Page 29 - AAA MARCH - APRIL 2015 Online Magazine

FEATURE AviATion TEchnology

The 777X which is scheduled to enter for presentation of On-board Information
service in 2020 and the 737 MAX whose System (OIS) data. On the A350XWB, all
deliveries begin in 2017, will have flight this information is displayed on six large
decks with five and four configurable 15” 15” displays and unlike in the A380, all
landscape LCDs, respectively. the displays can be used to present both
Rockwell Collins which supplies the types of information. With the ability to
15” displays to Boeing, is also offering display all types of information on any
its Boeing 757/767 large-format display of screens, failure of a particular screen
flight deck retrofit, where six cathode can be handled by reconfiguring one of
ray tube (CRT) displays and a number the other displays.
of analog instruments will be replaced The increased display commonality
by three large-format LCDs. The Boeing will further reduce the time required for
757/767 flight deck retrofit will also qualifying pilots between different types
result in the display’s being able to from the same aircraft manufacturer,
present engine-indicating and crew- reducing training costs and optimising
alerting system (EICAS) reports. The new the use of aircraft and crew. To transition
displays also afford a 150-pound flight to a 787, it takes as few as five days for
deck weight reduction and help tackle a 777 pilot and eight days for 757 and
CRT obsolescence. The Boeing 757/767 767 pilots. Airbus has already received
flight deck retrofit will further enhance regulatory approval for Common Type
cockpit commonality with 787 Dreamliner Rating pilot training between A350XWB
and 737 MAX aircraft, and help reduce and A330, reducing pilot training time
training and maintenance costs for to eight days. Airbus designed the
operators who will operate these types. A350XWB cockpit as an evolution to the
The A350XWB is the first Airbus A380, an A380 pilot will need just minimal
jetliner to feature large format displays amounts of training to be able to transfer
in the cockpit and showcases the benefits to the new layout and functions of the
of the larger displays when compared to A350 XWB.
the A380. The flight deck on the A380
features ten main screens, avionics-
related information is presented on eight
of them and two displays are dedicated

The European One Display for a Cockpit Interactive Solution (ODICIS) project, in its report, identified the following trends
in cockpit evolution:
• Rationalisation of cockpits equipment by reducing the Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen) or Clean
number of dedicated input media/output devices and Sky. SESAR lists a number of research and development
processing platforms; (R&D) items in its master plan that will lead to the
• Optimising the usage of available input media/output introduction of new functions such as 4D trajectory, airport
devices; navigation system and synthetic vision on aircraft. Clean Sky
• Improving system availability and fault tolerance; is expected to create a need for the requisite new mission
• Increasing the size of displays/reducing their number management functions to support green operations. The
(current standards); integration of these new applications on current cockpit
• Towards paperless cockpits, as ‘zero paper’ in offices: The displays, will saturate the crew with information due to the
Electronic Flight Bag (EFB) is a consequence of this new limited size of the cockpit displays. In addition, the report
concept. said “the cockpit interface will typically be redesigned
several times over the course of an aircraft’s operational life
According to the report, aircraft cockpits of tomorrow will to add new functions and address equipment obsolescence,
need to cater for new sky policies driven by concepts such which is becoming a major through life cost driver.”
as Single European Sky ATM Research (SESAR), Next

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