Patent Application
20130133469
The embodiments disclosed herein relate generally to sidestick controller grips which are usefully provided as an operator interface for a variety of apparatus so as to allow an operator to effect various manual control inputs.
Sidestick controllers (more simply known in the art as “sidesticks” or “joysticks”) have been widely used in various industries for control of heavy machinery, construction vehicles, bulldozers, submarines, simulators and of course aircraft. The introduction of sidesticks within the aerospace industry has occurred primarily for military applications, such as to provide pilot control inputs for jet fighters, helicopters, aircraft simulators and remote-controlled (drone) aircraft. Furthermore, both commercial and general aviation industries have realized the advantages of replacing conventional centrally mounted control yokes with sidesticks to provide enhanced visibility of instruments in an aircraft instrument panel as well as increased physical space for the pilots. The use of sidesticks in aviation industries other than military aviation was thus only feasible when the fly-by-wire technology of military aircraft became available for non-military aircraft.
One of the most challenging aspects that engineers and designers face when developing sidesticks for non-military aircraft resides with providing the proper ergonomic characteristics for such sidesticks since their locations in relation to the pilots and the force magnitudes are significantly different when compared to the well-known aircraft control yokes. More specifically, as its name implies, a sidestick is located physically at the lateral console of the aircraft and is intended to be commanded by only one arm of the pilot while a control yoke is located physically in front of the pilot and may be commanded readily by both arms. Consequently, the break-out force and master gradient in sidesticks are significantly lower as compared to conventional control yokes.
Equally important for achieving a harmonic application of sidesticks in terms of ergonomics and handling quality are the comfort and accessibility of important system functions actuators, such as auto-pilot quick disconnect function, priority of control (i.e. take priority of control for the on-side sidestick while the cross-side sidestick is inactive), PTT (push-to-talk) communication functions, and the like. The sidestick controller grips as disclosed herein are therefore directed to providing superior ergonomics and handling quality in terms of operator comfort and accessibility for various system functions.
According to one aspect, sidestick controller grips will comprise a base, an elongate column grip extending upwardly from the base, a head at an upper end portion of the grip column, and a thumb rest surface extending laterally and upwardly relative to the column grip. The thumb rest surface may be supported by a concave outwardly extending support wall which joins the thumbrest surface at a generally serpentine edge. In this regard, the generally serpentine edge may extend generally outwardly convexly from a lower region thereof at the column grip to a convex apex region, and then extends from the apex region generally upwardly and concavely to an upper region thereof at the head. The thumbrest surface may be concave to facilitate comfort.
The head of the sidestick controller grip may include a split face surface defining inboard and outboard face surfaces disposed laterally adjacent to one another. According to some embodiments, the inboard face surface is disposed at an elevation that is lower than the outboard face surface. Inboard and outboard pushbuttons may thus project outwardly from the inboard and outboard face surfaces, respectively. More specifically, some embodiments will include an inboard face surface which is disposed at an elevation that is lower than the outboard face surface so that the inboard pushbutton is positioned in an inboard recessed well defined by the inboard face surface and an L-shaped pair of top and side walls. The inboard and outboard face surfaces may be joined to one another at an aft end thereof, and forwardly diverge relative to one another such that the inboard face surface is at a lower elevation as compared to the outboard face surface.
A forward pushbutton and/or a lateral pushbutton may extend outwardly from the head and laterally from the thumbrest support wall to provide ready pilot control of other aircraft system functions
Some embodiments of the sidestick controller grip will comprise an elastomeric material covering at lest a portion of the column grip. The base may also include a concavely flared palm support surface that can be elongated in an aft direction.
Other embodiment of the sidestick controller grip will comprise a base, an elongate column grip extending upwardly from the base, and a head at an upper end portion of the grip column, wherein the head includes a split face surface defining inboard and outboard face surfaces disposed laterally adjacent to one another with the inboard face surface being at an elevation which is lower than the outboard face surface. Inboard and outboard pushbuttons may thus be provided which project outwardly from the inboard and outboard face surfaces, respectively.
Aircraft or other apparatus requiring manual user control inputs (e.g., heavy machinery, system simulators and the like) may thus be provided with one (or more) sidestick controller grips. When provided in an aircraft, a mirror image pair of sidestick controller grips will likely be present, one being a left-handed grip for the pilot and one being a right-handed grip for the co-pilot.
These and other aspects and advantages will become more clear after careful consideration is given to the following detailed description of the preferred exemplary embodiments thereof.
The disclosed embodiments will be better and more completely understood by referring to the following detailed description of exemplary non-limiting illustrative embodiments in conjunction with the drawings of which:
Accompanying
It will be understood that, while reference will be made to an aircraft sidestick controller, various other uses and apparatus may similarly be provided with a control stick as described herein. Thus, reverence to an aircraft sidestick controller is to be understood to be a reference to a presently preferred embodiment that is non-limiting to its possible end uses.
Accompanying
The sidestick SS1 is generally comprised of an upper head 10, a column grip 12 and a lower base 14 that are configured so that a pilot's left hand may comfortably fit thereon when the sidestick is gripped during use (see
The head 10 defines a split face surface defining slightly convex or substantially planar inboard and outboard (relative to the pilot) face surfaces 18, 20 disposed laterally adjacent to one another. The inboard and outboard surfaces 18, 20 are thus joined to one another at an aft end (relative to the control panel CP) thereof and then forwardly diverge from one another so the former is at an elevation that is lower relative to the latter. The inboard and outward surfaces 18, 20 include push buttons 18a, 20a protruding outwardly therefrom. The push button 18a may for example serve to provide quick disconnect of the auto-pilot and/or to establish priority of the sidesticks SS1 and SS2 (e.g., to establish which one of the sidesticks SS1 or SS2 is capable of providing active control inputs to the aircraft attitude control surfaces), while the push button 20a may be employed as a tactile control steering (TCS) pushbutton (e.g., to allow a pilot to override the autopilot momentarily without disengaging the autopilot to permit the input of manual pitch (vertical speed) changes). Thus, in order to allow a pilot more tactile sensation to identify the correct one of the push buttons 18a, 20a (and thereby minimize confusion as to which of the push buttons is being actuated), the inboard push button 18a is at a slightly lower elevation as compared to the outboard push button 20a due to the differential angular orientation of the respective face surfaces 18, 20.
In this regard, a plane tangent to each of the face surfaces 18, 20 is inclined generally upwardly and forwardly (relative to the control panel CP) at different angles. The angle of inclination of the inboard face surface 18 relative to a horizontal plane is less than that of the outboard face surface. Moreover, the angular difference relative to a horizontal plane between the inboard and outboard face surfaces 18, 20 is such that the planar top surfaces of the push buttons 18a, 20a extending outwardly from the face surfaces 18, 20, respectively, form an angle of therebetween of about 10° to about 15°, more preferably about 13° (±about 0.25°).
In use, a pilot will grasp the sidestick SS1 so that the pilot's palm is placed physically against the column grip 12 with the thumb positioned on and supported by the thumbrest surface 16. The pilot will then be capable of manipulating the thumb and fingers so as to access various system push buttons presented by the sidestick SS1. It will be observed in this regard that the inboard push button 18a is located essentially in an inboard recessed well defined by the face surface 18 and the L-shaped top and side walls 18b, 18c joining the lower inboard face wall 18 to the upper outboard face wall 20. As is seen, the side wall 18c tapers from its junction with the top wall 18b in an aft direction to the juncture of the inboard and outboard face surfaces 18, 20 so as to be generally triangularly shaped (although having a slight convexly arcuate configuration). The recessed well defined by the walls 18b, 18c is thus open on its inboard (pilot) side to allow the pilot's thumb to be moved easily from the thumbrest surface 16 for access and activation of the push button 18a. Similarly, the pilot's thumb may be suitably positioned to allow for access and activation of the push button 20a protruding from the outboard face surface 20, in which case the lower elevation of the inboard face surface 18 relative to the outboard face surface 20 provides the pilot with tactile feed-back of thumb positioning.
The sidestick SS1 also includes additional push buttons 22, 24. By way of example, the push button 22 may be provided as a push-to-talk (PTT) communication switch to allow radio communication when depressed, while the push button 24 may be provided as an enhanced vision switch (EVS) to allow the pilot to select enhanced vision (e.g., either synthetic vision or infrared vision) displayed on the instrumentation of the cockpit control panel CP. The push button 22 protrudes outwardly and forwarding (relative to the control panel CP) so as to be manipulated by the pilots index (second) finger. The push button 24 protrudes outwardly and laterally downwardly from the thumbrest support wall 16b so as to be manipulated by the pilot's middle (third) finger.
A lower concavely flared palm support surface 14a is provided at the lower base 14 so as to provide a palm rest for the pilot's hand. As shown, for example in
The external surface of the sidestick can be provided with any suitable tactile-enhancing material. By way of example, as shown by the embodiment depicted in
While the invention has been described in connection with what is presently considered to be the most practical and preferred embodiment, it is to be understood that the invention is not to be limited to the disclosed embodiment, but on the contrary, is intended to cover various modifications and equivalent arrangements included within the spirit and scope thereof.
This application is related to commonly owned U.S. Design application Ser. No. 29/______ (Atty. Dkt. No. BHD-4439-113) filed concurrently herewith, the entire content of such application being hereby expressly incorporated hereinto by reference in its entirety.
