Voice Activated Cockpit Management Systems, VACMS NextGen, from simple to complex architectures

Technological advances (GPWS, TCAS, FMS, WAAS, ESV, ADS-B) improved flight safety but engendered more complexity and increased pilot/computer interaction and workload with aviation accident rate unchanged for the past decade. Cockpit interactions would be safer and more efficient thorugh Voice Communication. Though Voice Recognition systems are becoming widely used, in flight environment conditions usage has been limited due to the unique challenges of elevated noise levels, specific cockpit lexicon, limited cockpit hardware, and lack of standardization. SouthernAir Aviation Inc. has developed a NextGen Voice Activated Cockpit Management system with applications for flight procedures, emergency procedures, control of aircraft systems and flight management systems. From simple to complex architectures, the system syncronizes software applications and aircraft systems in a unified model of both language and safety critical development environment to voice activate functions using NextGen Voice Recognition with heuristic pilot response. Procedures are enabled through wireless Bluetooth connection or wired communication. Additional tools of the system include a novel HMM Model comprising a decision management algorithm and synthetic lexicon for parsing and contiguous recognition. All the performance requirements are met within a 2% time-slice of a 700MHz Power PC processor and within 1 GB of memory. Unique key capabilities include: Automatic Lexicon Development, Phonetic Distance Analysis, Coarticulation Handling, Accent Tolerability. The NextGen advanced performance relies on allophone parsing and reduced recognition error with data processing in real-time, ideal for critical emergency situations. This system is remarkable in that it achieves very high recognition rates (98%) with a very large command set (131,000 unique words and thousands of word combinations). We gratefully acknowledge NASA SBIR Phase I Support.

Immediate NASA applications of our Voice Activated Cockpit Management Systems are: flight management testing, cockpit simulation and certification studies of the Aeronautics and Human-In-The-Loop Programs at NASA Langley Research Center, and potential for cockpit integration of voice function into rotary wing, and high speed wing vehicles with applicability into the studies developed by the Airspace Systems and the Aeronautics Test Programs in addition to the fixed-wing vehicle cockpit of the Aviation Safety Program at NASA ARMD Center. Applications of SAA Inc. Voice Recognition Technology and Voice Activated Cockpit Management Systems to NASA Technology Taxonomy Mapping includes Air Transportation and Safety, Autonomous Systems and Autonomous Control, Attitude Determination and Control, Avionics Control and Monitoring, Command and Control, Computer Systems Architectures, Condition Monitoring, Knowledge Management, Operating Systems, Process Monitoring and Control, Sequencing and Scheduling, Transport/Traffic Control.

Non-NASA Commercial and General Aviation Applications of NextGen SAA Inc. Voice Activated Cockpit Management Systems into small, medium and large aircraft include Voice Activated NextGen - Emergency Systems; - Instrument Systems (ILS, LOC, GPS, RNAV) and TACAN Control; - Communications Systems Control; - Frequency Selection; - Targeting and Assignment; - Flight Plan Entry and Automated Navigation Control; - Autopilot Control; - Automated Weather Control; - System Information Requests and Control; - Lights Control; - Transponder entry and Control to name a few. All these applications entitle development of additional Software and Product upgrades via SD storage cards. Non-NASA Federal Government Applications of NextGen Voice Activated Cockpit Management Systems developed by SAA Inc. include DOD and FAA Flight Training Programs, Education Programs, and Mission Programs including aircraft fleet. Some education management applications include: Public School Students and University Students. Voice Activated Cockpit Management Systems advance the boundaries of aeronautical knowledge for the benefit of the Nation and the broad aeronautics community: partners in academia, industry, and government agencies. Our integrated systems interface with multiple emerging applications and revolutionary concepts enabling radical change to both the airspace system and the aircraft through advanced levels of automated support and efficiency to support the NextGen vision.

This is a mature technology (TRL 7) — the realistic path in is usually NASA's Technology Transfer Program: licensing an existing NASA patent, or a Space Act Agreement to use NASA facilities/expertise directly. NASA also runs a startup licensing program with no upfront fee for companies formed to commercialize a specific NASA technology.

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