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dc.contributor.advisorR. John Hansman.en_US
dc.contributor.authorSiegel, Dianaen_US
dc.contributor.otherMassachusetts Institute of Technology. Dept. of Aeronautics and Astronautics.en_US
dc.date.accessioned2012-07-02T15:43:09Z
dc.date.available2012-07-02T15:43:09Z
dc.date.copyright2012en_US
dc.date.issued2012en_US
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/71462
dc.descriptionThesis (S.M.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Aeronautics and Astronautics, 2012.en_US
dc.descriptionCataloged from PDF version of thesis.en_US
dc.descriptionIncludes bibliographical references (p. 207-208).en_US
dc.description.abstractAccidents due to engine failure, pilot disorientation or pilot incapacitation occur far more frequently in general aviation than in commercial aviation, yet general aviation aircraft are equipped with less safety-enhancing features than commercial aircraft. This thesis presents the design of an emergency autoland system that includes automatic landing site selection, guidance to the selected landing site and guidance along the final approach, in addition to the automatic landing capability provided by conventional autoland systems. The proposed system builds on the capability of a general aviation autopilot, flight management system and GPS/WAAS augmented, integrated navigation system. The system provides this automatic landing capability without the use of automatic throttle control and without the use of a radar altimeter, which are essential to conventional autoland systems, but are typically lacking on general aviation aircraft. The design addresses the challenge of no automatic throttle control by utilizing only two simple power settings: cruise power and zero power. The lack of radar altimeter is addressed by appropriate flare planning and placement of the target touchdown point. The approach from the point of autoland initiation, to the approach fix at the the landing site, is performed at cruise power, provided that power is available. The final approach from the approach fix to touchdown, is performed at zero power. Control of the touchdown point location during the final approach is achieved through adjustment of the length of the trajectory, whenever the aircraft's glide performance deviates from the expected performance. The aircraft's glide performance is measured online as the aircraft tracks the planned trajectory. The performance of the final design is evaluated in simulation in terms of touchdown point dispersion, sink rate and attitude on touchdown.en_US
dc.description.statementofresponsibilityby Diana Siegel.en_US
dc.format.extent208 p.en_US
dc.language.isoengen_US
dc.publisherMassachusetts Institute of Technologyen_US
dc.rightsM.I.T. theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed from this source for any purpose, but reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission. See provided URL for inquiries about permission.en_US
dc.rights.urihttp://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/7582en_US
dc.subjectAeronautics and Astronautics.en_US
dc.titleDevelopment of an autoland system for general aviation aircraften_US
dc.typeThesisen_US
dc.description.degreeS.M.en_US
dc.contributor.departmentMassachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics
dc.identifier.oclc795183424en_US


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