Rockwell Collins is to lead a team formed by National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to develop synthetic vision technology.
The synthetic vision information system (SVIS) provides cockpit displays to give flight crews clear views of their surroundings in bad weather and darkness.
The award will fund advancement of the technology for air transport and business and regional aircraft applications.
Collins SVIS will offer enhanced situational awareness, real-time guidance, and predictive alerting as well as improved flight planning capabilities.
SVIS is intended to raise the crew's situational awareness so potential dangers are avoided before terrain awareness warning system (TAWS) warnings become necessary. SVIS is not a warning system and will rely on traditional subsystems including traffic alert collision avoidance (TCAS), ground proximity warning system (GPWS), flight management system (FMS) and displays to provide warning functions.
SVIS is expected to be available for application in air transport and business jet markets within five years. In addition to the LCD displays, head up display (HUD) formats are also being developed.
Rockwell Collins serves as team leader for this NASA aviation safety programme.
Source: Flight Daily News
