Smiths Aerospace is to supply the video management unit that is key to Airbus plans to equip the A380 large airliner with cockpit door and cabin surveillance systems. The concentrator and multiplexer will allow video from various sources to be presented on the primary cockpit displays, with growth capability for recording and downlinking of imagery.
Initial use of the unit will be to allow the display of video from the A380's taxi aid camera system. This uses four external cameras to provide the crew with views of the aircraft's position on the taxiway. The same unit can also be used to display airport navigation chart graphics and cargo and avionics bay smoke detection video, says Smiths.
"The unit takes a variety of video sources and makes them displayable on the primary flight displays," says Dale Masbruch, director Airbus programmes. The system will handle several video formats and perform cropping and rotation of images. The unit will communicate with cameras and displays via fibre-optic interfaces, he says.
A cockpit door surveillance system is expected be standard on the A380, along with a basic cabin video surveillance system. Smiths plans to respond to an Airbus request for technical information on the cabin surveillance system, expected in February, Masbruch says.
Source: Flight International
