Communications: electrical – Aircraft alarm or indicating systems – Aircraft beacons
Patent
1992-05-04
1993-12-14
Swarthout, Brent
Communications: electrical
Aircraft alarm or indicating systems
Aircraft beacons
244 1R, 315241S, 340945, 340961, 362 62, B64D 4706
Patent
active
052707075
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention generally relates to a process for the avoidance of bird impacts on airplanes by means of at least one light source on an airplane generating light flashes wherein a frequency of the generated light flashes is varied through at least one cycle and relates to an apparatus for the avoidance of bird impacts on airplanes comprising at least one light source on an airplane for emission of light flashes, which is controlled by a control apparatus, and a memory in which at least one cycle is stored for a variation of light flashes.
A process and an apparatus for the prevention of bird impacts of this kind is known from European patent application 0 236 267 A2. In this invention, bird impacts on airplanes are prevented by means of at least one light source generating light flashes mounted on an airplane. The frequency of the generated light flashes is varied through at least one cycle. The frequency is continuously increased once or several times at take-off of the airplane in a range between 0.1 Hz and 3 Hz, to then be held at a maximum frequency. It is beneficial to use two light sources during this process.
It proves to be disadvantageous for a cycle to be fixedly predetermined so that when used in different types of airplanes the cycle must be adapted thereto, requiring a lot of effort and leading to higher cost. In this regard, it appears to be particularly disadvantageous that even after adaptation to respective types of airplanes, it cannot be taken into consideration, due to the predetermined cycle, whether an airplane is fully, partially or not loaded at all so that an optimal flash frequency variation, and thereby an optimum of bird-impact prevention, cannot be achieved. Even cycling through several cycles in which the frequency is increased and thereafter is held at a maximum does not lead to a desired adaptation to respective types of airplanes nor to an effective prevention of bird impacts on airplanes, since continuously running flash sequences produces a habit-forming effect thereby reducing safety during operation of an airplane in take-off and landing phases.
It is an object of this invention to provide a process and an apparatus for the prevention of bird impacts which offer an optimal flash frequency for all take-off and landing phases and are independent from a degree of loading and, in addition, not specific to a type of airplane.
SUMMARY
According to this invention, a bird-avoidance flash frequency is varied dependent upon the speed and/or the altitude and/or the acceleration of an airplane.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING
The invention is described and explained in more detail below using the embodiment shown in the drawing. The foregoing and other objects, features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following more particular description of a preferred embodiment of the invention, as illustrated in the accompanying drawing in which reference characters refer to the same parts throughout the application.
The only figure shows a simplified block diagram of an apparatus for the avoidance of bird impacts on airplanes.
DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
A control apparatus ST, in which the variable flash frequency is generated, is electrically-conductively linked to an ignition device Z. The ignition device Z is electrically-conductively linked to an ignition anode ZA of a light source L, which is constructed as a discharge lamp in this embodiment. A power supply device of the light source L is not shown.
For generation of variable flash frequencies which are dependent upon flight parameters the control apparatus ST comprises a memory M, set up here, for example, as a family-of-characteristic-curves F memory, storing values for flash frequencies dependent upon the speed and/or the altitude and/or the acceleration of the airplane (the depicted family of curves represents the flash rate as a function of speed and altitude in an orthogonal system of coordinates, for example). The control apparatus ST is linked to an inco
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patent: 3183480 (1965-05-01), Adler
patent: 4346430 (1982-08-01), Holland
patent: 4384269 (1983-05-01), Carlson
patent: 4475102 (1984-10-01), Troy et al.
patent: 4477796 (1984-10-01), Kearsley
patent: 4736907 (1988-04-01), Steffen
patent: 4964331 (1990-10-01), Halevy et al.
Lepper Werner
Nolte Dieter
Schmees Siegfried
Schulte Peter
Hella KG & Hueck Co.
Swarthout Brent
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