Abstract

International audience To sustain the rapidly increasing air traffic demand, the future air traffic management system will rely on a concept, called Trajectory-Based Operations (TBO), that will require aircraft to follow an assigned 4D trajectory (time-constrained trajectory) with high precision. TBO involves separating aircraft via strategic (long-term) trajectory deconfliction rather than the currently-practicing tactical (short-term) conflict resolution. In this context, this chapter presents a strategic trajectory planning approach aiming at minimizing the number of conflicts between aircraft trajectories for a given day. The proposed methodology allocates an alternative departure time, a horizontal flight path, and a flight level to each aircraft at a nation-wide scale.In real-life situations, aircraft may arrive at a given position with some uncertainties on its curvilinear abscissa due to external events. To ensure robustness of the strategic trajectory plan, the aircraft arrival time to any given position will be represented here by a probabilistic distribution over its nominal assigned arrival time.The proposed approach optimizes the 4D trajectory of each aircraft so as to minimize the probability of potential conflicts between trajectories. A hybrid-metaheuristic optimization algorithm has been developed to solve this large-scale mixed-variable optimization problem. The algorithm is implemented and tested with real air traffic data taking into account uncertainty over the French airspace for which a conflict-free and robust 4D trajectory plan is produced. Document type: Part of book or chapter of book

Abstract

In this paper we present a case study of how design sketching can be used as a technique for exploring and creating a common understanding between users, designers and software developers, of the representation design requirements for supporting spatial-temporal reasoning in Air Traffic Control (ATC). The safe and expeditious control of aircraft requires the ATC controller to think in terms of 3D air space, and also plan ahead in time. We refer to this mental process as spatial-temporal reasoning. ATC is a 4D (3D plus time) problem but is currently supported by 2D tools such as the Plan Position Indicator-type radar displays that are seen in ATC centres. This requires the air traffic controllers to construct mental models of the air traffic situation to ensure safe vertical and horizontal separations between moving aircraft, and also expedite traffic flow. These objectives require prediction of traffic patterns and potential bottlenecks. To explain how we used design sketching, we report on the Task Analysis of an exemplar ATC task, and the characterisation of this task in spatial-temporal terms, and how the Ecological Interface Design principle of visualisation of constraints was applied to guide the development of the 4D visual form of the representation design. Document type: Part of book or chapter of book

Abstract

International audience To sustain the continuously increasing air traffic demand, the future air traffic management system will rely on a so-called trajectory based operations concept that will increase air traffic capacity by reducing the controllers’ workload. This will be achieved by transferring tactical conflict detection and resolution tasks to the strategic planning phase. In this future air traffic management paradigm context, this paper presents a methodology to address such trajectory planning at nation-wide and continent scale. The pro-posed methodology aims at minimizing the global interaction between aircraft trajectories by allocating alternative departure times, alternative horizontal flight paths, and alternative flight levels to the trajectories involved in the interaction. To improve robustness of the strategic trajectory planning, un-certainty of aircraft position and aircraft arrival time to any given position on the trajectory are considered. This paper presents a mathematical formulation of this strategic trajectory planning problem leading to a mixed-integer optimization problem, whose objective function relies on the new concept of interaction between trajectories. A computationally efficient algorithm to compute interaction between trajectories for large-scale applications is presented and implemented. Resolution method based on hybrid-metaheuristic algorithm have been developed to solve the above large-scale optimization problems. Finally, the overall methodology is implemented and tested with real air traffic data taking into account uncertainty over the French and the European airspace, involving more than 30,000 trajectories. Conflict-free and robust 4D trajectory planning are produced within computational time acceptable for the operation context, which shows the viability of the approach. Document type: Part of book or chapter of book

Abstract

Employing three-dimensional displays in Air Traffic Control (ATC) has been the object of study and debates for numerous years. Although empirical studies have often led to mixed results, some preliminary evidence suggests that training could be a suitable domain of application for 3D interfaces. Little evidence, however, is available to fully support this claim. We attempted to fill this gap with a project that aims at studying and evaluating 3D displays for ATC training purposes. This paper describes the first steps of this project, by reporting and discussing the results of a study aiming at understanding whether ATC trainees form a three-dimensional image of air traffic and at comprehending what the nature of this `3D picture' is. Document type: Part of book or chapter of book