Reduces Aircraft Response Delay by 30-40%: New Highly Sensitive Aircraft Control System Created at MAI

Pilots will not need retraining — the algorithm will remain the same

A fundamentally new approach to aircraft control has been developed at the Moscow Aviation Institute (MAI). It reduces the aircraft's reaction time to pilot actions by 30-40%. The new technology is based on replacing the traditional method of measuring control stick movement.

The pilot has to constantly anticipate the aircraft's reaction to their lever input, especially in precise control tasks. The greater the reaction delay, the greater the crew's workload, which exacerbates the situation in critical situations. Our development reduces such risks and improves flight safety.
Evgeny Efremov, Associate Professor at the Department of Aerodynamics, Dynamics and Aircraft Control at MAI, stated

Instead of measuring the distance the stick has deflected, the new development proposes recording the force applied to it. The electronic control system registers the pilot's force on the stick as soon as it appears. This significantly reduces the machine's response delay by 30-40% and improves piloting safety.

Most modern aircraft are equipped with digital control systems with complex algorithms. Various filters designed to ensure the accuracy of data collection by sensors, and other features of the systems, lead to the fact that the aircraft reacts to the pilot's actions with a delay, which is called equivalent lag. It is aggravated by the fact that today most aircraft react to how far the pilot has moved the control column or side stick — that is, the system waits until the control stops and locks in the desired position. This leads to additional response delays of fractions of a second.
MAI Press Service

Currently, the development is at the prototype stage. Representatives of aircraft manufacturing companies have already familiarized themselves with the new product and expressed interest. It is expected that the introduction of the new control system may occur on one of the modifications of Russian civil aircraft. At the same time, pilots will not need retraining, as their work algorithm will remain the same.

Earlier, www1.ru reported that MAI presented a drone control system with signal compensation.

Read materials on the topic:

No expiration date: MAI creates engine for spacecraft with almost unlimited service life

Folding and fast: the world's first multi-tasking modular drone F1 created at MAI

«Non-tiring» drone for monitoring objects with limited access created at MAI

Sources
TASS

Now on home