure coding in the FMC navigation database; variations in aircraft to FMC interface and associated aircraft performance capabilities; and variations in flight crew training and procedures. The basic FMCs built by the major manufacturers and installed as the core of the FMC/FMS combinations in various airframe platforms will perform differently and this paper attempts to quantify those differences. It focuses on standard performance-based public RNAV (RNP) instrument approach procedures with coded ARINC Navigation Systems Database Specification 424, Radius-to-Fix path terminators (RF), also labeled as RF leg types, and their variations in performance. Criteria currently allows the use of RF leg types only in RNP Special Aircraft and Aircrew Authorization Required (SAAAR) procedures. A Trial Plan was developed and controlled field observations trials were made using eleven test benches at seven major FMC manufacturers. The focus is on RF path terminators used in public procedures at Long Beach Daugherty Airport, California, and follows previous analysis of manufacturers' FMC lateral navigation (LNAV) path conformance described in Analysis of Advanced Flight Management Systems (FMSs), FMC Field Observations Trials, Lateral Path and analysis of vertical navigation (VNAV) path conformance described in Analysis of Advanced Flight Managements Systems (FMSs), FMC Field Observations Trials, Vertical Path. It is hoped that the results of this research will contribute to the eventual acceptance of RF usage in Basic RNP and RNAV criteria.

Pilotage Error and Residual Attention: The Evaluation of a Performance Control System in Airborne Area Navigation

Abstract: : In 1969, by specifically including 'pilotage error' in the error budget for area navigation system certification, the Federal Aviation Administration legally attached economic premiums and penalties to human as well as equipment performance in man-machine system design. To establish the accuracy of use and freedom from pilot blunders associated with systems employing various configurations of displays and controls requires both simulator and flight experimentation. An automatically adaptive cockpit side task provides a saturating level of pilot workload and allows the sensitive, orderly, and statistically reliable measurement of a pilot's residual attention as a common metric for navigation and control system assessment. A simulation experiment employing this measurement system compared pilot performances as a function of the number of waypoints that could be stored in an airborne area navigation (RNAV) computer (1, 2, 4, or 8) and the type of manual flight control system used (normal flight control versus maneuvering performance control). (Author Modified Abstract)

Near-Term Terminal Area Automation for Arrival Coordination

Abstract: As the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) increasingly implements Area Navigation (RNAV) and Required Navigation Performance (RNP) procedures during the transition to the Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen), air traffic control (ATC) operational facilities expect to improve the predictability of arrival operations. Sponsored by the FAA, The MITRE Corporation’s Center for Advanced Aviation System Development (CAASD) explored methods for retaining this predictability for merging traffic. This paper focuses on a nearterm solution which leverages RNAV and RNP procedures to improve predictability of merging arrival operations in the terminal area. CAASD, in coordination with ATC specialists from FAA operational facilities, has developed the concept for a near-term automation capability which calculates the distance of aircraft to a merge point along an RNAV or RNP procedure and conveys this information via an indicator on the terminal controller workstation. The relative position information facilitates early decision making by controllers, which reduces reliance on vectors, thereby maintaining the predictability of the operation. To further develop the concept and define its functional and interface requirements, CAASD developed a research prototype. Using this prototype, CAASD has conducted Human-In-The-Loop (HITL) simulations with ATC specialists. These simulations led to a version of the prototype for which the FAA has requested and CAASD has developed a plan for a field evaluation. KeywordsCRDA; Terminal Merging; Relative Position; RPI; Situation Awareness; Spacing; Traffic Management Coordinator; Controller Workload

Arrival Management Architecture and Performance Analysis with Advanced Automation and Avionics Capabilities

Abstract: This paper describes an arrival management functional architecture that can be applied to the modeling and analysis of the broad range of arrival management operational concepts currently under consideration by the ATM community. This architecture includes a potential for 2 stages of ground-based arrival planning supported by a range of automation capabilities, as well as advanced navigation , communication and surveillance capabilities. The paper describes a methodology for performing trade studies on the operational concepts, and a fast-time modeling capability that is in use at Boeing to support the BCA Airspace Operational Design program. Trade study results are presented for concepts that include a single-stage arrival planning sy stem, Area Navigation (RNAV) and Required Navigation Performance (RNP) with path options, Required Time of Arrival (RTA) and airplane Merging and Spacing (M&S). I. Introduction The evolution of the Air Traffic Management (ATM) system from current operations to an envisioned system such as NextGen/SESAR is postulated to involve a progression of operational change from today’s tactical control by radar to a trajectory-based operation. The definition of trajectory-based operations is still evolving, but it is expected that required airplane capabilities will include 4D trajectory execution with lateral and vertical navigation performance bounds, as well as navigation to a required time of arrival at one or more points in space, and/or airplane traffic situation awareness with merging and spacing applications. This paper describes operational concept options for 4D trajectory-based arrival management, using Flight Management Systems (FMS) capable of RNAV, Vertical Navigation (VNAV), RNP, as well as RTA and M&S. Furthermore, it is assumed that the ATM automation system includes the capability of producing an optimized arrival management plan that maximizes the throughput of a large airport, while enabling the airplane to fully utilize the above capabilities. The authors believe that all of these capabilities could become available in modern airplanes and ground systems in the mid-term timeframe, defined in this work as the period 2013-2018, although work still remains to validate the air/ground integrated solution and operational benefits. The analysis presented here is focused on the use of the RNAV/RNP, VNAV, RTA and M&S capabilities during the arrival phase, starting in en route airspace while the airplane is still in cruise, through the initial descent to the TRACON meter fix and through TRACON airspace to the arrival runway. The paper assumes an arrival management process that is consistent with the current FAA automation architecture for Time-Based Metering, and with the capabilities of the NASA Center-TRACON Automation System (CTAS) that are designed to optimize traffic flow to the TRACON Meter Fix, i.e. the Traffic Management Advisor (TMA) and En Route Descent Advisor (EDA) 1-2 . Additionally, the paper assumes the use of an advanced automation capability for efficient operations through the TRACON that supports the airplane capabilities described above. The paper will make references to the use of these particular capabilities, but acknowledges that many other similar capabilities are already in use or under development by other Air Traffic Service (ATS) providers, and are expected to also evolve towards 4D trajectorybased operations.

Method of protecting an aircraft by signalling against the risks of collision with the terrain in procedures with reduced protection corridor

Abstract: Described is a method of protecting an aircraft in approach by signalling against risks of collision with a terrain in steep-sided environments in order to avoid unwanted warnings emanating from clearance sensors of the on-board TAWS (Terrain Awareness and Warning System) while protecting the aircraft when the aircraft fails to observe a published procedure which includes a landing procedure and a take-off procedure. The method, in some embodiments, includes modifying characteristics of at least one of the clearance sensors according to the position deviation of the aircraft relative to a published RNP (Required Navigation Performance) trajectory.