The problem of instrument landing system (ILS) signal interference due to the proximity of taxiing aircraft and large vehicles to antennas could be solved with new electromagnetic field (EMF) modelling software.
Previous software could only produce simplistic EMF models, as anything complex required huge computing power. This has frustrated efforts to determine how close an aircraft could get to antennas before causing interference.
With the new simulation this could be solved and operational rules could be developed.
A group of European researchers, comprising doctoral students in academia and engineers in industry, used modelling techniques to approximate the EMF environment so as to reduce the amount of computing power required.
Previously, exact modelling of electromagnetic fields was used and, as such, simulations could be limited to just one emitting device. The new project combined the two techniques, exact and approximate, to overcome the computing limitation.
“We have modelled an area 5 x 5km [3 x 3 miles] around Toulouse’s Blagnac airport. There are hundreds of buildings and we have GSM [cellphone] communications and ILS antennas,” says Toulouse, France based-Oktal Synthetic Environments’ technical support project manager Sébastian Kaladgew.
His company is planning to approach French airport authorities to offer EMF simulations.
As well as developing solutions to ILS antenna and aircraft proximity issues, the introduction of satellite navigation systems for aviation is another potential application.
Europe’s Galileo satellite system is expected to be certificated for aircraft navigation and the interaction of its signals with other EM emissions in the vicinity of airports will be of interest.
The software was developed for a two-year Specific Targeted Research Project under the European Union’s Sixth Framework programme that ended in December. With eight partners, including the European Commission and Airbus, the project’s total cost was €1.9 million ($2.3 million).
Source: Flight International
