System and method for real-time classification of NOTAMs messages

Methods and systems are provided for classifying notice to airmen (NOTAM) alerts to a pilot of an aircraft. First, bundled NOTAMs are received during the flight planning process for the aircraft. A domain rules set for a filter engine on board the aircraft is created that prioritizes the bundled NOTAMs based on their criticality. The domain rules set is updated with weather data and day/night visibility analysis. The prioritized critical NOTAMs are stored on board in an electronic database and retrieved during the relevant phase of the flight path of the aircraft. The NOTAM messages are then displayed to the pilot on a graphical display device on board the aircraft.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention generally relates to aircraft communications, and more particularly relates to a method for real-time classification of notice to airmen (NOTAM) messages.

BACKGROUND

A notice to airmen or “NOTAM” is a standard message that alerts a pilot to conditions along all flight route or at a location of interest. These messages are traditionally available in text formats in either a printed or digitized version and they are a standard part of a preflight planning and briefing. However, a standard textual NOTAM summary to a pilot may typically range between 10-50 pages per flight. Since pilots may be under tight time constraints and have additional important duties and checks prior to a flight, it is advantageous to prioritize and categorize NOTAMs. Hence, there is a need for a system and method for real-time classification of NOTAM messages.

BRIEF SUMMARY

A method is provided for classification of notice to airmen (NOTAM) alerts to a pilot of an aircraft. The method comprises: receiving bundled NOTAMs during flight path planning of the aircraft; creating a domain rules set for a filter engine on board the aircraft, where the domain rules set prioritizes the bundled NOTAMs based on criticality; filtering the bundled NOTAMs with the filter engine, where the domain rules set of the filter engine is updated with weather data and day/night visibility analysis; storing the prioritized critical NOTAMs in a retrievable electronic database on board the aircraft; retrieving each prioritized critical NOTAM during its' respective relevant phase of the flight path of the aircraft; and displaying the prioritized critical NOTAM to the pilot on a graphical display device on board the aircraft.

A system is provided for classification of notice to airmen (NOTAM) alerts to a pilot of an aircraft. The system comprises: a source of bundled NOTAMs that is external to the aircraft; a filter engine located on board the aircraft that receives, unpacks and prioritizes the bundled NOTAMs according to a domain rules set loaded on the filter engine; a retrievable electronic database on board the aircraft that stores the prioritized critical NOTAMs for later retrieval during a relevant phase of flight operations of the aircraft; and an electronic display device on board the aircraft that displays the prioritized critical NOTAMs to a crewmember of the aircraft.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

A system and method for classifying NOTAMs for a pilot of an aircraft has been developed. In some embodiments, bundles of NOTAMs are received during the flight planning of an aircraft while on the ground. A domain rules set for a filter engine is created that will prioritize the bundled NOTAMs based on the criticality of their content. The filter engine and its rules set are updated with weather data and day/night visibility analysis. After the filtered engine prioritizes the critical NOTAMs they are packed and stored in a retrievable electronic database on board the aircraft. Each prioritized critical NOTAM is then retrieved and displayed on a graphical display device for the pilot during the relevant phase of the flight of the aircraft so that the pilot does not miss any critical.

Turning now toFIG. 1, a block diagram of a system100for filtering and delivery of critical NOTAMs is shown in accordance with one embodiment. First, a bundle of NOTAMs102along with the domain rules set104are received and loaded onto the NOTAM filtering engine106. The filtering engine106will process the bundled NOTAMs according to the domain rules set104. The NOTAMs will be processed for: weather data108; flight plan processing110; flight phase selection for each NOTAM112; day/night visibility analysis114; taxi route proximity116; and airspace proximity (both horizontal and vertical)118.

Supporting data for updating the domain rules set for the filtering engine is loaded from: a criticality model database120; a day/night database122; a current and forecast weather database124; the flight plan for the aircraft126; and a graphical NOTAMs database128. Once the NOTAMs are filtered, they are packed according to their relevant flight phase130and stored in an onboard retrievable electronic database132. During the appropriate phase of the flight, the appropriate NOTAMs are retrieved and shown to the aircrew on a graphical display device134. The graphical display device may be a certified piece of equipment on board the aircraft. In other embodiments, the graphical display device may be a non-certified piece of equipment used by an aircrew member such as a personal mobile phone or personal tablet.

In some embodiments, the weather processing108includes all meteorological terminal aviation routine (METAR) or equivalent related weather data that is valid for the phase of the flight for a particular NOTAM. This data is processed and used to identify the impact of weather on the flight to include such things as runway visibility, etc. The flight plan processing110includes flight plan details that are extracted to identify the airports, airspace and specific geographic regions that are subject to an individual NOTAM. The day/night visibility processing114is used to identify individual NOTAMs that are affected by the current and future visibility computations. The taxi route proximity processing116identifies specific NOTAMs that are affected by aerodrome elements of the taxi route. The airspace proximity processing118determines both vertical and horizontal airspace restrictions for a particular flight plan based the current aircraft position and remaining aircraft flight trajectory. The criticality module120computes the overall importance of each individual NOTAM based on the importance of all the modules according to the domain rules104. These prioritized critical NOTAMs are then matched with the relevant flight phase112. Examples of different flight phases include: preflight preparation and planning; taxiing; take off; en-route flight; approach; and landing.

Turning now toFIG. 2, a flowchart of a method200for filtering and delivery of critical NOTAMs is shown in accordance with one embodiment. First, bundled NOTAMs202are received along with an unpack request from a user204. The domain rules set for the filter engine are retrieved206from an external domain rules database208. The filter engine then retrieves data from external sources210to update the domain rules set including: a criticality module212; day/night data214; weather data216; a flight plan for the aircraft218; and graphical NOTAMs220. The filter engine prioritizes the NOTAMs222based on criticality. The prioritized and unpacked critical NOTAMs are stored on a retrievable electronic database on board the aircraft224. During the relevant flight phase of the aircraft, the relevant NOTAMs are retrieved226and sent to a graphical display device for the aircrew228.

Turning now toFIG. 3, a block diagram is shown illustrating the creation of a graphical NOTAM database in accordance with one embodiment. First, an external source302provides the NOTAMs304that are matched with regular textual expressions (RegEx)308from a reference RegEx database306. Next, graphical elements for the airspace312are retrieved from a navigational database310and graphical elements for an airport318are also retrieved from the airport data source316. These graphical elements are associated with the text expressions of the NOTAMs314. Symbols for the graphical elements are then retrieved from an airport network centerline database320and a symbol database322. The symbols used to generate NOTAMs symbols324that are stored in an electronic graphical NOTAM database for later retrieval326.

In some embodiments, NOTAMs are monitored, identified, parsed and made available from external sources including: a flight data center; digital messages; international civil aviation organization (ICAO) messages, etc. These messages are received as a bundle and matched with NOTAMs RegEx patterns from an electronic database. Based on standard pattern matching techniques, each NOTAM is classified and associated with graphical elements of airspace and airport networks. Symbols for graphical representation of the NOTAM contents are based on the notification type (e.g., runway closure) and are picked from a standard symbology database containing symbols of affected aerodrome elements. Airport network centerline data is used to map symbols affected aerodrome elements. The centerline of such aerodrome elements may include runways, taxiways aprons, gates, etc. Finally, the textual NOTAMs, the associated graphical elements and the generated symbols are combined and stored in the graphical NOTAMs database. The contents of this database may be updated and/or deleted as necessary.