Advanced Air Data Systems for Commercial Aircraft

About this technology

Overview

NASA has been working with Ophir Corporation, of Littleton, Colorado, since 1985 on a variety of remote optical sensing projects. Most of this work has been in the form of Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grants. In the 1990s, Ophir's work with NASA shifted from the weather-related sensors it had been developing to remote sensing instrumentation to measure temperature, humidity, and airspeed. The resulting measurements could be used to improve flight safety. From 2002 to 2004, Ophir worked under new SBIR Phase I and II contracts with Dryden Flight Research Center to provide proof-of-concept laboratory testing of a new approach to Optical Air Data Systems (OADS). Traditionally, air data is measured with several probes that are mounted on an aircraft, including immersion temperature probes and Pitot airspeed probes, as well as with flush-mounted static pressure ports. In this project and in a follow-on effort, Ophir addressed the problem of determining the characteristics of the air outside of the boundary layer of an aircraft. This development included the use of a single sensor to replace the conventional air data sensors that are prone to such failures as icing and the plugging of Pitot tubes. An optical air data sensor now provides the potential for important benefits to high-performance aircraft. These include measurements in difficult aircraft attitudes, potentially higher update rate, and reduced calibration and maintenance costs.