Center for Computer Aided Design

Synthetic Flight Bag

The Synthetic Flight Bag (SFB) was developed by OPL under a grant funded by the General Aviation Element of the Synthetic Vision Systems Project of the Aviation Safety and Security Program (AvSSP) at NASA Langley. Many thanks to NASA for allowing OPL to be a part of their great exhibit at the 2005 Airventure.


	Jason and Jim of OPL preparing the Synthetic Flight Bag Exhibit for Prime Time. Note use of STC-approved keyboard tray.

	A crowd at Oshkosh watching a pilot fly the Synthetic Flight Bag System.

	Here is a good view of how the SFB can be a great Situation Awareness enhancer in addition to the certified six-pack gauges.

	The SFB has very high resolution, is daylight readable, and has an update rate of 20-30 Hz. The display features a primary flight display (PFD), a Multi-Function Display (MFD), and a Vertical Profile Display (VPD). Flight planning can be done for every NAV waypoint on earth. Terrain data is also available for the entire world. The SFB has been designed on the basis of extensive human factors research at OPL.

	LCD HUD Technology developed by ATI displaying Synthetic Flight Bag Symbologies.

	Terrain avoidance enabled by Synthetic Vision and with the help of LCD HUD technology.

	The Lumus Near Eye Display has a resolution of 640 x 480, which is very high for a lightweight near-eye display. This state-of-the-art display is a great method to display Synthetic Vision Symbologies such as the ones generated by the Synthetic Flight Bag.

	Data entry is done using a telephone-style keypad that is overlaid on the MFD. Of course the display is a touch screen, much faster than stacked knobs and the like.

	Pitch Chevrons and a curved pitch ladder make it plenty obvious when an unusual attitude is developing.

	The flight path is transparent and takes the aircraft from take-off to the DH on an instrument approach. Guidance is provided with a flight path vector and a guidance cue. A very natural pathway depiction.

	Pathway-based TAWS coloring results in red being painted only where needed rather than everywhere above the aircraft.

	Of course you don't want to point the aircraft at the ground like that. The red colors are TAWS style alerts that are based on the flight path.

	The Synthetic Flight Bag is the blue display on the right. The SFB is a portable device that pilots can take along in their aircraft to enable a synthetic view of the real world ahead of the aircraft. The technology has been designed to be of low cost and high quality, to enable a large population of pilots to take advantage of this SA-enhancing technology.

	Tom talking to a full auditorium about affordable Synthetic Vision for GA. E-mail him at thomas-schnell@uiowa.edu for info on the Synthetic Flight Bag (SFB).

	The LCD HUD developed by ATI is the perfect solution for low-cost Synthetic Vision in GA aircraft.

	We brought a flight simulator that had normal "steam gauges" and the Synthetic Flight Bag as an additional display. The idea was to show how the existing fleet of GA aircraft could be retrofitted with affordable glass cockpit technology without breaking a pilots's piggybank (we leave that up to the aircraft engine when it gets to TBO).