Enhanced vertical situation display

摘要

A vertical situation display system for use in a vehicle such as, for example, an aircraft, is provided. A side view of an intended route of flight may be shown with altitude restrictions, airspace and instrument approach information, a projected flight path and range to airspeed symbol. The system may show terrain, weather, and traffic information along the intended route of flight. The system may be used in conjunction with a navigational display to enhance situational awareness. The system includes a computer, an electronic display device, an electronic entry device, a memory and a database. The database may contain terrain, airspace and flight planning data and may be updatable.

主权项

1. A method for managing an aircraft's vertical flight path in a flight information display system, comprising:
processing an aircraft position and a terrain information in relation to a planned flight path; processing an energy management information to calculate an attainable range of altitudes wherein said attainable range of altitudes is a range of altitudes that the aircraft can attain without increasing the aircraft's kinetic energy from a current position forward; displaying on a vertical situation display (VSD) the terrain information in relation to a corridor along the planned flight path wherein the corridor width gradually increases from the current position forward; and displaying on the VSD the attainable range of altitudes along the planned flight path wherein a top limit of the attainable range of altitudes indicates an altitude profile with a plurality of the aircraft's engines at idle and a plurality of speed brakes stowed and a bottom limit of the attainable range of altitudes indicates an altitude profile with the plurality of the aircraft's engines at idle and the plurality of speed brakes deployed.