ORDER NUMBER EA-356

AIRCRAFT
RADIO SYSTEMS
By J. Powell
BA, C Eng, MIERE,
GradIMA

Reprinted in India by
HIMALAYAN BOOKS
° New Delhi-110001.

Distributed by:
The English Book Store
The Aviation People
17-L, Connaught Circus New Delhi-110001 (India)
Contents

5 Instrument landing system 69

Preface
Introduction 69
Basic principles 69
1 Historical, technical and legal context 1
Simplified block diagram operation 72
Introduction 1 Installation 74
Historical background 1 Controls and operation 76
Basic principles of radio 2 Characteristics 77
Digital systems 8 Ramp testing 78
Categorization of airborne radio equipments 6 Hyperbolic navigation systems 79
Navigation nomenclature 13
Interference 13 General principles 79
Maintenance 17
Regulating and advisory bodies 18 Omega navigation system 83
2 Communication systems 20 7 Distance measuring equipment 105
Introduction 20 Introduction 105
V.h.f. communications 20 Basic principles 105
H.f. communications 29
Selcal 35 X and Y channel arrangements 110
Audio integrating systems - (Intercom) 37
Testing and trouble shooting the audio The link with v.h.f. navigation 110
systems 43 Installation 111
Controls and operation 112
3 Automatic direction finding 45
Introduction 45 Simplified block diagram operation 112
Basic principles 45 Range measuring and mode control 114
Simplified block diagram operation 4.7 8 ATC transponder 121
Block diagram detail 47 Introduction 121
Sources of system error 49 Basic principles 121
Installation 52 Installation 126
Controls and operation 54 Controls and operation 127
Simplified block diagram operation 128
Characteristics 55
Calibration and testing on the ramp 55 Block diagram details 128
Characteristics 135
4 V.h.f. omnidirectional range (VOR) 58 Ramp testing 136
Introduction 58 9 Weather avoidance 139
Basic principles 58 Introduction 139
Doppler VOR (DVOR) 61 Weather radar 140
Choice of characteristics and features 140
Aircraft installation 63 Installation 146
Controls 147
Controls and operation 65 Operation 148
Simplified block diagram operation 65
Characteristics 65
Ramp testing 67
 Block diagram operation 150 Aircraft installation delay 197
Interface 198
Scanner stabilization 157
Other applications for weather radar 160
Multiple installations 199
Weather radar characteristics 162
Characteristics '00
Maintenance and testing 164
Ramp testing and maintenance 20 0
Ryan storniscope 168
Appendix
Appendix
Sinusoidal frequency modulation 201
Factors affecting weather radar performance 169
12 Area navigation 202
10 Doppler navigation 172 Development of airspace organization 202
Introduction 172 Generalized area navigation system 202
Doppler effect 173 VOR/DME based RNAV. principles 204
Antenna mechanization 174 Bendix nav. computer programmer NP-2041A 206
Doppler spectrum 175 ` King KDE 566 210
Beam geometry 175 Standardization 213
Transmitter frequency 176 Testing RNAV 215
Modulation 177
Over-water errors 178 13 Current and future developments 216
Navigation calculations 179 Introduction 216
Block diagram operation 179 The state of the art 216
Installation 182 The flight deck 217
Controls and operation 184 Multi-systern packages 219
Characteristics 185 Data link 219
Testing 185 ADSEL/DABS 2 21
Appendix Satcom and satnav 223
Relationships between aircraft and earth Microwave landing system 2 24
co-ordinates 186 Microwave aircraft digital guidance equipment 225
The Doppler shifts for a four-beam Janus Collision avoidance 2 29
configuration 187 The current generation of ARINC
The aircraft velocity in earth co-ordinates characteristics 230
expressed in terms of Doppler shifts 188 Concluding remarks 231
11 Radio altimeter 189 Recommended reading 232
Introduction 189
Basic principles 189 Glossary 234
Factors affecting performance 191
Exercises 246
Block diagram operation 192
Monitoring and self-test 195 Index 252
Indicat or 196
Installation 196
Preface
The cockpit and equipment racks of modern aircraft,
large and small, are becoming filled with ever more
sophisticated systems . This book attempts to describe
a certain class of such systems, namely those which
rely for their operation on electromagnetic radiation.
The subject matter is complex and wide-ranging,
hence not all aspects can be covered in one volume
In deciding where the treatment should be light or
perhaps non-existent, I have asked myself two
questions: (1) which aspects can most usefully be
covered in a book; and ( 2 ) at which group of people
involved in aviation should a book covering such
aspects be aimed?
The answer to (1) must be `describe the theory'.
One can, and indeed must, read or be told about how
to operate the systems: how to navigate using the
systems; how to solder, crimp and change items;
how to use test equipment, etc. but proficiency is
impossible without practice. On the other hand
gaining an understanding of how a particular system
works is more of a mental exercise which can be
guided in a book such as this. This is not to say that
more practical matters are neglected, since it would
not help one's understanding of the theory of
operation not to see, at least in words and pictures,
how a particular system is controlled, presents its
information, reacts to the environment, etc.
Having decided the main line of attack the more
difficult question of depth of treatment must be
answered: in other words which group should be
satisfied'.' Pilots need a superficial knowledge of how
all the systems work; maintenance engineers on the
ramp and in the hangar a more detailed knowledge;
workshop engineers must have an understanding of
the circuitry for perhaps a limited range of
equipments; while designers should have the greatest
depth of knowledge of a11. It is virtually impossible
to draw dividing lines, but it is hoped that if enough
theory is given to satisfy the aircraft radio
maintenance engineer then the book might be useful
to all groups mentioned.
The depth of treatment varies, it being impossible
to cover everything, or indeed anything, to the depth
I would have liked. In particular few details of
circuitry are given since I feel most readers will be
more interested in the operation of the system as a
whole. Nevertheless, some circuits are given purely as
examples. Should the reader need circuit knowledge,
the equipment maintenance manual is the best place
to find it, assuming he knows the system and he has
a basic knowledge of electronics.
The state of the art of the equipment described is
also varied. 1 did not see the point of describing only
equipment containing microprocessors, since the vast
majority of systems in service do not use them as yet.
On the other hand if the life of this book is not to be
too severely restricted, the latest techniques must be
described. Within the pages that follow, analogue,
analogue/digital, hardwired digital and programmable
digital equipments all find a place.
As stated previously, the book is aimed primarily
at the maintenance engineer. However, I hope several
groups might be interested. This poses problems
concerning the background knowledge required. For
what I hope is a fairly substantial part of the book,
any reasonably intelligent technically minded person
with a basic knowledge of mathematics and a
familiarity with aircraft will have no difficulty that
two or perhaps three readings will not overcome.
There are parts, however, where some knowledge of
electronics, radio theory or more sophisticated
mathematics is needed. In three chapters where the
going gets a bit tough, I have relegated the offending
material to an appendix. Some background material
is covered in Chapter 1, in particular, basic radio
theory and a discussion of digital systems in so far as
coding and computers are concerned.
If you are one of the few people who plough all
the way through the Preface to a book, you may have
decided by now that this book is concerned with
theory and little else. That this is not so may be clear
if I outline briefly the contents of each chapter. An
introduction saying a few words about the history
and function of the system is followed by a fairly
thorough coverage of the basic principles. In some
chapters the next item is a discussion of the
installation, i.e. the units, how they are
interconnected, which other systems they interface
with and any special considerations such as cooling,
positioning, type of antennas and feeders, etc. This,
together with a description of controls and operation,
puts some practical meat on to the bare bones of the
theory which continues with a consideration of the
block diagram operation. In certain chapters the
order: installation - controls and operation -- block
diagram, is reversed where 1 thought it was perhaps to
the reader's disadvantage to break up the flow of the
more theoretical aspects. A brief look at
characteristics, in practically all cases based on
ARINC publications, and -testing / maintenance
concludes each chapter.
Most chapters deal with one system; none of them
is exclusively military. The exceptions are, in reverse
order, Chapter 13 where I look at the current scene
and review some systems we should see in the next
few years; Chapter 12 which is a bringing-together
of some of the previously covered systems: Chapter 6
covering Omega, Decca Navigator and Loran C';
Chapter 2 which covers both radio and non -radio
communications; and Chapter 1 where some chosen
background material is given.
I should point out that this is not a textbook in
the sense that everything is examinable in accordance
with some syllabus. The reader will take from the
book however big a chunk he desires, depend ing on
his background knowledge, his profession, the
examinations he hopes to take and, of course, his
inclination. Some will have, or end up with, an
understanding of all that is included herein, in which
case I hope the book may be seen as a source of
reference.
Acknowledgements
A number of manufacturers have given valuable
assistance including the supplying of material and
granting permission to reproduce data and
illustrations. Without the generosity of the following,
this book would have been of very limited use.
Bendix Avionics Division
Boeing Commercial Aero plane Company
British Aerospace
Communications Components Corporation
The Decca Navigator Company Limited
Field Tech Limited
Hazeltine Corporation
IFR Electronics Inc
King Radio Corporation
Litton Systems International Inc., Aero Products
Division
Marconi avionics Limited
MEL Equipment Company Limited
RCA Limited
Rockwell-Collins (UK) Limited
Ryan Storm scope
Tel-Instrument Electronics Corporation (TIC)
Although I am grateful to all the above, I must reserve
a special word of thanks to Mr Wayne Brown of
Bendix, Mr. A. E. Crawford of King and Mr. T. C.
Wood of RCA, who arranged for the dispatch of
several expensive and heavy maintenance manuals in
reply to my request for information. These manuals,
and indeed all other information received, were used
in the preparation of this book and continue to be
used in the training of students at Brunel Technical
College, Bristol, England.
I also wish to thank all my colleagues at Br unel
who have helped, often unwittingly, in conversation.
In particular my thanks go to John Stokes, Clive
Stratton and Peter Kemp for proof-reading some of
the chapters and also Leighton Fletcher for helping
with the illustrations. May I add that, although I
received technical assistance from the above, any
mistakes which remain are obviously mine. I would
be grateful to any reader who might take the trouble
to point out any errors.
Finally, my thanks to Pauline Rickards, whose
fingers must be sore from typing; to the publishers
who displayed great patience as the deadline for the
submission of the typescript came and went; and,
most of all, to my wife Pat and son Adam who
showed even more patience and understanding than
Pitman’s.
Bristol,
England J. P.
I Historical, technical and legal
context
Introduction
This book deals with airborne systems that depend for
their operation on the generation and detection of
that intangible discovery the radio wave. Such systems
split naturally into two parts: communications and
navigation. The former provide two-way radio
contact between air and ground, while the latter
enables an aircraft to be flown safely from A to B
along a prescribed route with a landing safely
executed at B.
An understanding of such systems requires a
working knowledge of basic electronics, radio,
computer systems and other topics. A book of this
length cannot provide all that is necessary but it was
thought that some readers might appreciate a review
of selected background material. This is the objective
of Chapter 1. It may be that on consulting the list of
contents, the reader will decide to omit all or part of
this chapter. On the other hand, some readers may
decide that more basic information is needed, in
which case, the list of recommended books will help
point the way to sources of such material.
Historical Background
In 1864 James Clerk Maxwell, Professor of
Experimental Physics at Cambridge, proved
mathematically that any electrical disturbance co uld
produce an effect at a considerable distance from the
point at which it occurred. He predicted that
electromagnetic (e.m.) energy would travel outward
from a source as waves moving at the speed of light.
In 1888 Hertz, a German physicist, demonstrated
,hat Maxwell's theory was correct, at least over
distances within the confines of a laboratory. It was
left to the Italian physicist Marconi to generate e.m.
waves and detect them at a remote receiver, as he did
by bridging the Atlantic in 1901. Other notable
landmarks in the development of radio include:
1897 First commercial company incorporated for
the manufacture of radio apparatus: the
Wireless Telegraph and Signal Company
Limited (England), later the Marconi
Wireless Telegraph Company Limited.
1904 Fleming's (British) discovery of the
thermionic valve - the diode.
1904 First patent for a radar-like system to a
German engineer, Hulsmeyer. Workable but
not accepted.
1906 De Forest's (American) invention of an
amplifying thermionic valve (triode).
1911 Direction-finding properties of radio waves
investigated.
1912 Discovery of the oscillating properties of
De Forest's valve.
1936 The first workable pulse radar.
1939 Invention of the magnetron in Britain.
1948 Invention of the transistor by Bardeen,
Brattain and Shockley (Bell Telephone
Laboratories, USA).
To bring us up to date, in the early 1970s the first
microprocessor appeared from Intel (USA) leading
directly to present-day microcomputers.
Paralleling the progress of radio was the second of
the three great developments of the twentieth
century, i.e. powered flight in heavier-than-air
machines. (The other two developments referred to
are electronics and applications of nuclear physics;
the reader is concerned with two out of three.)
There can be few people who have not heard of
Wilbur and Orville Wright; who designed and built the
first successful powered aircraft which Orville flew
for the first time at 10.35 on 17 December 1903,
making a landing without damage after 12 seconds
airborne. Since then landmarks in aviation, with
particular reference to civil aviation, include:
1907 First fatality: Lieut. T. E. Selfridge, a
passenger in a Wright Fly er.
1909 Bleriot (French) flies the English Channel.
1912 Sikorsky (Russian) builds first multi-engined
(four), passenger (sixteen) aircraft.
1914 World War I. The years 1914-18 saw
 advances in performance and a vast increase
in
number of aircraft, engines and pilots.
1919 Sustained daily scheduled flights begin in
Europe.
1928 Whittle (British) publishes thesis on
jet
engine.
1929 First blind landing by Doolittle (American)
using only aircraft instruments.
1937 Flying-boat service inaugurated from Britain
to the Far East. Britain to Australia took 8
days in 1938, either by KLM or Imperial
1939 Airways.
First jet -powered flight by He 178 (German).
1939 Inaugural air-mail service between Britain
1939 World War II. The years 1939 -45 saw the
growth of world-wide military air transport
services, and the USA established as the
postwar leader in civil aviation.
1944 International Civil Aviation
Organisation
formed at Chicago conference.
1945 American Overseas Airlines operate
scheduled flights over North Atlantic with
landplane (DC 4).
1952 First civil jet aircraft, the Comet 1, goes into
service with BOAC.
1953 First civil turboprop aircraft, the Viscount,
goes into service with BEA.
1954 Previously unknown problem of metal
fatigue discovered in Comet 1. Withdrawn.
1956 Tu 104 first jet aircraft to
commence
sustained commercial service.
1958 First transatlantic jet service by BOAC with
the Comet 4. (PAA's Boeing 707 -120
follows three weeks later.)
1965 First short -haul jet to enter service, the
BAC 1 -11.
1970 Boeing 747 introduced; the first of the
Jumbo Jets.
1970 First civil aircraft supersonic flights,
Concorde and the Tu 144.
From the time of the Wright brothers to the present
day, the non -commercial side of civil aviation, known
as general aviation (business and private) has grown
with less spectacular firsts than its big brother, so that
now by far the largest number of civil aircraft are in
this category.
It was inevitable that the new toys of radio and
aircraft should be married early on in their history.
Later the vast increase in air traffic made it essential
that radio aids, in both communication and
navigation, should be made full use of, to cope safely
with the crowded skies. In 1910 the first
transmission of e.m. waves from air to ground
occurred. Speech was conveyed to an aircraft flying
near Brook lands Airfield (England) by means of an
e.m. wave in 1916. By the 1920s, radio was being
used for aircraft navigation by employing rudimentary
direction -finding techniques (Chapter 3). The
introduction of four -course low-frequency range
equipment in 1929 provided the pilot with directional
guidance without the need for a direction -finder on
the aircraft.
Steady progress was made up to 1939, but it was
world War I I which gave the impetus to airborne
Radio innovations . Apart fr om very high frequency
(v.h.f.) communications, introduced during the war,
a number of radio navigation aids saw the first light of
day in the period since 1939. These systems are
described in the following chapters.
Basic Principles of Radio
Radiation of Electromagnetic (e.m.) Waves and
Antennas
If a wire is fed with an alternating current, some of
the power will be radiated into space. A similar wire
parallel to and remote from the first will intercept
some of the radiated power and as a consequence an
alternating current will be induced, so that using an
appropriate detector, the characteristics of the
original current may be measured. This is the basis
of all radio systems.
The above involves a transfer of energy from one
point to another by means of an e.m. wave. The wave
consists of two oscillating fields mutually
perpendicular t o each other and to the direction of
propagation. The electric field (E) will be parallel to
the wire from which the wave was transmitted, while
the magnetic field (H) will be at right angles. A
'snapshot' of such a wave is shown in Fig. 1.1 where
the distance shown between successive peaks is
known as the wavelength.
The velocity and wavelength of an e.m. wave are
Fig. 1.1 An electromagnetic wave
directly related through the frequency of the
alternating current generating the wave. The law is:
c= Y`f
where
: the antenna. The airborne systems operating in the
c is the speed of light (3 X 108 m/s).
Y` is the wavelength in metres.
f is the frequency in Hertz (cycles/s).
A radiating wire is most efficient when its length
is equal to half a wavelength. Thus for a frequency
of 100 MHz the wire should be
(3 X 10 8)/(2 X 100 X 106 ) = 1.5m long, in which
case it is known as a dipole. In practice many
airborne radio systems do not make use of dipole
antennas since their size is prohibitively large, except
at very high frequencies, and the radiation patt ern is
not suited to applications where energy needs to be
transmitted in or received from a certain direction.
A close relative of the dipole is the unipole
antenna which is a X/4 length conductor mounted
vertically on the metal fuselage which acts as a
ground plane in which a reflection of the unipole is
`seen' to form a dipole. Thus a v.h.f. communication
(comm.) unipole would be less than 60 cm long
(centre frequency of the band is 127 MHz). Two
unipoles are sometimes mounted back to back on
the vertical stabilizer to function as a dipole antenna
for use with VOR (Chapter 4) or ILS (Chapter 5).
At frequencies in the region of 2-30 MHz (h.f.) a
dipole would be between 5 and 75 m. Since the
dimensions of aircraft fall, roughly speaking, within
this range of lengths it is possible to use the aircraft
as the radiating or receiving element. A notch or
slot cut in a suitable part of the airframe (e.g. base
of vertical stabilizer) has a large oscillating voltage
applied across it, so driving current through the
fuselage which in turn radiates. The notch/airframe
load must be `tuned' to the correct frequency for
efficient transmission. Without tuning, little energy
would be radiated and a large standing wave would
be set up on the connector feeding the notch. This
is due to the interaction of incident and reflected
energy to and from the antenna. An alternative type
of antenna for this band of frequencies is a long
length of wire similarly tuned, i.e. with variable
reactive components.
F or frequencies within the range 10-100 kHz the
maximum dimension of even large aircraft is only a
small fraction of a wavelength. At these frequencies
capacitive type antennas maybe used. One plate of
the capacitor is the airframe; the other a horizont al
tube, vertical blade or a mesh (sometimes a solid
plate). The aircraft causes the field to become
intensified over a limited region near its surface.
The resulting comparatively strong oscillating E field
between the capacitor's plates causes a current to
flow in twin feeder or coaxial cable connected across
relevant frequency band are the receive-only systems
covered in Chapter 6 (Omega, Decca and Loran C).
Although ADF (Chapter 3) receives sign als in the
band of frequencies immediately above those
considered in this paragraph, one of its two antennas
(sense) utilizes the principles discussed.
An alternative to the capacitance antenna is the
loop antenna which is basically a loop of wire which
cuts the H field component of the e.m. wave. The
field is intensified by use of a ferrite core on which
several turns are wound. Use of two loops mounted
at right angles provides a means of ascertaining the
direction of arrival (ambiguous) of an e.m. wave.
Such antennas are used for ADF (loop) and may
also be used for Omega.
At frequencies above, say, 3000 MHz the
properties of waveguides may be used. A waveguide is
a hollow metal tube, usually of rectangular cross -
section, along which an e.m. w ave can propagate. If
the end of a waveguide is left open some energy will
be radiated. To improve the efficiency, the walls of the
waveguide are flared out, so providing matching to
free space and hence little or no reflected energy back
down the guide. Such an antenna is called a horn and
may be used for radio altimeters (Chapter 11).
Associated with the wave propagated along a
waveguide are wall currents which flow in specific
directions. A slot, about 1 em in length, cut in the
waveguide so as to interrupt the current flow will act
as a radiator. If several slots are cut the energy from
them will combine several wavelengths from the
antenna to form a directional beam. The direction
depends on the spacing of the slots. Such antennas
may be used for Doppler radar (Chapter 10) and
weather radar (Chapter 9).
The theory of some of the more esoteric antennas
used on aircraft is a little sketchy and design is
finalized, if not based, on empirical data. However
the antenna is designed, it will only s ee service if it
performs its function of transmitting and/or receiving
e.m. waves in and/or from required directions. The
directivity of an antenna, or the lack of directivity,
is most clearly defined by means of a polar diagram.
If we take a transmitting antenna and plot points of
equal field strength (one value only) we have such a
diagram. The same antenna used for receiving would,
of course, have the same polar diagram. If the
diagram is a circle centred on the antenna, as would
be the case if the plot were in the plane perpendicular
to a dipole, then the antenna is said to be Table 1.3 Approximate bands for
omnidirectional in the plane in which the microwave frequencies
measurements were made. A practical antenna
cannot be omnidirectional in all planes, i.e. in three Letter Frequency
dimensions. designation range (GHz)

The e.m. Spectrum and Propagation L 1-3

As can be seen from the previous paragraph, the S 2-5-4

frequency of the radio wave is an important C
consideration when considering antenna design. X 3.5-7.5
In addition the behavior of the wave as it propagates K 6-12.5
through the earth's atmosphere is also very much Q 12.5 -40
dependent on the frequency. 33-50
However, before considering propagation, we will Table 1.4 Airborne radio frequency utilization
place radio waves in the spectrum of all e.m. waves
(exact frequencies given in relevant chapters)
(Table 1.1). In doing so we see that the range of
frequencies we are concerned with is small when
System Frequency band
Table 1.1 The electro Omega 10-14 kHz
magnetic spectrum Decca
Loran C 70-130 kHz
Hz Region ADF
h.f. comm. 2-25kHz
100 MHz
10 25 Cosmic rays Marker 75 MHz
ILS (Localizer)
10 21 Gamma rays 108-112 MHz
VOR
108-118 MHz
10' 9 X rays v.h.f. comm.
10 17 Ultraviolet 118-136 MHz
10 15 Visible ILS (Glideslope)
10 14 Infra-red DME 320-340 MHz
10 11 Radio waves SSR
Radio altimeter
960-1215 MHz
Weather radar (C)
compared with the complete spectrum. By general Doppler (X)
agreement radio frequencies are categorized as in 1030 and 1090 MHz
Table 1.2. There is less agreement about the letter Weather radar (X)
designations used for the higher radio frequencies Doppler (K) 4.2-4.4 GHz
which are tabulated with approximate frequency
ranges in Table 1.3. Finally, Table 1.4 lists the In free space, all radio waves travel in straight
frequencies used for airborne radio systems by lines
international agreement. at the speed of light. Such a mode of propagation is
known as the space wave. In addition, two other
modes of propagation are used with airborne radio
Table 1.2 Radio frequency categorization
equipment: the ground wave and the sky wave.
A fourth mode known as tropospheric scatter is used
Name Abbreviation Frequency only for fixed ground stations since elaborate and
Very low frequency
expensive. equipment must be used at both ends of
VIE 3-30 kHz
Low frequency l.f. 30-300 kHz
the link due to the poor transmission efficiency.
Medium frequency m.f. 300-3000 kHz The ground wave follows the surface of the earth
High frequency h.f. 3-30 MHz partly because of diffraction, a phenomenon
Very high frequency v.h.f. 30-300 MHz associated with all wave motion which causes the
Ultrahigh frequency u.h.f. 300-3000 MHz wave to bend around any obstacle it passes. In
Superhigh frequency s.h.f. 3-30 GHz addition, the wave H field cuts the earth's surface,
Extremely high frequency e.h.f. 30-300 GHz so causing currents to flow. The required power for
these currents must come from the wave, thus a flow
 of energy from wave to earth takes place causing
bending and attenuation. The attenuation is a
limiting factor on the range of frequencies which can
be used. The higher the frequency the greater the
rate of change of field strength, so more attenuation
is experienced in maintaining the higher currents.
Ground waves are used for v.l.f. and l.f. systems.
Radio waves striking the ionosphere (a s et of
ionized layers lying between 50 and 500 km above
the earth's surface) are refracted by an amount
depending on the frequency of the incident wave.
Under favourable circumstances the wave will return
to the earth. The distance between the transmit ter
and point of return (one hop) is known as the skip
distance. Multiple hops may occur giving a very long
range. Above about 30 MHz there is no sky wave
since insufficient refraction occurs. Sky wave
propagation is useful for h.f. comm. but can caus e
problems with l.f. and m.f. navigation aids since the
sky wave and ground wave may combine at the
receiver in such a way as to cause fading, false
direction of arrival or false propagation time
measurements. At v.l.f. the ionosphere reflects,
rather than refracts, with little loss; thus v.l.f.
navigation aids of extremely long range may be used.
Above 30 MHz, space waves, sometimes called
line of sight waves, are utilized. From about 100 MHz
to 3 GHz the transmission path is highly predictable
and reliable, and little atmospheric attenuation occurs.
Above 3 GHz attenuation and scattering occur, which
become limiting factors above about 10 GHz. The
fact that space waves travel in a straight line at a
known speed and, furthermore, are reflected from
certain objects (including thunderstorms and aircraft)
makes the detection and determination of range and
bearing of such objects possible.
Modulation
Being able to receive a remotely transmitted e.m.
wave and measure its characteristics is not in itself of
much use. To form a useful link, information must
x = 0 .1s, y=0 -3 s
Fig. 1.2 Morse code:
SOS
be superimposed on the e.m. wave carrier. There are
several ways in which the wave can carry information
and all of them involve varying some characteristic of
the carrier (amplitude or frequency modulation) or
interrupting the carrier (pulse modulation).
The simplest, and earliest, way in which a radio
wave is made to carry information is by use of Morse
Code. Switching the transmitter on for a short
time -interval, corresponding to a dot, o r a longer
time -interval, corresponding to a dash, enables a
message to be transmitted. Figure 1.2 illustrates the
transmission of SOS, the time-intervals shown being
typical.
In radar the information which must be
superimposed is simply the time of t ransmission.
This can easily be achieved by switching on the
transmitter for a very short time to produce a pulse
of e.m. energy.
When transmitting complex information, such as
speech, we effectively have the problem of
transmitting an extremely large number of sine waves.
Since the effect of each modulating sine wave on the
radio frequency (r.f.) carrier is similar, we need only
consider a single sine wave modulating frequency.
The characteristics of the modulating signal which
must be transmitted are the frequency and amplitude.
Figure 1.3 shows three ways in which a pulsed carrier
may be modulated by a sine wave while Figs 1.4 and
1.5 show amplitude and frequency modulation of a
continuous wave (c.w.) carrier.
Both amplitude modulated (a.m.) and frequency
modulated (f.m.) carriers are commonly used for
airborne systems. With a.m. the amplitude of the
carrier represents the amplitude of the modulating
signal, while the rate of change of amplitude
represents the frequency. With f.m. the amplitude
and frequency of the modulating signal is represented
by the frequency deviation and rate of change of
frequency of the carrier respectively.
Both a.m. and f.m. waves have informative
parameters associated with them. With a.m. if the
, Time
Radio frequency
transmitted
 --,
Time

Fig. 1.4 Amplitude modulation

Fig. 1.3 Pulse modulation - from top to bottom:

unmodulated carrier, modulating waveform, pulse amplitude
modulation, pulse width modulation and pulse position
modulation

carrier amplitude is Y"e and the modulating signal

amplitude is V„, then the modulation factor is
Vt,-,, , 'C. This fraction can be expressed as a
percentage, in which case it is known as the
percentage modulation or depth of modulation
(note sometimes depth of modulation is quoted as
a decimal fraction). Figure 1.4 shows 100 per cent
modulation. With f.m. the parameter is the deviation
ratio which is given by the ratio of maximum
frequency deviation (fd max) to maximum
modulating frequency (fm max). The ratio fd/fr„ is
called the modulation index and will only be constant
and equal to the deviation ratio if the modulating
signal is fixed in frequency and amplitude.
In Figs 1.3, 1.4 and 1.5 the modulated signal is
illustrated in the time domain, i.e. with time along
the horizontal axis. It is instructive to look at the
frequency domain representations as shown in
Fig. 1.5 Frequency modulation
Fig. 1.6 where a single sine wave of frequency fT , is
the modulating signal. It can be seen that several
frequencies are present, so giving rise to the idea of
bandwidth of a radio information channel. The most
significant difference between a.m. and f.m. is that
the a.m. bandwidth is finite whereas, in theory, the
f.m. bandwidth is infinite. In practice the f.m.
bandwidth is regarded as finite, being limited by those
extreme sidebands which are regarded as significant,
say 10 per cent of amplitude of the largest frequency

Carrier (fc )
Fig. 1.6 Amplitude modulation and frequency modulation
spectrums for a pure sine wave modulating signal of
frequency fm
component. The relative amplitudes of the carrier
and sidebands depend on modulation factor and
index for a.m. and f.m. respectively.
In any information link there is a relationship
between the bandwidth and the amount of
information which can be carried, hence high-fidelity
stereo broadcasts occupy a wide bandwidth. It is
not, however, desirable to have as wide a bandwidth
as possible since (a) the number of available channels
is reduced; (b) electrical noise, generated at all
frequencies by electrical equipment and components,
and by atmospheric effects, will be present in the
receiver channel at a greater power level the wider
the bandwidth. The signal power to noise power
ratio is a limiting factor in the performance of
receiving equipment.
The information in an a.m. wave is repeated in
each of the sidebands; the carrier frequency
component has no information content. As a
consequence, at the expense of more complicated
transmitting and receiving equipment, we need
transmit only one sideband. Single sideband (s.s.b.)
transmission conserves bandwidth, with attendant
advantages, and is found in airborne h.f. comm.
systems.
Multiplexing
In most airborne systems the required number of
channels is obtained by allocating non-overlapping
bands of frequencies centred on specified discrete
carriers. This is known as frequency multiplexing.
Shannon's sampling theory shows that a sine wave
of frequency fm can be completely specified by a
series of samples spaced at no more than 1/2 f m
second (s). To transmit speech where the highest
frequency component is 3000 Hz we need only
transmit a sample of the instantaneous amplitude
every 1/6000 = 0-000 166 7 s (= 166.7 ps). Thus we
have time-intervals during which we can transmit
samples of other signals. The number of signals we
can time multiplex on one carrier link depends on
the duration and frequency of each sample. The
shorter the sample duration the greater the bandwidth
required, confirming the statement made earlier that
more information requires wider bandwidths.
Basic Receivers and Transmitters
A much simplified transmitter block diagram is shown
in Fig. 1.7. This could be called the all-purpose block
diagram since it could easily be converted to a
Fig. 1.7 Basic radio transmitter block diagram
low-level a.m. transmitter, (little if any amplification
of the carrier before modulation), a high-level a.m.
transmitter (little if any amplification of the carrier
after modulation), an s.s.b. transmitter (introduce a
band pass filter after the modulator) or an f.m.
transmitter (introduce a frequency multiplifer after
the modulator). Obviously in the above examples the
circuit details would vary greatly, particularly in the
modulators, and if detailed block diagrams were
drawn the underlying similarities in structure would
be less obvious.
The most basic type of receiver is a tuned radio
frequency (t.r.f.), however this is rarely used. The
standard receiver configuration is the superheterodyne
(superhet) shown in Fig. 1.8. The desired r.f. is
converted to a constant intermediate frequency by
taking the difference frequency after mixing the
received signal with the output from a local oscillator
(Lo.). Since most of the amplification and selectivity
is provided by constant frequency and bandwidth
stages the design problem is eased.
In both the transmitter and the receiver, r.f.
oscillators have to b e tuned to different frequencies.
In the transmitter it is the m.o. (master oscillator),
while in the receiver it is the Lo. Modern practice is
 Fig. 1.8 Basic superhetrodyne receiver block diagram

to usea frequencysynthesizerwith a singlecrystal to In all of the abovethe logic may be reversed(positive

providestability dnd accuracy. and negativelogic). Thus we can representa binary
digit (bit) by an electricalsignal,but if the number to
be representedis largerthan l, we must combinebits
DigitalSystems into someintelligiblecode.
Binary code hasbeenmentioned;this is simply
Coding counting to the base2 rather than the basel0
Most of the airborne systemsin use are basically (decimalcode) aswe do normally. Unfortunately,
analogue,i.e. they dealwith signalswhich represent binary numberssoon becomevery large,for example
variousquantitiescontinuouslyand smoothly. For 9 l r o = I 0 I I 0 I 1 2( t h e s u b s c r i p t s i n d i c a t i n g t h e
=
examplein DME a very smallincreasein rangeresults base),so octal (base8 23) and hexadecimal
(base l6 = 24) may be used. The machinemay still
in a correspondingincreasein time;we say time is an
analogueof distance. With a digital system, dealwith a 1/0 situationbut the numbersaremore
information is representedby a numberencodedin manageable when written down, for example
somesuitableway. 91 ro = l33s = 5816. Note, in the examplesgiven,if
Sinceit is difficult to detectmany different voltage we split the binary number into groupsof three from
or current levelsonly two are used,and this leads the right (leastsignificantbit, l.s.b.)we have
naturallyto expressingnumbersto the base2 (binary l , 0 l l , 0 1 1 2 = 1 , 3 , 3 s , i . e .e a c hg r o u pi s t h e b i n a r y
code)wherethe only digits are 0 and l. It remainsto code for an octal digit. Similarly
=5,816.
defineelectronicrepresentations of 0 and I in an r 1 0 1 ,l 0 l l 2
unambiguousway. Various methodsare usedwith Binary and hexadecimalcodesare usedin digital
(a) beingby far the most common,in the computers, octal code is usedfor the ATC
non-exhaustive list which follows. transponder (Chapter 8). The task of frequency
selectionis one which lendsitself to coding,and
amongseveralwhich havebeenused,the two most
(a) Voltagelevel no voltage - 0 commonarebinarycodeddecimal(b.c.d.)and two
high voltage - t from five (2/5). Both of thesecodesretain the
(b) Pulsepolarity positive = l decimaldigit 'flavour' of the number to be encoded
negative = Q at the expenseof usingextra bits. To represent9l
16
(c) Pulseposition a time interval is split in we considerthe decimaldigits 9 and I separatelyto
two halves: give:
pulse in first half = |
pulsein secondhalf = 0 9lro=1001 00016.9.6.,
(d) Phasechange at specified read time a 9l ro=10001 11000275
sinewave:
changesphase Equivalentsfor all the codesmentionedare givenfor
. (180"C) = | decimal numbers0 to l5 in Table 1.5.
doesnot change It can be seenfrom the abovethat more bits than
phase = Q are absolutelynecessary are usedfor b.c.d. and2l5.
Tabh 1.5 Variouscodeequivalents 4. conversionfrom binarYto b.c.d.;
5 . b.c.d. fed to frequencysynthesizer;
Base Code 6 . conversionfrom b.c.d. to specialcode;
7 . specialcode fed to readoutdevice.
1 0 2 8 1 6 BCD 2ls
So far we haveonly discussedthe coding of
0 0000 0 0 0000 0l001 numericaldata. The ISO (lnternationalStandards
I 000r I I 0001 l 1000 Organisation)alphabetNo. 5 is a seven-bitword code
2 0010 2 2 0010 10100
which can be usedto encodeupper and lower case
3 00ll 3 3 001I 0l 100
letters,punctuationmarks,decimaldigits and various
4 0100 4 4 0100 0 l0 l q
0l0l 0 0 1l 0 other charactersand control symbols' The full code
5 0l0l 5 5
6 0 1 1 06 6 0l 10 00101 may be found in most of the latest ARINC
? 0lll 7 I 0lll 0001I characteristics and will not be repeatedhere,however'
8 1000 l0 8 1000 10010 examplesare A = I 0 0 0 0 0 I'
9 1 0 0 1I I 9 l00l 10001 n=i O I 0 0 10,etc. Aparitybitmaybeadded
l0 l0l0 l2 A 0001 0000 11000 01001 to give a byte.
ll l0ll l3 E 0001 0001 11000 11000 Wh"r. . limited numberof actualwords needto be
12 I 100 14 c 0001 0010 11000 10100 'distance','speed','heading',etc' special
encoded,e.g.
13 ll01 15 D 0001 00lt 11000 01100
codesmay be designated'Suchcodesare describedin
14 lll0 l6 E 0001 0100 11000 01010
00110 AR INC specification 429'2 digital in fo rm ation
15 llll l7 F 0001 0101 u000
transfersystem(DITS) which is discussedin
Chapter13.
If the bits are transmitted serially, one after the other
in time down a line, then more time is neededfor the Microcomputers
transmission. of a number than would be neededif The microprocessorhas brought powerful computers
binary codewere used. If the bits are transmittedin on to aircraft to perform a number of functions,
parallel,one bit per line, then more lines are needed. includingthe solution of navigationequations,in a
This hasa certain advantagein that the redundancy more sophisticatedway than before' A
may be usedto detect transmissionerrors, for microcomputerconsistsof a microprocessorand
e x a m p l eI 0 I I O c o u l d n o t b e a 2 / 5 c o d e a n d severalperipheralintegratedcircuits(chips),to help
I 0 I 0 could not be b.c.d. the microprocessorperform its function'
Error checking can also be used with binary codes. There are four basicparts to computers,micro or
We will alwaysbe restrictedto a certainmaximum otherwise:memory, arithmeticlogic unit (ALU)'
numberof bits, one of which can be designateda control unit and the input/output unit (l/O)' In a
parity bit usedsolely for error detecting. Supposewe microcomputerthe ALU and control unit are usually
had eightbits available,eachgroup bf eight-bitswould combinedon a singlechip, the microprocessoror
be call-eda word of length 8 (commonly calleda centralprocessingunit (CPU)' Figure l '9 illustratesa
byte). Ttrefirst sevenbits of the word would be used basicsystem.
to encodethe decimal digit (0 to 127) while the The memory containsboth instructionsand data
eighthwould be the parity bit. For odd parity we set in the form of binary words' Memory is of two basic
the parity bit to 0 or I so as to make the total types, ,ead only (ROM) and random access(RAM)'
numberof onesin the word odd; similarly for even The ROM doesnot rememberany previousstate
parity. Thus61e= 00001l0l odd parity or which may haveexisted;it merely definesa functional
j
3,o oooot 100 evenparity. Error correcting(as relationshrpbetweenits input lines and its output
opposedto detecting)codesexist but do not find use lines. The RAM could be termed readand write
in airborneequiPmentasYet. memory; sincedata can be both readfrom memory
To considera practicalapplicationqf the above
- urd written into memory, i.e. its statemay change'
Srpposea particular frequencyis selectedon a trnformation in RAM is usually lost when power is
control unit, we may havethe following sequenceof switched off.
events: The ALU contains the necessarycircuitry to allow
it to carry out arithmeticoperations,such asaddition
l. information from controller: 215 code', and subtiaction,and logicalfunctions such as Boolean
2. conversionfrom2l5 to binary; algebraoperations(combinationsof NANDs and
3. microcomputerprocesses binary data; NORsetc.).
 f': J
FA. t.9 Basicmicrocomputer
organization

The control unit providestiming instructionsand from memory, on the data bus, to the control unit
synchronizationfor all other units. The control whereit is decoded. The programcounter
signalscausethe other units to move data, manip_ulate automaticallyincrementsby one count, and after the
numbers,input and output information. All this current instruction has been executedthe next
activity dependson a set of step-by-stepinstructions instructionis fetched. This basiccvcle of:
(known as the program)which residein memory.
The l/O unit is the computer'sinterfacewith the fetch
outsideworld.
decode
From Fig. 1.9 it can be seenthat the units are
increment
interconnectedby three main buses. A bus is several
execute
electricalconnectionsdedicatedto a particular task.
A unidirectionalbus allowsdata flow in one direction
only, unlike a bidirectionalbus where flow is two-way. is repeatedcontinuously. During the executionof an
ln a microcomputerwe usuallyhave: instructiondata may have to be fetched from
memory, for exampleto add two numbersthe
l. address bus: sixteenunidirectionallirfes; instructionwill need to tell the CPU not only that an
2. databus: eightor sixteenbidirectionallines; additionoperationis necessary, but the location.in
3. control bus: the numberof linesvarieswith the the memory,of the numbersto be added.
systemand may haveboth unidirectionaland The rate at which instructionsareexecuted
bidirectionallines. dependson the complexityof the instrtrctionand the
.: frequencyof the systernclock. Eachpulsefrom the
To operate,eachstep-by-step instructionmust be clock initiatesthe next actionof the system;several
fetched,in order,from memoryand executedby the actionsper instructionareneeded.Often the clock
CPU. To keeptrack of the next stepin the program, circuitis on the CPU chip. the only external
a programcounter is usedwhich incremelts eachtime componentbeinga crystal.
an hstruction is fetched. Before an instruction can The I/O data flows via logicalcircuits calledporrs.
be executed.it must be decodedin the CPU to Theseports may be openedin a similar way to that in
determinehow it is to be accomplished. which memory is addressed.In somesystemsthe I/O
On switch-on,the programcounter is set to the ports are treated as if they were RAM - an address
first storedinstruction. The address(location) of this opensa particularport and data flows in or out of
first instruction is placedon the addressbus by the that port dependingon whether a read or write signal
pro$am counter causingthe instruction to be fetched is present. A variety of chips are used for l/O, some

10
 of whi_chare very basic; others (programmable ports)
more flexible.
The program which is resident in ROM is
srbdividedinto routines. Someroutineswill be
runningcontinuouslyunlessstopped;others may only
-
be called for when the need ariseJ. For example, a
navigationcomputer will continuously compute the
aircraft position by running the mainioufini (or
bop) which instructs the ALU as to which
calculationsmust be carried out using data available
in memory. This data must be updated periodically
by acceptinginformation from, siy, u ,"dio
navigationsensor. When data is available from the
extemalequipment,an interrupt sigral is generated
and fed to the microcomputer on an interiupt line.
Such a signalcausesthe computer to abandon the
main routine and commencea serviceroutine which
will supervisethe transfer of the new data into
rrrmory. After transfer the main routine will
rccommenceat the next step, rememberedby a CpU
register.
The topics discussedin the paragraphsabove can
all be classifiedashardware or softwaie. The
hardwareis the sum total of actual components
up the computer: chips,active and passive
T"king
discretecomponents,and interwiring. Software
comprises_programs, proceduresand the languagesor
codesusedfor internal and external commu-nication.
Softwaredeterminesthe stateof the hardwarear any
particulartime. In an airbornecomputer both the
software and hardware are fixed Uy itre designer.
The operatordoesnot haveto program the computer
in the sensethat he must write a routine; however,
he plays his part in how the computer will function
b1,,for example,selectinga switChposition which
will causecertain data to be preseniedto him by the
computer,insertingatard (hardware),on which
codedinstructionsor data (software)havebeen
*Titten, into a cardreader,etc.
Examplesof the use of microcomputersare
coruideredin someof the chaptersto follow. These
applications,and the abovebrief discussion.should
givethe readera basicidea on how computerswork;
for detailsof circuitry and programminj consult the
readily availablespecialistliteriture.
CaGgorization of Airborne Radio
Eqripments
Frcqucy and Modulation
T* 9" techniquesinvolvedvary greatlywith the
r.f. andtypeof modulationused,itls ofien usefulto
crtegonze equipmentasto the bandof frequencies in
which it operates(seeTables1.2 and 1.3) and as
being pulsed, a.m. or f.m. From both the desigr and
maintenancepoint of view, the frequency at which
equipmentoperatesis perhapsmore important than
the modulation used, at least in so far ai the choice of
componentsand test equipmentis concerned.
The higher the frequency the greaterthe effect of
stray capacitanceand inductance, sigral transit time
and skin effect in conductors. In thi microwave
region(s.h.f. and the high end of u.h.f.) wavezuide
replacesco-axialcable,certainly above5 GHz] and
specialcomponentswhosedimensionsplay a critical
part in their operationareintroduced(klystrons,
magnetrons,etc.).
Analogue-Digital
Theseterms have alreadybeen mentioned and certain
aspectsof digital systemshavebeendiscussed.In
modern airborne systemsthe information in the radio
and intermediatefrequencystages,including the
'wireless'
r.f. link, is usually in analogueform (the
exception being secondarysurveillance rcdar (see
Chapter8), to be joined in future by microwave
gtail8 systems,data link and the replacementfor
SSR(seeChapter l3)). In addition Commonlyused
transducerssuch as synchros,potentiometers,
microphones,telephonesand speakersare all analogue
devices.Not all transducersarein the analogue
Tlegory, a shaft angleencoderused in encoding
altimetersis basicallyan analogueto digital converter.
With the exception of the above almost everything
.
elsein current equipmentis digital, whereas
previouslysystemswere all analogue.There is a
further subdivisionwithin digitaliquipment into
thoseusinga combinationof hardwareand software
(computer-controlled)and thoseusingonly hardware
(hardwiredlogic). The trend is towardsthl former.
Function
The two basic categorieswith regardto function are
communicationsand navigation. If navigationis
definedin its widest senseassafe,economicalpassage
from A to B via selectedpoints (waypoints) then
communicationssystemseould be consideredas
belongingto the navigationcategory. If, however,
communicationssystemsare regardedas those
systemscapableof transmittingspeechover radio or
wire links, and all other systemsas navigation,we iue
obeyinga sensibleconvention. The introduction of
data links will requiresomeamendmentto the
definition of communicationssystems,since
, non-navigationaldata will be transmittedbut not as a
speechpattern.
Navigationsystemsmay be subdividedinto radio
t1
 landing-aids category;
systemsconcemls landingsystemsbelongto the the category
andnon'radio,but only the radio posit i on-t txmg itfr*t?i',vpes of these subdivisions of
;;;":'-A;;ih.i possiblesubdivi on
si is
lf nuuigution systems will be considered Chapters
in
r'ndlnc,ui9: systems
ffi; ;;rfieiiht-nndrng, For
111 "^.,.
the latter we nave
S. f f uiO 5 respectively'
d
Position-fixing
into self'containe d and
environment-monitoring'
a]tim,etlrs I ^"' u.'i" t,ft.i subtlivide
-l.i-ghlri"olng
systems' while radio The former uses dead
weatheravoidance
fi "* ; ;it categorv andinstrument ilffi;;,i"t-tutta'
(@er4''l.j$*

(VOR/DME/RNAV/ILS)
SYSTEM
NAVIGATION
re{S80 IIITEGRATED

<-NAV & GS RECEIVER

\COI,IPUTER BOARD

navigationsystem
Fh. l.l0 KNS 80 integrated
(JurtesY King Radio CorP')

12
reckoning to compute the aircraft's position while
the latter usesa variety of methods:rho'theta,
rho-rho, rho-rho-rho,theta-thetaand hyperbolic.
The Greeklettersp (rho) and 0 (theta) areusedto
representdistance(range)and angle(bearing)to a
fixed point of known location. The pilot can
determine(fix) his positionif he knows:
(a) p and 0 to one fixed Point:
(b) p to three distinct fixed Points;
(c) 0 to two distinct fixed Points.
A rho-rho systemgivesan ambiguousfix unlessthe
aircraft is at the midpoint of the line joining the two
stationsto which the rangeis known. With
hyperbolicsystemsposition-fixingis achievedby
measuringdifferencesin range;ambiguitymay be
avoidedby varioustechniques(Chapter6).
One item of navigationequipmentoverlapsthe
boundhriesbetweenthe different methodsof position-
fixing, namelyOmega;this usesdeadreckoningin
conjunctionwith rho-rho, rho-rho'rhoor hyperbolic
methods. Two systems,VOR (Chapter4) andDME
(Chapter7) are usedtogetherto gfuea rho-thetafix.
With miniaturizationof circuitry, it is now possible
to houseseveralsystems,which were previously
physicallyseparate,into one box' It is still possible
to categorizeby function, but we must bearin mind
that the circuit implementationmay be intimately
connected.Suchan exampleis givenby the
King KNS 80 integratednavigationsystem(Fig. I ' l0)
which incorporates VOR, DME and ILS (Chapters4,
7 and 5) aswell as areanavigationfacilities(Chapter
l2). Other equipmentmay grouptogethersystems
operatingwithin the sameband of frequenciessuch
asv.h.f.comm.and v.h.f.nav.(VOR and ILS).
Figure l.l I illustratesthe navigationsystemsin use
on a Boeing747 with a typical fit; different operators
may takeop different options. This diagramincludes
non-radio(mainly in the top half) aswell as radio
systems,and illustratesthe interrelationships
betweenthem especiallywith regardto display
(right-handside). A similardiagramfor the
communicationssystemsis includedin Chapter2
(Fig. 2.15). The largenumberof radionavigation
systems,someduplicatedor eventriplicated for
safety,presentthe problem of whereto position the
antennas.The solution for the Boeing747 is shown
i n F i g .1 . 1 2 .
NavigationNomenclature
Figure I .13 and Table I .6 definethe most commonly
usedterms in aircraft navigation. All of the quantities
defined,with the exceptionof heading,can be found
usingradio systems,or areinput by the pilot at some
stageof the flight, usually prior to take off.
Interference
The e.m. environment of an aircraft radio system is
suchthat it may suffer from interferingsignals-and/or
noise,man-madeor natural,ind causeinterference
itself to other systems.Interferencemay be either
radiatedor conducted.
As the aircraft fliei through the atmosphere,it
picks up electricalchargedue to frictional contact
with atmosphericparticles(precipitationstatic) and
alsowhile flying through cloud formations,within
which very strongelectricfieldsexist (electrostatic
induction). An unevendistribution of chargewill
causecurrentsto flow in the aircraft skin; possiblyin
the form of a spark,betweenparts of unequal
potential. Any sparkresultsin a wide band of
radiatedr.f. which will be picked up by radio systems
asnoiseand possiblymaskwantedsigrals. To avoid
this type ofinterference,a bondingsystemis used
comprisingnumerousmetal stripswhich presentvery
low iesistancelinks betweenall parts of the aircraft.
In addition to discharges within the aitcraft,a
dischargewill occur to atmosphere if a sufficiently
largedifferencein potential exists. The discharge
cannotbe avoided,but in an attempt to keep the
activity as far from antennasas possible,static
dischaigersare fitted to the trailing edgeof the
mainplane,tailplaneand verticalstabilizerin order to
providean easypath for it. By providinga numberof
dischargepoints at eachdischargerthe voltageis kept
low. The bondingsystemcarriesthe largecurrents
involvedto thoseparts of the airframewherethe
static dischargers are fitted. Lightningconductors,
such ason the insidesurfaceof the non-conducting
noseradome,and lightningdischargers connectedto
the lead-inof wire antennasand somenotch
antennas,help conduct any strike to the bulk of the
airframe,so preventingdamageto equipment. A wire
antennawill alsohavea high resistance path between
it and the airframe to allow leakage of any static
build-up on the antenna.
Sparksoccur in d.c. motors and generators, enginc
igrition systems,etc. Capacitorsareusedto provide
a low resistancer.f. path acrossbrushes,commutators
and contacts, a form of protection known as
nrppression.
Another form ofinterferenceis capacitiveand
inductive pick-up and cross-talkbetween adjacent
13
 Wcathcr radar
systcm

Loran
instrurnant indicetors

Radio rnag
indic6tors

dircctor in.

lffic'_l
lbcrqr 3yst. I lbcacon ird.l

Fig. l.l I Boeing747: typical navigationsystemsfit

(courtesyBoeingComntrcial AeroplaneCo.)

cables. Pick-up is the term usedwhen the interfering
sourceis a.c.power (400 Hz in aircraft),while
cross-talkis interferencefrom a nearby
signal-carryingcable. The problem arisesout of the
capacitanceand mutual inductancewhich edsts
betweenthe cables.A pair of wiresmay be twisted
togetherto reduceboth types ofinterference- the
pick-up or cross-talkon adjacentloops,formed by
the twist, tendingto cancelout. An earthedmetallic
screenor shield will provide an effective reduction in
capacitiveinterferencebut low-frequency inductive
pick-up is not appreciably affected by the
non-magneticscreen. At high frequenciesskin effect
confines the magneticfields of co-axial cablesto their
interior. Most signal-carrying cablesareboth screened
and twisted;some,whereintegrity is especially
important, e.g. radio altimeteroutput, may have
double screening.
The screenaround a wire must be earthedin order
to be effective. Howeverif both endsof the screen
are earthed,an earth loop may be formed sincethe
completecircuit through the screen,remoteearth

14
 Wirthor ndu
Locrlizrr No.

Locrlizcr
No. 1 end tlo. 2

Loft tnd right AFT

nos. 9e8r door glidc
slopo tracl end capturr
antcnna sy3tams
Ccntor .furolegcJ
aqulpment cantcr
Low rmgc rrdio altimotrr
ADf loop No. 1
l{rrtrr
batcon
ADF loop
llo. 2
ADF rns.
antoma
ADF srnse t{o. 1
entcnnaNo. 2

VORNo.1
VOR No. 2

Fig.l.l2 Boeing747..
typicalnavigation
systems
aerial
(courtesy
locations BoeingCommercial
AeroplaneCo.)

points and the airframe is of non-zero resistance. As a
consequence, interferingsourcesmay causea
potential differenceto edst betweenthe endsof the
screen.The resultingcurrent flow and its associated
H field would causeinterferencein the inner
conductor. Earth loops are a particularproblem in
audio systemsand must be avoided.
The earth pointsfor screenedcablesand a.c.power
must be remote from one another. If a screenwereto
be connecteddirectly to an a.c. power earth,
conductedmainsinterferencemay result. Another
form of conductedinterferenceis cross-talkwhere a
number of signalcarryiqg wires are brought together,
e.g.audio signalsbeingfed to an interphoneamplifier.
Suitably designedpotential divider networkskeep
this conducted cross-talkto a minimum (Chapter 2).
Adequateseparationof antennasoperatingwithin
the samefrequencyband is necessary to prevent
mutual interferenceby radiation. Frequency and
time domain filtering may be usedin helping to avoid
suchinterference,the former in c.w. systems,the
latter in pulsedsystems.Different polarization(E
field direction) will assistin preventing cross-coupling
betweenantennas.

15
 ,/
WPTO
\Mnd dircction
dnd velocatY

On tnck

\Mnd dircction
and velocity

Fit; l.l3 Navigationnomenclature(courtesyLitton Systems

lnternational lnc., Aero hoducts Division)

16
Table 1.6 Navigation nomenclature - abbreviations electrical equipment will interfere with the magnetic
compass. Units are marked with their 'compasssafe
Abbreviation Meaning distance' as appropriate but care should also be taken
with cables,particularlyfor d.c. power.
HDG Heading - angle,measuredclockwise
betweenNorth and the direction in which
the aircraft is pointing,
TK Track - direction in which the aircraft is
Maintenance
moving.
DTK This is not the placeto go into greatdetail on this
Desired'Track- direction in which the pilot
wishesthe aircraft to move. important practicaltopic but somenotesof a general
DA Drift Angle - anglebetweenhcadingand natureare in order to supplementthe notes included
track measuredto port (left) or starboardin most of the following chapters.In practicethe
(right). maintenanceengineerrelieson his training and
TAE Track Angle Error - angle bctween track experienceand also regulations,schedulesand
and desiredtrack, usually quoted as left or
procedureslaid down or approvedby national bodies
rght.
responsiblefor aviationin generaland safetyin
GS Ground Speed - spdedof the aircraft in the
particular.
directionof the track.in the'plane' parallel
to the earth's surface(map speed). . The aircraft maintenanceenginber,of whatever
Comparewith air speedwhich is the speed specialism,is responsiblefor regularinspectionsof
of the aircraft relative to the air mass equipmentas laid down in the aircraft schedule.For
through which it is moving. the radio engineeran inspection will consist of a
POS Position. thorough examination of all equipment comprising
WPT Waypoint - a significant point on the route
the radio installationfor cracks,dents,chafing,dirt,
which may t c usedfor reporting to Air oil, grease,moisture,buming, arcing,brittleness,
Traffic Control, turning or landing.
breakage,corrosion,mechanicalbonding, freedomof
DIS Distanceto go from position to waypoint,
movement,springtension,etc" as applicable. In
XTK CrossTrack - the perpendiculardistance
carrying out specific tasks the engineershould look
from the aircraft to the line joining the two
waypoints betweenwhich the aircraft is for damageto parts of the airframeor its equipment
flying. which are not directly his or her responsibility.
ETA Estimated time of arrival Vigilance is the key to flight safety.
Carrying out functional tests when called for in th0
schedule,or when a fault hasbeen reported,should
be done in accordancewith the procedurelaid down
Adjacent channel interference occurs when a in the aircraft maintenancemanual. A word of
receiver'sbandwidth is not sufficiently narrow to waming should be givenhere,sinceproceduresarenot
attenuateunwantedsigralscloseto the required alwayswhat they shouldbe: often testingof certain
sigtal. Secondor imagechannelinterferencemay aspectsof a system'sfunction are omitted and,
occurin superhetreceiverswhen an unwantedsigral rarely, there m.aybe errors in the procedure.
{ separated froin the required sigrralby twice the A thorough knbwledge of the system is the best
intermediatefrequencyand lies on the oppositeside guardagainstmistakesor omissionswhich, if noticed,
of the local oscillatorfrequency. A high intermediate strouldbe amendedthrough the proper channels.
frequency will help reduce secondchannel Modern equipmentusuallyhassufficient built-in
interferencesince the image will be outside the r.f. test equipment(BITE) and.monitoringcircuits to
bandwidth,the separationbeinggreater. carry out a comprehensive check of the system. With
Unfortunatelyfor a given Q factor, the bandwidth of radio systems,however,specialportable test
the intermediate frequency amplifiers will be wide for equipmentmust be usedin addition to BITE in order
this solutionto the secondchannelproblem. to be in a position to certify the system asserviceable.
Increasingchannelseparationis not really acceptable Test setsshouldbe capableof testingby radiationand
sincedemand for more channelsis forever rising. of simulating the appropriate sigrals to test all
Somereceiversemploy two intermediatefrequencies functionsnot coveredby BITE.
producedby two mixer stagesand two local The r.f. circuits,includingantennasand feeders,
oscillators;this can give good adjacent and second are often neglectedwhen functional tests are carried
drannel rejection. out. In particulartest set antennasshouldbe
Magrreticfields associatedwith electronic and correctly positioned if a false impressionof the
 receiversensitivityor power output is to be avoided.
Whenfault-firtdhg a completefunctional test
shouldbe carriedout as far as posible in order to
obtain a full list of symptoms. Naturally symptoms
suchasa smell of burning or no supply must call a
halt to the procedure. Fault-findingchartsin
maintenancemanualsare usefulbut there is no
substitutefor knowledgeof the system.
One shouldnot forget the possibleeffects of
non-radiosystemsand equipmentwhen investigating
reporteddefects.Poorbonding,brokenstatic
dischargers, open circuit suppressioncapacitors,low
or inadequatelyfiltered d.c. supplies,low voltageor
lincorrectfrequencya.c. supplies,etc. will all give rise
\o symptomswhich will be reportedby the pilot as
radiodefects.
Sometimessymptomsare only presentwhen the
aircraft is airborneand the systemis subjectto
vibration,pressure and temperaturechanges, etc.
A functional test during engineruns will gc part way
to reproducingthe conditionsof flight.
One should mention the obvioushazardof loose
articles;so obviousthat many aircraft accidentshave
beencausedin the past by carelessness. Tools and
test equipment,including leads,must all be accounted
for when a job is finished. A well-run store with
signing-inand signing-outof equipmentis an added
safeguardto personalresponsibility.
Installationof equipmentshouldbe in accordance
with the manufacturer'sinstructionswhich will cover
the following,
-
l. Weight of units: centre of gravity may be
affected.
2. Current drawn: loadingof suppliesshould be
carefully consideredand the correct choiceof
circuit-breakermade.
3. Cooling: more than adequateclearanceshould
be left and forced air-coolingemployedif
appropriate. Overheatingis a major causeof
failure.
4. Mounting: anti-vibrationmounts may be
necessarywhich, if non-metallic,give rise to a
need for bonding straps.
5. Cables:length and type specified. Usually
maximum length must be observedbut in some
.' casesparticularlengthsarenecessairy.Types of
cableusedmust provideprotection against
interferenceand be ablerohandle current
drawn or supplied. Current capabiltiesare
reduced for cablesin bunches.
6. Antenna: approvedpositionsfor particular
types of antenna or particular types of aircraft
are laid down by aviation authorities.
t8
Strengtheningof the structurearound the
antennain the form of a doublerplatewill
probablybe necessary.A groundplaneis
essentialand must not be forgotten if the
antennais to be mountedon a non-conducting
surface. If the antennais movable,adequate
clearanceshould be left. Any alignment
requirements must be met.
7. Interface: qompatibility with other systems/
units must be ensured. Both impedance
matching(including allowing for capacitiveand
inductive effects) and signalcharacteristics
should be considered. Loading of outputs
should be within limits. Particularcareshould
be taken in decidingwhere synchro devices
obtain their referencesupplies. Programming
pins for choiceof outputs and/or inputs must
be correctlyconnected.
8. Compass:safedistance.
9. Radiationhazards.
The last item in the abovenon-exhaustivelist raises
the topic of safety. Electric shock is an obvious
hazardw'ren working on aircraft and it shouldbe
rememberedthat one is liable to receivea shockfrom
radiatingantennas,particularly h.f. antennas.
A radiation hazardexistswith all transmitting
antennas,thus the operator should ensureno-oneis
working, particularly doping or painting, near an
antennawhen the associatedtransmitter is on. The
particularhazardsof microwaveradiation are
consideredin Chapter9. It is up to all personnel
working on aircraft to becomeawareof the dangers
of harmful substances, the use(and position) of fire
extinguishers,the dangersof mixing oil or greasewith
oxygen,elementaryfirst aid, warning symbols,etc.
Regulatingand Advisory Bodaes
All countriesset up bodieswhich are responsiblefor
mattersconcernedwith aviatione.g. CAA (UK),
FAA (USA), BureauVeritas (France),etc. These
bodiesdraft air law and issueregulationsconcerned
with the hcensingof engineersand aircrew,aircraft
operations,aircraft and equipment manufacture,
minimum equipment fits (including radio), air traffic
control, etc. They are also the bodieschargedwith
seeing,by meansof examinationsand inspections,
that the law is obeyed.
Aviation is an international activity and
co-operationbetweencountriesis essential.This
co-operationis achievedmainly through the ICAO,
an agencyaffiliated to the United Nations. All
 nationswhich are signatoriesto the Chicago
Conventionon Civil Aviation 1944 aremember-srates
of the ICAO which was an outgrowth of that
convention.
Table 1.7 Organizations,ordersand conference
concernedwith aircraft radio systems
Abbreviation Orsanization
ARINC AeronauticalRadio lnc.
ATA Air TransportAssociation
AEEC AirlinesElectronicEngineeringCommittee
CAA Civil Aviation Authority
CAP
Civil Aviation Publication
FAA FederalAviation Agency
lcAo InternationalCivil Aviation Organization
IFRB InternationalFrequencyRegistrationBoard
CCIR InternationalRadioConsultativeCommittee
ITU InternationalTelecommunications Union
TSO TechnicalStandardOrder
WARC World AdministrativeRadioConference
The ICAO issuesannexesto the convention.
Annex l0 beingof particularsignificanceto aircraft
radio engineerssinceit is concernedwith aeronautical
telecommunications and, amongother things,lays
down a minimum specificationfor airborne radio
systems.The materialpublishedby the ICAO does
not automaticallybecomethe law or regulationsin all
member-states; ratification is necessaryand may not
take placewithout considerableamendment,if at all.
In particular,systemspecificationsemergdin forms
considerablydifferent from Annex 10, although similar
in content. In the USA specificationsare issuedin the
form of TSOswhile in the UK there is CAP 208.
Volume I with its companionVolume 2 listing
approvedequipmentunder variousclassifications.
Licensingof engineersis one areain which, as yet,
there is little internationalstandardizationin
accordancewith Annex l. The licensedaircraft radio
maintenanceengipeeris unknown in the USA but,
of course,organizationsoperatingwith the approval
of the FAA do so only if they employ suitably
qualifiedpersonnel. In the UK the [censed engineer
reignssupreme,except in the certification of
wide-bodiedjets and supersonictransportswhere a
systemof companyapprovalof personnelexists,the
companyitself being approvedby the CAA for the
operationand maintenanceof such aircraft. France
hasno systemof statelicensing,it being left to the
operatorsto assess the compettncy of its maintenance
personnelunder the watchful eye of officials.
Of further interestto those concernedwith aircraft
h
radio, the Chicagoconvration provides that aircraft
registeredin contractingstatesmay carry radio
transmitting apparatusonly if a licence to install and
operatesuch apparatushasbeenissuedby the
appropriateauthoritiesof the statein which the
aircraft is registered.Furthermore,radio transmitting
apparatusmay only be usedover the territory of
contractingstates,other than the one in which the
aircraft is registered,by suitably licensedflight crew.
Various non-regulatory bodies exist with a view to
extendingco-operationacrossnational boundariesin
respectto aircraft equipmentand maintenance.
ARINC is one such organization. It is a corporation
the stockholders of which are drawn from airlines and
manufacturers,mostly from the USA. As well as
operatinga systemof aeronauticalland radio stations
ARINC sponsorsthe AEEC, which formulates
standardsfor electronicequipmentand systems
designedfor usein airlinersasopposedto general
aviation. Characteristics and specificationspublished
by ARINC do not havethe force of law but
nevertheless are,in the main, adheredto by
manufacturerswho wish to sell their equipmentto
the airlines.
A specificationrelatingto the presentationof
maintenanceinformation is the ATA 100. A standard
Iayout for technicalpublicationsrelatingto aircraft
hasbeen promulgatedand widely adopted. Of
particularinterestto readersare Chapters23 and34
of the maintenancemanualwhich cover
communicationsand navigationrespectively.In
addition to prescribinglayout, a set ofstandard
symbolsfor electricalwiring diagramshas beenissued.
So far, bodiesconcernedwith aircraft and their
equipmenthavebeenconsidered;in addition
organizationsconcernedwith telecommunications
strouldbe mentioned. The ITU is an agencyof the
United Nations which existsto encourage
internationalco-operationin the useand development
of telecommunications.The CCIR is a committeeset
up by the ITU to deal with radio communications.
Among topics of interestto the CCIR arespectrum
utilization and aeronauticalmobile services.The
IFRB has alsobeen set up.by the ITU for the
assignmentand registrationof radio frequenciesin
a masterfrequencylist. In November 1979 an
internationalconference(WARC '79), with
representatives from 154 countries,met in Genevato
considerradio regulationsand re-allocate
frequencies.The resultsof WARC '79 will not be
publishedwhile this book is beingwritten but it is
unlikely that the frequenciesallocated to aeronautical
mobile serviceswill suffer significant amendment -
the cost would be too great.
19
 2 CommunicationsYstems
lntrodoction
There is a fundamental need for communication
beiweenaircrewand ground controllers,amongthe
aircrew and between aircrew and passengers.External
communicationis achievedby meansof
(R/T) link while internal
radio-telephone
communication'(intercomor audio integratingsystem)
is by wire as opposedto wireless.Although intercom'
is not a radio system,it is includedin this chapter
becauseof its intimate relationship with the aircraft
radio systems.Voice recordersand in-flight
entertainmentsystemsarealso consideredsincethey
areusually the responsibilityofthe aircraft radio
technician/engineer-
The first items of radio equipmentto appearon
aircraftwerelow-frequency(l'f.) communications
setsin the World War I daysof spark gap transmitters.
lntercom was by meansof a Gosport(speaking)tube'
By the 1930sthe early keyed continuouswave(c'w')
(radio-telegraphy) was beginningto be replacedby
R/T although
'key-bashing'hadits placeaslong as
aircraft carriedradio operators. Early R/T was within
the l.f. and h.f. bands,the setsoperatingon only one
or very few frequencies.With airfieldswidely spaced onJ antennafor
and low-poweredtransmission,there was little
interferenceand so the need for many channelsdid
not arise.
The situation has drastically changedsinceWorld
War II; air traffic and facilities have increased with the
consequentdemandfor extra channelswhich cannot
be providedin the Lf., m.f. or h.f. bands.
Fortunatelyv.h.f. equipmenthasbeensuccessfully
-
developedfrom early beginningsin World Wu II
figtrtercontrol.
The current situation is the v.h.f. is used for
*tort-range communication while h'f. is used for
long-range. A large airliner, such as aBoeing74T ,
carriesthree v.h.f.sand dual h'f. In addition, in such
aircraft, selectivecalling (Selcal) facilities are
provided by a dual installation such that a ground
station can call aircraft either singly or in groups
without the need for constant monitoring by the
crew. Provision for satellite communication (Satcom) addition crew phones
m
on v.h.f. lrequenciesis often found; unfortunately
aeronauticaliommunicationssatellitesare not to be
found (1979).
The audio integrating system (AIS) complexity
dependson the type of aircraft. A light aircraft
,yrt.* may provide two transmit/receivechannelsfor
dual u.h.f.iomms and receiveonly for dual v'h'f'
nav.,ADF, DME and marker. Each receivechannel
hasa speakeroff'phoneswitch while the microphone
canbe switchedbitween v'h.f. comms I and v'h'f'
comms 2. A multi-crew large airliner has very many
more facilities,as describedlater.
V.H.F. Gommunications
Basic Principles
An aircraft u.h.f. comrnstransceiveris comprisedof
either a singleor double conversionsuperhetreceiver
and an a.m. transmitter' A modern set provides720
channelsat 25 kHrzspacingbetween I l8 MHz and
135'975MHz; until recently the spacingwas 50 kHz
givingonly 360 channels.The mode of operationis
iinglJ.itutntl simplex(s,c.s.),i.e. one frequencyand
both receiverand transmitter' If
provision for satellite communication is included in
iccordancewith ARINC 566 then in addition to
a.m. s.c.s.we will have f.m' double channelsimplex
(d.c.s.), i.e. different frequenciesfor transmit and
re ceive.. 'line of
Communicationby v.h.f. is essentially
sight'by direct (space)wave. The rangeavailablecan
'23 (\/.\ + y'ft1)nm where ftt is
be approximated by I
*re trilght, in feet, abovesealevel of the receiver
while ftl.is the samefor the transmitter' Thus, with
the ground station at sealevel, the approximate
,nr*I*urn range for aircraft at l0 000 and 1000 ft
(30 000 and 3000 m) would be 123 and 40 nm
respectivelY.
'
trstallation
A singlev.h.f. installationconsistsof three parts'
namJy control unit, transceiverand antenna' In
are connected to the v'h'f' via
Frg.2.1 KY 196 v.h.f. comm.transceiver
(courtesyKing
Radio Corp.)
Fi& a2 CN-201Iv.h.f.comm./nav. equipment
(courtesy
BendixAvionicsDivision)
selectionswitchesin the AIS. Light aircraft v.h.f.s
usuallyhavea panel-mountedcombinedtransceiver
and control unit, an examplebeingthe King KY 196
illustratedin Fig. 2.1. The current trend is for
combinedCOM/NAV/RNAV; Fig. 2.2 illustratesthe
BendixCN-2011,a generalaviationpanel-mounted
unit comprisingtwo commstransceivers, two nav.
receivers,glidepathreceiver,marker receiver,
frequency control for internal circuits and d.m.e. and
last but not least,audio selectionswitches.Such
equipmentwill be consideredin Chapter12.
Figure2.3 showsone of a triple v.h.f. comms
installationas might be fitted to a largepassenger
transportaircraft: VHF2 and VHF3 are similarto
VHFI but aresuppliedfrom a different 28 V d.c. bus
bar and feed different selectionswitchesin the AIS.
21

v.h.f.COMM
cO rcool Freq.
liitool
o @
Mic
P.t.t.
Ars
Rcv Audio
Sidetone
v.h.f. No. 2 v.h.f No.
Fig.2.3 Typicalv.h.f.l installation
The transceiver.which is rack-mounted,contains
all the electroniccircuitry and hasprovisionfor the
maintenancetechnicianto connectmic. and tels
direct, disablethe squelch,and measureVSWR.
Theseprovisionsfor testingareby no meansuniversal
but if the systemconformsto ARINC 566 a plug is
providedto which automatictest equipment(ATE)
canbe connected.A protectivecoverfor the ATE
plug is fitted when the unit is not in the workshop.
The antennacan take variousforms: whip, blade
or suppressed.In a triple vl.f. commsinstallation
thesemay be two top-mountedbladeantennasand
onebottom-mounted:an altemativewould be two
bladeand one suppressed within the fincap dielectric.
The whip antennais to be found on smalleraircraft.
All antennasaremountedso asto receiveand
transmitverticallypolarizedwaves.
The blade antennamay be quite cornplex. It will
be self-resonant nearthe centreofthe band with
bandwidthimprovementprovidedby a short'circuited
stub acrossthe feed terminal or a more complicated
reactivenetwork built in which will permit height and
hencedrag reduction.
Controls and Operation
It is common to have in-useand standby frequencies
available,the former controlling the transceiver
frequency. This is the situationin Fig.2.3 wherewe
have two setsof frequency controls and two displays,
the in-useone being selectedby the transfer switch
and annunciatedby a lamp abovethe display.
z2
ATE
FWD
MTR PWR REF
oFF-\ \ t t . / fPwa
r\
l \ I
\_./
SOUELCHDISABLE
fo
(o) Aerial
PHONO
E O MIC.
Rcv 28 V d.c.
Audio Stby
To Selcal Bus
Frequencycontrol is achievedby concentricknobs,
the outer one of which variesthe tens and units while
the inner pne variesthe tenths and hundredths. An
alternativeis shownin Fig. 2.1 wherethere is one
frequencycontrol and two displays' On rotating the
frequencyknobs clockwiseor anticlockwise,the
standbyfrequencyonly will incrementor decrement
respectively.Standbymay then becomein-useby
operationof the transferswitch. Thereare many
controllersin servicewith only in-useselection.
Someor all of the following switches/controls may
be providedby manufacturerson request.
Volume Control A potentiometer,which allows
variableattenuationof audio,prior to feedingthe AIS
may be fitted asa separatecontrol or as a concentric
knob on the frequencyselector(s).Sucha volume
control may havesidetonecoupledthrough it on
transmit.
$uelch Control A squelchcircuit disablesthe
receiveroutput when no sigralsare beingreceivedso
preventingnoisebeingfed to the crew headsets
betweenground transmissions.The squelchcontrol is
a potentiometerwhich allowsthe pilot to set the level
at which the squelchopens,so allowingaudio output
from the receiver.Whenthe control is set to
minimum squelch(fully clockwise) the Hi and l,o
squelch-disableleads,brought to the control unit
from the transceiver,shouldbe shorted,so givinga
definite squelchdisable.
 Mode Selector Control Providesselectionof normal
a.m.,extendedrangea.m.or Satcom.If the Satcom
antennahas switchablelobessuchswitchingmay be
includedin the mode switch,or couldbe separate.
On-Off Switch Energizesmaster power relay in
transceiver.The switch may be separate,incorporated while the a.g.c.voltageis appliedto gate2. The
in mode selectorswitch as an extra switch position, or mixer connectionsare: gate l, signal;gate2, s.m.o.
gangedwith the volume or squelchcontrol.
ReceiverSelectivity Switch Normal or sharp
selectivity. WhenSatcomis selectedsharpselectivity a.g.c.-controlled
automaticallyapplies.
Block Diagram Operation (KY 196)
Ftgure2.4 is a simplifiedblock diagramof the King
KY 196 panel-mounted v.h.f.comm.transceiver.
for the general aviation
This equipment, intended
market, is not typical of in-servicetransceivers since
frequencyand displaycontrol is achievedwith the aid
of a microprocessor;however within the lifetime of
this book suchimplementationwill become
commonplace.
ReceiverThe riceiver is a singleconversionsuperhet.
The r.f. stageemploysvaractordiode tuning, utilizing
the tuning voltagefrom the stabilizedmaster
oscillator(s.m.o.). Both the r.f. amplifier and mixer
are dual gatefield-effecttransistors(f.e.t.). The r.f.
amplifier f.e.t. has the input signalappliedto gate I
The differencefrequencyfrom the mixer, I l'4 MHz,
is passedby a crystalfilter, providingthe desired
narrow bandpass,to the i.f. amplifiers. Two stagesof
i.f. amplificationareused;the first of
which is a linear integratedcircuit.
The detectorand squelchgateutilize transistorson
an integratedcircuit transistorarray. A further array
is used for the squelch-controlcircuitry. Noiseat
8 kHz from the detectoroutput is sampledand used
to closethe squelchgateif its amplitudeis as
expected from the receiveroperating at full gain.
When a sigral is received,the noise output from the
detector decreases due to the a.g.c.action;asa
consequence the squelchgate opensallowing the
audio signalto pass. The squelchcap be disabledby

Frequencydisplay
118.70 121.90
Use 1 Standby

t;:
I

F
F
F '__--__--.1

MHz Code kHz Codc

P.t.t. lncremenV
Decrement

Fig. 2.4 King KY 196 simplified block diagram

a
t
F
A(
F
F,
 R.F.
Input
Tuning
Volts
{s.m.o.}
Fig.2.5 KingKY 196simplifiedreceiver
blockdiagram
meansof a switch incorporated in the volume
control. When the receivedsigral has excessivenoise
on the carrier,the noise-operated squelchwould keep
the squelchgate closedwere it not for
carrier-operated or backupsquelch. As the carrier
levelincreases, a point is reachedwhere the squelch
gate is opened regardlessof the noise level.
The meandetectoroutput voltageis usedto
determinethe i.f. a.g.c.voltage. As the i.f. a.g.c.
voltageexceedsa set referencethe r.f. a.g.c.voltage
decreases.
The detectedaudio is fed via the squelchgate,
low-passlilter, volume control and audio amplifier to
the rearpanelconnector. A minimum of 100 mW
-audio power into a 500 O load is provided.
Tiansmitter The transmitter(Fig. 2.6) feeds l6 W of
a.m. r.f. to the antenna. Modulationis achievedbv
superimposingthe amplified mic. audio on the
transmitter chain supply. The carrier frequency
corresponds to the in-usedisplay.
Radio frequency is fed from the s.m;o. to an r.f.
amplifier. This input drive is switched by the
transmit receiveswitching circuits, the drive being
effectively shorted to earth when the pressto
transmit(p.t.t.) button is not depressed.The
24
transmitter chain comprisesa pre-driver, driver and
final stageall broad band tuned, operated in ClassC
and with modulatedcollectors. The a.m. r.f. is fedvia
a low-passfilter, which attenuatesharmonics,to the
antenna. On receivethe t.r. diode is forward biased
to feed the receivedsignalfrom the antenna through
the low-passfilter to the receiver.f. amplifier.
The modulator chain comprisesmicrophone
pre-amplifier,diode limiting, an f.e.t. switchingstage,
integratedcircuit modulator driver and two modulator
transistorsconnectedin parallel. The pre-ampoutput
is sufficient to subsequentlygive at least 85 per cent
modulation,the limiter preventingthe depth of
modulation exceeding100 per cent. The mic. audio
line is broken by Jhe f.e.t. switch during receive.
Stabilized Master Oscillator The s.m.o. is a
conventional phaselocked loop with the codesfor the
programmabledividerbeinggeneratedby a
microprocessor.Discretecomponentsare usedfor
the voltagecontrolledoscillator(v.c.o.)and buffers
while integratedcircuits(i.c.) areusedelsewhere.
The referencesigrralof 25 kHz is provided by an
oscillatordivideri.c. which utilizesa 3'2 MHz crystal
to give the necessarystability. Only sevenstagesof a
fourteen-stageripple-carry binary counter are used to
 R.F.
{s.m.o.}

P.t.t.

Fig. 2.6 King KY 196 simplified transmitter block diagram

Phase
detector v.c.o.

MHz cont. MHz cont.

lrom pp lrom gp
Fig. 2.7 King Ky 196 simplifiedprogrammabte
divider
bkrck diagram

gtve the necessarydivision of 21 = l2g.

This reference, is made;i.e. zerosafter the displayeddecimalpoint.
with the outpur of the programmable
l9e9lner The prescalerwhich perlbrmsthis division is a u.h.f.
divider,is fed to the phasedetecior-whichis part
of programmable divider(+ l0/l l) followedby a
an i.c., the rest of which is unused. The pulsating
d.c. divide-by-four i.c. The wholeMHz diviclerusesa
on the output of the phasedetectortrasa a.O.
7 4 L S l 6 2 b . c . d .d e c a d ec o u n t e ra n d a 7 4 L S l 6 3b i n a r y
componentwhich after filtering is used to control
the counterwhich togethercan be programmedto divide
frequencyof the v.c.o. by varactortuning.
If there is by an integerbetweenI l8 and 145,hencethe
a synthesizermalfunction, an out-ofloclisignal
from
"s.m.o. prescalerand whole MHz divider give a total division
the phasedetectoris usedto switch off the
o,t^llSO(40 X I l8) to 5800 (40 X 145)in stepsof
feedto the transmitter.
40. Thus a requiredv.c.o.output of, say, t IO.OOUHz
The programmabledivider consistsbasicallyof
. would be achievedwith a divisionof 5200 (40 X 130)
thrce setsof countersas shownin Fig. 2.7. Tie
since130 MHz + 5200 = 25 kHz = reference
v.c.o.output is first dividedUy "ittrei+O o,
!r1f!rea- frequency.
41, the former being so when a discreti MHz
selection The 25 kHz stepsareobtainedby forcing the

25
prescalerto divide by 41, the requirednumber of
timesin the count sequence.Each time the division
ratio is 41, one extra cycleof the v.c.o.frequencyis
neededto achievean output of 25 kHz from the
programmabledivider. To seethat this is so, consider
the previousexamplewherewe had a division ratio of
5200 to give 130'00MHz, i.e. 5200 cyclesat
130'00MHz occupies40 ps = periodof 25 kHz.
Now a prescalerdivisionratio of 4l once during 40 ps
means5201 cyclesof the v.c.o.output occupy40 ps
so the frequencyis 5201/(40X 10-6) = 130.025MHz
asrequired. The prescalerratio is controlled by the
fractionalMHz divider, againemploying a 7 4LS| 62
and 74LS163. The numberof divide-by-41eventsin
40 ps is determinedby the kHz control code from the
microprocessorand can be anywherefrom 0 to 39
times. Thereforeeachwhole megacyclecan have
N X 25 kHz addedwhereN rangesfrom 0 to 39. This
produces25 kHz stepsfrom 0 kHz to 975 kHz.
Microprocessorand Display The microprocessor
used,an 8048, containssufficientmemory for the
programand data requiredin this applicationto be
storedon the chip. In addition to this memory and,
of course,an eight-bit c.p.u.,we havean eight-bit
timer/counterand a clock on board. Through
twenty-sevenI/O linesthe 8048 interfaceswith the
programmabledivider, displaydrive circuits and
non-volatilememory.
Clock 1024 words 64 words
program data
memory memory
__JI___J
8-bir
CPU 'l
(
8-bit
27
Timer/ I/g lines
evont counter
Fig. 2.8 8048 eieht-bit microcornputcr (courtery King
Radio Corp.)
216
The 8048 has been programmed to generatea
'use' and 'standby' frequencies.
binary code for the
The code,aswell asbeing storedin the 8048, is also
storedin a l40o-bit electricallyalterablereadonly
memory (EAROM). This external memory is
effectively a non-volatileRAM, the data and address
being communicated in serial form via a one-pin
bidirectionalbus, the read/write/erase mode being
controlledby a three-bit code. When power is
appliedthe microprocessorreadsthe last frequencies
stored in the EAROM which are then utilized as the
'use'and 'standby' frequencies.In the eventof
initial
failure of the EAROM the microprocessorwill display
120'00 MHz as its initial frequencies.The EAROM
will store data for an indefinite period without power.
The 'standby'frequency is changedby clockwise
or counterclockwisedetent rotation of the frequency
selectknobs. I MHz, 50 kHz and 25 kHz changescan
be made with two knobs, one of which incorporatesa
push-pull switch for 50125kHz step changes.The
microprocessoris programmedto incrementor
'standby'frequency
decrementthe by the appropriate
step whenever it sensesthe operation of one of the
frequency-select knobs.
The code for the frequency in use is fed to the
programmabledividersfrom the microprocessor.
'Use' 'standby'
and frequenciesare exchangedon
operationof the momentary transferswitch. When
the transceiveris in the receivemode the
'us€' frcquency
microprocessoradds I l'4 MHz to the
code since the local oscillator signal fed to the
receivermixer should be this amount higher than the
desiredreceivedcarrier in order to give a difference
frequency equal to the i.f.
'standby'codesare fed to the
Both luse'and
display drivers. The'use'code representsthe
transmit frequency and is not increasedby I l'4 MHz
in the receive mode. Each digit is fed in tum to the
cathode decoder/driver, an i.c. containing a seven-
segmentdecoder, decimal point and comma drives
and programmable current sinks. The decimal point
and comma outputs (i and h) are used to drive the
segments
'T'is
displaying'l',
'.'and 'T' (seeFig. 2.10).
The illumfrrated when in the transmit mode.
The display is a gasdischargetype with its
intensity controlled by a photocell located in the
display window. As the light reaching the photocell
decreasesthe current being supplied to the
programming pin of the cathode decoder/driverfrom
the display dimmer circuit decreases,so dimming the
display.
Time multiplexing of the display dri'res is achieved
by a clock sipal being fed from the microprocessorto
 T
C
n
s llrito?y
t array q
d IOO x 14
d
f C2
e
s C3
s
LSB

1O-bits
Fig. 2.9 Electrically alterableread only memory, e.a.r.o.m.
(courtesy King Radio Corp.)

Display

A1 A2 A3 A4 A6 A7

",,
A5 A8
f l tl'lo
&'-
Anode'
driver
AA
lf"
Cathode
h l .Ll.
d

o h
decoder/driver T h

1f
A B C D

I l T I T
B.C.D. Dimming
Multiplexer
code current

Clocft

- Anode
drive A1 A7

B.C.D.
code
I l l-l l-ll-l- t_-t ll t-l
r_-l l-1. l-t ll U. U t:l

l/1lo sec.
Fig.2.l0 King KY 195 simplifieddisplaydrive block
diagram

n
 arulofJurrsr/rrruuP
(Al to A8) are switched scquentially. As the anode
drivesare switchedthe appropriateb.c.d. information
from the microprocessoris beingdecodedby the
cathodedecodery'driver,the result being that the
necessary segmentsof eachdigit are lighted one digit
at a time at approximatelyI l0 times per second.
A synchronizationpulseis sent to the multiplexer
from the microprocessor every 8 cyclesto maintain
display synchronization.
dcsiredsignal,ttrc resultantaudiooutput shallnot
exceed-10 dB with referenceto the output prcduced
by a desiredsigralonly whenmodulated30 per cent
(underspecified sigtallevel/offresonanceconditions).
UndesiredResponses
in band108-135MHzshallbe
All spuriousresponses
downat least100dB otherwise,includingimage,
at least80 dB down.

Characteristics
The selectedcharacteristicswhich follow are drawn
from ARINC Characteristic566 coveringairbome
v.h.f. communicationsand SatcomMark l. Details
of Satcomand extendedrangea.m. are not included.
System Units
l. V.h.f. transceiver;
2. modulation adaptor/modem- f.m. provision
for Satcom;
3. power'amplifier- Satcomand extendedrange;
4. pre-amplifier- Satcomand extendedrange;
5. control panel;
6. remote frequencyreadoutindicator - optional;
7. antennas- separateSatcomantenna.
Note: I and 2 may be incorporatedin one line
replaceable unit (l.r.u.).
Audio Output
Gain
A 3 pV a.m.sigralwith 30 per centmodulationat
1000Hz will produce100mWin a 200-500Q load.
Frequmcy Response
Audio poweroutput levelshallnot vary morethan
6 dB overfrequencyrange300-2500Hz.
Frequencies > 5750Hz mustbe attenuated by at
least20 dB.
HarmonicDistortion
[.essthan 7'5 percentwith 30 per centmodulation.
Irss than2Opercentwith 90 per centmodulation.
AGC
No morethan 3 dB variationwith input signalsfrom
5 gV to 100mV.

Frequenry Selection Transmitter

720 channelsfrom I l8 through 135.975MHz,
25 kHz spacing. Stability
Receivermuting and p.t.t. de-energization
during Carrierfrequencywithin t 0'005 per cent under
channelling. prescribedconditions.
2i 5 channelselection.
Channellingtime: ( 60ms. PowerOutput
25-40W into a 52 O loadat theendof a 5 ft
Recciver transmission
line.

Sensitivity Sidetone
3 pV, 30 per cent modulation at 1000 Hz to give With90 per centa.m.at 1000Hz the sidetoneoutput
S+N/N>6d8. strallbe at least100mWinto eithera 200 or 500O
load.
Selectivity
Minimum 6 dB points at I l5 kHz (t 8 kHz sharp). Mic. Input
Maximum60 dB pointsat I 31.5 kHz (t l5 kHz Mic.audioinput circuitto havean impedanceof
sharp). 150O for usewith a carbonmic.or a transistormic.
Maximum 100 dB points at i 40 kHz (t l8'5 kHz operatingfrom the (approx.)20 V d.c.carbonmic.
-sharp). supply.

Qoss Modulation Antenna

With simultaneousreceiverinput of 30 per cent Verticallypolarizedandomnidirectional.

2A

,J
'i6
,$
$
 To match 52 O with VSWR ( l'5 : l. The current and future norm is to use single
sideband(s.s.b.)mode of operationfor h.f.
Ramp Testing
communications,although setsin servicemay have
After checking for condition and assemblyand
provisionfor compatibleor normal a.m.,i.e. carrier
making availablethe appropriate power suppliesthe
and one or two sidebandsbeing transmitted
following (typical)'checksshouldbe madeat each
respectively.This s.s.b.transmissionand reception
stationusingeachv.h.f.
hasbeen describedbriefly in ChapterI and
l. Disablesquelch,checkbackgroundnoiseand extensivelyin many textbooks. A featureofaircraft
operationof volume control. h.f. systemsis that coverageof a wide band of r.f. and
2. On an unusedchannelrotate squelchcontrol useof a resonantantennarequiresefficient antenna
until squelchjust closes(no noise). Pressp.t.t. tuning arrangementswhich must operate
button, speakinto mic. and checksidetone. automatically on changingchannelin order to reduce
- 3. Establishtwo-way communicationwith a the VSWR to an acceptablelevel.
remotestation usingboth setsof frequency
control knobs,in conjunctionwith transfer Installation
switch,if appropriate.Checkstrengthand A typical large aircraft h.f. installation consistsof
quality of signal. two systems,eachof which comprisesa transceiver,
controller, antennatuning unit and antenna. Eachof
NB . Do not transmiton I 2l '5 MHz (Emergency). the transceivers are connectedto the AIS for mic.. tel.
Do not transmitif refuellingin progress. and p.t.t. provision. In addition outputs to Selcal.
Do not interrupt ATC-aircraftcommunications. decodersare provided. Suchan installationis shown
i n F i g .2 . 1l .
The transceivers contain the receiver,transmitter,
H.F. Communicataons power amplifier and power supply circuitry. They are
mounted on the radio rack and providedwith a flow
BasicPrinciples of cooling air, possibly augmentedby a fan. A
The useof h.f. (2-30 MHz) carriersfor communication transceiverrated at 200 W p.e.p.needsto dissipate
purposesgreatly extends the rangeat which aircrew 300 W when operatedon s.s.b.while on a.m. this
canestablishcontact with AeronauticalMobile figure risesto 500 W. Telephoneand microphone
Servicestations. This beingso, we find that h.f. jacks may be providedon the front panel,asmight a
comm.systemsare fitted to aircraft flying routes meter and associatedswitch which will provide a
which are,for somepart of the flight, out of rangeof meansof monitoring variousvoltagesand currents.
v}t.f. service.Such aircraft obviouslyinclude public Coupling to the antennais achievedvia the
transportaircraft flying intercontinentalroutes,but antennatuning unit (ATU). Somesystemsmay
thereis alsoa market for generalaviationaircraft. employ an antennacouplerand a separateantenna
The long rangeis achievedby useof sky waves couplercontrol unit. The ATU provides,
which arerefractedby the ionosphereto suchan automatically,a match from the antennato the 50 Q
extent that they arebent sufficiently to return to transmissionline. Closed-loopcontrol of matching
earth. The h.f. ground wavesuffersquite rapid elementsreducesthe standingwaveratio to l'3 : I
attenuationwith distancefrom the transmitter. or less(ARINC 559A).
Ionosphericattenuationalsotakesplace,being Since the match must be achievedbetween line and
greatestat the lower h.f. frequencies.A significant antennathe ATU is invariablymountedadjacentto
featureof long-rangeh.f. transmissionis that it is the antennalead-in,in an unpressurized part of the
zubjectto selectivefadingovernarrow bandwidths airframe. For high-flyinga'ircraft(most jets) the ATU
(tensof cycles). is pressurized,possiblywith nitrogen. Someunits
The type of modulation used,and associated may contain a pressureswitch which will be closed
detailssuchas channelspacingand frequency wheneverthe pressurizationwithin the tuner is
channellingincrements,havebeenthe subjectof adequate. The pressureswitch may be used for
many papersand ordersfrom users,both civil and ohmmeter checksor, providingswitch reliability is
military, and regulatingbodies. ARINC Characteristic adequate,may be connectedin serieswith the key
No. 559A makesinterestingreading,in that it reveals line thus preventing transmissionin the event of a
how conflictingproposalsfrom variousauthorities leak. Altematively an attenuatormay be swit;hed in
(in both the legaland expert opinion sense)can exist to reducepower.
at the sametime. Light aircraft h.f. systemsin serviceare likely, for

A
 Mic. No. 1
Xmit No. I
28V---2- t.r.
Tcl.

No. I
p.t.t.

No. 2
interlock
28V
No. I 2av
interlock

No. 2
p.t.t.

Mic.
- l

28vl ruoz
Tel. +

Fig 2.1I Typicaldualh.f. installatbn

financial reasons,to have a fixed antennacoupler.
Sucha systemoperateson a restrictednumber of
channels(say twenty). As a particular channelis
selected,appropriate switching takesplace in the
coupler to ensurethe r.f. feed to the antennais via
previously adjusted,reactivecomponents,which
make the effective antennalength equal to a quarter
of a wavelength,thus presentingan impedanceof
approximately 50 O. The required final manual
adjustmentmust be carried out by maintenance
personnelon the aircraft.
The antennaused variesgreatly, dependingon the
type of aircraft. For low-speedaircraft a long wire
antennais popular although whip antennasmay be
found on somelight aircraft employing low-powered
h.f. systems. The aerodynamicproblemsof wire
antennason aircraft which fly faster than, say, 400
knots, haveled to the useofnotch and probe
antennaswhich effectively excite the airframe so that
it becomesa radiatingelement.
Modernwire antennasare constructedof
copper-cladsteelor phosphorbronze,givinga reduced
r.f. resistance comparedwith earlierstainless.steel
wires. A coveringofpolythene reducesthe effectsof
precipitationstatic. Positioningis normally a single
spanbetween forward fuselageand vertical stabilizer.
I:rger aircraft will have twin antennaswhile a single
'V'
installation,possiblyin a configuration,is more
common for smaller aircraft. The r.f. feed is usually
at the forward attachment via an antennamast. The
rear tetheringis by meansof a tensioningunit.
The aniennamaqtis subjectto pitting and erosion

c,
 of the leadingedge;a neoprpnecoveringwill provide
someprotection,nevertheless regularinspectionsare
called for. Protection againstcondensationwithin the
mastmay be providedby containersof silicagel
which shouldbe periodicallyinspectedfor a changein
colour from blue to pink, indicatingsaturation.
Hollow mastsare usuallyprovidedwith a water-drain
path which shouldbe kept free from obstruction.
The two most important featuresof the rear
tetheringpoint are that the wire is kept under tension
and that a weak link is providedso asto ensurethat
any break occursat the rear,so preventingthe wire
wrappingitself around the verticalstabilizerand
rudder. On light aircraft a very simplearrangementof
a spring,or rubber bungee,and hook may be used.
The springmaintainsthe tensionbut if this becomes
excessivethe hook will open and the wire will be free
at the rearend. On largeraircraft a spring-tensioning
unit will be usedto copewith the more severe
conditionsencountereddue to higherspeedsand
fuselageflexing. The unit loads the wire by meansof
a metal spring,usuallyenclosedin a barrelhousing.
A serratedtail rod is attachedto the tetheringpoint
on the aircraft and insertedinto the barrelwhereit is
securedby a springcollet, the grip of which increases
with tension. The wire is attachedto a chuck unit
which incorporatesa copperpin servingas a weaklink
desigredto shearwhen the tensionexceedsabout
180 lbf. Someunits incorporatetwo-stageprotection
againstoverload. Two pins of different strengthsare
used;shouldthe first shear,a smallextension(3/ 16 in.)
of overalllength results,thus reducingtensionand
exposinga yellow warningband on the unit.
Notch antennasconsistof a slot cut into the
aircraft structure.often at the baseof the vertical
stabilizer. The inductanceof the notch is o 4. HF I ATU input and output feedsgrounded
series-resonated by a high-voltagevariablecapacitor
driven by a phase-sensing servo. Signalinjection is via
matching circuitry driven by a SWR sensingservo.
'Q'
Since the notch is high the input is transformed to
a voltageacrossthe notch which is ofthe order of
thousandsofvolts. This largevoltageprovides the
driving force for current flow in the airframe which
servesas the radiator.
A probe antenna,which is aerodynamically
acceptable,may be fitted at either of the wing-tipsor
on top of the verticalstabilizer. Againseriestuning
providesthe necessary driving force for radiation.
The probe antenna,aswell as the wire antenna,is
liable to suffer lightningstrikes,so protection in the
form of a lightning arrester(sparkgap)is fitted.
Any voltagein excessof approximatelyl6 kV on the
antennawill causean arc acrossthe electrodesof the
hydrogen-iilledsparkgap,thus preventingdischarge
through the h.f. equipment. Build-up of precipitation
static on antennas,particularlyprobes,is dealt with
by providinga high resistance static drain (about
6 MSl) path to earth connectedbetweenthe antenna
feed point and the ATU.
It is important in dual installationsthat only one
h.f. systemcan transmit at any one time;this is
achievedby meansof an interlock circuit. This basic
requirementis illustratedin Fig. 2.11 whereit canbe
seenthat the No. I p.t.t. line is routed via a contact
of the No. 2 interlock relay, similarlywith No. 2
p.t.t. The interlock relayswill be externalto the
transceivers often fitted in an h.f. accessory box.
While one of the h.f. systemsis transmittingthe other
systemmust be protectedagainstinducedvoltages
from the keyedsystem.In addition,with some
installations,we may havea probe usedas a
transmitting antennafor both systemsand as a
receivingantennafor, say,No. I system. The No. 2
receivingantennamight be a notch. It follows that on
keying either systemwe will havea sequenceof
eventswhich might proceedas follows.
HF I keyed:
l. HF 2 keyline broken by a contactof HF I
interlock relay;
2. HF 2 antennagrounded;
3. HF 2ATU input and output feedsgounded and
feed to receiverbroken.
HF 2 keyed:
l. HF I keyline broken by a contactof HF 2
interlock relay;
2. HF I probe antennatransferredfrom HF l;
ATU to HF 2 ATU;
3. HF 2 notch antennafeed grounded;
and feed to receiverbroken.
C,ontrols and Operation
Separatecontrollers are employed in dual installations,
eachhaving'in-use'frequencyselectiononly. Older
systemsand some light aircraft systemshave limited
channelselectionwhere dialling a particular channel
number tunesthe system,includingATU, to a
pre-assigned frequency,a channel/frequency chart is
required in such cases.With modern sets,indication
ofthe frequency selectedis given directly on the
controller.
The controlsshownin Fig. 2.1 I arethosereferred
to in ARINC 559A; variationsare common and will
be listed below.
Mode Selector Switch. OFF-AM-SSB Thc'turn off'
function may be a separateswitch or indeed may not
31
be crnployed at all; snritchingon and offbeing
achievedwith the masterradio switch. The 'AM'
positionmay be designated'AME'(AM equivalentor
compatible)and is selectedwhenevertransmission
and receptionis requiredusinga.m. or s.s.b.plus full
carrier(a.m.e.). The 'SSB'position providesfor
transmissionand reception of upper sidebandonly.
Although useof the upper sidebandis the norm
for aeronauticalh.f. communicationssomecontrollers
'USB' 'LSB'positions.
have and In addition 'DATA'
and 'CW'modes
may be available.The former is for
possiblefuture use of data links by h.f. using the
uppersideband- the receiveris operatedat
maximumgain. The latter is for c.w. transmissionand
reception,morsecode,by 'key bashing',being the
information-carryingmedium.
Flequency SelectorsFrequency selecton consist of,
typically, four controls which allow selectionof
frequenciesbetween 2.8 and 24MHz in I kHz steps
(ARINC 559A). Military requirementsare for a
frequencycoverageof 2 to 30 MHz in 0.1 kHz steps,
consequentlyone will find systemsoffering 280 000
'channels'meeting
theserequirementsin full or
28 000 channelsmeetingthe extendedrangebut not
the 0'l kHz steprequirement.
When a new frequency is selectedthe ATU must
adjustitselfsincethe antennacharacteristics will
change.For this purposethe transmitteris keyed
momentarily in order that SWR and phasecan be
measuredand usedto drive the ATU servos.
SquelchControl Normel control of squelch
thresholdmay be provided. As an alternativean r.f.
sensitivitycontrol may be used,but where Selcalis
utilizedit is important that the receiveroperatesat
full sensitivityat all timeswith a squelchcircuit being frequencyis only 600 Hz. It follows that the filter
employedonly for aural monitoring and not affecting usedmust havevery steepskirts and a flat bandpass.
the output to the Selcaldecoder.
Audio Volume Control Providesfor adjustment of
audiolevel. Sucha control may be locatedelsewhere, mechanicallyresonantmetal discsand coupling rods
suchas on an audio selectorpanel, part of the AIS.
C:lanfter This control is to be found on some h.f.
controllers. With s.s.b.signalswhile the phaseof thc
re-insertedcarrier is of little consequenceits
frequencyshouldbe accurate.Should the frequency
be inconect by, say,in excessof t 20 Hz
deterioration of the quality of speechwill result.
A clarifier allows for manual adjustment of the
re-insertedcarrier frequency. Use of highly accurate
md stablefrequency synthesizersmake the provision
of such a control unnecessary.
32
Indicator A meter mounted on the front panel of the
controller may be providedin order to give an
indication of radiatedpower.
Block Dhgram Operation
Tlansceiver Figure 2.12 is a simplified block diagram
of an a.m./s.s.b.transceiver.The operationwill be
describedby function.
Amplitude Mo dulated Transm issio n The frequency
selectedon the controller determinesthe output from
the frequencysynthesizerto the r.f. translatorwhich
shifts the frequency up and provides sufficient drive
for the power amplifier(p.a.). The mic. input, after
amptfication, feedsthe modulator which produces
high-levelamplitudemodulation of the r.f. amplified
by the p.a. The r.f. signalis fed to the ATU via the
antennatransferrelay contact.
The PA output signalis sampledby the sidetone
detectorwhich feedssidetoneaudio via the contact
of the deenergizedsidetonerelay and the sidetone
adjustpotentiometerto the audio output amplifier.
Single Sideband Transmission Low-level modulation
is necessarysincethere is no carrierto modulateat
the p.a. stage,hencethe mic. input, /n., is fed to a
balancedmodulator togetherwith a fixed carrier
frequency,/., from the frequencysynthesizer.The
balancedmodulator output consistsof both sidebands
f" + f^ andf" - f^, the carrierbeingsuppressed.
The requiredsidebandis passedby a filter to the r.f.
translatorafter further amplification.
Ifwe consideran audio responsefrom 300 to
3000 Hz we seethat the separationbetweenthe
lowestEs.b. frequencyand the highestl.s.b.
A mechanicalfilter can be usedin which an input
transducerconvertsthe electricalsignalinto
mechanicalvibrations,theseare transmittedby
and finally convertedback to an electricalsignalby
an output transducer.
Frequencytranslationis by a mixing process
rather than a multiplicativeprocesssinceif the
u.s.b./, + /n' were multiplied by try'we would
radiatea frequencyof//(/c + /n,') rather than
ft + f " + /.. The amount by which the u.s.b.is
translated,fi, is determinedby the frequencyselected
on the controller. Final amplification takes place in
the p.a. prior to feedingthe r.f. to the ATU.
To obtain sidetonefrom the p.a. stagea carrier
would needto be re-inserted.A simplermethod,

To r.f./i.f. stages
f"+f-
f"- f.
Fq.2.l2 Typicalh.f. a.m./s.s.b.
trmsceiverblockdiagram
which neverthelessconfirms that a sigral has reached
the p.a.,is to usethe rectified r.f. to operatea
sidetonerelay. When energizedthe contact of this
relay connectsthe amplified mic. audio to the output
audio amplifier.
Amplitude Modulated Reception The receivedsignal
passesfrom the ATU via the de+nergized antenna
transferrelay contact to an r.f. amplifier and thence
to the r.f. translator. After the translatornormal.a.m.
detection takes place, the audio so obtained being fed
to the output stage. A variety ofa.g.c. and squelch
circuitsmay be employed.
Single Sideband Reception The circrit action on
t s.s.b.is similarto that on a.m. until after the
translatorwhen the translated r.f. is fed t6 the product
detector along with the re-inserted'carrier' /". The
output ofthe product detector is the required audio
Sidetonc
relay
signal,which is dealt with in the sameway as before.
Antenna Tuning Unit Figure 2.13 illustrates an
automatic ATU simplified block diagram. On
selectinga new frequency a retune sigrralis sent to
the ATU control circuits which then:
l. keys the transmitter;
2. insertsan attenuatorin transceiveroutput line
(Fig.2.t2);
3. switcheson the tuning tone sigral generator
(Fig.2.l2) and drivesa tune warninglamp
(optional);
4. switcheson referencephasesfor servo motors.
The r.f. signalon the input feed is monitored by a
loading servosystem and a phasingservo system. If
the load impedanceis high then the line current, /L,
is low and the line voltage ZL is high. This is
dctected by the loading s€rvodiscriminator which
El

Aru
Transceiver
p;g.2.13 Typicalh.f. a.t.u.blockdiagrarn
appL:: the appropriate amplitude and polarity d.c.
sigral to a chopper/amplifier which in turn provides
the control phasefor the loading servomotor. The
auto transformertap is drivenuntil the load
impedrnceis 50 O.
Should Iy and Vynot be in phasethis is detected
by the phasingservodiscriminator which appliesthe
approp:iateamplitudeand polarity d.c. signalto a
chopper/amplifier which in turn provides the control
phasefor the phasingservomotor. The reactive
elemenis,inductanceand capacitance, are adjusted
untri.Il and Vy are in phase.
As a result of the action of the two servo systemsa
resistiveload of 50 O is presentedto the co-axial feed
from the transceiver. When both servosreach their
null positions the control circuits removethe signals
listedpreviously.
Ctaracteristics
The following brief list of characteristicsare those of
a systemwhich conformswith ARINC 559A.
frequency Selection
An r.f. nnge of 2'8-24 MHz coveredin I kHz
increments.
Method: reentrant frequency selectionsystem.
Orannelling time lessthan I s.
Mode of Operation
Singlechannel simplex, upper singlesideband.
g
I
Tune Tx
Rctunc tone keY
Tlansmitter
Poweroutput: 400 W p.e.p.(200 W p.e.p.
operatiohal).
Absolutemaximum power output: 650 W p.e.p.
Mic. input circuit frequencyresponse:not more than
I 6 dB variation from 1000 Hz levelthrough therange
350 Hz to 2500 Hz.
Spectrumcontrol: componentsat or below
/" -100 Hz and at or abovef" +29O0Hz shouldbe
attenuatedby at least30 dB.
Frequencystability: ! 2OHz. Shop adjustmentno
more often than vearly. Pilot control (e.g.clarifier)
not acceptable.
lnterlock: only one transmitter in a dual system
'first-come,
strouldoperateat a time on a first-served'
basis,this includestransmittingfor tuning purposes.
Receiver
Sensitivity:4 pV max.; 30 per cent modulation a.m.
(l pV s.s.b.)for l0 dB signaland noiseto noiseratio.
A.g.c.: audio output increasenot more than 6 dB for
input signalincreasefrom 5 to I 000 000 pV and no
more than an additional 2 dB up to I V input signal
level.
Selectivity:
s.s.b.,6d-Bpoints atf"+ 300 Hz and /. + 3100 Hz,
t 35 dB pointsat f"andf" + 3500 Hz.
A.m.: toensureproper receiveroperation(no
adjacentch4nnelinterference)assumingoperationson
6 kHz spaceda.m. channels.
Overall response:compatible with selectivity but in
addition no more than 3 dB variation between anv
two frequenciesin the range300-1500 Hz (for
satisfactorySelcaloperation).
Audio output: two-wire circuit isolated from ground,
300 O (or less)output impedancesupplying 100 mW
(0'5 Selcal)into a 600 O load.
Ramp Testing ard Maintenance
Whilst regularinspection of all aircraft antennasis
called for, it is particularly important in the caseof
h.f. antennasand associatedcomponents. Any
maintenancescheduleshould require frequent
inspection ofantenna tensioning units and tethering
points in the caseof wire antennas,while for both
probe and wire antennasthe spark gap should be
in3pectedfor signsof lightning strikes (cracking
. and/or discolouring).
A functional test is similar to that for vh.f. in that When the correct code is recogrized the chime switch
two-way communication should be establishedwith a and appropriate lamp switch is made. The lamp .witch
remote station: all controls should be checked for
satisfactoryoperation and meter indications, if any,
strouldbe within limits. Safety precautions are
particularly important sincevery high voltagesare
presenton the antenna systemwith the resulting
dangerofelectric shock or arcing. No personnel
should be in the vicinity of the antenna when
transmitting, nor should fuelling operations be in
progress.Rememberwith many h.f. systemsa change
of frequency could result in transmissionto allow
automaticantennatuning.
Selcal
The selectivecalling (Selcal.) system allows a ground
station to call an aircraft or group of aircraft using
h.f. or vir.f. commswithout the flight crew having
continuously to monitor the station frequency.
A coded sigral is transmitted from the ground and
rcceivedby the v.h.f. or h.f. receiver tuned to the
appropriate frequency. The output code is fed to a
Selcaldecoderwhich activatesaural and visual alerts
if and only if the receivedcode'correspondsto the
code selectedin the aircraft.
Each transmitted code is made up of two r.f.
bursts(pulses)eachof-l t 0'25 s separatedby a
period of 0.2 t 0'l s. During eachpulsethe
transmitted carrier is 90 per cent modulated with two
tones, thus there are a total of four tones per call; .
the frequenciesof the tones determine the code.
The tones available are given by the formula
= antilog (0'054(/V- t) + 2O),
[y
w h e r e N= 1 2 ,1 3 . . . 2 7 ,
giving a total of sixteen tones betwecn 312'6 and
1479.1Hz. The tonesare desigratedby lettes A to S
omitting I, N and O so a typical code might b,:
AK-DM. The re ue 297Ocodesavailablefor
assigrmentusing the first twelve tones, the addition b L*-ntgs
of tonesP, Q, R and S (1976) bring the total to
10920. Codesor blocks ofcodes are assignedon
requestto air carrier organizationswho in turn assigt
codesto their aircraft'either on a flight number or
aircraft registration-relatedbasis.
Figure 2.14 illustrates a singleSelcalsystem
large passengertransport aircraft would norma,ly'
carry two identical systems. The decoder will
recognizea receivedcombination of tones on rny of
five channelswhich correspondsto that combrnation
selectedon the code selectand annunciator pa:;el.
supply is by way of an interrupter circuit so that the
lamp will flash. A constant supply to the chime
svitch causesthe chimes to sound once. Each lanrp
holder, designatedHF I , HF I I etc. incorporatesa reset
switch which when depressedwill releasethe latched
lamp switch and chime switch. The tone filters in the
decoderwill typically be mechanicallyresonant
devices.
Variations in the arrangementshown and
describedare possible. Mechanicallythe control and
annunciator panel may be separateunits. Should the
operatorrequireaircraft registration-related codes
there will be no need for code selectswitches.the
appropriatecodebeingselectedby jumper leadson
the rear connectorofthe decoder.
Although five resetleadswill be provided they
may be connectedindividually, all in parallel to a
singleresetswitch or to the p.t.t. circuit of the
associated transmitter. In this latter caseisolation
diodes (within the decoder)prevent'sneak'circuits,
i.e. keying one transmittercausingone or more
othersto be keyed.
The lamp and chime srrppliesshown can be
changed at the operator'soption. Possibilitiesare to
reverse the situation and havesteady lights and
multi-stroke chimes,or havesteady lights and
single-strokechime, in which casethe interrgpt
circuit is not used.
The Selcalsystemswhich do not comply with
ARINC 596 may not providefacilitiesfor decodingof
five channelssimultaneously. A switch is provided on
the control panel with which the singledesired
channelcan be selected;in this caseonly Selcalcodes
receivedon the correspondingreceiverwill be fed to
35

v.H.F.1
v.H.F.2
V.H.F.3
H.F.2
Fig. 2.f4 Typical Selcalblock diagram
the decodcr. Only one annunciator lamp is required.
Codeselectionin an ARINC 596 systemis achieved
by meansof a 'b.c.d.' format. Eachof the four tone
selectorshas four wires associatedwith it; for any
particular tone an appropriate combination of the
wires will be open circuit, the rest grounded. If the
3G
Sslf test [amp
drive
(5 wiresl
tones A to S arc numbered I to 16 (0) the open wires
will be as given by the correspondingbinary number;
e.g.tone M-12-l l(X), so with the wires designated
8,4,2 and I we see8 and 4 will be open. Note this is
not really b.c.d. but is neverthelesstermed so.
Testing of Selcalis quite straightforward. If
 possiblea test rig,consistingofa tone generatorin
conjunctionwith a v.h.f. and h.f. transmittershould
he used,otherwisepermissionto utilize a
Selcalequippedground station shouldbe sought.
G which should perhapsbe restricted to the system
Audio IntegratingSystems(AlS) - lntercom
Introduction
All the systemsin this book exhibit a variety of
characteristics but none more so than AIS. In a light.
aircraft the function of the audio systemis to provide
an interfacebetweenthe pilot's mic. and tel. and the
selectedreceiverand transmitter;sucha 'system'
might be little more than a locally manufactured
panel-mounted junction box with a built-in audio
amplifier and appropriateswitching. ln contraSta
largemulti-crewpassenger aircrafthasseveral
sub-systems making up the total audio system. The
remainderof this chapterwill be concernedwith the
AIS on aBoeing747.
It is unusual to considerall the systemsand
sub-systems which follow as part of AIS, a term
which provides for the selectionof radio system audio
outputs and inpuis and crew intercommunications.
Howevera brief descriptionof all systemswhich
generate,processor recordaudio signalswill be given.
The following servicescomprisethe complete audio
system:
l. flight interphone: allows flight deck crew to
communicatewith eachother or with ground
stations;
2. cabin interphone: allows flight deck and cabin
crew to communicate:

Attendant's chime
call

PA

bverride
VOR/ILSNAV
systom Visual
Pass.ent. audio
Markerbsacon (motionpic.)
systom system
Low range
radioaltimeter
systom
ATC system
DMEsystom
ADFsystem

HF comnr
un ication
system

Headsets
and
microph,
lSatcom I
I sysrem I
tjgg'"q"rlj
Fig. 2.15 Boeing747: typical communicationsfit
(courtesyBoeingCommdrcialAeroplaneCo.)

37
 3. serviceinterphone: allows ground staff to Table 2.1 Flight interphone facilities
communicatewith each other and also with the
flight crew; UPT FlO FIE OBSI OBS2 M.E.
4. passengeraddress(PA): allows announcements
to be made by the crew to the passengers; ASP x x x x x
5. passengerentertainment system: allows the
showing of movies and the piping of music; Jack panel x x i x x
6. gound crew call system: allows flight and
Int - R-T
ground crew to attract each other's attention; p.Lt. x x x
7. cockpit voice recorder: meets regulatory
requirementsfor the recording of flight crew Handheld
audio for subsequentaccident investigation if mic. x X Jack Jack feck Jack
necessary.
llcrdrct Jack Jack Jrct Iack hck Jac*
It *rould be noted that the aboveare not completely
separatesysremsasillustratedin Fig. 2.15 and Boom mic.
describedbelow. The dividing lines between headset x x
zub-systemsof the total audio system are somewhat
Oxygen
arbitrary, and terminologl is varied; however the
mask mic. Jack trck lack Jrck J.ct
facilities describedare commonplace.
lnterphone
Flight Interphone speaker X
This is really the basic and most esential part of the
audio system. All radio equipments having mic. A'X'indicates the particular unit or component is fitted
inputs or tel. outputs, aswell asvirtually all other at that station (column),
'Jack'
audio systems,interface with the flight interphone indicatesa jack plug b fitted to enableuseof the
which may, in itself, be termed the AIS. appropriatemic. and/or tel.
A large number of units and componentsmake up
the totd systemas in Table 2.1 with abbreviated
Table2.2 Abbreviations
termsaslisted in Table 2.2. Figuie 2.16 showsthe
flight interphone block diagram,simplified to the
CAPT - Captain a.s.p.- Audio SelectorPanel
extent that only one audio selectionpanel(ASP), F/O - First Officer int. - Interphone
jack panel etc. is shown. An ASP is shown in OBS - Observer rlt - Radiotelephone
F i g .2 . 1 7 . m.e. - Main Equipment p.t.t. - hes to Transmit
A crew member selectsthe tel. and mic. signals Centre
required by useof the appropriate controls/switches mic. - Microphone tel. - Telephone
on an ASP. The various audio signalsentering an ASp
a.ie'selected by twelve combined push selectand a\dio lineswhich,togetherwith loadingresistors in
volume controls. Each ASP has an audio bus feeding the interphoneaccessory box, form an anti-crosstalk
a built-in isolationamplifier. The v.h.f. and h.f. network;if onecrewmemberhas,say,h.f.l selected
comm. ADF, interphone and marker audio signalsare on his ASPthen the resistivenetworkwill greatly
fed to the bus via the appropriate selectbuttons and attenuatesayh.f.2 whidr would otherwisebe audible
-volume controls. The vh.f. nav. and DME audio is shouldanothercrewmemberhaveselectedh.f.l and
fed to the bus when voice and rangeare selectedwith h.f.2.
the Voice pushbutton; with voice only selectedthe Six mic. selectbuttonsareprovidedon an ASP;
DME audio is disconnectedwhile the vJr.f. nav. audio threevJr.f. @mm.,two h.f. cornm.andPA. Additiond
is pased through a sharp 1020 Hz bandstop filter sritchesasociatedwith mic. selectand transmission
(FLl) before feeding the bus. With the flii-normal aretheboom-mask andr.t.-int.p.t.t. on eachASPand
switch in the fail position only one audio channel can alsop.t.t. buttonson the hand-heldmicrophones.
be selected(bypassingthe amplificr) and the pA jack panelsandthe captain'scontrolwheel
audio is fed direct to the audioout lines. Radio (R/T-int.).
altimeter audio is fed direct tb the audio-out lincs. To speakorrerinterphonea crewmembershould
The above audio switching arrangementsare illustrated selectinterphoneusingthe r.t..int. switchon the
h Fig. 2.18. Note the sericsresistorsin the input a.s.p.which will connectmic. high(boom or mask)

38
 c.E@{r-8..|&
r^.&rEr.@*ccrd

'Eg-B

E]
lr.
s
lucu
O'El

or',a..,.r I i I
D+-i ll ir r t : l l l - - - - l
aaaaa

l!lri4
t t u g
rrr,r l:JJ
n ti !r !
|I iI + Il s # - . "
+= |i 1,.i,..*.
L-re'g!'e$!sret-l
i---r'"* T------1
:l---+i :i

#--i
F.--di ij-#S-.i i r
il--r---l t I
il'F.'Li"ri-i i i i

Fi& 2.lt Ardb signelselectbn(courtcsyBoeiru

CommercialAeroplaneCo.)
Fig. 2.16 Boeirg ?4?: night intqphonc (courtcry Boeirg
CommercialAeroplaneCo.)

tr trtr trtrtr i_p-

l l t l l EOOM

ooooo. rE ,r'i El

l-oo'l l-"i"_.]
I t
-G-
s o o--fio,,
o CI
**"
atr@
ql# rrr
rNr
o
xrt .3
r'
l l -
F .
Fig.l.l7 Audioselection
panel(c€urtesy
Boeing f' IC'Off hIGN

CommercialAeroplane
Co.)

to the interphone mic. high output feeding the flight

interphoneamplifier in the interphoneaccessorybox.
rrcw rs r|rrrftsa {rcaet{d rg
Alternativelythe captaincan seiectinterphoneon his ro rLrcir rrtat,da

control wheel p.t.t. switch which will energizerelay E E

r.Mro s* *rcx
K2 thus making the mic. higft connectionas before.
Note that the ASP r.t.-int.p.t.t. switchdoesnot rely Fi& 2.19 Microphone signalselection(courtesy Bocing
on power reachingthe ASP for relay operation (see CommercialAeroplaneCo.)

39
Fig. 2.19). Interphone mic. signalsfrom all ASh are
fed to the flight interphone amplifier which combines
them and feedsthe amplified interphone audio to all
ASPsfor selectionas required.
Pressing a mic. selectbutton on the ASP will
connectthe correspondingsystemmic. input lines to
relayK2 and to contactson the ASP r.t.-int. p.t.t.
switch. Thus when a p.t.t. switch is pressed,the mic.
lineswill be madeby either the contactsof K2 or by
the ASPp.t.t. switchin the r.t. position. In Fig. 2.19
the h.f.2 selectswitch is shown as typical of all comni.
selectswitches.Whenthe PA selectswitch is pressed
the flight interphonemic. circuit is interruptedand
PA audio is applied to the fail-normal switch; in
additionthe mic. linesto the PA systemare made.
Operationof any p.t.t. switch mutesboth interphone
speakers to preventacousticfeedback.
Cabin Interphonc
The cabin interphoneis a miniatureautomatic
telephoneexchangeservicingseveralsubscribers:
the cabin attendantsand the captain. In addition
the systeminterfaceswith the PA to allow
announcements to be made.
Numbersaredialledby pushbuttonson the
telephonetype handsetsor on the pilot's control
unit. Eleventwo-figurenumbersare allocatedto the
subscribers, plus additionalnumbersfor PA in
'all-attendants'
variousor all compartments,an call
'all-call'.
and an Two dialling codesconsistof letters:
P-Pis usedby an attendantto alert the pilot (call
light flasheson control unit and chime soundsonce)
while PA-PAis usedby the pilot to gain absolute
priority over all other usersof the PA system. The
directory is listed on the push-to-talkswitch
incorporatedin eachhandsetto minimizeambient
noise.
All diallingcode decodingand the necessarytrunk
switchingis carriedout in the centralswitchingunit,
CSU(automaticexchange).The CSU also contains
three amplifiers,one of which is permanently
allocatedto the pilot on what is effectivelya private
trunk. Of the five other availabletrunks, two are
allocatedto the attendants,two to the PA systemand
-onefor dialling. (Note a trunk is simply a circuit
which can connecttwo subscribers.)
The cabin interphoneand serviceinterphone
qystemsmay be combinedinto a common network
by appropriateselectionon the flight engineer's
interphoneswitch panel,captain'sASP and cabin
interphonecontrol unit. Any handsetmay then be
lifted and connectedinto the network (dial'all-call').
In a similarway the flight interphonecircuits may be
usedto make specificcallsover.thecabin interphone
system.
n
Crll light
Attondrnt's .t tion3
(typrcrl)
c.:to!:S"hin!
Itntcrphonc I
lrudio acccrl
lbox I
Ft. 2.20 Boeing 7rt7: cabin interphonc (courtcsy Boeitg
Commercial Aeroplane Co.)
.** --o;*
The systemis more complex than has been
suggestedabovebut a basic description has been given,
zupportedby Fi1.2.20.
ServiceInterphone
A total of twenty-two handsetjacks arelocatedin
variousparts of the airframein order that ground
crew can communicatewith one anotherusingthe
serviceinterphonesystem. The systemis rather
simplerthan thoseconsideredabove. Mic. audio from
'pressto talk' depressed,
are
all handsets,with
combinedin and amplifiedby the serviceinterphone
amplifier in the interphoneaudio accessorybox.
The amplified signalis fed to all handsettels.
Volume control adjustmentis providedby a preset
potentiometer.
With the flight engineer'sinterphoneswitch
selectedto ON the input summingnetworks for both
serviceand flight interphonesystemsare combined.
All mic. inputs from either systemare amplified and
fed to both systems.
PassengQr Address'
The systemcomprisesthree PA amplifiers,tape deck,
annunciatorpanel,attendant'spanel,PA accessory
box, control assemblies, speakerswitch paneland
fifty-three loudspeakers.The variousPA messages
havean order of priority assigredto them: pilot's
announcemen ts, attendant'sannouncements,
prerecordedannouncementsand finally boarding
music. All PA audio is broadcastover the speaker
systemand also,except for boardingmusic,overrides
L--------

r----- --
T----1

,:.*Q
I

*.*A
i
L-

L__------.J
l-*.,^f-J,
.*,,"."
fr aLaclioir6 cricull
I ,".",*,.1-liii',T:f..
i''' *llF^*.; '
r!r6xr ,i[ma l;n:'6--'"'"" ; *,,*,*
,"* lf,b__^-rc,
^*'
euo'o
f
?il6
L____r
(courtesy
address
F1g.2.22Boeing?4?:passenger Boeing
Fig,2.2l Boeing?47: serviceinterphone(courtesyBoeing
AeroPlane
Commercial Co')
CommercialAeroPlaneCo.)

entertainmentaudio fed to the passenger stethoscope
headsets.A prerecorded emergencyannouncement
may be initiated by the pilot or an attendant,or
automaticallyin the event of cabin decompression'
'fasten
A chimeis generatedwhen the pilot tums on
'no smoking' siglts.
seat-belt'or
The passenger addressamplifiersare fed via the
flight or cabininterphone systemsfor pilot or-
atiendantannouncementsrespectively.Distribution
of audio from the amplifiersto the speakersin various
zonesdependson the classconfiguration,sincesome
*noun.itntnts may be intended for only a certain
classof passengers.
The necessaiydistribution is achievedby meansof
switcheson the speakerswitchingpanel. Audio is also
fed to the flight interphonesystemfor sidetone
purposes.
-
Number 2 and number 3 ampliliers ere slavedto
number I for all'classannouncements.Should
separateclassannouncements be requiredthe parallel
control relay is energized,so separatingthe number I
audio from that of number 2 and 3. The control
assembliesin the PA accessorybox contain
potentiometersused to set the gain of the PA
amplifiers. When the aircraft is on the ground with
;;;i;g gearlocked down and ground powgl applied
the lev-efofspeakeraudio is reducedby 6 dB'
The tape deck containsup to five tape cartridges
apart from the necessarytape'{rive mechanism'
piaybackhead and a pre-amplifier' Boarding musicis
Ltectea at an attendint'spanelwhile prerecorded
imnouncementsare selectedby meansof twelve
pushbuttonson the annunciatorpanel'
PassengerEntertainment SYstem
The pa-ssenger entertainmentsystemof the Boeing
747 andan! other modern largeairliner is perhaps
also
the mmt complex of 3ll airbome systems'lt is
the systemliklly to caus€most trouble and,
the
fortunatelv, teait litcelyto affect the safety of
aircraft unlessbad servicing leads to a fire or
^
loose-articlehazard. Evenon the sametype ol
aircraft a variety of serviceswill be availablesince
different op.r"iott will offer different entertainment
the
in a bid to capturemore customers' In view of
abovecomments, the following description is
particularlybrief and doesnot do justice to the
complexitY involved.

41
 Movie P.A.
audio override

Other
submultiplexers

Seats
1 2 3
Channel select

Other seat
Other seat demultiolexers
colurnns

1 2 3
Seats
Fig.2.23 Boeing747: simplified passengerentertainment
system

Both moviesand music are provided,the movie 'system',

audio being fed to individual seatsvia the music
portion of the system.Ten tape-deckchannels,four
movieaudio channelsand one p.a.channel(total
fifteen) are provided usingtime multiplexing. A time the flight deck. Operation is self-explanatoryfrom
interval,ternreda liame, is divided into fifteen
channeltimesduringwhich the signalamplitudeof
eachchannelis sampled.The audiosigrralamplitudes other usingone of the interphonesystems.
arebinary coded(twelve bits) and transmitted,
togetherwith channelidentification, clock and sync.
pulses,over a co-axialcablerunning throughout the
aircraft.
The music channels(five stereo,ten monauralor a
mixture)aremultiplexedin the main multiplexer,the
resultingdigitalsignalbeingfed to six submultiplexers
in series,the final one being terminatedwith a suitable
load resistor. Movie and PA audio are multiplexed
with the musicchannelsin the zonesubmuliiplexers,
eachof which feedsthree or four columnsof seat
demultiplexers.Channelselectionis madeby the
passenger who hearsthe appropriateaudio over his
- stethoscopeheadsetafter digital to analogue
conversionin the demultiplexer. Alternate zone
submultiplexersare usedasback-upin the event of
prime submultiplexerfailure (classpriorities exist if
failuresmean somepassengers must havethe
entertainmentservicediscontinued).
The controls necessaryfor activationof the
entertainments systemarelocatedon attendants'
control panels.
Ground Crew Call Syrtem
Ground crew call is hardly worthy of the title
as can be seenfrom the schematicdiagram
n Fig.2.?4. The horn and flight-deckcall button are
locatedin the nosewheel bay while tl'reground-crew
call(with illumination)and auralwarningbox areon
the diagram. Should horn or chinte sound, the ground
crew, or flight crew respectively,will contact each
CFO CiCW CALL
+.
Fig.2.24 Boeing747:groundcrewcall(courtesy Boeing
Conrmercial Aeroplane Co.)
Cockpit Voice Recorder
An endlesstape provides30 niin recordingtime for
audio signalsinput on four separatechannels.The
channelinputs are captain's,first officer's and flight
engineer'stransmitted and receivedaudio and cockpit
areaconversation.Passenger addressaudio may be
substitutedfor the flight engineer'saudio in an
aircraft certified to fly with two crew members.
The microphoneinputs should be from so-called
'hot
mics', i.e. microphoneswhich are permanently
live regardless of the setting of ASP or control
column switches. The areamicrophone(which may

42
 Flt. eng.
hot mic.
tel.

lst. off. Record

head

lo
hot mic.
tel.

Area Mic. Q Playback

Pre-amp- I head

Erase Test
Jack

4,
Landing parking Essontirl
P"::; ffif flt. inst.
bus bar
Ft1.2.25 Typicalcockpitvoicerccorderblockdiagram

be s.eparate from the control panel) is strategically separatelyor all together. A playbackhead and
situatedso that it can pick up night crew speechand monitor amplifier allowsa satisfactorytest to be
generalcockpit sounds.
observedon metersor heardover a headsetviajack
While the control panelis situatedin the cockpit, plug sockets. Pressingthe test button on the control
.,
the recorderunit (CVR) is locatedat .:heother end of panel or the all-testbutton on the CVR causesthe
the aircraft where it is leastlikely to suffer damagein
channelsto be monitored sequentially.
the event of an accident. The CVR is constructedso
The power supply for the system should be from a
asto withstand shock and fire damage,and additionally sourcewhich provideqmaximum reliabilitv. Sincethe
is paintedin a fire-resistantorangepaint to assistin
tape is subjectto wear and thus has a limiied life, the
recoveryfrom a wreck.
CVR should be switchedoff when nqt in use. A
The recorded audio may be erasedproviding the
suitable method would be to remove power to the
landinggearand parking brake interloik relav'
CVR wheneverexternalground power is connected.
contactsare closed. As a further safeguardaiainst
accidentalerasurea delay is incorporited in the bulk
erasecircuit which requiresthp operator to depress Testingand Trouble Shootingthe Audio
the 'erase'switch for two secondibefore "r"a*"
Systems
commences.
Test facilities are provided for all four channels,
Variousself-test
facilitiesmaybeprovided
by which

tl:l
tonesmay be generatedand heardover headsets.
However,to testproperlyall switchesshouldbe
operatedand all mic. and tel.jacks,aswell as
speakers,shouldbe checkedfor the requiredaudio.
This shouldbe sufficiently loud, clearand noise-free.
Amplifier gainpresetsin accessoryboxesmay needto
be adjusted. A full functional test is best done by
two men, althoughit is not impossiblefor one man
with two headsetsand an extensionlead to establish
two-way contact betweenvariousstations.
Faults can be quite difficult to find owing to the
complicatedswitchingarrangements.Howeverthe
wide rangeof switchingcan be usedto advantagein
order to isolatesuspectunits or interconnections.
Disconnectingunits providesa good method of
4
finding short circuits or howls due to coffee-induced
tel.-mic.feedback(i.e. spilt liquid providinga
conductingpath betweentel. and mic. circuits).
Whereone has a number of units in series,e.g.
demultiplexersin an entertainmentsystem,
disconnectingcan be a particularly rapid method of
fault-finding;it is usually.best to split the run in half,
then in half again,and so on until the faulty unit or
connectionis found. Continuity checkson very long
cablescan be achievedby shorting to earth at one end
and then measuringthe resistanceto earth at the
other. The resistanceto earth should also be
measuredwith the short removedin casea natural
short exists.
3 Automaticdirectionfinding
Introduction
Most readerswill havecome acrossthe principle on
which ADF is basedwhen listeningto a transistor
radio. As the radio is rotated the signalbecomes
weakeror stronger,dependingon its orientation with
respectto the distant transmitter. Of courseit is the
antennawhich is directionaland this fact has been
known sincethe early days of radio.
In the 1920sa simpleloop antennawas usedwhich
could be rotated by hand. The pilot would position
the loop so that there was a null in the signal from the
station to which he was tuned. The bearingof the
stationcould then be readoff a scaleon the loop.
Tuning into anotherstation gaverise to another
bearingand consequentlya fix. Apart from
position-fixingthe direction-findingloop could be
usedfor homing on to a particularstation. This
primitive equipmentrepresentedthe first use of radio
for navigationpurposesand came to be known as the
radio compass.
The systemhas been much developedsince those
early daysand in particularits operationhasbeen
simplified. Within the band 100-2000kHz (I.f./m.f.)
thereare many broadcaststationsand non-directional
beacons(NDB). An aircraft today would have twin
Athwartships
loop
Forc and aft loop
Fb.3.l Loop entcnnaand goniometcr
receiverswhich, when tuned to two distinct stations
or beacons,would automaticallydrive two pointerson
an instrumentcalleda radio magneticindicator (RMI)
so that eachpointer gavethe bearingof the
correspondingstation. The aircraft position is where
the two directionsintersect. Sincesucha system
requiresthe minimum of pilot involvementthe name
radio compasshascome to be replacedby automatic
direction finder (ADF).
BasicPrinciples
TheLoop Antenna
'l
he first requirementof any ADF is a directional
antenna. Early loop antennaswere able to be rotated
first by hand and subsequentlyby motor,
automatically. The obviousadvantageof havingno
moving partsin the aircraft skin-mountedantennahas
led to the universaluseof a fixed loop and goniometer
in modern equipments,althoughsomeolder types are
still in service.
The loop antennaconsistsof an orthogonalpair of
coils wound on a single flat ferrite core which
concentratesthe magnetic(H) field componentof the
e.m. waveradiatedfrom a distant station. The plane
Rotot
(sctrch coil)
45
ol one coil is alignedwith the aircraftlongitudinal
axiswhile the other is alignedwith the lateralaxis.
The currentinducedin eachcoil will dependon
the directidnof the nragneticfield. Whenthe plane
of the loop is perpendicular to the directionof
propagation, no voltageis inducedin the loop since
the linesof flux do not link with it. lt canbe seen
that if one loop doesnot link with the magneticfield
the other will havemaximumlinkage. Figure3.1
showsthat the loop currentsflow through the stator
windingof a gonionreter (resolver)where.providing
the characteristics o1'eachcircuitareidentical,the
magneticfield detectedby the loop will be recreated
in so far asdirectionis concerned.We now
effectivelyhavea rotating loop antennain the form
of the eoniometerrotor or searchcoil. As the rotor
turnstf,rough360otherewill be two peaksand two
nullsof the voltageinducedin it. The output of the
rotor is the input to the ADF receiverwhich thus sees
the rotor asthe antenna.Suchan arrangement is
known asa Bellini-Tosisystem.
Sincewe areeffectivelybackwith a rotatingloop
situationwe shouldconsiderthe polardiagramof
suchan antennaaswe areinterestedin its directional
properties.
In Fig. 3.2 we havea verticallypolarizedt.e.m.
wavefrom the direction shown. Tl.ratcomponentof
the H field linking with the loop will be H sin 0, so a
plot of the loop current againstI producesa sine
curveasshown. The polar diagramof such an
antennawill be asin Fig. 3.3. It canbe seenthat
because of the sinusoidalnatureof the plot the nulls
arefar more sharplydefinedthan the peaks.
The abovehasassumeda verticallypolarizedwave
which is in fact the casewith NDBs and most
Fig,3.3 Loopaerialpolardiagram
broadcaststations.Howevera verticallypolarized
signaltravellingovernon-homogeneous earth and
strikingreflectingobjects,includingthe ionosphere,
can arriveat the loop with an appreciable
horizontallypolarizedcomponent.The currentin
the loop will then be due to two sources,the vertical
and horizontal cornponents,which will in generalgive
a non-zeroresultarrtnull, not necessarilyin the
direction of the plane of the antenna. This
polarizationerrordictatesthat ADF ihould only be
usedwith groundwavesignalswhich in the l.f./m.f.
bandsare usefulfor severalhundredmiles. However.
they arecontaminated by non-verticallypolarizedsky
wavesbeyond,say,200m at 200 kHz and 50 m at
1600 kHz, the effect beingmuch worseat night
(night effect)
$*o read ,
The SenseAntenna
The polar diagramof the loop (Fig. 3.3) showsthat
the bearingof the NDB will be givenas one of twtr

Plane of looP

l / H field

Direction of
tl
l,/
propagatron -------------+ i

(l
E fieldO

\
| .-0,,

F8. 3.2 To illustrate degrccof coupling of loop acrbl

tt6
 figures,l80o apart, sincethere are two nulls. In althoughnot as clearlydefinedas the nulls for the
order to determinethe correctbearingfurther figure-of-eight(Fig. 3.4).
information is neededand this is providedby an
omnidirectionalsenseantenna. In a verticaliv
polarizedfield an antennawhich is omnidireitional in
the horizontal plarreshouldbe of a type which is Simplified Block Diagram Operation
excited by the electric(E) field of the t.e.m. wave
i.e. a capacitanceantenna. The output of suchan Automatic direction finding (ADF) is achievedby
antennawill vary with the instantaneousfield meansof a servoloop. The searchcoil is driven ro a
stablenull position,a secondnull beingunstable.
strengthwhile the output of a loop antennavariesas
the instantaneousrate of changeof field strength - The searchcoil o-utput,after amplification,is
(Faraday'slaw of inducede.m.f.). As a phase-shifted by 90" so as to be either in phaseor out
of phasewith the senseantennaoutput, dipending on
consequence, regardless of the direction of the t.e.m.
the direction of the NDB. prior to addingto the
wave,the senseantennar.f. output will be in phase
sensesignalthe phase-shifted loop signalis switched
quadraturewith respectto the searchcoil r.f.butput.
in phasein a balancedmodulator at a rate determined
In order to sensethe direction of the NDB the two
by a switchingoscillator,usuallysomewherebetween
antennaoutputs must be combinedin such a way as
a 50 Hz and 250 Hz rate. Whenthe compositesignal
either to cancelor reinforce,and so either the sense
is formed in a summingamplifier it will be
or the loop signalmust be phaseshifted by 90..
amplitude-modulatedat the switchingfrequencysince
A compositesignalmadeup of the searchcoil
for one half period the two input signalswill be in
output phaseshifted by 90' and the senseantenna
phasewhile for the next half period they will be in
output would appearas if it camefrom an antenna
antiphase(seeFigure3.6).
the polar diagramof which was the sum of thosefor
The amplitudemodulationis,detected in the last
the individual antennas.Now the figure-of-eightpolar
stageof a superhetreceiver.The detectedoutput will
diagramfor the loop can be thought of asbeing
be either in phase,or in antiphase,with the switching
generatedaswe considerthe output of a fixed search
oscillatoroutput and so a further 90" phase-shiftis
coil for variousn.d.b.bearings or the output of a requiredin orderto providea suitablecontrolphase
rotatingsearchcoil for a fixed n.d.b.beaiing,either
for the servomotor. The motor will drive either
separatehalvesof the figure-of+ightwill be
1v%the clockwiseor anticlockwisetowardsthe stablenull.
rdu out ot phase.As a consequence the sense When the null is reachedtherewill be no searchcoil
antennapolar diagramwill add to the loop polar
output henceno amplitudemodulationof the
diagramfor somebearings,and subtractfoiothers.
compositesignalso the referencephasedrive will be
The resultantdiagramis a cardiodwith only one null,
zero and the motor will stop.
Should the servomotor Le in sucha position that
the searchcoil is at the unstablenull the sliehtest
-a--\-
.
-
disturbancewill causethe motor to drive aiay fiom
/ t / \ \ \ \
, / l \ \ this position towardsthe stablenull. The senieof the
/ t l \
/ t l \
connectionsthroughoutthe systemmust be correct
/ \ t for the stablenull to give the bearing.
. A synchrotorquetransmitter(STTx),mountedon
the searchcoil shaft, transmitsthe bearineto a remote
indicator.

r 'l
l
'. /
'. \
\ /
\- \ ./ z'
Block Diagram Detail
-\-__-i--
Tuning
Modern ADFs employ so-calleddigital tuning
wherebyspot frequenciesare selected,as opposedto
older setswherecontinuoustuning *.s usurl.
A conventionalfrequencysynthesizeris usedto
generatethe local oscillator(first l.o. if double
superhet)frequency. The tuning voltagefed to the
Fig. 3.4 Compositepolar diagram v.c.o.in the phaselock loop is alsousedfor varicap

47
 Loop antenne
S u m m i n ga m P .
Fig.3.5 An ADF simplifiedblockdiagram
tuning in the r.f. stages.Remoteselectionis by b.c'd.
(ARINC 570) or someother codesuchas 215.
BalancedModulator
Figure3.7 showsthe balancedmodulator usedin the
King KR 85. DiodesCR 1 l3 and CR I l4 areturned
on and off by the switchingoscillator(Q 3l I and
Q 312) so alternatelyswitchingthe loop signalto one
of two sidesof the balancedtransformerT I 16. The
output of Tl l6 is thus the loop sigral with its phase
swiichedbetween0o and 180" at the oscillatorrate.
Receiver
A conventionalsuperhet receiveris usedwith an i.f.
frequencyof 14l kHz in the caseof the KR 85 ; i.f.
andr.f. gain may be manuallycontrolledbut in any
casea.g.c.is used. An audio amp, with normal gain
control, amplifiesthe detectsdsignaland feedsthe
AIS for identificationpurposes.A beat frequency
oscillator (b.f.o.) can be switched in to facilitate the
identificationof NDBs transmittingkeyed c.w- The
/t8
Synchro.torque Tx o l P
b.f.o. output is mixed with the i.f. so asto produce
an audio differencefrequency. Good sensitivityis
requiredsincethe effectiveheight of modern
low-dragantennasgivesa low levelof signalpick-up'
Good selectivityis requiredto avoid adjacentchannel
interferencein the crowdedI'f./m.f. band.
Indication of Bearing
In all indicatorsthe pointer is alignedin the direction
of the NDB. The angleof rotation clockwisefrom a
lubber line at the top of the indicator givesthe relative
bearingof the NDB. If the instrumenthas a fixed
scaleii is known as a relativebearingindicator (RBD'
More common is a radio magneticindicator (RMI)
which hasa rotating scaleslavedto the compass
heading. An RMI will give the magretic bearingof
the NDB on the scaleaswell as the relativebearingby
the amount of rotation of the pointer from the lubber
line. Figure3.8 illustratesthe readingson RBI and
RMI for a givenNDB relativebearingand aircraft
heading. An RMI normally providesfor indication of
 two magneticheadingsfrom a combinationof two
A A ADF receiversand two VOR receivers.Figure 3.9
NDB 1 NDB 2 showsa typical RMI while Fig.3.l0 showsthe RMI
which may
circuit and typical switchingarrangements
be internal or external to the RMIs.
Assumesearchcoil aligned with zero bearing

NDB 1 to left NDB 2 to right Sourcesof SystemError

Loop
I Automatic direction finding is subjectto a number of
sourcesof error, asbriefly outlined below.
r.t.
\A/\A
ra_ I hdg.
Switching
voltage
I
Balanced
mod. O/P

Sense
M,|AA I
N.D.B.
A
r.f.
AAA
Composite
signal
-iAA
I
Detected
Rx out
I

Reference
l-.-1
phase
r i r -
N.8. Waveshapes and relative time
scalesare not exactly as shown. R.M.l. R.B.I

Fig. 3.6 DiagramshowingADF phaserelationships Fig. 3.8 Diagramof RMI and RBI readings

T116

Astable
multivibrator
o311-312

Fig. 3.7 King KR 85 balancedmodulator - simplified

49
 Night Effect This is the polarizationerror mentio,ned
previouslyunder the headingof the loop antenna.
The effect is most noticeableat sunriseclr sunset
when the ionosphereis changingmost rapidly.
Bearingerrorsand instabilityareleastwhen tunedto
an NDB at the low end of the frequencyrangeof the
ADF.

CoastalRefraction The differing propertiesof land

and waterwith regardto e.m.groundwaveabsorption
leadsto refractionof the NDB transmission.The
effectis to changethe directionof traveland so give
riseto an indicatedbearingdifferent from the actual
bearingof the transmitter.

Mountain Effect If the wave is reflected by

mountains,hills or largestructures,the ADF may
measurethe direction of arrivalof the reflectedwave.
The nearerthe reflectingobject is to the aircraft the
greaterthe error by the geometryof the situation.

Stotic Interference Static build-up on the airframe

Fig.3.9 KNI 581 RMI (courtesyKing RadioCorp.)

ADF No. 1 ADF No VOR No.l VOR No. 2.

No.1. No. 2.
cto cto

No. 2. R.M.l

No'1 R'M'l'
t ,/tr\
---/ (w E)
26V / Red \9/ A_-A
4OO Hz
Ref.

Fig. 3.10 Radio magneticindicator: simplified circuit

50
and the consequentdischargereducesthe effective
rangeand accuracyof an ADF. Thunderstormsare
alsoa sourceof static interferencewhich may give
rise to largebearingerrors. The ability of ADF to
pick up thunderstormshasbeenusedby one
manufacturerto give directionalwarning of storm
activity (Ryan Stormscope).
Vertical or Antenna Effect The vertical limbs of the
crossedloopshavevoltagesinducedin them by the
electriccomponentof the e.m.wave. If the planeof
a loop is perpendicularto the direction of arrivalof
the signalthere will be no H field coupling and the E
field will induce equalvoltagesin both vertical limbs
so we will havea null as required. Should, however,
the two halvesof the loop be unbalanced,the current
inducedby the E field will not sum to zero and so the
direction of arrival to give a null will not be
perpendicularto the plane of the loop. An
imbalancemay be due to unequalstray capacitanceto
earth either sideof the loop; howeverin a
well-designed Bellini-Tosisystem,where eachloop is
balancedby a centretap to earth, this is not a severe
problem.
Station Interference When a number of NDBs and
broadcaststationsare operatingin a given areaat
closelyspacedfrequenciesstation interferencemay
Direction of
arrival
Fig. 3. I I Diagram showingsearchcoil signalas a function of
direction of arrival
result. As previouslymentionedhigh selectivityis
requiredfor adequateadjacentchannelrejection.
Quadrantal Enor (QE) It is obvious that the two
fixed loops must be identicalin electrical
characteristics,asmust the stator coils of the
goniometer. If the signalarrivesat an angle0 to the
planeof loop A in Fig. 3.1I the voltageinducedin
loop A will be proportionalto cos0 and in loop B to
cos(90-d)= sin0. If now the searchcoil makesan
angled with the stator P then the voltageinducedin
the searchcoil will be proportionalto
(cosOX cos@)- (sinOX sin@)providedthere is no
mutual couplingbetweenthe interconnectingleads.
So when the searchcoil voltageis zero:
cosOXcos@=sinOXsin@
or:
cot0 = tan0
and:
0=6+ 90+ifX 180
wherey'y'is 0 or any integer. This is simply a
mathematicalmodel of the situationpreviously
ddscribedunder the headingof the loop antenna.
Now considerthe two loopsnot electrically
identicalso that the ratio of the maximum voltages
inducpd in the two loops by a given signalis r. The
condition for zero voltagein the searchcoil is now:
51
 cotO=rXtan@' circuits and the loop connectionswill lead to errorsin
the searchcoil Position.
when
0=O cotp=o
lnstallation
therefore
A typical transport aircraft ADF installationis shown
t a n @ ' = es o Q'=90+NXl80
i n F i g . 3 . l 2 ; N o . 1 s y s t e mo n l y i s s h o w n ,N o ' 2 b e i n g
when sirnilir except that different power bus barswill be
used. Main power is 28 V d.c', the 26 V, 400 Hz
0=90 cot0=0
being usedto supply the synchros' lt is vital that the
therefore 26 V 400 Hz fed to the ADF receiveris from the
samesourceas that fed to the RMI'
tan6'=0 so 0'=0+NXl80 The loop antennaand its connectingcableform
In thesetwo cases (alsowhen g = 180 or 270) we part of the input circuit of the receiverand so must
h a v et h e s a m es i t u a t i o na sb c l o r el . e . p = 0 ' s t tn o iravea fixed known capacitance(C) and inductance
error. (L). This being so the length and type of loop cableis
At intermediate angles there will be an error' so the ipecified by the manufacturerof the loop. The
not be exceeded,but it can be
bearingindicatedby the searchcoil will be incorrect' length specifiedmust
value tlnee in made shorter provided compensatingC and L are
Sincethis type of errorhasa maximum
quadrantal error' correctly placed in the circuit.
eachquadrantit is called
t.e.m. wave from the NDB will cause r'f' The QE corrector loop equalizercontainsthe
Now the
reactive components to compensatefor a
currentsto flow in the metalstructureof the aircraft' necessary
Eachof the loops will receivesignalsdirect from the short loop cable and to provide QE correction' A
signals trom the airframe' typical ciicuit is given in Fig. 3.13. Cl,C2,Ll,L2
NDB and alsore-radiated (loop
Sincethe aspectratio of the aircraft fuselageand una C:, C4,L3, L4 providecompensation
energy equalization) while L5, L6,L7 provide QE correction
wingsis not I : I the effect of the re-radiated
is equivalent by attenuating the current in the appropriate stator of
on th. t*o loopswill be different:this
the goniometer.The QE corrector loop equalizer is
to makingtwo physicallyidenticalloopselectrically
to the IooP.
dissimilar.The resultingquadrantalerror could be up mounted close
to 20" maximum. Similar considerationsapply to the senseantenna
to
Fortunately,compensation can be nradeby usinga which is required to presenta specifiedcapacitance
and possibly the receiver. Again we have a given length of cable
QE correctorloop equalizer QE
correctionbuilt into the loop. Nt>rrnaliy the combined which must not be exceededbut can be madeshorter
r.f. field producesa gleatervoltagein the longitudinal proviclecl an iqualizeris fitted. Often both an
identical' equalizer and a suscepti-former are usedto achieve
loop than in the lateralloop if the loopsare
antennas have more the statetl input capacitance to the receiver'The
This beingthe casesomeloop
susceptlformeris a passive matching devicewhich
turnson the lateralloop than the longitudinallocp,
utilizesan auto transformer to increase the effective
typical correctionUelngt Z|' in the middle of the
capacitance of the sense antenna.Typicalunitsare
quadrants.
shbwnin Fig. 3.14. As an alternativethe necessary
may be achievedin a single
Loop Alignment Error If the longitudinalloop plane matchingand equalization
senseantenna coupler. The matching/equalizing
is not parallelto the aircraft longttudinalaxis then a
unit(s) are mounted close to the antenna'
constantloop alignmenterrorwill exist.
Tire loop antennawill consistof the crossedcoils
Field Alignment Error If the loop antennais offset wound on a ferrite slab and encapsulatedin a
from the aircraft centreline the maxima of the low-draghousing. On high-speedaircraft the loop will
quadrintal error will be shifted, as will the zeros' be flush with the skin but on slower aircraft the
Consequentlythe situation wherethe NDB is at a housingmay protrude slightly, givingbetter signal
relativebearingof 0, 90, 180pr 2?0o will not give pick-up.
-
zeroerror. The senseantenna can take many forms' On large
c-apacitiveplate is
Ft transport aircraft a suppressed 'towel rail'
comrnon,whereason slower aircraft a
Loop Connector Stmy Coupling Reactive coupling
between the loop connections or between external type of antennamay be used. Generalaviation

52
 N o .1 2 8 V d . c .
4OOHz

Panel
lights
supply

Corrector
box
I
No. I
VOR From Compass
No. 2 ADF hdg
or No. 2 VOR

Sense
aerial
Fig.3.l2 TypicalADF installation

aircraft might usea wire antennaor, asan alternative,

a whip antenna. Somemanufacturersnow producea
o i combinedloop and senseantennafor the general
-cc
aviationmarket.
The position of both antennasis important. The
loop shouldbe mounted on, and parallelto, the-
cenire line of the aircraft with nomore than 0'25"
Fig. 3.13 Quadrantalerror corector/loop equalizer
alignmenterror. While the loop may be on top or
(straight-through
connectionsnot shown)

Sense ae. cable

equalizer

lnsulated
sense ae.
terminal

lnner
screen
Fig; 3.t4 Senseaerial matchin!

53
bottom of the fuselage it shouldnot be mountednear
the nose,tail, largeor movableprotuberances or near
othersystemantennae.Similarconsiderations apply
to the senseantenna,althoughbeingomnidirectional
alignmentis not a problem. Ideallythe senseantenna ottO'oo'
will be mountedat the electricalcentreof the aircraft
in orderto giveaccurateover-station turn-aroundof
the bearingpointer.
The interconnectionsin the systemmust take into
accountthat the phasingof voltagesproducedby Fig. 3.15 ARINC 570 control panel (typical)
senseand loop antennaswill be different for top and
bottom mounting. The methodusedwill dependon
the manufacturer but if the systemconformsto
ARINC 570 the synchrorepeaterconnections Functiort Switch. OFF-ANT-ADF In the antenna
will be
asin Table3.1. If, asin somelight aircraft position(ANT) the receiveroperatesfronr the sense
a n t e n n ao n l y , t h e b e a L i n p g o i n t e rb e i n gp a r k e da t 9 0 "
Table3.1 Synchroconnectionsfor alternateaerial r e l a t i v e
b e a r i n g .
T h i : p o s i r i o nm a y b e u s e dl b r
locations.Indicatorsynchroreceivercorrections t u n i n g a n d N D B , l s t l t i o n
i d e n t i f i c a t i o nI.n t h e A D F
positionsignalsfrorn both loop and senseantenna
Aerial position
p r o v i d en o l n r a lA D F o p e r a t i o nt,h e R M I i n d i c a t i n g
Bottom Bottorn Top Top
loop, loop,
t h e b e a r i n go l ' t h e s t a t i o n .
loop, loop,
bottorn top top bottom
sense scnse sense sense Fretluenq,St,/ecl(rrobs Threeknobsareused;one
is nrorrntedco-ariallywith the functionswitch,to
SI sl sl S3 S3 s e l e c ft r e q u e n c yi n, 0 . 5 , l 0 a n d 1 0 0k H z i n c r e m e n t s .
Synchro 52 s2 s2 S2 s2 D i g i t r l t v p e t ' r e q u e ny ed i s p l a ys e g m e n ti sn d i c a t et h e
transmitter S3 s3 S3 SI sl selectedflr'qrrencv.The informationis passedto the
corrections Rl RI R2 RI R2 r e c e i r eur sp l r l l k ' l b . c . t i .
R2 R2 RI R2 RI
Ilcat F-requt'rtct'Oscillatr'r Sx,itch Selectsthe BFO
installations,the goniometeris in the indicator and lirr useu'henthe NDB selec:ted is identifiedby
the bearingis presented directlyratherthan by synchro t ' r n - o lk- ie-r i n g o l ' t h e ea r ri e r .
feed then the following correctionsare necessary: A nurrrberof other su,itches nraybe found on
l. loop from top to bottom: longitudinalcoil v a r i o u sc o r r t r o l l e r as s. b L i e l l yd c s c r i b ebde l o w .
connections
to goniometerstatorreversed:
2. sensefrom top to bottom: searchcoil Ftur<'tit,rrSrt,irclr. OFI-'-ANT-ADI:-l.OOPAn extra
conneCtionS
reverSed. p o s i t i o nr r l ' t l r ef u n c t i o t rs w i t c hn t a l b e p r o v i d e dt o
()pr'rilethe receiverfronr the loop ;rc.rial only. This
Obviouslyone must check fcrrwhich positior.r.t()p (rr p o s i t i o nL . O O P .w o u l db e u s e di n c o n i u n c t i o n with a
bottom, the connections arernadt-in tht supplicd I o o pc o n t r o l .
unit.
Protectionfrom interferenceis of vital intportance.
Ittop Corttrol Springloadedto ot'f. Whenop!'rated
and to this end adequatescreening of cablesshouldbe clockwiseor anticlockwise the searchcoil rotatesin
employed.ARINC 570 callsfor four individually
t h e s e l e c t e d i r e . c t i o nT. h i s c o n t r o lc l n b r .u s e df o r
shieldedco-axialcablesinsulatedand twisted.then
n r a n u adl i r e c t i o n - l i n d i n tgh. e s- e a L ccho i l b e i n gr o t a t e d
jacketed.The senseantennaconnectorshoulduse
until an audionull is achit'vedor. il'pr,rvidcd.I visual
doubleshielding(tri-axial)cable. Thc.cableruns
t u n i n gi n d i c a t o ri n d i c a t eus n u l l . A l t h o t r g hr t o t u s e d
shouldbe clearof any high-leveltrlnsrrrittingcables
in most rnodernequipmentsthis doeshuvethe
or a.c.powercables.
advantage overADF that the nulls arr.sharper;ADF
operationwould lraveto be usedto scnsethe correct
null.
Controls and Operation
Gain Cotttntl An auiliogaincontrol is usually
A standardARINC 570 control prrrcirsillustratedirr providedand rnayhe annolatedvolume. On at least
F i g .3 . 1 5 . one svstr'nrthe gain0f'tht' R.F. ampsis manually

54
 adjustablewherrANT or LOOP is selected,whereas Sensilivity
audio gain is controlled on ADF. Signal+ noiseto noiseratio 6 dB or better with
35 pV/m field strengthmoduiated30 per cent at
Beat Frequency Oscillator Tone A rotary switch, = l'0.
1000Hz and l.ri-root-cap
givingb.f.o. on-off,and a potentiometermay be
mounted on the sameshaft turned by the b.f.o.
Station Interference
control. Whenswitchetlon the frequencyof the
An undesiredsignalfrom a source90o to that ofthe.
b.f.o. canbe adjusted,so varyingthe tone in the
desiredsignalat the frequenciesand relativcsignal
headset.
levelslisted in Table 3.2 shallnot causea changein
indicatedbearingof more than 3".
heselect Frequency Capability Provision can be
madefor in useand standby frequenciessele'cted by Receiver Selectivity
meansof a transferswitch. Whenfrequencyselection
Passband at leastl'9 kHz at -6 dB pointsnot more
is madeonly the standbyfrequencychanges.
than 7 kHz at -60 dB points. Resonantfrequency
Switchingthe transferswitch (TFR) will now reverse
within 1 175 Hz of selectedfrequencv.
the rolesof in-useand standby frequencies.Both
frequenciesare displayedand clearannunciationof
which is in useis required.
Calibrationand Testingon the Ramp

Loop Swing
Characteristicrs The procedurefor determiningthe signand sizeof
errorsin an ADF installationis known as a loop
The following characteristicsare selectedand
swing. On initial installationa swingshouldbe
summarizedfrom the ADF SystemMark 3 ARINC
;arriedout at l5o headingintervals.Checkswings
570.
should be carriedout whenevercalledfor in the
maintenanceschedule,after a lightning strike, when
Frequency Selection
an airframemodification closeto the ADF antennais
Range:190-1750kHz; spacing:0.5 kHz; channelling
completedor when a new avionicsystemis installed.
time lessthan 4 s; parallelb.c.d.frequencyselection
The checkswingis carriedout at 45o intervals. A
with provisionfor serialb.c.d.
sving should not be carriedout within + 2 h of sunset
or sunriseto avoid night effect.
ADF Accuracv
+ 2o excludingq.e. for any field strengthfrom The loop swingmay be carriedout in the air dr on
the ground. The advantageof an air swingis that the
50 !V/m to 100000 pV/m, assuminga senseaerial
aircraft is operatingin its nclrmalenvironmentaway
quality factor of 1.0. (Senseaerialquality factor =
from external disturbancesbut, in someways, a
effectiveheight X squareroot of capacitance,
ground swingis to be preferred,sincereadingsmay be
i.e.ii-root-cap).
taken more accurately. If the loop is mounted on the
13- excludingq.e.for a field strengthaslow as
bottom of the t'uselage the swingmay be affectedby
25 pYlm.
+ 3" after q.e.correction. the closeproximity of the ground,in which casean
air swing should be carriedout. An installation
should be checkedby air test after q.e.shavebeen
ADF Hunting
corrected.
k s s t h a nI 1 " .
Ground Swing A groun{ loop swing must be carried
Table 3.2 Station interferenceconditions.with out at a site known not to introduce bearingerrors.
referenceto desiredfrequency A basesuitablefor compassswingswill not necessarily
be suitable for loop swings. A survey using portable
Undesiredfrequency Unde sired signal stre ngth direction finding (D/F) equipmentmust be carried
out if the site is doubtful.
t2kHz -4 dB The loop may be swung with referenceto true or
t3kHz -10 dB magneticnorth. Using true north hasthe advantage
t6kHz -55 dB that the loop swingingbasemay be permanently
t7 kHz -70 dB marked out. If the swing is with referenceto
magretic north the loop should be calibrated using a

55
datum compass,suchas the medium landingcompass'
whic,hshouldbe alignedwith the longitudinalaxis of
the aircraft and positionedabout 100 ft from the
aircraft. To sight the longitudinalais, sightingrods
or clearlyvisibleplumb linesmay be fixed to the
aircraft centreline. Use of an upright nose'mounted
propellerand the verticalstabilizermay suffice
providingsightingis carriedout carefullyfrom a
suitabledistance. For a checkswingthe aircraft gyro
magneticcompassmay be usedprovidedthis hasbeen
recentlyswung,correctedand a calibrationchart
madeout.
The aircraft must contain its full complementof
equipment. Doors and panelsin the vicirfity of the
ADF antennasmust be closed. Internal power
suppliesshouldbe usedwheneverpossiblesincethe
externalgeneratorand lead may causeerrorsin the
readings.
The ADF is tuned to a station or NDB within
rangeand of a known magneticbearingfrom the site.
With the aircraft on the requirednumber of headings
the ADF readingand the aircraft magneticheading
Table 3.3 Loop swing recordchart
A/CTailNo ............. A/CType............-..I 3" asrequired.
Time10.00 Base'..'...........-......'.
Date....................,....
-
Station Droitwich Freq.200kHz Mag'Brg (A)029'5
are recordedon a loop swingrecord chart, a specimen
of which is shownasTable3.3.
The correction(D) is the sigred anglewhich must
be addedto the indicatedmagneticbearingof the
station (B + C) in order to give the true ma^gnetic
bearingie). So, for example,adding-5'5o to 41" +
354' gives389'5' = 29'5oasrequired.
When completedthe valuesobtainedin the final
column shouldbe plotted as a q.e- correctioncurve,
asshownin Fig. 3.16. The average of the absolute
values of the peaks gives the amount of correction
required.the polarity being givenby the sign of the
correctionin the first quadrant. So in the example
givenwe have:
12.5+ 12.5+ 16 + l7'5 = +14'625"
4
asthe requiredcorrection. The correctionis made by
suitablechoiceof componentsin the QE corrector
loop equalizeras instructedby the manufacturer.
The correctionshouldbe more or lessthe samefor
identicalinstallationsin a particularaircraft type.
Once the prototype hashad a calibrationswingand
the componentvaluesare chosen,subsequentswings
on seriesaircraft shouldshow the error boundedby
Loop alignmenterror is givenby the averageof the
peaks. So in the examPlewe have:

Magneticheading Autornattc direction Correction l2'5 - 16+ l2'5 - l7'5 = -2'125

datum compass linding relative bearing (D) 4
(B) (c)
Sincethis is in excessof t 0'25o this error should be
028 001.5 0
-5.5 taken out by re-alignmentof the loop.
041 354
-l1.0 The line correction= -2'125 has beendrawn on
054.5 346
073 333 - l6'5 Fiq. 3.16. The correctioncurveshouldcrossthis line
089 318 - 17.5 atb, gO, 180 urd 270' if thereis no field alignment
105'5 298 -14.0 error. Within the limits of the accuracyof the plot
r22 272 -4.5 and the scalewe can seethat this is the casein our
135 247 7-5 example.If therewerea field alignmenterror it
153 224 12.5 would be measuredalongthe horizontal axis.
t72 206 I1.5
184 197 8.5
Air Swing An *ir swing should be carried out in
198 187 4.5
-2.5 smooth air conditionsin order to eliminatedrift
213 179
230 169 -9.5 errors. There are variousmethodswhich may be
242 160 -12.5 employedbut all involveflying a particular pattern
257 r48 - 15.5 over a clearly definedpoint or points sgmedistance
271.5 134 - 16.0 from the transmitterwhich is to be usedfor the swing'
286 115 -11.5 Magneticheadingand ADF relativebearingare noted
302 088 -0.5 forl number of headings,every 10" or I 5o,depending
317 063 9'5 on the pattern flown. The aircraft should be inland
332 u5 12.5 of the transmitterwhen readingsare taken to avoid
34s 032 t2'5 '
coastalrefractionproblems' Recordingand plotting
358 02l 10.5
is as for the ground swing.

s6
 various headinp when overhead of the referenoe
point.

SenseAntenna CapacitanceCheck
The total capacitanceof the senseantennaand feeder
shouldbe checkedwhen calledfor in the maintenance
schedule.wheneverthe senseantennaor feederis
changed,upon initial installationor if a possiblefault
condition is suspected.A capacitancebridgeor Q
meter operatingat 650 kHz shouldbe usedfor the
measurement.

Functional Test
Ideally there will be at leastone station or NDB
within rangein each quadrant; in busy regionsthis will
ccrtainly be so, for example,at London Heathrow
more than twenty beaconscan be receivedunder good
conditions. The true magneticbearingof those
beaconsto be usedmust be known. An accuracy
checkis performedby tuning into a beaconin each
Fig.3.16 Quadrantal errorcorrectioncurvefor Table3.3 quadrantand ensuringthat for eachthe pointer
indicatesthe bearingto within the limits laid down in
the procedure,say t 5o. The figure givenwill only be
Two possiblemethodsare position-lineswinging achievableif the aircraft is well away from largemetal
and single-pointswinging. With the first method a objects,and if the test is not carriedout within 2 h of
seriesof landmarkswhich give a ground referenceline sunriseor sunset. Useof externalpower may also
alignedwith a distant transmitterare chosen. A giveerroneousreadings.
zig-zagpattern is flown, both toward and away from All controls shouldbe operatedto ensurecorrect
the transmitter,the readingsbeing taken'asthe functioning. In particularif a loop control is^
aircraft crossesthe line at variousheadings.With the providedthe pointer shouldbe displaced170" first
secondmethod a clearly defined point, some distance clockwiseand then anticlockwisefrom the correct
from the transmitter,is chosen. A cloverleaf pattern reading,to which the pointer shouldreturn without
is flown centredon this point, readingsbeing takenon excessive hunting.

6'
4 V.h.f.omnidirectionalrange
(voR)

lntroduction to, or departurefrom, a stationon a particular

bearing,steeringinformationcanbe derivedfrom the
Prior to World War II it was realizedthat the receivedVOR signals.It is this latter facility which
propagationanomalies experienced with low- and makesVOR so usefulin airwaysflying, stationscan
medium-frequency navigationaidslimited their be placedstrategicallyalongso-called Victor airways
usefulnes3 asstandardsystemsfor a sky which was and the pilot can then, by selectionof the appropriate
becomingevermore crowded. A systemcalled radials,fly from stationto stationeitherby obeying
four-course low-frequencyrangewaswidely steeringcommandsor by feedingthe sameto the
implenrented in the United Statesduringthe 1930s; autopilot.
this gavefour coursesto or from eachgroundstation To obtain a position fix liom VOR one needs
and fltted in quite nicelywith a systemof fixed bearingsto two separatestationstwhen usedin this
airways.A problenrwith the four-coursesystemis way VOR can be considereda theta-tl-reta system.If a
that eachstationonly providesfor two intersecting VOR stationis colocated with a DME stationan \
airways;a more complexjunction requiresrnore aircraftcan obtain a fix usingthe pair asa rho-thetai
courses.The above,coupledwith increasedaltitude system.The VOR/DME systemircurrentliTil
of flying rnakinglineof-sightfrequencies usefulat internationalshort-range navigationstandard.ln
longerranges,and the developtnent of v.h.f. comms, recentyearsthis systenrhasbecomeevenmore
led to the adoptionof v.h.f.omnidirectionalrange versatileu'ith the adventof airborneequipmentwhich
( V O R ) a ss t a n d a r d i n t h e U n i t e dS t a t e si n 1 9 4 6a n d caneffectivelyrepositionan existingVOR/DME
internationallyin 1949. The competitionftrr an s t a t i o nt o g i v ea ' p h a n t o mb e a c o n ' c o m p l e twei t h
internationalstandardsystemwas fierce,the leading radialswhich can be flown usingVOR-derived
contenderafter VOR beingDeccaNavigator.lt is steeringinforrnation. This developmentis considered
debatablewhetherthe technicallysuperiorsvstem i n C h a p t e r1 2 .
waschosen,but certainlyVOR wascheaper.had the
advantage of a largehome market,and hasdone the
job adequatelyeversince. Basic Principles
The VOR systemoperatesin the 108-l !8 MHz
band with channelsspiced at sO kHiffiT[ A sinrpleanalogyto VOR is givenby imagininga
sharedwith ILS localizertt. ffiing lig;hthouse which enritsan omnidirectionalpulseof
allocatedto
160of the 200 availablechannels.Of these160 light everytime the beam is pointingdue north. If
cfrannels12Oareallocatedto VOR stationsintended the speedof rotation of the beamis known, a distant
for en route navigationwhile the other forty are forobservercould recordthe time intervalbetweerr
tClrn!ryLYQR statim!_(TVORL The output porver seeingthe onrnidirectionalflashand seeingthe beam,
o f a n e n r o u t es t a t i o nw i l l b e a b o u t2 0 0 W p r o v i d i n s
and l'rencecalculatethe bearingof the lighthouse.
a serviceup tL49-laulieal n,iles.itTfleouency wilf In realitya VOR stationradiatesv.h.f. energy
modulatedwith a retbrencephasesignal- the
b e w i t h i n t l r eb a n d I l 2 - l l 8 M H z . A T V O R w i l l h a v e
an output power of Ebgnl5)-t{-providing a serviceof omnidirectionallight - and a variablephasesignal-
up to about ]5_!sg.l[salmiles,its frequencywill be the rotatingbeam. The bearingof the aircraft
within the bundI9&I2_I4I&, thisbelngthe part of dependson the phasedifferencebetweenreference
thetotalbandshared with ILS localizer. and variablephases-- time differencebetweenlight
The crew of an approp.iatelyequippedaircraftcan a n db e a m .
tune into a VOR stationwithin rangeand readthe The radiation frorn a qgnventionalVOR (CVOR)
bearingto the stationand the relativebearingof the stationis a horizontallypolarizedv.h.f.wave
station. Should the flight plan call for an approach modulatedas follows:

58

$el{*,!
 Sin pt coc \
a/

Cosnt
rcos
Cos qrt I
I

I
I
I

2r.3OHz
2n.1"MHz

Fig.4.l Groundstationblockdiagram,
v.o.r,

t . 30 Hz a.m.: the variablephasesignal. at Xo magneticbearing/roz the station the variable

2 . 9 9 6 0 H 2 a . m . : t h i s i s a z u b c a r r i e r f r e q u e n c y , p h a s e w i l l / a g t h e r e f e r " e n c e p n u t " u y i ;r.i g u r e s + . t ,
modulatedat 30 Hz with a deviation of 4.2 and4.3 illustrate th. b.ii" priniiples.
1480 Hz. The 30 Hz signalis the reference The airborneequipmentreceivesthe composite
phase' signalradiatedby ihe station to which the receiveris
3 . l02Q Fz a'm': identification signalkeyed to tuned. After deiection the variousmodulatingsignals
providemorse code identification at least three- are separatedby filters. The 30 Hz referenceiigrul is
gjnes each39-s. Wherea voR and5ffitre-
co-locatedthe identificationtransmissions are
synchronized (associated identity,see Variabled
Chapter7). 3O Hz a.m.
4. Voice a.m.: the VOR systemcan be usedas a
ground-to-aircommunicationchannelas long as
this doesnot interfere with its basicnavisational
function. The frequency rangeof the vo]ce
modulation is limited to
SQOXZ-
The 30 Hz variablephaseis spacemodulated in
that the necessaryamplitude variation in the received
signalat the aircraft is achievedby radiatinga cardioid
patternrotatingat 1800 r.p.m. The frequency
modulated9960 Hz sub-carrieramplitude modulates
the r.f. at sourcebefore radiation. It is arransedthat
an aircraft due north of the beaconrryillreceiie
variableand referencesignalsin phase,for an aircraft Flg 4.2 Frequency spectrum:CVOR spacesignals

59
 :l
1
,s
I

REFER€'{CE PHASE
SIGNAL (FM)
ALL RAOIALS

V A R I A E L €P H A S E
S I G N A L( A M )

sEcoNo
ib

FESULI ilI
ROTATTNGPATTERil

I O oR A D i A L
I 996otsr SU8CAnRIER
UNIO0ULATE0 FR€O MOO AT 3oxt
ROfAT ING
oIPOLE PATT€RI

stcono
I
+sEcoro -

-"2to'

r-f-F-1- -r-
o r tttono

I
R E f E R E T C EP H A S € V O L T A G E
I A F T E Rf X O E T E C T I O N )

= ' .
c <
Z l
VOLTAGESAT AIRCRAFT
ON 24O' RADIAL
a

240"

.l .
o r R € c T l O NO F P O Sr r V E L O S E
vaRrAEL€ IHASE VOLTIGE o OF ROTATING ATTENNA
TAFTERAT OETECTIOtr)

CVOR (courtesyKing Radio

Fig 4.3 Phaserelationships,
Corp.)

be presentedto the pilot' Figure 4'4

phase compared with the variablesignal,the difference station ian stationis the
'ln itfurt*t.t thatihe relativebearingto the
ohaseeivinethe bearingfrom the station' The the station
to Aiii.r.n.. betweenthe magneticbearing-to
actualreiding presentedto the pilot is the bearing An RMI is used to.display
in .na tn. aircraftheading.
the station ralher than from, so if the difference in
signalis 135' the information. Suchinstrumentsare considered
ohasebet*een variableand reference 3. In this application the card is drivenby
'to' bearingwould be 135 + 180 = 315", asshown air;;i.r
ift" readingat
th. .n*putt, asnormal,so that the card
-- Fig.4.4.
in heading' At the same
lubber line is the aircraft
liio.p*s information (heading)is combinedwith ttre to a position determined by
the titnt u pointtr is driven
the VORderived bearingthe relativebearingof

60

135"(Froml
Fig.4.4 To/frommagnetic bearingsandrelativebearing
the differenceb€tweenthe bearingto the station and
the heading. A differentialsynchroor resolveris used
to give the requiredangulardifference. Figure4.5
strowsthe RMI presentationcorrespondingto the
situationdiagramshownin Fig.4.4. Only one pointer given,or reinforceV, partially or completely,in
is shown,for clarity.
'automatic'
The previoustwo paragraphsrefer to
VOR, so calledsincethe pilot needdo no more than
svitch on and tune in to an in-rangestation in order
to obtainbearinginformation. 'Manual'VOR
requiresthe pilot to selecta particularradial on which
he wants to positionhis aircraft. The actual radial on we havea fly-right and a FROM indication. Note that
which the aircraft is flying is comparedwith the
desiredradial. If the two are different the appropriate 'long
Fig. 4.5 RMI presentation
fly-left or fly-right signalsare derived and presentedto
the pilot.
A complicationis that radial information depends
only on the phasedifferencebetweenmodulating
signalsand is independentofheading; hencethe
fly-right or fly-left information may sendthe aircraft
'long way
the round'. Further, when an aircraft is on
course,i.e. the steeringcommandis nulled, the
aircraft may be headingeither toward or away from
the station on the selectedradial. A TO/FROM
indication removesthe ambiguity. With the aircraft
heading,roughly, towards(away from) the station
and the TO/FROM indicator indicatingTO (FROM),
the steeringinformation givesthe most direct path in
order to intercept the selectedradial.
If the referencephase(R) is phaseshiftedby the
selected course(C) and then comparedwith the
variablephase,a fly-right indicationwill be givenif
R + C lagsV, while if R + C leadsV, the command
will be fly-left. If we now add 180 to the
phase-shifted relbrencephasewe haveR + C + 180
which will, on addition, either cancelV, partially or
completely,in whict casea TO indicationwill be
which casea FROM indication will be given.
Figure4.6 showstwo possiblesituations. ln both
casesthe selectedcourseis 042,i.e. the pilot wishes
to fly towardsthe station on the 222 radial or away
from the station on the 042 radial. With aircraft A
we havea fly-left and a TO indication;with aircraft B
if the headingsof the aircraft were reversed,the
indicationswould be the satne,so sendingthem the
way round'. Figure4.7 showsan electronic
deviationindicator correspondingto aircraft B. The
indication at top right showsthe aircraft to be on the
022 radialfrom a secondVOR station.
DopplerVOR (DVOR)
The useof CVOR leadsto considerablesite errors
where the station is installedin the vicinity of
obstructionsor where aircraft are requiredto fly over
mountainousterrain while usingthe station. The
error is causedby multi-path receptiondue to
reflectionsfrom the obstructions,and givesrise to
coursescalloping,roughnessand/or bendswhen the
aircraft is flown to follow steeringcommands.The
terms useddescribingthe courseunder these
conditionsrefer to the nature of the departurefrom a
straightline course. DVOR is relativelyinsensitiveto
siting effectswhich would renderCVOR unusable.
Although the method of modulationis completely
different DVOR is compatiblewith CVOR in that
61
 Flv right

O42 (Froml

Fly left

From

R+420

v.-
From
fly right
(R + 42' lags V)

R+1800t42'

R+42'

il, :;ii
,'i'

To
O42 (To) fly left
(R + 42' leads V)

R+1800+42"

Fig' 4.6 Fly'left/flv-right and'to/from' situation diagram

,i*- :
airbome equipment will give the correct indications at 30 Hz anticlockwisearoundthe ring of antennas.
when usedwith stationsof either type. In the DVOR To a receiver,remote from the site,it appearsasif the
the referencesigrralis 30 Hz a.m. while the variable signalsourcesareapproachingand receding,and
sigrralis 30 Hz f.m. on a 9960 Hz sub-carrier.Since hencethe receivedsigral suffers a Doppler shift
the rolesof the a.m. and f.m. are reversedwith respect (see Chapter l0). -With a diameterof l3'5 m and
to CVOR the variablephaseis arrangedto lead the rotation speedof 30 r.p.s.the tangentialspeedat the
reference phase by X" for an aircraft at X" magtetic periphery is n X l3'5 X 30 = 1272m.p.s. At the
bearingfrom the station (cf. CVOR). centrefrequencyof the v.h.f. band, I l3 MHz, one
In a double sidebandDVOR (DSB'DVOR) the rycle occupiesapproximately2'65 m, thus the
carrier,/", with 30 Hz (and identification)a.m. is maximum Dopplershift is 127212'65= 480 Hz.
radiatedfrom an omnidirectionalantenna. Two ln the airbornereceiverthe sidebandsmix with the
unmodulatedr.f. sidebandsigrals,one 9960 Hz above carrierat /. to produce9960 t 480 Hz. Single
/c, the other 9960 Hz below /", are radiatedfrom sidebandand altematesidebandDVOR are possible,
antennasdiametricallyopposite in a ring of about but sincethey compromisethe performanceof the
fifty antennas. Theselatter sigtals are commutated systemthey will not be discussed.

62
 instrumentson which VOR information is displayed
aremulti-function hencequite complexswitching
arrangements are involved. Figure4.9 showsone
VOR/ILS systemof a typical dual instatlation;only
thoseoutputs from VOR are shown.
The antennamay serveILS aswell asVOR but
someaircraft haveseparateantennas,particularlyif
all-weatherlandingis a requirementwhen the.
optimum position for the localizerantennamay not
suit VOR. If separateantennasare usedwith a
common r.f. feed to the receiverthe switchinglogic
will be derivedfrom the channelselectionmadeat
the control unit. The VOR antennaemploys
horizontal polarizationwith an omnidirectional
radiationpattern. A horizontal dipole is often used
with the dipole elementsforming a 'V' shapeto givea
more nearly omnidirectionalpattern. Sincethe
dipole is a balancedload and the co-ax.feederis
unbalanced(with respectto earth) a balun (balanced
to unbalancedline transformer)is used. The dipole
may be mounted on the verticalstabilizeror on a
Fig.4.7 IN-2014electroniccoursedeviationindicator stand-offmast, top-mountedon the fuselage.
(courtesyBendixAvionicsDivision) The VOR/ILS receivercontainsa conventional
superhet,a filter for separationof signiilsand a
Referencery'
converterto providethe requiredoutputs which aro
30 Hz a.m.

l. audioto AIS;
2. bearinginformation to two RMIs;
3. deviationfrom selectedradial;
4. TO/FROMsignal;
5. flag or,warningsignal.

The RMI feed is the result of the automaticVOR

operation. Sincethe pointer on the RMI movesto a
position givingrelativebearingwith respectto the
lubber line the magneticbearing(omnibearing)must
9960 be combinedwith headinginformation aspreviously
t +8oHz described.The necessary differentialsynchroor
Fig.4.8 Frequencyspectrum- DVOR spacesignals resolverwill be in the receiveror, in the caseof
equipmentconformingwith ARINC 579,in the RMl.
ln the former casemagneticbearing(mag.)is required
by the receiver,this beingobtainedfrom the compass
Aircraft lnstallation systemvia the RMI. The necessary switchingfor
displayingVOR as opposedto ADF information, on
SinceVOR and ILS localizers occupythe sameband either or both of the pointers,is on the RMI.
of frequenciesthey invariablysharethe samereceiver The deviationand TO/FROM signalsare the result
which will alsocontain the necessary circuits to of manualVOR operation. Thesesteeringcommands
extractthe requiredinformation. It is not aredisplayedon a coursedeviationindicator(CDI) an
uncommonfor v.h.f. comm. and v.h.f. nav. to share electronicversionof which is shownin Fig.4.7. The
the samereceiver,particularlywith generalaviation CDI, however,may not be a stand-alone unit; it is
equipment.It is expectedthat the 'all v.h.f.in one likely to be part of a multi-function indicator known
box' trendwill continue- by a variety of namessuchashorizontal situation
A largeairliner,and indeedmost aircraft from indicator(HSl) or pictorial navigationindicator PNL
twins up, hasa dual v.h.f. nav.installation. The In the installationshownin Fis. 4.9 an HSI is used

63
 Captain'scontrol panel

Norm
DME1
l1lo S/byt ) Test
DME
Comprss

Power RF

Captain -:-| Audio ,.

N o .1 V O R / I L S R x -----f Fl ight interohone
RMI F----------,-----

To DEV Flag
From
FlO
RMI
transfer relay
I
J
oBs Captain'sVOR/ILS
transfer relay
lentral
nstrumenl
rarning panel

rNs Captain'sRAD/INS
relay

Captain'sHSI

Fig 4.9 TypicalVOR installation

with remote courseselection(o.b.s.- omnibearing

Fig.4.l0 KPI 552 pictorialnavigationindicator
(courtesyKing RadioCorp.)
selection)fitted, say,on an autopilot/flightdirector
mode selectpanel. Figure4.10 illustratesthe
King KPI 552 PNI wherethe built-ino.b:s.,
iniolporated(courseknob),hasbeensetto 335", a
fly-right commandis beinggivenby the deviationbar
and we havea TO indication(largearrow'headabove
aircraft symbol).
Variousswitchingarrangements arepossible;those
shownillustratethe captain'schoiceof VOR/lLS I '
VOR/lLS2 or inertialnavigationsystem(lNS)
informationbeingdisplayedon his HSI. Switching
betweenVOR/lLS I or 2 is achieved by meansof the
transferrelay(TFR/RLY) while VOR/lLS or INS
switchingis by meansof the radio/lNS(R.AD/lNS)
relay. The first officer (F/O) hasa similar
arrangementat his disposal.Deviationsignalsfrom
numberI systemto F/O'sHSI and from number2
systemto captain'sHSI may be via isolation
amplifiers.
The flag signalis of vital importance since it gives

il

.ir*
 warningof unreliabledata from the VOR/ILS
receiver.It will be fed to all instrumentsselected
to
displayVOR/ILS information and often to a central
instrumentwarningsystem(CIWS). Shouldthe
deviationsignalbe fed to the automatic flight control
system(AFCS),then obviouslyso must the flag or
warningsignal.
Controls and Operation
The controlleris not particularlycomplicated.
Frequencyselectionis achievetlby roiation of two
knobs,mountedco-axiallyor separately, so
determiningthe appropriate2/5 code fed to the
receiver.It is normal for DME frequencyselection
to be madefrom the sarnecontroller with DMg
standby,normal and test switchingalsoprovided
(s-eeChapter7). Self-testswitchingfaciities for
the
YOR/ILSareprovided. Additiona]controls,other
than thoseshown in Fig. 4.9, may be provided,
namelyVOR/lLS on-off and audio vo-lume.
The locationof displayswitchesand the course
.
selector hasbeentnentionedpreviously,ashas the
interpretationof indicationsgiven to itre pilot.
Simplified Block Diagram Operation
Receivedsignalsare selected,amplified and detected
by a conventionalsingleor doubie superhetreceiver.
The detectedoutput is a compositesignalwhich must
be separated into its cornponentpartsby meansof
appropriate filtering circuits.
The audiosignal,1020Hz identification,is routed
.
via an amplifier and possiblya volume contiol on the
v.h.f. nav.controller to the flight interphone
sub-system of the AIS. The associatedaudio filter
may be switchableto give a passbandof 300-3000Hz
when the VOR systemis being usedas a ground-to-air
communicationlink.
^^ lh9_referencephasechannel(CVOR) consistsof a
9960 Hz filter, a discriminatorto deteci the 30 Hz
l.m. and,-not shown, amplifier circuits. Limiting of
the signaltakesplace before the discriminatorto re-
move unwantedamplitude variatipns. The 30 Hz ref-
erencesignal(R) then undergoesvariousphase
shifts.
For manualVOR operation,as previously
mentioned,we need to shift R by the selectld
course.This is achievedby the phase-striftresolver,
the rotor of which is coupledtqthe courseor OBS
knob. A digital readoutof the selectedcourseis
provided. The phase-shiftedR is now comparedwith
the variablephasesigrral. If they are in phaseor lg0"
out of phasethere is no lateralmovementof the
deviationbar. Sinceit is simplerto determinewhen
two signalsare in phasequadrature(at 90.) a 90"
phaseshifter may be inclutledin the referencechannel
prior to feedingthe phasecomparatorwhere
detectionof phasequadraturewill giveno movement
ofthe deviationbar. In the absenciofeither or both
of the signalsthe flag will be in view.
'To'or 'from'
informationis derivedby comparing
the variablephasewith the referencephaseshifted bi
the OBSsettingplus l80o It follows-tharif the
referencephasehas beenshifted by 90o before
feedingthe deviationphasecomparatorwe only
reqrrirea further 90" phaseshift before feedingthe
'to/from'phase
comparatorratherthan a lgOdphase
shift asillustratedin Fig. 4.1l. If the inputs to the
'to/from'
phasecomparatorarewithin, say,+ g0o of
beingin phasethen a TO indicationis given;if within
t 80'of being in anri-phasea FROM intication is
given;otherwiseneither a TO nor a FROM indication
is given.
For automaticVOR operationthe reference
channelis phase-shiftedand comparedwith the
variablephase.If the two inputsarein phase
quadraturethere is no drive to the motor, otherwise
the motor will turn, changingthe amount by which
the referencephaseis shifted until phasequadratureis
achieved.The motor connectionsare arrangedso that
the stablenull of the loop givesthe requirei shaft
position which representsthe magneticbearingto the
station. Compassinformationis fed to a differential
synchro,the rotor of which is turned by the motor
following station magneticbearing. ThL difference
signalrepresentsrelativebearingwhich positionsthe
appropriateRMI pointer via.asynchrorepeater. The
RMI card is positionedby compassinformation.
Characteristics
The following characteristics
are selectedand
summarizedfrom ARINC characteristic579-1. li
shouldbe noted that there are radicaldifferencesin
outputs,betweenARII{C 579-l and the older
ARINC 547 with which many in-servicesystems
conform.
Frequency Selection
160 channels,50 kHz spacing,range108-117.95MHz.
Standard2/5 selectionsystem.
Channellingtime lessthan 60 ms.
Receiver
Satisfactoryoperationwith 1.5 pV sigral.
65
 To AIS

Ref. channel

Deviation
bar

Flag

cDt/oBS

To/From

-------l

Compass

VOR
blockdiagram'
Fig.4.lI Simplified

"
natf "t 31'5kHz' i"pr1""l'it'-i:"t:mmfll fri?:n|;Tfii:"'
Nomorethan6dBattanuationat/.i|7kiz;atanaloguesigralprooortionaltoperpendicularlinear
60dBattenuatio
reast stationis requtrt of the
of whichis ananalogue
o*'' the spaiing
'Tt;digh-leutl
outputshouldgive2 V across
outputs . ^^n .nn , ffiil;
of 200-500Q within
Audio:at least100mWinto a load ..nt'lt"'
adjustable
i ziio ii r*a.fo'?"ou'* deviation corresponding
I modulated30 per
t:: -:- rhe
from a 3 pV input ,ignuirnoaututed ;;;; t s to t lb nautical miles'
1000Hz.
infractional
ouJput
it blli:'fo'* io*i'u'r ":f:;.'lfi1.Ti;:'%tti\;b"o*;l*"
digital
omni-bearing:
#:'fi:iJffift,:ft1,;Tlsts":lT{:: :J"'i,*:::i1!";;;;;:;r'.'^'n3-n1
flightcontrolsystem
i;;; ;t usedby the automatic
-ih. of the ""'"'
bearing, In the eventof lossof
one
voltages, proportiori?,rr."rt. moi.iocprt'
theotherto its cosine. .nulogu.ou,puti, Gat-l 19 DMEthe deviation
t*o iistanctinfotmationfrom the
to feed"t OBS ;i;l''"'*irnu*'of revertto an angular
desiened
nr'" friiJn'.;. not lnt"r.t 'r^6-*-'- o;tp"t should.automatically
uigruute v for 10" off
purau.lconnected atui'tion *"d;;'f;;;;'n er-vi1g^z
*i*, Wts used with ARINC 547' . to ARINC 579 deviationoutputs
ani'f-.*-i**f d'c' voltage "out"' (Note:iti"i
Deviation:a trigh-levef

66
 Fig.4.l2 Ttc T-308VOR/ILStestset(courtesy
Tel-lnstrument
Electronics
Corp.)
representedangulardisplacenrent.)
TO/FROM:groundreferenced providing2 mA for
eachof two 200 Q loadsin parallel. In additiona
lowlevel output of 200 gA may be provided to feed
olderinstruments.
Warning:high level,28 V d.c. valid, absentinvalid.
low level,between300 and 900 rnV valid, lessthan
100 mV invalid. The low level signalshould be
capableof driving frorn one to five 1000 Sl parallel
loads. The VOR digital output should also include
warningbits.
Ramp Testing
Testingof VOR shouldalwaysbe carriedout with a
ramp test set capableof being tuned to any VOR
frequency,radiatingsufficient energyto allow
satisfactoryoperationof the VOR and providing a
meansof simulatingvariousVOR radials. Most test
setsincludeprovisionfor testingILS aswell as VOR.
Among thoseavailableare the CossorCRM 555.
IFR NAV4OIL.
*:;
The CRM 555 operateson any of the 160 VOR
channelswith a frequencyaccuracyof
10.0035 per cent(--10'C to +30oC).Modulationof
the carrieris suchthat the simulatedbearingmay be
set to any readingbetween0 and 360o with a
calibrationaccuracvof t l" or mav be switchedin
45o stepswith an u..uru.y of t 0.3". Carrierpower
canbe attenuatedin I dB stepsbetween0 dBm and
-120 dBm (0 dBm corresponds to an output of
I mW). A self-testfacility is provided. The
NAV-401L offers similarfacilitiesbut is more 'state
of the art' and so offersStighttymore in the way of
performance.
The TIC T-278 is part of the T-308 test set
illustratedin Fig.4.12. The facilitiesarenot as
'extensiveas either of the previouslymentionedtest
setsbut it has the advantageofeaseof operationand
lesscost. It is FCCtype accepted.Operationis on
108'00MHz radiatedfrom a telescopicantenna.
Bearings of 0,90, 180 and 270" canbesimulated
both TO and FROM, alternatelyvariation,90-l l0'
'to'
or270-290o'from', is available.A J lo switch
6'
givesa usefulsticky needlecheck.
Actual testingshouldbe carriedout in accordance
with the procedureslaid down, but briefly it would
involvecorrectly positioningthe test set antennaand
radiatingon sufficient frequenciesto test frequency
selectionof the VOR. Sensitivitymay be checkedby
reducingthe r.f. levelreceivedeither by use of the test
68
set attenuatoror moving the test set antennafurther
away. Various bearingsshouldbe simulated(check
'to'or 'from'
whether they are station), the
appropriatereadingshouldbe checkedon the RMI
and the OBS operatedso as to check the manual
mode of VOR.
 5 lnstrumentlandingsystem
Introduction
In order to be able to land the aircraft safelyunder
visualflight rules(VFR), i.e. without any indication
from instrumentsasto the aircraft'sposition relative
to the desiredapproachpath, the pilot must haveat
least3 mileshorizontal visibility with a ceilingnot
lessthan 1000 ft. Although most landingsare carried
out under theseconditionsa significantnumber are
not; consequently, wereit not for instrumentaidsto
landinga considerableamount of revenuewould be
lost due to flight cancellationsand diversions.
One method of aidingthe pilot in the approachto
an airport is to usea precisionapproachradar(PAR)
systemwhereby the air traffic controller,havingthe
aircraft 'on radar',can giveguidanceover the
v.h.f.-r.t. The alternativemethod is to provide
instrumentation in the cockpitgivingsteering
information to the pilot which, if obeyed,will cause
the aircraft to make an accurateand safedescentand
touchdown. The latter, which may be
complemented/monitored by PAR, is the method
which concernsus here.
Early ILS date back to beforeWorld War II; the
GermanLorentz beingan example. During the war
the currentILS wasdeveloped and standardized in
the United States. The basicsystemhasremained
unchangedeversincebut increasedaccuracyand
reliability haveresultedin landing-minimum
visibilityconditionsbeingreduced.
The ICAO havedefinedthree catesoriesof
visibility.the third of which is subdivided . All
categoriesare definedin termsof runway visualrange
(RVR) (seeICAO Annex 14) and,exceptCategory
III, decisionheight(DH), belowwhich the pilot must
havevisualcontactwith the runwayor aboit the
landing(seeICAO PANS-OPS).The various
categoriesare definedin Table 5.1 where the
standardsaregivenin metreswith approximate
equivalents in feet (in parentheses).Sometimes
categories IIIA and B arecalled'seeto land'and
'see
to taxi'.
The ILS equipmentis categorizedusingthe same
Romanirumeralsand lettersaccordingto its
Table5.1 ICAOvisibilitycategories
Category d.h. r.v.r.
I 60 m (200ft) 8 0 0 m 2( 600ft)
II 30 m (100ft) 400 m l 200ft)
IIIA 200m 700 ft)
IIIB 3 0 m l 50 ft)
IIIC Zerc
operationalcapabilities.Thus if the ILS facility is
categoryII, the pilot would be able to land the
aircraft in conditionswhich correspondedto those
quotedin Table5.1. An obviousextensionof the
idea of a pilot manuallyguidingthe aircraft with no
extemal visualreferenceis to havean autopilot which
'flies'
the aircraft in accordancewith signalsfronr the
ILS (and other sensors includingradioaltimeter)i.e.
automaticlanding.
BasicPrinciples
Drectional radio beams,modulatedso€s to enable
airborneequipmentto identify the beamcentres,
define the correct approachpath to a particular
runway. In addition verticaldirectionalbeams
providespot checksofdistance to go on the approach.
The total systemcomprisesthree parts,eachwith a
transmitteron the ground and receiverand signal
processor in the aircraft. Lateralsteeringis provided
by the localizerfor both front-courseand
back-course approaches; the glideslopeprovides
vertical steeringfor the front courseonly while
markerbeaconsgivethe distancechecks.
[,ocalizer
Forty channels areallocatedat 50 kHz spacingin the
band I 08' 10-l I I .95 MHz usingoniy thoseliequencies
wherethe tenthsof a megacycle count is odd; so,for
example108'I0 and 108.I 5 MHz arelocalizer
channelswhile 108.20and 108'25MHz arenot.
Thosechannelsin the band not usedfor localizerare
69
allocatedto VOR. The coverageof the beaconwill (extendedcentreline) and limited by the lineson
normally be asshownby the hatchedparts of Fig. which thereis a d.d.m.of 0'155. The changein
5.1,but topographical
featuresmay dictatea d.d.m.is linearfor I 105 m alongthe line
wherebythe ! 10" sectormay be
restrictedcoverage perpendicular to the courseline and passingthrough
reducedto l8 nauticalmilesrange. the IIS datum point on the runway threshold;these
points 105 m fronr the courseline lie on the 0'155
Azimuth d.d.m.lines,asshownin Fig. 5.2. The beaconis
situatedsuch that the abovecriterion is met and the
coursesectoris lessthan 6'. Outsidethe course
s e c t o rt h e d . d . m . ' i sn o t l e s st h a n0 ' 1 5 5 .
The ICAO Annex 10 specification for the
localizer-radiated pattern is more complicatedthan
the descriptionaboveindicates,in particularin the
varioustolerances for categoryI, II and iII facilities;
howeverwe havecoveredthe essentialpoints for our
purposes.
The airborneequipmentdetectsthe 90 and 150 Hz
tonesandhencecauses a deviationindicatorto show
a fly-left or fly-right command. Full-scaledeflection
is achievedwhen the d.d.m.is 0'155, i.e. the aircraft
is 2-3ooff course.Figure5.3 showsa mechanicaland
electronicdeviationindicator both showingslightly
overhalf-scaledeflectionof a fly-right command.
Providedthe pilot flies to keep the commandbar at
zero,or the autopilotfliesto keepthe d.d.m.zero,
Fig.5.l Localizer frontbeamcoverage
the aircraft will approachthe runway thresholdalong
the courseline.
The horizontally polarizedradiatedcarrieris In addition to the 90 and 150 Hz tonesthe
modulatedby tonesof 90 and 150 Hz suchthat an localizercarrieris modulatedwith an identification
aircraft to the left of the extendedcentreline will be tone of 1020 Hz and possibly(exceptionallycategory
in a regionwherethe 90 Hz modulation predominates. III) voicemodulationfor ground-to-air
Along the centreline an airbornelocalizerreceiver communication.The identificationof a beacon
will receivethe carriermodulatedto a depth of 20 consistsof two or threeletterstransmittedby keying
per centby both 90 and 150 Hz tones. Deviation the 1020 Hz tone so as to give a Morsecode
from the centreline is givenin d.d.m.(differencein representation.The identification is transmittednot
depthof modulation),i.e. the percentage modulation lessthan six times per minute when the localizeris
of the largersignalminus the percentagemodulation operational.
of the smallersignaldividedby 100.
The localizercoursesectoris definedas that sector Glideslope
in the horizontalplanecontainingthe courseline Glideslopechannelsarein the u.h.f. band,

15OHz > 90 Hz

0.155DDM

Bercon
Course sector < 6o
ILS datum point 0 ' 1 5 5D D M

150 Hz < 9O Hz

Fig. 52 Localizer ooursc,lelector

70
Fig. 5.3 Electromechanical and electronic course deviatron
indicators (courtesy Bendix Avionics Division)

s p e c i f i c a l l3y2 8 . 6 - 3 3 5 .M
4 H z a t 1 5 0k H z s p a c i n g .
Eachof the forty frequencies allocatedto ihe
glideslope systemis pairedwith a localizerfrequency, Localizer Glidepath
the arrangement beingthat localizerand glidesiope l0e.-s0 332.60
beaconsservingthe sarnerunway.will haveliequencies 1 0 9 .55 332.3s
takenfrom Table5.2. pilot selectionol'the required l0e 70 333.20
localizerfrequencyon the controllerwill cause'both 109.75 333.05
localizerand glideslope receivers to tune to the 109.90 333.80
appropriatepairedfrequencies. 109.95 333.65
I10.10 334.40
Table5.2 Localizer/glideslope l 10.15 334.25
frequencypriring (MHz) 110.30 335.00
I10.35 334.85
Lot'alizer ()li<lepatlt I l0'50 329.60
I 10.55 329.45
108.10 334.70 l10.70 330.20
1 0 8 .51 -r,r4.55 110.7s 330.05
t08.30 3 3 4 .0r I10.90 330.80
r08.35 33.r.95 l10.95 - 330.65
r0 8 ' s 0 329.90 ll l.l0 3 3 1. 7 0
r0u.55 329.75 lll'15 331.55
r0 8 . 7 0 330.50 I I 1.30 332.30
108.75 330.35 l l 1.35 332'15
108.90 329.30 I I 1.50 332'90
108.95 329.15 l I 1.55 332.75
109'10 33r .40 I I1.70 333.s0
109.15 3 3 1. 2 5 I I1.75 3 33 . 35
109'30 332.00 I I 1.90 3 3l . 1 0
109.35 3 3 1. 8 5 I l l.9s 330.95

71
 The principle of glideslopeoperation is similar to
that of localizerin that the carrieris modulatedwith
90 and 150 Hz tones. Above the correctglidepath
the 90 Hz modulationpredominateswhile on the
correctglidepaththe d.d.m. is zero,both tonesgiving
a 40 per cent depth ofmodulation. The coverageand
beamcharacteristics shown in Figs 5.4 and 5.5 are
givenin termsof the glidepathangle,typically
2|-3'. CategoryI facilitiesmay haveasymmetrical
upperand lower sectors,the figure of 0'0875 d.d-m-
corresponding to an angulardisplacementof betweert
0'070 and 0'140 0. By contrasta categoryIII facility
is asshownin Fig. 5.5 with a toleranceof + 0'02 0 on
the 0'12 0 lines.
Althoughd.d.m.= 0lines occur al2 0,30 and4 0
thev are not stablein the sensethat if the pilot obeys
I t o n 'n I A marker beaconradiatesdirectly upwardsusinga
Course line
Azimuth
Fi;. 5.4 Glideslopecoverage
DDM : 0.0875
o.0875
Fig. 55 Glideslopebeamcharacteristics
72
the steeringcommandshe will not maintain the
correspondinganglesof descent.The first stablenull
o".un at S 0 wtrich for a glidepathof 3" is at l5o.
This is sufficiently different from the desireddescent
angleto createfew problems;howeverto avoid
'captured'
confusionthe glideslopebeamshouldbe
from below.
Oncein the correctbeam fly'up and fly-down
signalsare indicatedto the pilot in much the same
*-uVur with the localizer. Figure5.3 illustratesa
fly-up commandof just over half-scaledeflection.
The glideslopeoutput is more sensitivethan localizer
in that typically a |' off the glidepathwill give
deflection(about0'175 d'd.m.) compared
full-scale
with about 2t off the courseline for full'scale
deflection.
Marker Beacons
carrierfrequencyof 75 MHz. The modulatingsignal
dependson the function of the marker.
An airways,fan or'Z'marker is a position aid for
en-routenavigationlocatedon airwaysor at holding
points. As suchit is not part of ILS. The carrieris
modulatedwith a 3000 Hz signalwhich causesa
white lamp to flashin the aircraftwhile station
identificationin Morsecode is fed to the AIS.
The outer marker is normally located4f miles
from the runway threshold. The carrieris
amplitude-modulated by 400 Hz keyed to give two
dashes per secondwhich can be heardvia the AIS and
causesa blue (or purple) lamp to flash.
The middle marker is located3500 ft from the
runway threshold. The carrieris amplitude'modulated
by 1300Hz keyedto givea dot-dashpair 95 timesper
minute which can be heardvia the AIS and causesan
amberlamp to flash.
The ILS markerbeamwidths are sufficiently wide
in the planeperpendicularto the courseline to cover
the coursesector.
SimplifiedBlock DiagramOperation
Sincethe localizerand VOR frequenciesoccupy the
sameband it is normal to havea v.h.f. navigation
receiverwhich selects,.amplifies and detectssignals
from either aid, depending on the frequencyselected.
Figure 5.6 illustratesthe basicblock diagramof a
localizerreceiver.A conventionalsingleor double
superhetis employed.A.g.c.is importantsincean
increasein the 90 and 150 Hz output signalsby the
samefactor would increasethe magnitudeof the
difference,so givingmore deflectionof the deviation
 3OO-3OOOHz
Fig. 5.5 Localizer simplified block diagram
Fig.5.7 KingKN 72 bandpassfilter,simplified
indicator for the samed.d.m. Sigral separationis
achieved by threefilters:audio,90 and 150 Hz. The
audio signal,identification and possiblyvoice,is
passedvia audio amplifiers(incorporatinga noise
limiter)to the AIS. The 90 and 150 Hz iignalsare
full waverectified, the differencebetween-the
rectifieroutputsdrivingthe deviationindication
while the sum drivesthe flag out of view.
The 90 and 150 Hz filters,togetherwith the
rectifienand any associated circuitry.are often part
of the so-calied VORi LOC converterwhich may be
within the v.h.f.navigationreceiveror a separaieunit.
A combinedconverterwill usuallyenrployactive
filters which serveaseither 30 Hz bandpissfilters for
VOR operationor 90/ I 50 Hz bandpassfiltersfor
I Deviation indicator
r__ _ ___:=___ __J
localizeroperation. Figure5.7 showsthe circuit used
in the King KN 72 VOR/LOC converter. Whena
VOR frequencyis selectedthe ILS Hi line is low, so
turning off Ql which effectivelydisconnectsR2 from
the circuit, the centrefrequencyof 30 Hz is set by
R3. Selectionofa localizerfrequencycauses the ILS
Hi line to go high,so turningon Ql and placingR2 in
parallelwith R3. R2 is setto givea centrefrequency
of 90 or 150 Hz asappropriate.
The glidepathreceiverconverterblock diaeramis
similarto that of the localizerexceptthat the-audio
channelis not required.A separate receivermay be
usedor all navigationcircuitry may be within the
sameunit. In any eventseparate antennas areused
for localizerand glidepath.
 3
5
:t

White

Blue

Amber

To AIS

blockdiagram
Fig.5.8 Markersimplified

The marker is fixed tuned to 7 5 MHzand may

employ a t.r.f. (tuned radio frequency)or superhet
.r..iu.r. The detectedaudio is t-edto three filters for
tone separationand alsoamplifiedand fed to the AIS'
The filtir which givesen output causesthe
appropriatelamp-switchingcircuit to give an - .
interruptedd.c. output to drivethe associated lamp'
When sq'itched to Hi the sensitivity of the receiver
is such that it respondsto airwaysmarker beacons
eventhough the iircraft is at a relativelyhigh
altitude. Wittr trigtrsensitivitythere is a dangerthat
when at lower altitudes,for examplewhen flying over
the outer and middle markerson approach,the lamps
is
may be lit for longerthan the maximumof 10 s' It
evenpossiblefor the outer and middle marker lamps
to be lit simultaneously.To avoid this, low sensitivity
is selected,wherebyan attenuator(i0 dB) is piacedin
line with the receiverinput. Switchingmay take
placeat 10000 ft.
Fig.5.9 Typical attitude director indicator
"l*': J'
the
Installation and scaleconventionallyon the left-handsideof
instrument. tn the ADI the localizerdrives a rising

in Chapter4 an installationincorporatinga runway laterally tc displaydeviation(vertical.

VOR/IiS receiverwas discussedand illustrated
ILS we areinterestedin
(Fig. a.9). In considering
itro"seouiputs derivedfrom the localizer'glidepath
glideslope
and marker receivers.Localizerand
deviation(fly-leftifly-right, fly-up/fly-down
respectively)will be fed to a conventionalor
Lt.it.onic ieviation indicator (Fig' 5 '3) and/or
(Fig.a.l0) and an attitudedirectorindicator'ADI
localizerdrivesa iateral
ieii. s.sl. In the HSI the
aril.tion bar right and left of the course arrow
glideslopedeviationis givenby a deviationpointer
movementrepresentingradio altitude) while the
glideslopedrivesa pointer over a scale,againon the
left-handside of the instrument'
Localizer,glideslopeand marker signalsarealso
fed to an autolandsystemwhen fitted' The localizer
deviationwill be usedto supply the appropriate
(rudder)
an HSI ciemandsignalto the roll (aileron) and yaw
channels.ihe pitch (elevator)channel will respond
approachestouchdown
to glideslope.As the aircraft
while thJresponie of the pitch channelto glideslope
deviatiln signalsis progressivelyreduced;this

74
 reductionis triggeredby the outer marker and thence deviationoutput circuit hasan output impedanceof
controlledin accordancewith the radio altimeter
output. A modern ILS will provide dual parallel
outputsfor both localizerand glidepathdeviationin
orderthat the AFCS.may acceptinformation only
when the samesignalappearson eachfeed of a
parallelpair.
A generalaviationinstallationis illustratedin
Fig. 5.10 incorporatingKing equipment. The
KX 175Bis panel-mountedand containsa
720-channelv.h.f. comms receiver,a 2O0-channel
v.h.f. nav. receiverand all necessarycontrols with
digitalreadoutof comm. and nav. frequencieson the
front panel. The KX 175B alsoprovidestuning
hformation for the DME and glideslopereceiver.
F8. 5.10 Kirg general aviationcomm./nav.
The KN 72 andKN 75 are remote-mounted
VOR/LOC converterand glideslopereceiver
respectively. The KN 72 gles localizerdeviationand
flagsignals (aswell asVOR deviation,TO/FROM and
flag),while the KN 75 givesglideslopedeviationand
flag. The KMA 20 is an audio control console
providingspeaker/phoneselectionfor sevenreceive
channelsand mic. selectionfor two transmit channels
aswell as containinga marker receiverplus its controls
andlamps.The indicator,Kl 206, showslocalizer
deviation(verticalbar) and glideslopedeviation
(horizontalbar) aswell as showingVOR deviation
and TO/FROM indication if a VOR frequencyis
selected,the deviationrelatingto the OBS setting also
on the KI 206. lf a Kl 204 is usedinsteadof the
KI 206 then the KN 72 may be omitted sincea
VOR/LOCconverteris built in.
Typically a deviationindicator movementwill be
of 1000S) impedanceand require150 pA for
full-scaledeflection(f.s.d.), thereforethe voltage
acrossthe deviationoutput of the receivershould be
1 5 0m V f o r a d . d . m .o f 0 . 1 5 5 . I f t h e r e c e i v e r C o m m e r c i a l A e r o p l a n eC o . )
200 O and suppliesthe required current to five
indicators in parallel then when lessthan five
indicatorsare usedthe deflectionwill not properly
correspondto the d.d.m. Considera d.d.m.of 0.155,
then 750 pA must be suppliedfor five loadsin
parallelfrom a generateddeviationvoltageof
300 mV. Now considerfour loadsfed from a 300mV,
200 Cl source,the total current will be
300 x 103(200 + 250) = 666.7ptA divided equally
amongthe four loadsso that eachload has
666'7l4 = 166'7 pA, i.e. the indicatorswill over-read
by about I I per cent. Unlessthe receiveroutput is a
constantvoltagefor a variety of loads(ARINC
578-3)we must comp€nsatefor loadingvariations.
Various methodshavebeenusedfor loading
compensationin the past. One possibilityis to
choosedifferent receiveroutput impedances
dependingon the numberof loads;inthis casethe
receiverand the mounting rack shouldbe suitably
labelled. Another possibilityis to fit a shunt resistor
in an aircraftjunction box throughwhich the deviation
signalis fed. With two indicatorsa 330 O shunt
would be neededgivinga 330 O and two 1000 Q
loadsin parallel,i.e. total load of 200 (-). Finally,
but not exhaustingthe possibilities,five separate
buffered outputs may be provided,eachindicator
beingfed from one of the buffer amplifiers. Similar
considerations apply to flag circuitswhere using
four 1000Q loadsin parallelis standardprocedure.
system Antenna arrangements vary betweendifferent
typesof aircraft. Mentionof combinedVOR/
Phillip3 hcad scrcw
(16 pt.ccs)
Lo[r l@rlirct
antennt
Fig. 5.t I Boeing747 localizer aerials (note Bendix weather
radar scanner with spoiler grid on parabolic reflector for
mapping purposes - see Chapter 9). (Courtesy Boeing
75
localizer antennashasbeenmadein Chapter4 but
the glideslopeand marker antennaswill alwaysbe
separate.As an exampleof a largepassenger aircraft,
considerthe Boeing747. ThreeVOR/ILS receivers
areinstalledfed by one V-type VOR antennaat the
top of the verticalstabilizer,two dual localizbr
antennasin the noseand a total of six glideslope
antennasin the nose-wheeldoors. One marker
beaconreceiveris instalied,fed by a flush-mounted
antennaon the bottom centrelineof the aircraft.
The localizerantennasare mounted aboveand
below the weatherradarscanner.The lower antenna
feedsreceiversI and 2 while receiver3 is fed from
the upper antenna. Antenna switchingbetweenVOR
and localizeraerialsis achievedby either solid stateor
electromechanical switchesmounted behind the
VOR/ILS receivers.
The six glideslopeantennasare split into two
groupsof three,one group in eachnose-wheeldoor.
A non-tunableslot (track antenna)dual unit is
installed in each door leading edgewhile two tunable
arrays(captureantennas)are mounted on the sidesof
eachdoor. A total of four hybrid antennacouplers
combinethe r.f. outputs of the glideslopeantennas
providingsuitableimpedancematching.
Controlsand Operation
Normallya combinedVOR/ILS/DME controlleris
employed(Fig. a.9). Such a controller is briefly
describedin Chapter4. The marker receiver
switchingis likely to be remote from the combined
controllerand its action hasbeendescribedabove.
In usethe glidepathshouldbe capturedfrom
below, approachingfrom a direction determinedby
the approachproceduresfor the particular airfield.
The marker sensitivityshouldbe on low for the
approach.The appropriateselectionshould be made
on the audio control panel.

VOR/ILS receiver No. 3

Glide slope
antenna
hybrids
8554 and 8555
and att€nuators
8582 and 8583
Trrck antenna Capture antcnna
coaxial cable coaxial cable
{ Coaxial
G/S track cable recbiver No. 2
antenna 9uard
B 561 Antcnna coaxial
connectors D8558
Antenna coaxial
connector D8561
See@r
G/S capturc
G/S capture a n t e n n a8 5 5 8
a n t e n n a8 5 5 8
G/S capture antenna hyg49-{-\--
8560
c/S;;t';; \ Right aft
. .antennaarray \\ nose gear door
t \
t -- Attachins
Tuning"trg, . screws(5 places)
]\'*.
-.\\ S rwo
. .\\.

Aft door shown in retraciedposition

(6t
\J

Fig.5.l2 Boeing?47 glideslopeaerials(courtcsyBoeing

CommercialAeroplaneCo.)

76
 Track antennas

Capture antonnas Right door

Track aerials

Fig.5.l3 Boeing747 simplified glideslopeaerial coupling

alrangements

Characteristics carrierwithin I l2 kHz of tuned frequency.

Sensitivityis such that the flag shouldclearwith a
The basisfor the following is ARINC Characteristic 5 pV 'hard' input sigral ('hard' pV: the output of a
578-3 althoughmuch of the detail hasbeenomitted signalgeneratorcalibratedin terms of open circuit
and not all sectionscovered. load). The receivershouldbe protectedagainst
undesiredlocalizersignals,VOR sigralsand v.h.f.
Units Tlte receivershouldcontain all the electronic comm. signals.The a.g.c.shouldbe such that the
circuitry necessaryto providedeviationand flag receiveroutput shouldnot vary by more than 3 dB
signalsfor both localizerand glideslope.The control with an input signallevel rangeof l5-100 mV.
unit should provide for frequencyselectionof ILS,
VOR and DME using2/5 coding. Gli<leslopeReceiver Forty channelsat 150 kHz
spacing,328'6-335.4MHz. Channelsto be paired
Antennas Separatelocalizerand glideslopeantennas with localizerchannelsfor frequencyselection
shouldbe provided coveringthe appropriate purposes.The selectivityis specifiedin a similarway
frequencybands(108.00-l12.00MHz and to localizerbut the 60 dB points are at + 80 kHz
328'6-335.4MHz respectively)and both having while the 6 dB points are at t 2l kHz. The flag should
characteristicimpedancesof 50 O with a VSWR of clearwith a20 pY'hard'.sigral. Protectionagainst
l e s st h a n 5 : l . unwanted glideslopesigralsmust be guaranteed.The
a.g.c.should be suchthat the input signallevel to the
Power Supply I l5 V, 400 Hz, singlephase. tone filters shouldnot vary by more 163n+| to
-2 dB for an increasein input from 200 to
Localizer Receiver Forty channelsat 50 kHz spacing 20 000 pV and should not vary by more than *3,
108'00-l I l'95 MHz. Maximum channeltime 60 ms. -2 dB thereafterup to an input of 100 000 pV.
Selectivityis such that a carriermodulated30 per
c€nt at 1000 Hz shouldprovidean output at least Deviation Outputs
60 dB down when separatedfrom tuned frequency Localizer:.high-level2 V for 0.155 d.d.m.,low-level
by t 3l'5 kHz; responseshouldbe within 6 dB when 150 mV for 0.155 d.d.m. Dual outputsin parallelfor

77
AFCS. Output characteristics shouldnot vary for beingmarkedin decibels,e.g.:
loadSbetween200 Q and no load. When90 Hz 6'6 dB fly-right(+ 0'1549 d.d.m.)'
'hot'
predominatesthe sideof all deviationoutputs 4 ' 0 d B f l y - l e f t ( - 0 ' 0 9 2 ed . d . m . ) '
'common' side;
shouldbe positivewith respectto the 3 ' 7 6d B f l y - u p ( + 0 ' 1 7 5d ' d . m ' ) e' t c .
'fly-left'is given.
in this case
Glideslope:similarto localizerbut high- and lowlevel Further switch positionson the d.d.m. switch allow
outputsare2Y and 150 mV respectively for for deletingone or other of the tones. ln additiona
0 ' 1 7 5d . d . m . variable0 to 1 150gA deviationis available.Stepped
attenuatorsprovideoutput levelsvariablebetween
Flag Outpu* Two highJevelwarningsignals(super 0 dBm and - 120 dBm in I dBrn steps,in orderthat
flag) and one lowlevel waming signalshould be receiversensitivitymay be checked(testsetaerial
providedby both localizerand glidepathreceivers- positioningwill affectthis check). Modulatingtones
The high-levelflag characteristicis 28 V d.c. for valid of 400. 1300and 3000 Hz are available fbr marker
statuswith current capabilities;25 mA for AFCS checks.Finally, l0l0 l-lzmodulationis available for
waming;250 mA for instrumentwamings.The audiochecks.As menticlned in Chapter 4 the
low-levelflag shouldprovidea voltageof between CRM 555 canalsobe usedto checkVOR.
300 and 900 mV into up to five parallel1000 Q
loads. IFR NAV402 AP Conttinsa modtrlatedsignal
generatorfor marker,VOR, localizer,glideslope and
Monitoring c o m m u n i c a t i o nt es s t i n g .T h e o u t p u t< - r l ' t htee s ts e ti s
Warningsigtalswhen: no r.f., either90 or 150 Hz variablebetween 7 and - I l0 dBnr on all frecluencies
missing,total depthof modulationo1'composite s e tb y a v a r i a b l et ) e q u e n c cy o n t r o l( p h a s e - l o c k e adt
90/150 Hz signalis lessthan 28 per cent,etc. 25 kHt.on eacltblnd exceptfor glidepatltwhcre
irrtervalis 50 kt-lz). The localiz-er deviatitlncanbe
0
s w i t c h e dt o 0 ' 0 9 - 1 . ' 1 5 5 o r 0 ' 1 0 0 d . d . n rw . hile
RampTesting g l i d e s l o pde. d . t no. f l e r s0 ' 0 9 1 , 0 ' 1 7 5a n d0 ' 4 0 0 '
T o n ed e i e t i o nc a nb e s e l e c t e dA . l l t l r r e cr t t a r k ctro n c s
A radiatingtestsetmustbe usedwith a basic a r ea v l i l a b l ea. si s 1 0 2 0t l z .f o r l u d i o c h c c k '
capabilityof simulatingoff-glidepathsignals.In
additionthe testsetshouldoperateon one or more
accuratespot frequettcies and providefaciliticsfor
deletingeitherof the modulatingfrequencies.
TIC T-308 This test set wasmentionedin Chapter4
WM,n*#]"
in connectionwith VOR testing.In additionto the
VOR testset modulewe havethe T-268,T-288 and
T-298 for testingthe marker,localizerand glideslope
F r c r 6 +. -,' ; - , ,
receivers respectively.The T-268 providesat least
7Cper centmodulationfor the 400, 1300and -EFf,Gr,t
3000Hz tones. The T-28Boperateson 108'I MHz
Fig. 5.14 NAV402 AI' tcst sct (cotrrlcsyllrR l'llcctrontcs
a n dc a ns i m u l a t e0 d . d . m . , 0 ' 1 5 5d . d . m . l e f ta n dr i g , h t
lnc.)
(switched)or 0 to t 0'199 d.d.m.(variable).The
T-298 ooerateson 334'7 MHz and cansimulate
b a.a.m.,0.175 htrcedure The prdredure for a lunctional checkis
d . d . m .u p a n dd o w n( s w i t c h e do) r
0 to t 0'280 d.d.m.(variable).Eitherthe 90 or the straightforward if the operationof ILS is understood
150Hz tonesmay be deletedwith both the T-28B and full detailsof the testset areknown. In practice,
and the T-298. the procedurewill be listedin the aircrllt nlaintcnance
manual. Carefulattentionmust be paid to testsct
CossorCRM 555 Forty localizer and forty glideslope antennapositioningif receivers with low sensitivity
channelsmay be selected,all crystalcontrolled. are not to be passed as serviceable. Self-testfacilities
Thereare sevend.d.m. settingsfor localizer-simulated on both the testset and the aircraftinstallationshould
deviationand five for glidepath,the d.d.m. switch be usedif available.

78
6 Hyperbolicnavigationsystems
GeneralPrinciples
The needfor a co-ordinatesystemfor navigation
purposesis self-evident,the most important being the
geat circlelinesof longitudeand the linesof latitude
parallelto the equator,itself a greatcircle. Figure6. I
illustratestwo alternativesvstemssuitablefor usein
ndio navieation.
Fig.6.l Circular
andhyperbolic
co-ordinate
systems
If two fixed pointson earthhavea sequence of
concentriccirclesdrawn around them, eachcircle
representinga particularrangefrom the fixed centre,
then points of intersectionare definedbut ambiguous
excepton the line joining the two points (baseline)
where they areuniquely defined. Sucha systernis
calledrho-rhosincetwo distance(rho) measurements
areinvolved.
We can usethe concentriccirclesto define
hyperboliclines. Whereany two circlesintersectwe
will havea differencein rangedefined;for example,
the rangeto point A lessthe rangeto point B. I,he
locusof points which havethe samedifferencein
rangewill describeahyperbola. Thusin Fig. 6.1 the
hyperbolicline hh' is the locusof the point X such
that AX - BX = constant.By plottingthe linesfor
severaldifferent constantswe obtain a family of
hyperboliclines. In the radio navigationsystemsto
be discussed we usethe terms circularl.o.p. (lines of
position)and hyperbolicl.o.p.-
The patternsconsideredare not suitablefor
position fixing sincetwo circularLo.p. intersectat
two placeswhilst knowing the differencein rangeto
two points simply placesone anywhereon one of two
hvperbolic l.o.p. Knowing the startingposition and
subsequentlythe track and ground speed(or heading
and true airspeed)will make it possibleto usethe
rho-rho system,sincea position caiculatedby dead
reckoningwill identify at which of the intersections
the aircraftis. To usethe hyperbolicl.o.p.we must
generateanotherfamily of linesby taking a third
fi;red point, we then havethe co-ordinatesystem
shown in Fig.6.2. A fix is givenby the unique point
wheretwo hyperbolicl.o.p.cross.Of coursethe use
of three fixed points givesthe possibilityof a
rho-rho-rhosystemwhere three rangecircles
intersectat a uniquepoint.
Fig.6.2 Hyperbolic positionfix (courtesy
navigation Litton
Systems Inc.,AeroProducts
International Division)
The co-ordinatepatternsdescribedaboveare
currently usedin three radio navigationequipments,
namelyLoranC, DeccaNavigatorand Omega.
Predecessors of thesesystemsinclude GEE, a British
World War II hyperbolicsystemdevelopedto navigate
bomberson missionsto Germany.
79
 It shouldbe clearby now that the requirementof
a hyperbolicsystemis that it can measuredifference
in rangewhile a rho-rho-rhosystemmust nleasure
absoluterange. Two methodsare in use: time
for Loran C and phase
differencemeasurements 'r"
measurements for Deccaand Omega. Thesemethods
dictatethat Loran C is a pulsedsystemwhile the
r"l
other two arecontinuouswave(c.w.).
A basicproblem with phasemeasuringsystemsis 'Raceivor ,fi
that rangecan only be determinedif the whole l0^-06l./ Tg
numberof cyclesof e.m. radiationbetweenthe LOPS
aircraft and the transmittingstation are know. This is
illustratedin Fig. 6.3. An aircraft at X measuresthe Fig.6.4 Continuous navigation
uiavehyperbolic
phaseof the signalfrom station,4 which is (courtesr- Inc.,AeroProducts
International
LittonSystelns
Division)

subdividedinto say.centilanes ( | / l00th of a lane)

and so determiningon which l.o.p.the aircraftis
llying is sirnplya matterof laneand centilanecounting
liorrrsonreknown point. A lix requiresa separate
count to be rnadeof the lanesand centilanes between
anotherpair of transnlitters. onc transmitternlay be
conlrnor.r to the two pairs. The two l.o.p' will
intersectai the aircraft'sposition.
The possibilityof laneslipexists;i.e. missingI lane
Fig. 6.3 Received signal phase measurement
in the count. lf this happensthe correctlanetttttstbe
established, this prt'rcess beingterrnedlaning.
Obviouslylaningis easierwlten liuresarewidcr.
transmittingat a frequencyof l0 kllz. The Supposethe frequencyof transmitterA is l0 kHz
wavelength, L, is givenby C/ I 0 000 where C is the while that of B is l5 kHz. tltenwe havea dit'ference
speedof light; thustr = l 6 nauticalnriles.lf the frequencyot'5 kt{z which corresponds to a lanewidth
phasenreasured is. sayt)0", the distancc,4Xis of 30 000 nr as opposed to l5 000 m for l0 kHz and
( l6// + 4) nauticalrnileswhereN is the nurnberof l0 000 m for l5 kHz. In this way lanewidth canbe
wlrolecyclesoccupyinglhe spacebetwccnA andX. madewide without havingto transmitimpossiblylow
Wc-sav that thc lanewidth is l6 nauticalrnilesand fiequencies.While the useof wide lanesis of
thc lircr:rl'tis (N + i-) l:rnesl'ronrA. inrportancefor tlte purposesof laning.narrowlanes
givegreaterresolutionand hencegreaterpotential
ContinuousWaveHyperbolic Principles accuracy.
W i t l rl h y p c L t r o l iscv s t c nw r c a r cc o n c e r n ew dith Measuring the dift-erence in phasebetweensignals
dil'lr'rcrrcc in nrngcnrthcr than ubsoluterurge: from two transntitters will only be nreaningfulif the
consctyrrcrrtly tlrt' uirlrornc' crluiirrnentrnustnleasure transnrissions ltavea knowtrand t'ixedphase
thc'rlil'li'rcrrcc in phlsc bt'twcenrrdio wavesfronr two relationship.Tyo possibilities exist:
l n r n s r r r i t l i rgr gr o t r n tsl t a t i o r r sl." ' i g u r6e. 4 s h o w st l t a t
tlrcrcrvill br.'zcrrrplrlsedil'lert'nccbctwcen l. one of'tl'retransntitters canbe tlesignated the
svrrchltlrt izctl t nrnsrrtissions r'vcry lrll [' l wavelength. master,the other the slavewhich. clnreceivittg
An lircrll'i nrcusuring a phlsc dil'ti'rcnccol- the transnrission frotrttltc'ntaster.will ensulc
0A d l | c o r r l d
b c o n u n y o l ' t h c d r s l r r dl . o . p . .
i . e .i n its own transtnissiott is synchronized:
a n y o l ' t l r c I l n c sl r c t w e e rl r a r r s r r r i l t cAr sa n d l l . e a c h 2. both transntittcrs aresynchr-oniz-ed to sotrre
o l ' w h i c hi s h l l l ' a w u v c l c n g tw h i d c a t t l r eb l s c l i n e . standardtinrescalesuchasprovidedby an
S i n c c ' c v c rlya n ci s i t l c r r t i c at o l t l r r 'r e c c i v eor n t h e a t o n t i cc l o c k .
luircrll'ta lunt'corrntnruslbc cstlblishcdcitlrcr ll'orn
l h c l i r c r u l ' t ' s t l r t i r r gp o i n l o r , t l u r i n gl l i g h t .l ' r o n ra n PrrlsedHyperbolic PrinciPles
indcpcndt'rrt positionlix. lilch lanerrraybe lrr suchsystertts laningis.rrota problclttsitrcc'

80
 d<T<2t+d

Extended Extended
T = 2t+d -- - - - - - t : o-
base line Master Slave base line

L.O.P.= line of constant time

difference.T '

Fig.6.5 Pulsedhyperbolicnavigation

unambiguousl.o.p.sare obtained. Considerthe two

L.O.P.3
transmittersat A and B in Fig. 6.5. One is designated
the master;this transmitspulsesof energyat a fixed
publishedp.r.f. On receiptof the masterpulsethe
slavewill transmit, usually after somefixed delay,say ).P.2
d ps. If the propagationtime from masterto slaveis L.O.P.
I gs then we c.ul seethat an airCraftat the master
stationposition, or anywhereon the extendedbase Best geometry very accurate
line outward from the master,will measurea time L . O . PI.
differenceof (2t + d) gs when comparingthe tinre of
arrivalof the masterand slavetransmissions.An
aircrafton the extendedbaseline outward from the Multiple L.O.P. good
Worst geometry poor accuracy
slavewould record a time differenceof d ps. Should accuracy due to redundancY
an aircraftbe anywhereother than on the extended
Fig. 6.6 Various geometrics for hyperbolic systenrs
baseline the time differencewill be someunique
readingbetweend and (2t + d) ps.
Disadvantages of hyperbolic systemsare that lane point B. The airborneequipmentwill tncasurctlre
width varieswith distancefrom baseline and that differencein phasebetweenthe receivcdsignaland
signalgeometryis important. With a hyperbolic the referencesignal,i.e.:
co-ordinatesystemthe angleof cut betweentwo l.o.p. Q^=Qr-Qr
canbe suchthat the tangentsto the lines at the
aircraftposition are almostparallel;for other aircraft when the aircraft is at point A, while:
positionsthe hyperbolicI.o.p.may cut almostat
Qm=h-Q,
right angles.Of courseif more than two l.o.p. are
availablethe geometryproblem is of little when the aircraft is at point B. The changein phasc
consequence sincea most probableposition can be asthe aircraft moveswill providea measureof the
computed. Figure6.6 illustratesthe variousl.o.p. changein range,we have:
geometries.
@.:(0" -Q)- ( 0 b- 0 ' )
=Qa-Qb (6.1)
Continuous Wave Rho-Rho and Rho-Rho-Rho
Systems Theseideasare illustratedin Fig. 6.7.
To measurethe phaseof a receivedsigral a suitable The aboveworking hasassumedthat the reference
referencemust be available,generatedwithin the sigrraldoesnot drift in the time it takesfor the
receiver.Let the phaseofthe referencesignalbe @r, aircraft to travel from A to B. If the referencephase
the phaseof the receivedsignal be @"when the is @r.and @16when the aircraft is at point A and B
aircraft is at point A and fu when the aircraft is at respectively,then equation(6.1) must be modified

81
 AtB

+ 0 ^ : Q a- 6 u

Fig. 6.7 Changein measuredphasewith afucraftmoveinnenl

to accountfor this drift, it becomes: 3. estimate the phaseoffset throughout flight by

utilizing signalsfrom more than two
Q^=(0^-@u)-(0'"-0'u) (6.2)
transmitters(this is the rho-rho-rhoapproach)'
Thus an equipmentcontinuouslymonitoring the
changein measuredphasein order to calculatechange The operation of a rho-rho system is illustrated in
in rangewill be in error by an amount dependingon Fig. 6.8. As the aircraft flies from I to 2 the phase
the referenceoscillatordrift. changesin the signalsreceivedfrom transmittersA
At the moment of switch-onthe referencesignal andB are continuously measured;this allowsthe
on board the aircraft is not phaseJockedto the airborneequipment to count the number of range
gound transmitter'sfrequency. Further, sincethere lanesand centilanestraversedwith respectto both
is a signalphaseshift due to the transmissionpath, transmitters.Equation(6.1) applies,sincereference
therewill be a phaseor clock offset (@o)between oscillatordrift is negligible. Thus if the aircraft
receivedsignaland the local reference.If at position at point I is known it can be computedat 2.
switch-onboth the transmitterand receiverpositions
areknown @ocan be calculated,and if at subsequent
aircraft positions this phaseoffset remainsthe same
then by measuringphasedifferenceas described
earlierthe changein rangefrom the known starting
point may be computed. Referenceoscillatordrift
can be consideredas a changein phaseoffset'
Errors arisingdue to a changein phaseoffset can
be minimized in three ways:

l. usc difference in phasebetween synchronized

sigrralsfrom two remote transmitters,in which
caseany changein referencephasecancelsout \dIA-(6A2-aLO2) - l c l 1 1- d s 6 1 ) l 6 M O ' l d 3 2 - O ! O 2 l- t o g l - C 1 g 1 ;
(this is the hyperbolic approach); .t.'12-6A1t-{6192-cLg1) -tc62-ca1l-16192-{1611

2. a precisionreferenceoscillatorof atomic clock rclE LGAL mnLUrOn OrrFt ' t6LO2 - 6LOtl

standardcan be carried on the aircraft, in which

cas€drift is negligible over the duration of the Fig. 6.8 Rho-rho navigation (courtesy Litton Systems
flight (this is the rho-rho approach); International Inc., Aero ProductsDivisio')

82
 With a rho-rho.rho s),stenltwo range(circular)
l.o.p. givea position fix while a third can be usedto
eliminateerror in phaseoffset,@". ln Fig.6.9 it can
be seenthat a non-zero@,givesus the situation where
threel.o.p.do not intersectat one point but-form a
trianglewithin which the aircraft is positioned.
hyperbolic and rho-rho-rho methods require three
ground transmittersfor a fix but the geonretryof the
aircraft and transmitterswill degradethe accuracyof
the hyperbolicsystemmoreso than eitherrho-rho-rho
or rho-rho. A hyperbolicsystenrhasthe most
complexcomputerprogram,but is nevertheless

o
Transmitter 2
x Transmitter
, ,'\1 \ True position
True position

Ptc- - -

P. P^ P. Kncwn points

--- CalculatcdL.O.P.
- T r u eL . O . P .

Fig.6.9 Rho-rho-rho
navigation

Consideration of this positiontrianglcshou.sthat the probably the leastcostly sinceits local oscillator
p e r p e n d i e u ld a irs t a n c elsi o r r rt l r c t' r u e p o s i t i o nt o t h e stabilityrequirenrents arelessstringentthan eventhe
c a l c u l a t eld. o . p .u r ee q u a lt o e l c h o t h r . -l rn d g i v ea rho-rho-rhosystem.
n l c e s u roc f 'f " . S u l ' l i c i c nitr r t i r r n r a t i oi rsra v a i l a b l e
l i o n r t h e t h r e el . c l . p t. o e v a l u a t p e " . a s s u n t i nteh a t
rr-fercnce oscillatordrift is the orrlv sorrrceof t'rror. Omega Navigation System (ONS)
S h o u l do t h e re r r o r sc o n t r i b u t et o t h e c a l c u l a t e d
l . o . p .t h e p e r p e n d i c r r ldairs t a n c els' r o mt h e t r u e Omegais a very low-frequency. c.w.,long-range
p , o s i t i otno t h e c a l c u l a tdel . o . p .w i l l n o l n c c e s s a r i b he
, navigationsystem.Threetime-multiplexed signalsof
L-qual and an approxinratesolutionnrustbe sought. l 0 ' 2 , I l ' 3 3 a n d l 3 ' 6 k H z a r et r a n s n - r i t t e d
omnidirectionallyfrom eachof eight stations
Cdmparisonof Systems strategically locatedaroundthe world. Althoughthe
Thereis no clear-cutbestsystemto enrploy,and in conceptwaspatentedin 1923it wasnot until the
fact all are in useas follows: mid 1960sthat the US Navy establishedthe first
pulsedhyperbolic experimentalstations.By 1968it wasestablished
I-oranC
that ONS was t'easible and the setting-upof a
c.w. hyperbolic DeccaNavigator,Omega
worldwidenetwork commenced.The USA is
c.w. rho-rho Omega
c.w. rho-rho-rho responsible for the stationsin North Dakota,Hawaii,
Omega
Liberiaand a temporarystationin Trinidad,while
It is interestingto observethat manufacturersof stationsin Norway,Japan,Argentina,La Reunion
Omeganavigationsystemshaveopted for different and,by 1980,Australiaarethe responsibilityof
methodsof calculatingposition,illustratingthat nationswhich haveestablishedbilateral agreements
thereis no universallyacceptedbestmethod. with the USA. Although the responsibilityfor
The rho-rhomethodis certainlythe simplestof co-ordinationwasoriginallyallocatedto the US Navy
the three,needingonly two qroundtransmittersand it hasnow beentaken overby the US CoastGuard.
employinga relativelysimplecornputerprogram.
It does,however,havethe costlydisadvantage of 'The Omega Stations and Broadcast Patterns
requiringa very stablereferenceoscillator. Both Eachstationhasa transmitterDowerof l0 kW with

83
Table5.1 Sigralformat,o.n.s.

{_-Ios
Stations 0 ' 9s 1 ' 0s l'l s 1.2s I'I s 0 ' 9s 1 - 2s I'0 s
<---' <|*.' H H <----} e H <'_}

Norway A r0.2 r3 ' 6 I1.33

Liberia B t0.2 13.6 I 1.33
Hawaii C to.2 13.6 I l-33
North Dakota D 10.2 13.6 I1.33
[: Reunion E ro.2 13.6 I 1.33
fugentina F to.2 13.6 I I '33
Trinidad/Australia G I 1.33 10.2 13.6
Japan H r3.6 l 1.33 10.2

the exceptionof the temporarystation in Trinklad

which hasa I kW transmitter. Radiationis from an
omnidirectionalantennawhich takesthe form either
of a verticaltower, approximately450 m high, 16 NM 9 CYCLES

supportingan umbrellaof transmittingelements,or a

valleyspantypically 3500 m in length. Equipment
redundancyensuresreliableoperation99 per cent of
the time.
As mentionedabdveeachstation transmitsthree 1 4{ N M lo cYcrts
frequenciesin a time-multiplexedpattern which is
uniqueand providesidentification. The transmission
formatis shownin Table6.1. It canbe seenthat at
any one time only three stationswill be transmitting,
eachon a different frequency. There are short
intervals(0'2 s) betweentransmissionbursts. The
pattern is repeatedevery l0 s. Fig. 6.10 Omegafrequencyrelationships(courtesyLitton
All transmittersare phase-locked to a nearly SystemsInternationalInc., Aero ProductsDivision)
absolutetime standardprovidedby the useof atomic
clocksat eachof the station locations. The result is
that the three frequenciesin all transmitters
simultaneouslycrosszero with positiveslopeat
precisetimes every l5/ l Tths of a millisecond. This
phaserelationshipis illustratedin Fig. 6.10. The net
resultis that the timing error betweenstationsis at
most I ps, leadingto a maximum error in position fix
of 300m.
Fig.5.1I Earth-.Ionosphere (courtesy
waveguide Litton
hopagation Systems Interpational Inc.,AeroProductsDivision)
The band of frequenciesl0-14 kHz is an appropriate
choicefor a phase-measuring navigations1)'stemsince predictabilityof the changesin phase.
e.m. radiationat thesefrequenciescan travel A requirementof the systemis that four or more
thousandsof mileswith predictablephase-change stationscanbe receivedeverywher€.Account must
characteristics.A natural waveguideis formed by the be taken of the attenuation of the signalwhich varies
earth'ssurfaceand the D layer ofthe ionosphere,the with direction due to the rotation of the earth.
dimensionsof which are suitablefor.propagationof Signalstravellingin an easterlydirection suffer
the ONS frequencies.This mode of propagation approximately2 dB/1000 km attenuation,while
accountsfor the rangeof the signalsand the thoseon a westerlypath suffei approximately

84
4 dB/1000km. North and southattenuationis the
sameat 3 dB/1000km. A further consideration is
that signalscannot be usedcloseto the sourcesince
the phasevariationsare unpredictablein this region.
The implementationof ONS with eightstations,which
arenot equi-spaced around the world, leadsto a
situationwhere,undernormalconditions,between
four and sevenstationsare usabledependingon the
receiverlocation.
Fig,6.12 Typicalusablecoverage
Factors Affecting Propagation
l. Diurnal Effect
The height of the ionospherevariesby approximately station B (Liberia) at critical times sincesignalsfrom
20 km from day to night, beinghighestat night. The this station are particularlysusceptibleto modal
phasevelocity of the propagatedwavewill be greatest interferenceat night.
during the day when the dimensionsof the 'waveguide'
areleast;this leadsto phasevariationswhich
fortunatelyarepredictableand cyclic. Correctionsto A solar flare givesriseto a largeemissionof X-rays
compensate for diurnai effect may be implemented
by meansof a softwareroutine. The entry of GMT
anddateat switch-onis requiredbv the routine.
2. Ground Conductivity
The different attenuatingeffectsof the oceansand
varioustypes of landmasschangesthe phasevelocity
of the v.l.f. signal.The greatestlossof signalstrength sunspotcycle a major solarflare may product a shift
occursin the ice-capregionswherethe changein
phasevelocityis significant.Waterhasleasteffect.
The effect of ground conductivitybeingwell known
meansthat a conductivity map can be stored in the
computer,so enablinga propagation-correction factor
to be calculatedfor the path betweenthe receiverand
the known stationlocation.
A complicationarisesin that it is possibleto
receivea direct sigral and one which hasgonethe
'long
way round', in which casewe havea mutual
interferenceproblem. Automatic deselectionof
stationsat rangesin excessofsay 8000 nauticalmiles
is usedto minimize this effect.
3. Geomagnetic FieA
The earth'smagnetic(H) field altersthe motion of
ions and electronsin the lower regionof the
ionosphere,thus affectingv.l.f. propagation. Again
the equipmentsoftwaremay be usedto apply
corrections.
4. Norspheroidal Effects
The computationof aircraft position must take into
accountthat the signalpath from transmittingstation
to aircraft receiveris not on the surfaceof a sphere.
Further, pressuredifferencesat variouslatitudes
effect the height of the ionosphereso compensation
must be made for the effect on phasevelocity.
5. Modal Interference
There are variousmodesof propagationin the
earth.ionosphere waveguide.If one mode is
dominant the phasegrid producedwill be regular;
howeverin practicea competingmode can be almost
equal to the dominant mode in which case
irregularitiesappearin the phasepattern. The most
seriouscaseoccurswhen one mode is dominant at
night and a secondduring the day. It follows that
during sunriseand sunsetthe two modeswill be
equal. SomeOmegareceiversautomaticallydeselect
6. Solar Effects
which causesa short-termdisturbancein a limited
part of the ionosphere.Suih an eventis calleda
suddenionosphericdisturbance(SID) or a sudden
phaseanomaly(SPA) and may last for I h or more;
l.o.p. in the affectedregionsmay be shifted by up to
say 5 nauticalmiles. TheseSIDsoccur about 7 to l0
times per month, but during the peak of the I l-year
in l.o.p.by up to 15 nauticalmiles. This latter event
is predictable,and warningsmay be issued.
Infrequently largequantitiesof protons are
85
releasedfrom the sun,producinga so-calledpolar cap which 3.4 kHz lanethe aircraft is flying. Phase
disturbance (p.c.d.).The effectof a p.c.d.,which is measurementof the l0'2 kHz signalgivesthree
to shift l.o.p. from say 6 to 8 nauticalnriles,may last possiblel.o.p.while the l3'6 kHz signalgives tbur
for severaldays. Only thosetransmissionpaths possibleLo.p. Only one of the possibleLo.p. from
passing overthe polesareaffected.Sincethe p.c.d.is eachgroupis coincident,this beingthe uniquel.o.p.
of long duration navigationwarningmessages may be on which the aircraftis positioned.
broadcast.
Rate Aiding
Position Fixing The ONS transmission patternextendsovera period
As previouslydiscussed ONS may usehyperbolic, of l0 s. If the phasesof all usablesignalsare
rho-rhoor rho-rho-rhomethods,a root meansquare measured overthis periodand then l.o.p. are
accuracyof l-2 nauticalmilesbeingobtainablewith generated for positionfixing.an error will result.
all methodsprovidingthe computersoftwarecorrects sincesomeof the phaseinformationwill be up to
for predictableerrors. l0 s old. Aircraft directionand speedinformation
Whatevermethod is usedthe lane in which the niay be usedto updatethe phaseinforrnationlor
aircraft is flying must be established.Lane widths for l.o.p.calculations, this processbeingknown as rate
the basicfrequenciesand differencefrequenciesare aiding. In practicewe cangenerate l.o.p.at lessthan
givenin Table6.2. It canbe seenthat the broadest l0 s intervals,sayeveryI s, thusONS can be
lane for the direct rangingmethodsis 144 nautical considered asa deadreckoningsystemwith
mileswhile that for the hyperbolicmethod is 72 position-fixingupdateseverysecondor so.
nauticalmiles. If it is known which broad lane the Directionand speedinformationcan comefrom a
aircraftis in thenit is possibleto resolvelane numberof sources, for examplecompass headingand
ambiguityfor the narrowerlanesautomatically, as true air speedfrom an Air DataConrputeror track
shownin Fig.6.l3. In this exampleit is known in and groundspeedtiom Doppleror INS. SomeOmega
equipmentsgenerate trackand groundspeed
Table6.2 Frequencies
and lanewidths,o.n.s. internallyfrom computedpositionchanges.
(lanewidthsin nm) If for any reasonthereis a lossof signaldead
reckoning,dataon directionand speedinputsot
Dircct ronging ltltperbolic last-knowninternallygenerated track and ground
speedcan be usedto continuouslycalculatethe
1 0 . 2k H z 16 8 aircraft'sposition.so that on receiptof sufficient
Basic
1 1 . 3k H z 14.4 7.2 usablesignals, laneambiguityis easilyresolved.
frequ encies
1 3 . 6k l ' l z 12 6 Obviouslyif the internallygenerated last-knowntrack
13.6-10= .2 3.4 kHz 4ti 24 and groundspeedareusedduringdeadreckoning
'12
l 3 ' 6 - 1I 3 = 2.3 kHz 36
then aircraftmanoeuvre duringtlrisphase.may cause
I 1 . 3 - 1 0 .=2 l.l ktlz 114 i2
laningproblemswhen signalslre receivetiaglrin.

'13 10.2KHZ lanes

6 KHZ lanes Broad lane

10-2 KHZ
13.6KHZ LOP
LOP
Unique LOP

Fig: 6.13 Resolvinglane ambiguity (courtesyLitton Systems

lnternational Inc., Aero ProductsDivision)

86
In sucha caseaircraft approximatepositionwould Fig. 6.14. The ONS consistsof a receiverprocessor
haveto be enteredby the pilot. unit (RPU), control displayunit (CDU) and antenna
. couplerunit (ACU). Sucha break-downof 'black
Most Probable Position boxes' conformsto ARINC Characteristic599 but
Thereis a redundancyin the Omegasystemin that somemanufacturerschooseto separatethe receiver
normally more signalswill be receivedthan are and computerand alsothe antennaand couplingunit.
necessary to computethe two l.o.p. neededfor a fix. The RPU is fitted in a convenientlocation. the
ln this case,data from all receivablestations,and as most important considerationbeingcooling
many frequenciesaspossible,may be usedto generate arrangements, a forced downdraughtor integal
a numberof l.o.p. If all frequenciesarereceivedfrom blower being typical. The CDU must of coursebe
all stationstherewould be 3 X 8 = 24 phase mounted in view, and in reach,of the pilot;
measurements every l0 s, givingup to twenty-four normally specialcoolingarrangements are not
l.o.p.for a singlefix. The multiplel.o.p.will not required.
crossat a point but will definea smallpolygon The antennausedmay be of H field or E field
within which the aircraft is positioned. The computer type, the latter possiblyemployinga separatecoupler
will calculatethe aircraft'smost probableposition unit with a suppliedinterconnectingcable. An E
within this polygon. field systemis sensitiveto precipitationstatic
In practicetherewill be far fewer than twenty-four discharge, thus good bondingand sufficient
phasemeasurements available.Automatic deselection strategically spacedstaticwicks are essential.An H
will take place for reasonsof poor signalto noise field system is sensitiveto magnetic(a.c.)noise
ratio, poor geometry,susceptibilityto modal sourcesand a skin mappingshouldbe carriedout on
interferenceor outsideusablerange(too closeor too initial installationto determinethe optimum location
far). Manualdeselectionwill be accomplishedas a for the antennawhich may be on the top or bottom
resultof pre-flightor in-flight information received of the fuselage.
concerningstationstatusor unusualionospheric
activity. Skin Mapping Detailed procedureis given in
manufacturer'sliterature,but basicallythe aircraft
Communication Stations, v.l.f. shouldbe parkedaway from all powerlines,both
A worldwide high-powermilitary communications aboveand below ground,and away from all
network operatingin the band l5-25 kHz is obstructions. Ambient signalplus noiseis then
maintainedby the US Navy. As a secondarypurpose initially recorded approximately100 ft from the
of the network is to provide worldwide aircraft with a spectrum analysersetat l0'2, I l'3 and
synchronizationof time standards,the carriersignals l3'6 kHz. Similarmeasurements aremadewith an
arepreciselytimed, and so may be usedfornavigation ACU securedby tape at variousairframelocations.
purposes.Sincecontrolof the stationsis out of the Comparisonof ambientand airframemeasurements
handsof thosebodies,eithernationalor international, will identify severalpossiblepositions. The optimum
responsiblefor civil aircraft navigation,use of the position(s)can then be found by repeatingthe
network for navigationcan only be consideredas measurements undervariouson and off conditions
supplementaryto other forms of navigation. ofengines, lighting, electronicsand fans. The final
Hyperbolicnavigationis not suitablefor usewith position shouldbe checkedout for signalto noise
v.l.f. commsstationssinceabsolutephasedifferences ratio with enginesrunningat 90 per cent minimum.
betweentwo receivedsignalscannotbe determined
due to eachstation operatingon an unrelated Brief Description of Units
frequency. A further disadvantage is that the diurnal The descriptionswhich lollow arebasedon the Litton
phaseshifts are not aspredictablefor v.l.f. signalsas LTN-2 I l; other systemshavesimilarunits which vary
they are for ONS sigrals. in detail.
Severalmanufacturersoffer equipmentwith v.l.f.
and Omegacapability;in somecases v.l.f. is optional:
Receiver hocessor Unit The RPU is the major part
In suchequipmentOmegasignalsprovidethe primary of any ONS. Omegabroadcastsignalsfrom the ACU
navigationinformation while v.1.f.signalsprovide are processedtogetherwith inputs from other sensors
back-upshouldinsufficientOmegasignalsbe usable. to give presentposition and guidanceparametersas
required. The major partsof a RPU will typically be:
Installation
A typical simplifiedinstallatibndiagramis shownin r.f. circuitry;

cl
 Autopilot

H.S.t.
Installation
Program
F.D.t.

Aircraft
Atc Data Bus
Speed Source

Aircraft
Instrumentation

Fig. 6.14 Litton LTN-21I ONS installation(courtesyLitton

SystemsInternational Inc., Aero ProductsDivision)

88
 central processorfor computing function; 2. 26V a.c. 400 Hz reference:from external
scratch-padRAM for temporary data storage; equipment acceptingsynchro feedsfrom ONS;
specialRAM in which pilot-entered data is saved 3. aircraft data bus: interfacewith digital air data
during power interrupt; syst€m(DADS), inertial referencesystem(lRS),
ROM to store program which will incorporate flight muragementcomputersystem,etc.
corrections;
power supply assembly; In stalla tio n Programming
analogueinterface; Various receiverprocessorunit connectorpins,
digital interface; termed 'programdiscretepins' are groundedby
BITE; meansof a link to earth in order to select:
antennaswitching; l. Speedinput format;
.chassis. 2. frequencystandard;
3.magnetic/trueheading input/output;
bnnol Display Unit T\e CDU provides the 4. oleo strut logic;
interface between the flight crew and the ONS. Data 5. synchrooutput;
transmissionbetween CDU and RPU is via two 6. gid mode: local, Greenwich or t$ro alternatives;
one-wayserial digital data buses. The RPU transmits 7. antennamount: top/bottom.
four 32-bit words to the CDU while the CDU
transmitsone 32-bit word to the RPU. The d.c. System Outputs
voltagesfor the CDU are provided by the RPU. The
CDU annunciatorsare driven by signalsfrom the Analogue/Discrete
RPU. l. Track angle;
2. crosstrack deviation;
Antenna Coupler Unit Two H field bidirectional 3. track angleerror;
loop antennasare wound on ferrite rods arrangedat 4. drift angle;
right anglesto eachother. Pre-amplificationof the 5. track angleerror plus drift angle;
signaltakes place in the ACU. Provision is made for 6. true heading:
the injection of a test signalto eachloop. 7. desiredtrack angle;
8. track changealert;
ONS Interface 9. track leg change;
10. steeringsigral (roll command);
Operator Inputs I l. To/from.
l. Presentposition latitude and longitude: entered
duringinitialization, i.e. during preparationof the Digital
systemprior to take off; 12. Presentposition (lat./long.);
2. waypoint latitude and longitude: rrp to nine 13. heading(mag./true);
enteredas requiredduring initialization; editing 14. track angle;
facility availablefor in-flight entry; 1 5 . g r o u n ds p e e d ;
3. GreenwichMean Time/date: enteredduring 16. distanceto waypoint;
initialization. 17. time to GO;
18. wind angle;
Extemal SensorInputs 19. wind speed;
l. Speed:from air data computer(ADC) or Doppler 20. crosstrack distance:
radarin a variety of sigral formats; 21. track angleerror;
2. heading:from compasssystem; 22. drift angle;
3. drift angle:from Doppler radar,optional; 23. desiredtrack.
4. speedvalid sigral;
5. headingvalid signal; Warning
6. compassfree/slavedinput; 24. Cros track deviationfailure;
7. oleo strut switch input; 25. true headingwarning;
8. drift anglevalid signal. 26. steeringsignalwarning.

Other Inputs Figure l.l3 definespictorially thoseoutputs relating

l. Frequencystandard:rho-rho opti6n; to angleand distance.

89
 Right numerical
display Alcrt ann
Dim control (amber)
Dead reckoning
ann (amber)
From/to and
waypoint display
Sync ann
(amber)
Waypoint
soloctor switch Ambiguity
ann (amber)
Track change
Warn ann
pushbutton (red)
(green)
M a n u a la n n
(amber)
Mode switch

Entcr pushbutton roi ..orsrrME Hold pushbutton

I (greenl

Clcar pushbutton
-
(green)
64r;'l][\s11 rAS

Data keyboard
pushbuttons

Fig. 5.15 Litton LTN-21I CDU (courtesyLitton Systerns

lnternationalInc., Aero ProductsDivision)

C-ontrols and Operation The following information may be displayedby

Figure6.15 showsthe Litton LTN-21I CDU which is appropriatepositioningof the displayselectorswitch:
similarto thoseof other manufacturers.A very
comprehensive rangeof controlsand displayeddata is GMT/DAT GreenwichMeanTime and date
available.Brief detailsonly are givenhere. TK'GS Track angleand ground speed
The pilot is able to enter his presentposition and HDG/DA Heading and drift angle
up to nine waypointsdefininga great-circlenavigation XTK/TKE Crosstrack distanceand track angleerror
flight plan which can be updatedduring flight' POS Presentposition
Information displayed to the pilot helpshim to fly WPf Waypoint (selected)
the specifiedroute from waypoint to waypoint or fly DIS.TIME Distanceand time (to'go')
parallel offsets from the flight plan. If the autopilot WIND Windditection and velocity
is engagedsteeringinformation from ONS causesthe DTK/STS Desiredtrack and status(malfunction)
aircraft to automatically follow the flight plan, in MH/TAS Magneticheadingand true airspeed
which casethe display is used for monitoring STA Station status
purposes. FROM/TO From and to waypoints for current leg.
The system also demandsentry of GMT and date.
A keyboardis usedfor all dataentry which is System Softward
checkedfor operator error, in which case a coded The major tasks for the software employed in a
warning is given. System failure waping is given by rho-rho-rhoOmegasystemare describedbriefly
the WRN annunciatorwhen malfunction and action below.
codesmay be displayed. Severalother annunciators
givewaming of track leg changeimminent (ALR), Synchronization The transmissioripattern must be
'identified
systemin deadreckoningmode (DR), synchronization in order that the ONS will know when each
of systemwith transmittedsignalformat taking place stationis broadcasting.Sincethe Omegatransmission
(SYN),lane ambiguity(AMB) and manuallyent;red patiern repeatsevery l0 s synchronizationis attempted
true airspeed,magneticheadingor cross track offset by ampling l0 s of data in order to try and find the
being displayed (MAN). stait time (station A transmitting lO'2 kHz burst).

90
If synchronizationis not successfula further l0 s
periodis sampledand so on.
Sincebefore synchronizationis completesignal
directionis not known, the antennais set to an
omnidirectionalmode.
The idea of the synchronization routine is to look
for correlationin phasemeasurements from sample
to samplefor the three broadcastfrequencies.Noise
alonewill of courseappearwith random phase,not
correlatedbetweensamples.
Phaseand Signal-to-NoiseMeasuremenrs The phase
differencebetweenthe receivedsignaland a local
referenceis sampledat regularintervalsthroughout
the burst. Forming sineand cosinesumsof the
sampledphaseangleswill allow a burst phase
measurement(averageof samples)and signal-to-noise
measurement to be made. If no signalis being
receivedduring the samplethen no contribution will
be made to either the sine or cosine sums. We have:
=tan-r
f bursr
. t /
/r t'urg
\\
phase
) )- antennashiftHllT::lx'L:
ilir:",,Ti::TlT;:ii'"illfo*'
cosd (6'J)
\lJ l //
R burst= (rrin o\' * /> .o, p\' (6.4)
\-N / \-T-/
wherethe summationsare of the samplesover the
burst, @is the phaseangleand R, which lies between
0 and l, givesa measureof sigral to noise ratio
(s.n.r.).
The valuesof @burst and R burst are fed to a
trackingfilter in order to give smooth values@andR.
Thereare a total of twenty-four tracking filters
(threefrequenciesX eight stations). Rate aidingis
appliedto @to compensatefor known aircraft
motion. Each tracking filter is updatedafter the
appropriateburst, i.e. every 10 s, rate aiding values
arecalculatedevery 0'l s.
Antenna Selection Every l0 s the bearing to the
eight stationsis computedand stored. Every second
the differencebetweenbearingand headingis
computedand usedto selectthe longitudinal loop,
lateralloop or combinationof loops to make the
antennadirectional,the main lobe being in the
direction of the station to be received..
Station Selection For Omegarho-rho-rho navigation
threestationsmust be receivedto calculatethe three
unknowns(latitude, longitudeand clock or phase
offset). Various criteria areusedin the selectionof
stationsto be employed:
l. eliminatemanuallydeselectedstations;
2. eliminatestationsfor which the aircraft is not
within areacovered(seeFig.6.l2);
3. eliminatestationswith known modal
interferenceproblem at night in certain areas
(Liberia);
4. eliminatestationson the basisof poors.n.r.;
5. eliminatefrequenciesfrom particularstations
whosephasedifferencebetweencomputedand
measuredexceedsa certainfigure.
All qualifying frequenciesare used for position
determination. If lessthan minimurn number of
stationsare available,the deadreckoningmode is
entered.
hopagation Conection The computer must calculate
a propagationcorrection0p, the valueof which will
dependon the path from station to aircraft, the timg
of day and the date. Factorsaffectingpropagation
havebeendiscussed earlierand while complete
ti,nitin.a in orderto savestorage
andcomputation
tim;' simplifications include:
integationstepsizealongpathto say
l. increasing
2. usingcoarsememory map, i.e. subdividingearth
into, say,4" x 4" block and assigtinga
conductivity index to eachcorrespondingto
averageconductivity in that area;
3. simplifyingsub-routinewhich computesbearing
of signalpath to earth'smagrreticfield.
Computercomparisonsof simplihedand more
accuratemodelshavebeencarriedout and show
excellentagreement.
Cunent Least-SquaresEnor Cabulttton The
measuredphase@is correctedfor propagationshifts,
0p, and estimatedclock offset, f., and then compared
with the phase,@r,derivedfrom the current calculated
rangebetween aircraft.and station to give A 0, we
have
LQ=(Q-Op-QJ-Qr (6.5)
There is one A@for eachstation frequency so there
will be at most twenty-four. If thereis no error, that
is 0p, 0. and @,are all correct,then A0 will be zero.
In practiceeqrorswill exist,so the purposeof the
least-squareserror estimationroutine is to find
correctionsto @.,and the computedposition to
minimizeAd for the stations/frequencies in use.
It
Sincethe mostreliableinformationcomesfrom the
strongest
signaleachA@is weightedby its s.n.r.
(smoothed R from equation(6.4)). Thesquares of
theA@arecomputedto preventcancellation in the
sum.Wehave:
minimize>R(AO)2
where the sum is taken over all the stations and
frequencies in use.
The phasedifference,LQ, canbe expressedin
termso(A@., AN, AE and B where the first three
termsare the correctionsin clock offset. north
position and eastposition respectivelywhile B is the
bearingto the station. If we considerthe signal
receivedfrom station I on frequencyJ, we have:
A0(l,J) = Adc - AN . cosB(l) - AE . sin B(l)
(6.7)
Thus equation(6.7) is usedin (6.6), the
minimization of the weighted sum of squares,giving a
least-squares
estimateof the current error which
enablescorrectionof clock offset and position.
The correctionvectorX = (A0., AN, AE)T is
smoothedby clock and position filters, rate aidingof
speed,resolvednorth and eastabout aircraft heading,
beingappliedto thesefilters. The output of the filters
is wind (north and east),latitude and longitude. The
wind is not computed when the aircraft is on the
ground,asindicatedby the oleo strut switch.
Summary The above notes on system softwaveare by
(6.6) no meanscomplete;somefunctions of the softwave
havenot been mentionedalthoughhavebeen implied
elsewherein the chapter. The major navigationtasks
and their implementationare best summarizedby a
flowchart (seeFig. 6.16).
The Program
The actualprogramusedin any ONS is proprietary
and will vary greatly dependingon the type of
microprocessorused,the method of navigationand
the ingenuity ofthe author.
In generalthere will be a main loop which checks
for power interrupts, computespropagation
correction,carriesout self-testing,etc. The main loop
will be interruptedwhen 10.2, I l'3 or 13.6kHz
information is availablefor processingand alsowhen
the CDU is ready to input or output data.
In the LTN-21I the phasedata interrupts for the
three frequenciesoccur regularlyat 6.25 ms intervals.
The I I '3 and I 3'6 kHz interrupt loops simply serve
to read the appropriatephasedata while the

Clock

Omegr Phase | 0 -lSin/Cosine SinI Burst C o u'sr(1,J)

signal detector look up C"t C processing R - "il' J)

Clock
offset
Qc estimator
LOc
+ -
Tracking t(r, J) Least
AN AE
filter R (r,Jl ?
estrmator
6o
6,
t
Propagation GMT
Rate aid prediction Lat./Long.

-t Position
f ilter +
Lat./Long. Rangeto
station
-l Expected
phase
L
Wnd
Rrtc rid Ratc aid
north oast

Fig.6.16 Softwareflow chart

gi2
l0'2 kHz interruptloop processes all phasedataand amplified and limited sigrals are comparedin phase
drecksto seeif it is time to startloopswhich occur with referencesigrals derived from a 4.896 MHz
regularlyandperformvariouscomputationsand clock. A real-time interrupt is generatedon
drecks.Brieflyu,ehave: completion of a phasemeasurementfor each of the
'update Omegafrequencies.The l0'2, I l'3 and 13'6 kHz
lfl) msloop: clock interruptsareeachgenerated160 timesper secondto
rate aid computation
inform the computer that phasedata is availablefor
check synchronization
368 gs, during which time the appropriate interrupt
antennaselection
routine is entered and the data read. The sensor
burst processing phasedata forms word I in a four-word, l6-bit
serveCDU
digital multiplexer. -
I s loop: horizontal steeringcommands
Heading and speedinputs enter the system in the
l0 s loop: least-squares estimator
form of three-wire synchro feeds. Scott-T
savekev data
transformersresolvethis input into the sine and
Hardware cosinecomponentswhich are then demodulated and
filtered to provide d.c. signalsto an analogue
C.omputo Inputs Figure 6.17 showsa simplified multiplexer controlled by the computer. After
systemblock diagramof the LTN.2I l. Omegasignals analogueto digital conversionthe headingand speed
from the ACU are fed via an anteniraswitching matrix sine and cosine componentsare multiplexed asword 2
to three narrow-band receivers.one for each of the in the digital multiplexer. Words 3 and 4 contain
three Omegafrequencies. Antenna switching is data relatingto variousdiscretes,programpins,
derived from the computed relative bearingof the validities and sourceselectors.
station being receivedat that particular time. The ARINC 575 data from the CDU is converted to

l?u?*^ss'-s
I
l ; -

sTtiltNG rNTtttAct

[**r**'
)

POWTISUPPTY

Fq. 6.17 Litton LTN-21I block diagram(courtesy Lftton

SystemsInternationalInc,, Aero ProductsDivision)

sl
TTL (transistor-transistor logic) levelsand shifted into
a serialto parallelshift register.When the input data
is ready an interrupt is generatedand the contentsof
the registerare readby the computer.
A digital interfacecard,part of the steering
interface.is a link betweenthe ONS and other
systems.Thereare four ARINC 575 receiversfor
DADS TAS (digital air data systemtrue air speed),
flight management,IRS (inertial referencesystem)
and an inter-systemb.c.d. or binary bus for interface
with anotherONS or possiblyanothertype system.
The addressbus from the computeridentifiesthe
requiredreceiverwhich storesthe particularinput
word in a registerand generates an interrupt. The
computeracknowledges this interrupt, so requestinga
transferofdata onto the l6-bit paralleldata bus via a
serial-paralleltri-stateregister. Sincethe ARINC 575
word is 32-bitslong, transfertakesplacein two
sections.
Memory The navigation computer program is stored
in a 20K X l6-bit word (K = 1024) UVEROM
(ultravioleterasableROM) which can be programmed
from cassettetapeusinga programmingadapter. The
datais retainedin the WEROM for an estimated100
yearsunlesserasedby exposingall twenty chips to
ultravioletlight.
Additional memory is providedon the
computer/processor card in the form of a 2K word
scratchpad RAM for temporary storageand a
128-worddata savememory usedto store present
position,time/date,waypointsand additional data
requiredto resumenormal operationsafter a
temporarypower failure. Back-uppower for data
saveis provided by a 4500 pF capacitor for at least
7 min.
The Computer The computer usesthe input and
storeddata referredto in the aboveparagraphsto
carry out the necessarynavigationproblem
computations and to output the resulting
information. The microprocessor employedis a
TMS-9900,a l6-bit CPU (centralprocessingunit)
capableof addressing32K words of length l6 bits.
Input/output (l/O) functionsare treatedin the
sameway as memory for addressingpurposes,the
addressmap beingsplit into sixteensectio,ns, twelve
of which are assigredto WEROM and two each to
RAM, savedata memory, steeringinterfaceI/O and
other I/O. As an example F A 0 0 hexadecimal=
1 5x 1 6 3+ l 0 x 1 6 2+ 0 x 1 6 r + 0 x 1 6 ' = 6 4 0 0 0 1 e ,
is the addres of the digitd multiplexer phasesensor
word which will contain phasemeasurementdata
correspondingto l0'2, I I '3 or l3'6 kHz depending
94
on which interrupt is beingserviced.Not all the
availableaddresses are assigned in the LTN-21l.
The computercan recognizesixteeninterrupt
levelswith the highestpriority level0 and the lowest
priority level 15. An interrupt maskis containedin a
statusregisterand continuouslycomparedwith the
system-generated interruptcode. Whenthe levelof
the pendinginterrupt is lessthan or equal to the
current-enablinginterrupt masklevel(higher or equal
priority) the processor recognizes the interrupt. On
recognitionthe current instructionis completed,
detailsof the position in current programstoreo,
the appropriateinterrupt serviceroutine started,and
the interrupt mask forced to a levelthat is one less
than the level of the interrupt beingserviced.When
the interrupt routine is completethe interrupted
programcontinueswhereit left off. In the LTN-21I
seveninterrupt levelsare impiemented:
reset(power on)l
0
I pendingpower fail or programcycle fail;
2 lO'2 kHz sensordata input;
3 l3'6 kHz sensordatainput;
4 1 l'3 kHz sensordatainput;
5 reservedfor a sensordata input;
CDU ARINC data ready;
6
7 ARINC receiverdataready.
Cttmputer Outputs A l6-bit word is transmittedto
the receivermodule for control of the
antenna-switching matrix and the antenna-calibrate
functions.
Various output functions respondonly to the
addressbus stateand do not requirespecificdata to
be placedon the output bus. Thesefunctions,with
hexadecimaladdresses are:
resetprogramcycle fail (F100), selectanalogue
multiplexer address(F2X0), start analogueto
digital converter(F300), acknowledgec.d.u.
ARINC Rx (F600) and ARINC interrupt
acknowledgement(CFAO).
'X' in addressF2X0 can be any number from 0
The
to 7 dependingonthe funption, e.g.headingsine,
headingcosine,speedsine,etc.
Sigralsassociatedwith other systemsand
instrumentsare output from the computer via the
steeringinterfacewhich is dividedinto three main
sections:(l) analoguefunctions;(2) digital
communications;(3) discreteflag drivers.
The analogueinterface card provides four three-wire
synchrooutputs and both high- and lowlevel two-wire
d.c. cross-trackdeviation. Digital data is fed to the
analoguecard on the data bus and convertedto d.c:
 in a digital to analogueconverter. The analogued.c.
sipal is fed in parallelto sampleand hold circuits
addressed by the computervia a decoder. Each of
the synchrochannelshasa modulator for the sine and placevirtually continuouslyduring flight. In
cosined.c. inputs followed by a Scott-T transformer
which providesthe three-wiresynchrooutput. The
particularoutputs are determinedby the stateof two
synchrooutput selectprogrampins, ground or open.
In this way synchronumber I will giveheadingor
track, synchronumber 2 will give 1 drift angleor
track angleerror, synchronumber 3 will give track
angleerror + drift angle,track angleerror or desired
track anglewhile synchronumber 4 will give aircraft
steeringor track angleerror.
The digital interfacecard hasbeenreferredto above
in connectionwith its input function. In addition
there are ARINC 575 and ARINC 561 serialdigital
outputs,two-wireb.c.d./binaryfor the 575 and
six-wire(clock, sync and data) for the 561. The
ARINC transmittersare selectedwhen the
appropriatedata is on the data bus by suitable
addressingfrom the computer. The output word is
32 bits long, and so must be enteredinto a registerin
two parts under the control of the addressbus.
Parallelto serialconversiontakesplacewhen the
word is assembledin the register.
Flag signalsat TTL levelsare output from the
computerand latchedvia drivers. The signalsare then
buffered,scaledand/or levelshifted befoie output.
Characteristics .
Much of this sectionon ONS hasbeenbasedon the
Litton-21I which is an ARINC 599 system.'This
being so, what follows is a particularlybrief
summaryof the ARINC Mark 2 ONS sincedetails
zuchasinput and output havealreadybeencovered.
The systemcomprisesthree units: a receiver
processor,control/displayand antenna/couplerunit
which, togetherare capableof receivingand
processingOmegaground station signals(v.l.f. not
precluded)so as to provideminimum functional
capabilitiesofpresept position readoutand
horizontal track navigation.The systemshould
operateworldwide with a presentposition error of
lessthan 7 nauticalmiles.
The power supply for the systemis I 15 V 400 Hz
singlephasefed via a circuit breaker. In addition a
26 V zt00Hz referencein accordancewith ARINC
4134 will needto be suppliedvia a circuit breaker
from the appropriateinstrumentationbus for
excitation of synchros.
Rmp Testing
Uttle needsto be said here since the computing po*er systems,automaticand computer-based
of an ONS is suchthat comprehensive monitoring and
self-testroutinesmay be incorporatedin the system
software. Monitoring of systemperformancetakes
addition, operatorerror detectionaidssmooth
operationand a reductionin reporteddefectsdue to
'finger
trouble'. With a malfunction code readoutand
self-testdisplay,turn-rounddelaysfor ONS.
installationdefect investigationand repair are
minimized.
The Decca Navigator
Introduction
Deccanavigatorwasinventedin Americaby
W. J. O'Brienbut first usedby the Britishin the
closingstagesof World War II. Sincethen a number
of marks of the equipmenthaveemergedfrom the
continuousdevelopment of this, the most accurateof
all the radio navigationaids. The systemcamesecond
in the two-horseracefor adoption by the ICAO as
the standardshort-rangenavigationsystem. That it
survivedis a credit to the DeccaNavigatorCompany
whoseconfidencein the basicmerits of the system
were such that it continuedits airbornedevelopment
programdespitethe setbackin 1949.
Deccais a low-frequencyc.w. hyperbolic
navigationsystem. The serviceis providedfor
suitably equippedaircraft, shipsand land vehiclesby
chainsof transmittingstations. Each chain comprises
a masterstation and normally three slavestations,all
at known geographicallocations(typically 70 miles
apart), radiatingphase-locked signals.The choiceof
frequencycould givea ground wavecoverageof
l0O0 nauticalmilesbut c.w. operationpreventsthe
separationof ground and sky wavesignalsso the
wable rangeis limited to about 240 nauticalmiles
by night and about twice that by day. There are
chainsin variousparts of the world, in particular
north-westEuropeand the northeast seaboardof
North America.
Phasedifferencesbetweenthe masterstation and
eachof its slavesare displayqdto the pilot on three
phasemetersor Decometers.The observedphase
differencesidentify hyperboliclinesmarked on
speciallypreparedcharts. By noting at leasttwo
phasereadingsthe pilot can plot his position as the
intersectionof the correspondinglines. For easeof
use the charts are printed with the three different
familiesof hyperboliclinesin purple, red and green,
hencethe red slavestation and the greenDecometer,
etc. Decometersare still usedbut for airborne
methods
s
are uzually found, with aircraft position being shown
on a roller map (flight log display)'

The Radiated Signals

Each chain is assigneda fundamental frequenry / in
the range 14-14'33kHz. The stationseachradiatea
harmonicof /, namely6/from the masterznd 5f,8f
and 9/from the purple, red and greenslaves
respeitively. Thus with f = 14kHz we haveradiated
=
frequenciesof 6f = 84 kHz, 5f = 70 kHz, 8/ l.l2'ktlz
andg/= 126 kHz. Using different frequencies for
the stationsin a chain allowsseparationin the
airbornereceiver.
Deccachains are designedby an alphanumeric
code. The basiccodesare08, lB, . . ., l0B' the
correspondingfundamentalfrequenciesbeing
separated by a nominal 30 Hz (separationis 29'17,
30 or 30'83 Hz). A subdivisionof this basic
'half
allocation is provided by the so'called
frequencies'0E, lE, . . ',98 which havea nomind
spacingof l5 Hz from the B fundamentalfrequencies.
Additional subdivisionis achievedby the use of
frequencies516Hz aboveand below the B and E Co'
Fig.6.l8 Zonepatterns (courtesytheDeccaNavigator
frEquencies tb givegroupsof six frequencies
Ltd)
designated by the appropriatenumber and the letters
A, B, C, D, E, F. An examPleof a grouPof
frequenciesis givenin Table 6.3 showingcode,
fundamental and master (6/) frequencies;the slave fundamental frequency of the chain.
frequenciesarepro-rata. The zonesare subdividedin two ways' depending
on the method of phasecomparisonusedin the
-
Table 5.3 Deccafrequencies numerical group 5 aircraft. The transmittedsignalscannotbe compared
in phasedirectly sincethey are of different
or division may
Chain Fundamental Master frequerrcies;frequency multiplication
the signalsto a common frequency'
code lf (Hz) 6f (Hz) be usedto bring
Sincethe transmittedfrequenciesare relatedto the
5A 1 41 6 5 . 8 3 84 995 fundamentalby multipliers5,6,8 and 9 (purple'
5B t4166.67 85 000 master,red and greenrespectively)comparisoncan
5C l4 167.50 85 005 take placeat the l.c.m. of any two of the multipliers
5D l4 18c.83 8s08s which include 6, Thus purple and master
5E 1 41 8 1 . 6 7 85 090 transmissions canbe'phasecomparedat 30/, i'e' at
5F l4 182.50 85 095 between 420 and 429'9 kHz. Similarly the red and
greencomparisonfrequenciesare24f and l8f
respectively.A lane is definedasthe regionbetween
PositionFixing hyperbolic lines with zero phasedifference,at the
Aswith anyhyperbolicsystemtwo hyperboliclines comperisonfrequency,i.e. everyhalf'wavelength
of positionmustbe identified,the fix beinggivenby (pig. O.+). Thus there are 30 purple,24 ted and
wherethey intersect.With Deccathe hyperbolic i8 gtt.n lanesper zonewith baselinewidths of
patternsaredividedinto zonesandlanes.Zones are app-roximately-352 m,440 m and 587 m respectively'
designated by letters A to J startingat the master end Lane numbering startsfrom the masterand runs
of the master/slave baseline. Thesequence of letters 0-23 for red,3O'47for greenand 50-79for purple'
repeatsasnecessary to coverthe wholepattern Decometerscan be readto one or two hundredthsof
(Fig.6.18). Alongthebaseline,zoneshavea a lane. Figure6.19 illustratesa position fix in terms
constant width of between10'47and l0'71 km, oflanes: the red Decometerreadszone I (bottom
corresponding to haff a wavelength at the window), lane l6 (outer scale),lane fraction 0'30

96
 at';

z InEiaEcTtoIlot ndt
totmox LtxEs ts./ .
at oF Potntox / - osl

DEccA co ORDTNAT€ DECQACO-OnDttrATC

RtD I ro i0\ dar:l O rs.O

FB 6.19 Plotting a position fix from Decometerreadings

(courtesythe DeccaNavigatorCo. Ltd)

(inner scale)while the green Decometer reads zone Although the dividing type receiverdoes not
D, lane35,lane fraction0.80. Thus the Decca measurelanesthere is still ambiguitywithin a zone
co-ordinatesare I 16.30 and D 35.80, intersectingas causedby the divisionprocess.For exampledividing
$town. the mastersignalby six givesriseto an output which
The accuracyobtained by using frcquency can start on any of six cycles,only one of which is
rnultiplicationis often not required for air navigation;
correct. The ambiguouscyclesare known as notches.
furthermorea better s.n.r.can be achievedby The resultingambiguity is the sameasdescribedin the
dividing the receivedsigrals down to the fundamental. previousparagraphsince,for example,an error of*l
Sincephasecomparisonis at / the zonesare the notch in the masterdivider output givesan error in
'lanes'
for a dividing type receiver. Fractionsof a the zone fraction readingof 1/6 while an error of -l
zonearemeasuredto a resolutionof I llO24, i.e.just notch in the red divider output givesan error in the
over l0 m. zone fraction readingofl/8. The net error in the red
zone fraction readingwould be ll6 - l18 = ll24 zone
Resolvinglane Ambiguities or I lane.
Sinceeach lane appearsto be the same,in so far as To resolvelane ambiguitiesmost Decca chains
phasedifferencemeasurementis concerned,the pilot operatein the MP (multipulse)mode (an older V
$rould know where he is, to within half a lane, in mode will not be discussedhere). Eachstation in
order to initially set the appropriateDecometerby tum, startingwith the master,transmitsall four
hand. Thereafter,sincethrough gearingthe lane frequencies (5f,6f,8f ,9f) simultaneously.A
fraction pointer drivesthe lane pointer and zone read- s€quenceof transmissions lasts20 s during which
out, the Decometerwill recordthe correctco-ordinate time eachstation transmitsthe MP signalsfor 0'45 s.
by an integratipnprocess.Any interruption in ln the receiverthe four frequenciesare summed,
receptionwould require a resettingof the Decometers. producinga compositewaveformwhich has a

97
 predominant spike or pulse occurring at the
5f fundamentalrate (Fig. 6.20).
In a receiveremploying the multiplying method,
6t with readout on Decometers,lane ambiguity is
resolvedby feeding a lane identification meter such
that one arm of a six-armedvernierpointer, identified
by a rotating sector,indicatesthe correct lane. The
sector is driven in accordancewith the phase
differencebetween l/6 of the mastertransmission
(rememberedduring the MP transmissionby a
phase-locked oscillator)and the fundamentalderived
from an MP transmission.The vernierpointer is
drivenin accordancewith the phasedifference
betweenthe mastertransmissionand six times tne
fundamentalderivedfrom an MP transmission,the
drive being through I : 6 gearing. During the master
MP transmissionthe lane identification meter should
readzero and may be adjustedto do so if in error.
- summatibn(courtesy
Fig. 6.20 Multipulsetransmission
the DeccaNavigatorCo. Ltd)

Fig. 6.21 Mk 19 DeccaNavigationSystem(courtesythe

DeccaNavigatorCo. Ltd)

98
 As eachMP trafismissionoccursthe appropriate
Decometerlane readingshould correspondto the
lane identification meter readingand may be adjusted
if necessary.The current lane identification may be
held to assistcheckingbut will only be valid for a few
secondsdue to aircraft movement.
ln a receiveremploying the dividing method the
MP transmissions provide a referencefrequency/
with which the phaseof eachdivider output can be
compared. The phaseconrparisonand subsequent
correctiontakesplace automaticallywithin the
divider circuits. This process,known as notching,
removesambiguity from the zone fraction data.

ResolvingZone Ambiguity
We haveseenhow the particularlane (within a zone)
in which the aircraftis flying can be identifiedbut the
porsibilityof an incorrectzonereadingstill exists
sincezones,like lanes,areindistinguishable by the
normalphasenreasurements. A zoneidentification
meterresolves the zoneambiguity,not completely
but to *'itlrin a group of five zones,i.e. a distanceof
over50 km on the baseline.
An 8'2/signal is transmittedwith the MP signals
from eachstationin turn. A beat note betweenthe
8f and8.2f componentsof an MP transmissionis
producedhavinga frequencyof fl5. The masterbeat
frequencyis 'remembered' and comparedwith each
slavebeat tiequencyin turn. The resultinghyperbolic
pattern haszero phasedifferenceson lines five zones
apart,givingthe required resolution.
hstallation
Different options are availabletwo of which are
strownin Figs6.2 I and 6.22. The Mk 19 receiveris
capableof drivingDecometers (or digitalieadout)
and/ora l1ightlog; the multiplyingmethod is usedto
drive the Deconreterswhile the dividing method is
usedto drive the flight log through a computer unit.
The Mk l5 receiverusesthe dividingmethod only
with readouton a flight log.
Wherespaceis at a premium,a Dectracposition
fixing unit (PFU) may be installedin conjunction
with eithera Mk 15 or Nlk l9 receiver.The Dectrac
PFU containsone indicatorwith four scalesand a
singlepointer, effectively replacingthe Decometers
but not allowingthe samedegreeof accuracyin
reading.althoughthis may be recoveredby the
additionof anothersmallunit. A zoneidentity
readingcan be taken from the singleindicator.
A capacitivetype antennais used,comprisinga
coppermeshwithin a fibreglassplate mounted flush
with the aircraft skin. The meshis at least2 ft2 in
area. A pre-amplifier/matching unit allowsa long
Fig.6,22 DeccaMk l5/Danacnavigation (courtesy
system
theDeccaNavigator
Co.Ltd)
feederrun. The antennashould be mounted as near
to the centre of the aircraft aspossible,either above
or below the fuselage.If below a fixed I 80" phase
shift is appliedin the pre-amplifier.
Mk lS/Danac Block DiagramOperation
Figure6.23 showsa sirnplifiedblock diagramof a
Mk l5i Danacinstallation.A significantfeatureof
the systemis the degreeof automaticcontrol
achieved.
The receiveroutput is fed to the computer as four
pulsetrainsrepresenting the receivedmaster,red,
greenand purple signalsdivideddown to the
fundamentalfrequency,f. .Themaster/slavephase
differencesat f aredigitallymeasuredin the computer,
thus givingthreehyperboliclinesof positioneach
derivedasa l0-bit binarynumberrepresentinglll}2a
of a zone.
The computer convertsthe Deccaco-ordinatesinto
X and Y demandsignalsfor the servosdriving the
laterallymoving stylus and the verticallymoving chart
respectively.The major computingeffort is carried
out oft'-lineon a more powerful computer which
calculates constantsto be usedin the hyperbolicto
X-lz conversion.Theseconstantsarewritten on a

99
 Fast/normal lock
zln"i"J",
Low signal Flightlog
warning

P/E cclls

Warning lamp
Decca Navigator Mark 15 Receiver

#r; ffil I controlI

r|*'r L- l |Irl\ ./ a
\v_-/

Danac controller

F i g . 6 . 2 3 D e c c a M k 1 S / D a n a cn a v i g a t i o ns y s t e m b l o c k
diagram (courtesy the Decca Navigator Co. Ltd)

non-visible part of the chart,amongother data,in the 3. zone fraction computation takesplaceusing
form of a black and white ten-trackdigital Gray code MP transmissionsfor notching;
readby a line of ten photoelectriccells. 4. stylus takesup a position within a zone on the
The )/ servoposition feedbacksignalis in the form chartcorresponding to the aircraftposition
of a 9-bit word derivedfrom nine of the digital tracks within the true zone. If the zone is correctthe
referredto above. The X servoposition feedback OP button is pressedand thereafterthe stylus
sigrralis a 9-bit word derivedfrom printed circuit and chart shouldmove so as to foilow the
tracksreadby wiper contactsmountedon the stylus aircraft'smovements.lf the stylusis in the
carriage.The servodrivesare,of course,the wrongzoneit may be manuallysetby pressing
differencesbetweenthe demandand feedbacksisnals. SET and operatingthe pressure-sensitive
Selectionof the correctDeccachainis slewingcontrol.
automaticallyachievedby includingthe code
represenlingthe frequencyamongthe constantsread The correctzoneis known from the zone
by the photoelectriccells. Otherdata amongthe identification indicator and the pilot's knowledgeof
constantsare the zone valuesfor one or two his positionto within five zonewidths. Whenthe
'flies off'-the current chart and on to the next
checkpointson the chart (to which the stylus goes aircraft
initially) and the chart scale. (on the samechart roll) the stylus goesstraightto the
Settingup is largelyautomatic. If the required aircraft position on the new chart except under
chart is in view the following sequencetakesplace certainconditions,e.g.chainchange,in which case
when the systemis switchedon: the aboveinitial procedurerelatingto zone
identificationand slewingis cariied out.
l. pushbutton lampslight for checkingpurposes, The pilot may bring anotherchart into view by
and the chart constantsareread into the pressing LOOK AHEAD and operatingthe slewing
computerl control. Pressing the LOOK AHEAD button a second
2. the stylus movesto a checkpoint and receiver time causes the new chart to remainin view,otherwise
locks on to requiredsignals; the stylusis returned io the aircraft'spresentposition

100
(still calculatedduring LOOK AHEAD) on the with it, up to four slavetransmittersdesignatedW, X,
previouschart. Y and Z. The masteroccupiesa centralposition
Pressing the INT button causes the systemto go surroundedby the slavesso far as the geography
into the integration only mode where.the MP and allows. Baselinesareof the orderof 500-1000
zoneidentificationfacilitiesareswitchedoff. It may nauticalmilesoverseabut arereducedoverland.
be desirableto selectINT when flying in a fringe area The rangeof the systemis about 1000 nautical
sincespuriousor imperfect notching signalsmay miles(from master)usinggroundwavesand up to
causethe warninglamp to comeon, indicatinga about 2000 nauticalmilesusingskywaves.The
discrepancy betweendisplayedpositionand receiver accuracydependson the geometryof the chainbut
output. On somechartscoveringfringe areasor may be in the orderof about400 ft at 350 nautical
chainswithout MP transmissions, INT is selected miles rangeto 1700 ft at 1000 nauticalmiles range
automaticallyby a suitablechart constant. providedgroundwaves are used. With skywavesthe
The LOCK button hasseveralfunctions,one of accuracy would be in the orderof l0 nauticalmiles
which is to put the receiverphase-locked oscillator at 1500nauticalmilesrange.
hto a fast lock condition, providingthe warning lamp
is on. It may alsobe usedto initiatethe automatic The Radiated Signals
setting-uproutine when a new chart, brought into Pulsesof 100 kHz r.f. are transmittedfrom all
view by LOOK AHEAD, doesnot havethe same stations. The slavetransmissions are synchronized
coloursasthe previouschart. with thoseof the mastereither directly (triggeredby
The stylus may be preventedfrom marking the mastergroundwave) or by useof atomicclocks. The
chart by selectingWRITE off, otherwisethe track of delaybetweenthe time of transmissionof the master
the aircraft will be tracedout on the ghart. The and eachslave(codingdelay) is fixed so that
TEST-DIM-BRILswitchis the only control not whereverthe aircraft receiveris locatedin the area
previouslymentioned,it may be usedfor lamp test covered,the slavesignalswill alwaysarrivein the same
or to selectthe brightnesslevel of the lamps. order after the master.
Theabovedescriptionis sketchyto saythe least,but Sinceall chainstransmit the samer.f., mutual
I hopeit will givethe readeran ideaof how one Decca interference must be avoidedby useof differentpulse
Navigatorsystemconfigurationperformsits function. repetitionperiods(p.r.p.)for eachchain. Therearea
total of six so-called basicrates,eachof which have
eightspecificratesasgivenin Table6.4. The chains
Loran C areidentifiedby their p.r.p.,thus chainSS7(Eastern
seaboard of North America)hasa basicrateperiodof
lntroduction
l.oran A was proposedin the USA in 1940, hdd trials 100000 (SS)which is reducedby 700 ps sincethe
ps
n 1942andwasimplementedovermuch of the north specificrateis 7, hencethe periodbetween
has transmissions from the master(and from eachslave)
and westAtlantic in 1943. Sincethen coverage
is 99 300 1,rs, per
i.e.fractionallyover l0 transmissions
beenextendedto many of the oceanicair routesof
the world, but sometime in 1980the last Loran A
Table 6.4 Basicand specificratesfor
transmittershouldbe switchedoff. Sincethe
Loran C
implementationof Loran A the family hasbeen
extendedto B, C and D. Loran B wasfound to be
Basic Specific
impracticaland Loran D is a short-range,
repetition periods
low-altitudesystemintendedfor usewhereline-of-sight
peiod ( subtract)
systemcoverageis inadequate
( t t s ) (tts)
pulsedhyperbolic
LoranC is a long-range"
navigationaid with accuracyapproaching that of
H 30 000 0 0
Deccaunderfavourablecircumstances. It was
L 40 000 I 100
introducedin 1960and now providesa valuable
S s0 000 2 200
servicein rpanypartsof the world, in particularthe
SH 60 000 3 300
north andeastPacificand Atlantic. The systemis.
SL 80 000 4 400
usedby many shipsand aircraftandwould appearto
SS 100000 5 500
havean indefinite future.
6 600
(hain Layout 7 700
8 800
A transmitter,designated
the master,hasassociated

101
 second. Not all the basicratesare in useand indeed
somemay neverbe usedsince6 X 8 = 48 chainsare
unlikely to be needed.
Groupsof eight pulsesof r.f. are transmittedfrom
eachstation once during a repetition period. With
synchronousdetectionin the receiverthe eight pulses
are combinedto give a much better s.n.r.than one
would obtain with a singlepulse. The spacing
betweenpulseswithin a group is I ms. The master
transmitsa ninth pulsein its group, 2 ms after the
eighth, for identification.
Sometypes of interference(e.g.skywave
contamination)can be discriminatedagainstby use of
phasecoding. The r.f. of certainpulseswithin a group
hasits phasereversed;unlessthis is properly decoded
in the receiversynchronousdetectionwill give a loss
of sigral power. Additionally, sincemasterand slave
phasecoding is different for a particularchain,
decodingcan be usedto separatethe receivedmaster
signalsfrom the slavesignals.
To measurethe time differencebetweenmasterand
slavetransmissions corresponding'events' must be
identified in each. Obviouslyfrom Fig. 6.24 it is
impracticalto measurefrom leadingedgeto leading
edgeor evento usethe laggingedges,consequently
one of the cyclesmust be chosenin masterand slave
transmissions and the time betweenthem measured.
Such a processis known as cycle matchingor
indexing.
From the point of view of s.n.r.the eighth cycle is
the obviousone for indexing;howeverit may be
subjectto skywavecontaminationand therefore
difficult to identify. The minimum differencein
propagationtimesbetweenskywaveand groundwave
is 30 prs,so up to and includingthe third cycle the
pulseis clear. For this reasonthe third cycle is
usuallychosenfor indexing,particularlyin fully
automaticequipment.
An automaticreceiverwould selectthe third cycle
by looking for the unique changeof amplitude
betweenthe secondand fourth cycle; in this way the
indedng circuitsare able to lock on. The transmission
of the first eight pulsesmust be accurateand
consistentsincean error in indexing of one cycle
would give a l0 ps time differenceerror.
If indexingis carriedout manuallyusinga c.r.t. to
display the pulses,on time-bases of decreasing
durationasthe processproceeds, useofup to the
eighth cycle may.bepossiblewith a skilled operator.

Installation
A Loran C systemmay consistof up to five units,
namely antenna,antennacoupler,receiver,c.r.t.
indicatorand controlunit. A c.r.t. displayis used
where the indexingprocedureis manualor where,
if automatic,it is thought necessaryto provide the
operatorwith monitoring of the procedure. On some
Fig 6.24 Loran C pulseand pulse format systems indexingis manualbut thereafterthe third
cycle is trackedautomatically.
Figure6.25 showsthe DeccaADL-S1 Loran C/D
The pulseduration is approximately270 ps, i.e. a receiverand control indicator; an aerialand coupler
total of about 27 cyclesof r.f. in eachpulse. To would be neededto completethe installation. The
radiatea pulseof short rise-timeleadsto problemsin ADL-8 I is fully automaticprovidingdigital time
frequencyspectrumspreadingand transmittingantennadifferencereadoutswith a resolutionof 100 ns on the
designat the low carrierfrequencyinvolved. In fact control indicator and 50 ns via a computer interface.
-indexing
99 per cent of the radiatedenergymust be in the band Synchronizationprovidesthird cycle in
90'l l0 kHz, hencethe slow rise and dbcaytime goundwave covdrand optimum cycle indexiig during
illustrated\n Fig. 6.24 (in which the signalformat, iky*au. working. Three time-difierencesare
m:Nterand three slaves,is alsoshown). The maximum computed,two of which may be displayed. Tunable
amplitudeoccursby the eighth cycle. automaticnotch filters providerejeition of the
strongestinterferingsignals.Overallsystem
Principlesof Operation . performimcechecksmay be performedusingbuilt in
The basicprinciplesof a pulsedhyperbolic iest equipment(BITE).
navigationaid havebeengivenearlierin the chapter. The antennais usuallya capacitivetype, sometimes

102
Fig.6.25 ADL-81LoranC/D (courtesy
theDeccaNavigator
Co.Ltd)
servingboth ADF senseand Loran, in which casean
antennacouplerwould providethe necessary
impedancematchingand isolationlor the two
receiversserved.A pre-amplifiermay be included for
the Loran feed.
Block Diagram Operation
The receivedsigralsare separatedinto n:asterand
slavegroupsby the phasedecodecircuits,the groups
beingfed to the appropriatemasterand slavephase
lock loops(p.l.l.). In Fig. 6.26 only one slavep.l.l. is
shownbqt in practicethere will be a minimum of two
to providethe two hyperbolicl.o.p. requiredfor a fix.
Threeslavep.l.l.swould enablean automaticsystem
to selectthe two which gavethe bestangleof cut,
althoughthe calculationsinvolvedwould probably be
,
carriedout by a computerto which the three
time-differencereadingswould be fed.
Gatepulseformersfeedthe p.l.l.swith a seriesof
eight pulsesspacedby I ms and of, say,5 ps duration.
The object of the p.l.i. is to providea signalto the
appropriateoscillator,.drivingthe correspondinggate
pulseformer, so that the phaseof the oscillator,and
hencetiming of the gatepulse,is alteredsuchthat
eachgatepulseis coincidentwith somespecificpoint
on the third cycle in any receivedpulse. The rate at
which the gatepulsegroupsaregeneratedis set to
equalthe rateof the requiredchain.
The basicideaof indexing,as carriedout by the
p.l.l.s,is asfollows. ln Fig. 6.27 line I is a
representation of the leadingedgeof a receivedpulse.
Line 2 is a representationof the leadingedgeof a
103
 Fig.6.26 LoranC simplifiedblock diagram

edge. Line 3 is a representationof the result of

subtractingthe delayedand amplifiedreceivedpulse
from the receivedpulse. Sincethe crossoverpoint of
this differencesignalis at 30 ps it can be usedasa
servosignalto set the gatepulsetiming for
coincidencewith the tlfrd cycle. The futl bandu,idth
of 20 kHz is requiredto preserve pulseshapeduring
the indexingprocess,althoughinitial signal
acquisitionmay take placewith a restricted
bandwidthin orderto improvethe s.n.r.
Oncephaselock is established, time-difference
rcadoutis easilyachieved b1istartingand stoppinga
counterwith the masterand 4ppropriateslavegate
pulsegrouprespectively.
Acquisitionof the receivedfrasterand slave
pulses.i.e. the initial aligrmentto a point wherethe
p.l.l. can takeover,may be carriedout by the
operatoror automatically.With manualacquisition
O 10 20 30 40 5O rrs
both receivedpulsesand gatepulsesaredisplayedon
Fig.6.27 A methodof indexing a c.r.t.;a slewingcontrolallowsthe operatorto align
the gatepulseswith the third cycleof the received
pulsesby useof diff'erenttime-baseselectionsfor the
A-typedisplay(time-base horizontaldeflection,signal
receivedpulseafter it hasbeendelayedby l0 ps and verticaldeflection).With automaticacquisitionthe
amplifiedby a factor of 1.5. It can be seenthat lines gatepulsegroupsmustbe slewedor swept
I and 2 crossat a time 30 ps after the pulseleading autolnaticallyuntil the p.l.l. cantrack successfully.

104
,
7 Distancemeasuringequipment

Introduction VOR in fact providethe standardICAO short-range

navigationsystem. A DME beaconmay also be
Distancemeasuringequipment (DME) is a secondary locatedon an airfield equippedwith ILS, thus giving
radarpulsedrangingsystemoperatingin the band continuousslantrangereadoutwhile on an ILS
978-1213MHz. The originsof this equipmentdate approach,suchuseof DME is limitedat present.
back to the Rebecca-Eureka systemdevelopedin I'ACAN is a military systemwhich givesboth
BritainduringWorld War II. International agreement range and bearingwith respectto a fixed beacon.
on the characteristicsof the current systemwas not The rangingpart of TACAN has the same
reacheduntil 1959but sincethen implementationhas characteristics as civil DME. Thereare,however,more
beenrapid. channelsavailablewith TACAN sinceit utilizes an
The systemprovidesslantrangeto a beaconat a extendedfrequencyrangeof 962-1213MHz. Thusa
fixed point on the ground. The dift-erencebetween civil aircraft equippedwith DME can obtain range
slantrangeand ground range,which is neededfor measurementfrom a TACAN beaconprovidedthe
navigationpurposes,is srnallunle5sthe aircraft is very DME canbe tunedto the operatingfrequencyof the
high or closeto the beacon. Figure7.1 showsthe TACAN concerned.Many civil aircraftcarry a DME
relationshipbetweenslant range,ground rangeand which coversthe full frequencyrange.
heightto be:
Transponder lnterrogator
s2 = G2+ (r46oso)2 (7.1)
igroring the curvatureof the earth. To seethe effect
of this consideran error in rangeof I per cent, i.e.
S = l'01G. Substitutingfor G, rearrangingand
evaluatingwe have:
s +/t8s3
for a I per cent error. Thus at 30 000 ft if the DME
readoutis greaterthan about 35 nauticalmiles the
error is lessthan I per cent,while at 5000 ft greater Frg.7.2 The d.m.e.sYstem
than about 6 nauticalmiles readoutwill similarlv
givean error lessthan I per cent.
BasicPrinciples
Givingrange,DME alonecan only be used for
position fixing in a rho-rho scheme,three readings
The airborneinterrogatorradiatescoded r.f. pulse
beingneededto removeambiguity. With the
pairsat a frequencywithin the band978-1213MHz
additionof bearinginformation, suchas that derived antenna.A ground
from an omnidirectional
from VOR, we havea rho-thetascherne;DME and
transponder(the beacon),within rangeof the aircraft
and operatingon the channelto which the interrogator
is selected,receivesthe interrogationand
automaticallytriggersthe beacontransmitterafter a
fixed delayof 50 irs. The omnidirectionalradiation
from the beaconis codedr.f. pulsepairsat a frequency
63 MHz below or abovethe interrogationfrequency.
Gnm
This reply is receivedby the suitablytuned
Fig. 7.1 Slantrange/ground
r?ngetriangle intenogator receiverand after processing is fed to the

105
rangecircuits where the round trip travel time is beaconif there are reflectingobjectsinconveniently
ccmputed. Rangeis givenby: placedwith respectto the aircraft and the beacon.
This possibilityarisessincethe antennasat both ends
R = (r - so)lt2'3s9 (7.2)
of the link areomnidirectional.Shouldsucha 'dog
where:R is the slant rangedistancein nautical
leg'path occur.the round-triptraveltime Z in
milesto or from the beacon;I is the time in
equation(.7.2\ may be that for the long way round
microseconds furs)betweentransmission of the
and thus lead to a readoutin excessof true short
interrogationand receptionof the reply. The
range.
constantsin the equation are 50 prscorresponding
To describethe way in which the systemdesign
to the fixed beacondelay,l2'359 prsbeingthe
copes with this it is necessary
to introduceseveral
time taken for r.f. energyto travel I nautical mile
new termswhich aredefinedand explainedbelow.
and return.
Both beaconand transponderusea single Jitter Dellberaterandom variationof the time
omnidirectionalantennasharedbetweentransmitter intervalbetweensuccessive interrogations.Each
and receiverin eachcase. This is possiblesincethe i n t e r r o g a t oprr t r d l l g sa5J i t t e r i n gp u l s e( p a i r )
systemis pulsed,and diplexingis simplesincethe repetitionl-requency (p.r.f.)'which,overa periodof
transmit and receivefrequenciesare different. severalinterrogations, describes a uniquepattern
Onceevery30 s the beacontransmitsits identity sincethc variationsare random. With an
which is detectedby the pilot asa Morsecodeburst interrogationrate of, say, 100,the average interval
of threelettersat an audiotone of I 350 Hz. It should betweeninterrogations will be l0 ms,with any
be noted that the r.f. radiatedfrom the beacondurine particularintervalbeingbetweensay9 and I I ms.
identificationis of the samelorm aswhen The uniqueiuterrogationpatternenablesthe DME to
transmittingrepiies,i.e.pulsepairs. The difference recognizerepliesto its own interrogationby
is that when replyingthereare randomintervals stroboscopictechniques.
betweentransmissions whereasduringidentification
the intervalsareconstantat l/l350th of a second. Automatic Stattdby Often rei'erredto as
signal-activated search.Whenthe aircraftis out of
Further Principles and Terminology rangeof the beaconto rvhichthe airborneDNIEis
By now the readermay haveidentifiedseveral tuned,no signalswill be received.This stateinhibits
problemswith the principlesof systemoperationas interrogations until suchtime as the aircraftis within
described.With DME, many aircraftwill be asking range and signals are received.
the beacon'what is my range?',the beaconwill reply The implementationof this featuredetermines
to all of them,the problembeinghow eachis to whetherinterrogations commenceasa resultof mean
identify its own reply. Anotherproblemis how to signallevelexceedingsomepredetermined levelor the
preventthe airborneDME interrogatingan rateof signalsbeingreceivedexceedssome
out-of-rangebeaconsincethis would be wastefulof predetermined rate. The two alternativesareequivalent
equipmentlife. asthe aircraft approachesthe beaconfrom beyond
It is obviousthat the DME operationmust be in at maximum range,and typically interrogations
leasttwo phasessincewe cannot expect an commencewhen the receivedsignalcount is in excess
instantaneous readoutof the correctrangethe of 300-400per second.They arenot equivalentwhen
momentwe selecta beacon.Theremust be some the aircraft is closeto the beaconsincethe mean
periodwhen the DME is acquiringthe rangefollowbd signallevelwill be raiseddue to signalstrength;
by a period, hopefully much longer,during which the consequentlythe requiredrate is much reducedfor
indicatorcontinuoushdisplaysthe correctreading. the former altei'native.This is of littie consequence
In this latter period rvemust considerthe eventuality when the aircraft is well within range;one would not
of a temporarylossof reply suchasoccursduringthe expect the DME to be on auto standby. When
transmission of the identiflcation(ident)signalby the gound testing,however,an auto standbycircuit
beacon,or perhapsduring'manoeuvre'when all which monitors mean signallevel-cangive unexpected,
signalsmight be iost. but not unexplainable, resultssincethe test set
We haveassumedthat the r.f. anergywill travelin (beaconsirnulator)will normallyoutput
a straightline from aircraft to beaconand back. This constant-strength signaisregardless of rangesimulated.
of coursewill be the caseunlessthere are any
obstructionsintervening;however,it is possiblethat Squitter The auto standbycircuit will not allow
theremay be more than one path to or from the interrogations to commenceuntil it detectssignals

106
 from the beacon. When a sufficient number of Should more than 2700 interrogationsper secondbe
intenogatingaircraft are within rangeof the beacon receivedthe sensitivityis reducedstill further, thus
thereis no problem, sinceanother aircraft coming maintainingthe servicefor thoseaircraft closestro
within rangewill receiveall the replies and thus bigin the beacon.
to interrogate. If, however,we considerthe beacon In fact the nominal madmum of 100 aircraft is
havingjust come on line or the first flight, after a exceededsinceinterrogationrateson track (see
quiet period, approachingthe beacon,we havea below) are considerablylessthan twenty-sevenfor
-chicken-and-egg situation: the beaconwill not reply modernequipment,and further the interrogatordoes
unlessinterrogated;the interrogatorwill not not need 100 per cent repliesin order to maintarn
interrogateunlessit receivessignals. readoutofrange. The beaconcapabilityof 100
From the explanation thus far there are in fact aircraft may be reducedif peak traffic is much less
sigralsavailable,namely ident, but this meansan than this figure.
aircraft may haveto wait 30 s, perhapsmore in weak
signalareas,before coming out of auto standby. This Search During searchthe range-measuring circuits of
is unacceptable;consequentlythe beaconis made to the interrogatorhavenot recognizedthose pulses
transmit pulse pairs even in the absenceof arnongstthe total receivedwhich have the same
interrogations.Such transmissions from the ground jittering pattern as the interrogation. The
beaconare known collectivelyas lsquitter' to interrogationrate is high so as to decreasesearchtime,
distinguishthem from replies. When the random the maximum rate allowedbeing 150 s-r. The search
squitterpulsepairs are receivedthe airborne time in a modern equipmentis typically lessthan I s.
equipmentstartsto interrogate. A p.r.f. of 135 is avoidedsinceit may cause
A beaconmust transmit randomly distributed interferencewith the bearingmeasurementfunction
pulsepairsat a repetition rate of at least700; this of TACAN. The readoutwill be obscuredby a .flag'
minimum rate includesdistancerepliesas well as if of the mechanicaltype, or will be blankedif
squitter. Beaconswhich supply a full TACAN service, electronic.The counterdrumsof an electro-
i.e. rangeand bearing,must maintain a rate of 21.00 mechanicalindicator can be seento be rotating when
pulsepairsper second. In order to achievethis during the interrogatoris searching;an electronicindicator
ident an equalizingpair of pulsesis transmitted may havea lamp or Le.d.which illuminatesduring
100ps aftereachidentity pair. A range-onlyDME search.
beaconat a constantduty cycle of 27OOpuisepairs It is an ICAO recommendationthat if after l5 000
per secondis not ruled out. pairsof pulseshavebeentransmittedwithout
Ifwe considerthe caseof a beaconwith a constant acquiringindication of distancethen the p.r.f. should
duty cyclein a quiet period all transmittedpulsepairs not exceed60 until a changein operatingchannelis
aresquitter,apart from during the dots and dashesof madeor a successfulsearchis completed. In practice
the ident signaltransmission.With one aircraft using useof automaticstandbycircuitsand searchp.r.f.s as
the beaconinterrogatingat a rate of, say, 27 then the low as,say,40 in modernequipmentsmakesthis
numberof squitter pulsepairswill be recommendation redundant.
2700 - 21 = 2673 s-r while the reply pulse pairswill
number27 s-t. Two aircraftwould Gad to isquitter Track Dunng track the range-measuring circuits,
rate of 2646 s-t and a reply rate of 54 s-r andio on havingacquiredthe reply pulses,follow their early or
until we arriveat a condition of beaconsaturation late arrivalas the aircraft movestowardsor away from
with a nominalmaximumof 100 aircraft the beacon.Continuousrangereadoutis givenwith
interrogating.We can seethat all the squitter pulse. the'flag'out of view. The p.r.f. is low. In order to
pairshavebecomesynchronizedwith received optimize beaconcapabilitya maximum averagep.r.f.
interrogations.From the interrogator'spoint of view of 30 is laid down. This assumes that 95 per -ent of
all receivedpulsepairs appearto be squiiter except the time is occupiedby tracking,thus:
thoseidentified by the rangecircuits as being ,rp-lim
to its own interrogations. 9sr+ss < 3000 Q3)
Maintaininga constantduty cycle for the beaconis where:7is the track p.r.f. andS the searchp.r.f.
achievedby varying the receiversensitivity. When no In practicemodernequipmentsmay havetrack p.r.f.s
interrogationsare receivedsensitivityis sufficiently o f l e s st h a n 1 0 .
high for noiseto trigger the beaconmodulator 2700 In someequipmentsthe transitionfrom searchto
timesper second. As interrogationsare receivedthe track, during which the rangemeasuringcircuits check
sensitivitydecreases so maintainingthe duty cycle. they havein fact acquiredthe correctsignals,is

107
known asacquisition.lt is convenientttl identity simulates a rangeof zero,or nearzero,nauticalmiles.
'lhus
this eventby a separate terntsinceit takesa llnite. after self-testthe outbound searchcommences
thoupilrshort.time and the equipntcntis neither fiorn at or nearzero.
s e a r c l t i rnr go r t r a c k i n g .
PcrcentageRepll' rNecan seefrom the abovethat not
Mennry If repliesarelost an interrogatorwill not all interrogations will giveriseto repliesevenif the
immediatelyrevertto searchor auto standbybut will aircraftconcernedis well within range.lt may
enterits memorycondition;this rrtaybe one of two happenthat an interrogationarrivesduringthe
W
, i t h e rs t a t i co r v e l o c i t y .
t y p e se i t h static m e n l o r y groundreceiverdeadtirne. Other causes of lossof
the readout is maintained steady, whereas with replies are ident transmission from the beacon and
velocitymemorythe readoutcontinttesto changeat suppression of the interrogatorrecbiverby other
its lastknown rate. Mentorytime will norrnallylie airborneL band equipment.Everytime an L band
between4 and 12 s. equipment, i.e. ATC transponderor DME
If, duringmemory,repliesare re-acquired, the interrogator,transmits,a suppression pulseis senton
equipmentwill continuetracking:thus the pilot will a commonline to all other L band equipment.This
havebeenspareda falsewarning. At the end of may well be when a reply would otherwisehavebeen
nremory,if tltereareho signalsat all beingreceived, received.
autostandbywill ensue;otherwise the equipmentwill Ignoring,for the moment, ident transmissionfrom
commencesearching. the ground and suppressiondue to ATC transponder
replieswe can calculatea worst-casepercentagereply
Echo Protection The possibilityof the interrogator figure. Assuminga beacondeadtime of 60 ps and
trackingreplies which have suffered reflection must maximum capability operatingconditionsof 21OO
be guardedagainst,both on the ground,for the interrogationsper second,we havea total deadtime
= ps d e a dt i m e
interrogationpath,and in the air, for the reply path. o f 6 0 X 2 7 0 O 1 6 20 0 0 s - r ; i . e .
constitutes 16'2 per cent of total time. The
On the ground,dependingon the geographyof the
will arrive maximum p.r.f. (average) of No. 2 DME is 30 with
terrain,the reflectedor echointerrogation
line-of'sight interrogation' Thus a suppression pulse width of not greaterthan 60 ps;
a short time after the
for long enough thus No. I DME will be suppressed for at most
if the ground receiveris suppressed
3 0 X 6 0 = l 8 0 O p s s - r ; i . e .0 ' 1 8 p e r c e n to f t h e t i m e .
a{'terreceptionof an interrogationthe echowill not
Thus we are left with 100 - l6'38 = 83'62 per cent
trigge.r a reply. Normallya suppression period, or
deacltime, of up to 60 gs is sufficient;exceptionally asthe reply rate exPectation.
up to 150ps may be necessarY. The ident transmissionoccursonce every 30 s
A similarsituationexistsin the air but a different when the total key-downtime will be lessthan 4 s.
solutionis normallyemployed.The line-of-sight and The code group transrnittedconsistsof dots and
'dashes
the echo replies will both exhibit the same jittering o f t i m e d u r a t i o n0 ' l - 0 ' 1 2 5s a n d0 ' 3 - 0 ' 3 7 5s
p.r.f. asthe interrogator;however,the line-of-sight respectively.The time betweendots and dashesis
reply arrivesbeforethe corresponding echo' To uuullubl.for replies. We havethe situation where
achieveecho protection the interrogator is arranged about three replieswill be lost during a dot, and
If the search commences at zero about ten duringa dash,assuming a track p.r.f. of
to searchoutbound.
about2l . For a modern equipment with a lower
nauticalmilesand movesout, then the first set of
p.r.f., reply losses will be even less. Under these
repliessatisfyingthe rangecircuit's searchfor the
jitter patternwill be thosecorresponding to the true circumstances it is not sensible to calculate the
To guarantee echo protection on changing exp'ected percentage reply since the effect of the
iung..
channelor before commencingsearchafter memory ident is possibiyto make the interrogatorgo into
or auto standby,the rangecircuitsshouldbe memory, particularlywhen a dashis transmitted'
returnedto the zero nautical miles condition. This is Sincethe memory time is at leastaslong as the
done in someequipmentswherethe reverse total key-downtime the momentaryswitch between
will not be
movementtowards zero may be known as a reciprocal track and memory and back to track
search,althoughno interrogationtakes place. In noticed bY the Pilot.
other equipments,wheresearchis outbound from the It shouldbe noted by the maintenanceengineer
last reading,echoprotection is likely but not that in simulatingident durlrg a ramp test the ident
guaranteed.In this latter situationuseof the self-test sigpalwill be continuous,ratherthan keyed,aslong
svitch or button will givefull echo protection since asthe appropriateswitch on the test set is held on.
virtually all interrogatorshave a self-test facility which Thus if ident is simulatedfor longerthan the memory

108
 time the interrogatorwill start to search,This is circularpath centredon the beaconwould registera
usefulsinceoperationof one switch on the test set ground speedof zero on the DME indicator!
allowsthe checking of ident tone with its associated If the airborneequipmenthas calculatedgound
volume control, memory time and searchp.r.f. speed,it is a simplematter to give time to station
= DST/KTS whereTTS is time to
The ATC transponderproducesreplies,and hence (beacon)sinceTTS
suppression pulses,only when interrogated. If an station.DST is slant rangeand KTS (knots) is the
Again this is only a usefulindication
aiiciaft is wilhin rangeof one interrogatorit will only gound speed.
be interrogatedabout thirty timesper sweep' With a wtren ttrJ aircraft is on courseto/from the beaconand
say some distance from it.
sweeprateof say 12 r.p.m.and a beamwidth of
will occur during a time The time constant of the ground speedmeasuring
5o thesethirty interrogations
interval givenby the product of 5/360 and 60112, circuitis longbut cancopewith aircraftacceleration'
i.e. aboui 0'07 s. For thirty interrogations the p.r.f' ln groundtesting.however,one mustwait sometime
-
would needto be 30/0'07 430 which is closeto the foithe groundspeedreadingto take up the simulated
a similar situation to value of velocityselected on the ramp testset,slnce
maximum p.r.f. of 450. We have
loss during ident transmission, i.e' the in switching-in a velocity one is simulatingan infinite
the reply
o..uti.n". is relativelyinfrequent;for example0'07 acceleration.
in 5 s. If the aircraftis within rangeof more than one
interrogatorthe total interrogationtime in, say, 5 s is
increased. Interrogation
Consideringthe effect on DME only during the
time the ATC transponderis replyingwe have, The full TACAN interrogationfrequencyrangeis
assuming an ATC interrogation rate of 450 and a 1 0 2 5 - l1 5 0M H z w i t h 1 N { H zs p a c i n gT. } r u st h e
suppression pulse duration of 30 ps, percentage interrogation will be one of 116 possiblefrequencit's
suppression iime = 450 X 30 X 100/I 000 000 = l'35 tlependingon the channelselected.The r'f is keyed
'rn
per cent. If we alsotakeinto accountthe worst'case by pulsepairs. The timing,which is dcpendenl
reply for the DME system of 83'62 per cirannel selection, X or Y' is illustrated in Fig' 7'-1'
percentage
-
..nt *. haveduring this short time 83'62 1'35,
82 per cent replies.In fact the DME interrogator - 1 3'5trs
stroutO.op. *ith this and remainon track' l l x
J
The aboveis not quite the whole story. The
intention is to allay the fearsof studentswho, on L=--------*l
I l2irs I
findingout how manywaysrepliescanbe lost, wonder
how on earthDME worksat all. The few simplecal-
culationsgivenshowthat the situationis in fact
quitesatisfactory. It can,however,be worsethan sug-
gestedsincethe ICAO specification only requiresthat
iit. OVf beaconhavea 70 per centreplyefficiency; pulsespacing
Fig.7.3 Interrogation
one of the reasons, not previouslymentioned,being
that time mustbe allorvedfor self-monitoring' Even
will cope with percentage The p.r.f. is dependenton the nlodeof operationof
so most DME interrogators
theDME:
repliesasiow as.orlower than 50 per cent'
Search 40-I 50 Average
Ground Speedand Time To Station The interrogator Track l0-30
-Average
continuouslymonitorsthe slantrangeto the beacon actualp.r.f.dependson tl-reequipmentdesign
The
which,of course,will changeasthe aircraftflies
of and may be lower than minimutrlliguresgiven. There
awayfrom the beacon.Measurement
' towardsor will be a smallvariationin the average p.r.f. due to
the rateof changeof slantrangegives. the speedof
jitter. The average p.r.f.,assuming that 95 per centof
approachor departureto the beacon.Such
the time is spenton track' must be lessthan 30' The
measurement is carriedout by most airborneDMEs with verticalpolarization'
groundspeed.tt is radiationis omnidirectional
and presenteci asso-called
importantthat the pilot realizes that the readoutcan
only be consideredasground speedwhen the aircraft R e p l y
is flying directly towardsor away from the beacon
The r.f. at one of 252 frequencies between962 and
and is somedistancefrom it. An aircraft flying a
r09
 l2l3 MHz isteyed by pulse pairs the timing
of which
conjunction with VOR and, largely
is similar to that given in f ig. I .5, the differince as a future
being
requirement,ILS. To achievettris,
e1l f channelspacingis 30 prs,not 36 pr. ffrc OUe Uru.on, "r.
co-locatedwirh VOR or ILS beaconr,
radiationis omnidirectionalwith verticalpoiarization. in1r" i.j"g
prescribedmaximum separation
fi.its 1a"nr"'i to
the conventionon InternationalCivil
A'v",j"rl.
Wherewe havecoJocationconstituting
X and Y Channel Arrangements a sinele
fapility the two systemsshould
;;;il ""'"ii""o"ra
frequencypairing(Table7.1).r,i rr."r1nii
r""''
and 252 replyfrequenciesassociatedidentity signal.
Jh...rr1.-..lZ!^i1t-elryCation
in the full
trequency IA!{I-fr.guency range.The-repty_.._.
is 63 MHzaboveor belowtheintiriogating
Table7.1 Frequencypairing
fre.quency, asshownin Fig.7.4. fne chann.ispacing
is I MHzfor bothinterrogation andreply. The' v.h.f. nav.freq. v.h.f. allocation
TACANchannels arenumbered lX,ly,'. . . liOX, TACAN channel
r26Y.
UsingFig.7.4we seethat channel20X say, r08.00 VOR l7x
, 108.05 VOR
corresponds to aninterrogation
at 1044M;Hz';nda t7Y
replyat 981MHz,whilechannel r08.10 ILS l8x
I16I,, say, 1 0 85 .1
corresponds to aninterrogation ILS t8Y
at I140 MHzanda
replyat 1077MHz. ii1lo 19t .'?{
l I 1.95 ILS 56Y
Eeacon Aircraft Beacon
reply interrogation I12.00 VOR 57X
reply
X
l12.05 VOR 57Y
1213 126X
n2.ro VOR 58x
--'--'t'-
63Y 1 1 5 0 I r50 1't51 d4x 112.25 VOR 59Y
I Y 1c|aR t088 -'f-'-r- r12.30 VOR
r26Y 1087
70x
1 0 8 7 -*__\l\_
64Y 1025 1 0 2 5 -_|.__\a t17'95 VOR t26y
to24 63X
962 t x
Fig,7.4 .Y/y channel
arrangements With standardfrequehcypairingthe
need for
separate DME and v.h.f.nav.contiol unitsis
For civil DME beaconsthe 52 channels eliminated.It is normalpracticefor u .o.Uin"O
l-16, X controllerto be used,the selectedfrequency
and nd 60-69,X andy,are avoidedi"it*.
reasons.Firstly DME is meant to be used indication beinggivenin termsof tne v.h.f.nav.
in
coniunctionwith VOR and ILS, which occupy frequency.Thusa selectionof 10g.05Uffr-woufO
200
channels ratherthan 252. Secondly,havingh'fty_two tune the v.h.f. nav. receiverto that frequencyund the
redundantchannels,the gapsare chosen DME to the pairedchannell7y.
to-overlap
Someequipmentshavea hold facility whereby,
lle lTC transponder fre[uencies"f l0i0;;;' .
when engaged.
1090MHz to avoid any p-ossible interference, a changein the selectea".fr.f."u".
althoughdifferent codesand ,nr,u.i ,"iprJrJion lrequencywill not causethe DME channel
"r" to change.
also usedfor this purpose. W.hen.using hold, rangeand bearinginfo.rn"iion i,
The useof_thefifty+wo missingchannels givenbut not to a common point.
is, how- This could lead to
ever,not precludedby the ICAO;they pilot navigationerror, to .uoid ttris
may be alloc- illuminat a warninf tr*nr r,
areoon a nationalbasis.The fact that ed when hold is selected; n.*rtf,.i."rr,'ror.
civii aircraft
rnay wish to useTACAN beaconsmeans national authoritiesfrown upon the availabilit
thai many of
DME interrogatorshavethe full ZSi.f,.""rfr.' sucha faciliry.
In Table 7.1 the frequencypairingarrangements
lt1:Lo*n. The frequenciesshown.i Uring"uiio.ut.O
to-ILS are,ofcourse,localizerfrrqu.n.irrit.
The Link With v.h.f. Navigation tigtrrt
of which is I I I .95 MHz. The gfi.iepatfr/ioJirel
frequencypairingis not affectel tV IUE
As statedpreviously DMEis meantto beusedin p.iri"g.
ThoseTACAN channelsnot pairedwith
v.h.f. nav.
110
dnnnels may nevertheless still be required. In this v.h.f. nav. controllers. The RNAV facility (see
casethe pairingsfor channelslX to I 6Y are Chapter l2) nray not be available,in which caseslant
134.40-135.95 MHz and for channels60X to 69Y are rangewould be fed direct to the HSI or often, a
133'30-134'25MHz solely lor the purposeof separateDME indicator in which speedand time is
selectionon combinedcontrollers.Selectionof one computed. wirh a DME indicator fitted the HSI may
ol thesechinnelswould only give rangeinformation still act asa repeaterfor slant range.
ro an aircraftnot equippedwith full TACAN.
Associatedidentity is the term givenfor
qynchronization ofthe ident signalsfrom co-located
beacons.Each30 s intervalis dividedinto lbur or
rnoreequalpartswith the DME beaconident
transn'rittedduringone periodonly and the associated
v.h.f.facility ident duringthe renrainingperiods.
Associated identity would alsobe usedwith a Vortac
beaconwhich providesbearingand rangeinformation
to both civil and military aircraft. A TACAN (or
DME) beaconnot co-located with VOR would use
ndependentidentity. .

Instattation

The DME interrogatorcomesin rrranyforms; airline

standardequipmentis rack-mounted whereasgeneral
aviationinterrogators rriaybe panel-rnounted with
integralcontrolsand digrtalreadout. King havegone
one betterwith their KNS 80 integratednav.system
sinceone panel-rnounted box containsthe DME
interrogator: v.h.f.nav.recejverand converter,
glideslopereceiver,RNAV computerplus integral
controlsand readoutof range,groundspeed,and
time to station(seeFig. I .10).
Figure7.5 showsa singleDME installationwith a
combinedv.h.f. nav./DMEcontroller,an output to an
Fig.7.5 DMEinstallation with RNAVtie-in
RNAV computer/controllerand with slant rangeand
groundspeedor time to station displayedon an HSI
(Fig. 7.6). All largeraircraft would havea dual
installation,possiblywith changeover relaysfor HSI volume control is irrcorporatedin the system. Other
feeds. A combinedcontrolleris usuallyfound, but it
is possibie(not advised)to haveseparateDME and
Fig.7.6 KPI 533pictorialnavigation indicator(courtesy
KingRadioCorp.)
Co-axialcablesareusedfor antennafeederand
suppression.With a dual ATC transponderand dual
DME installationall four setswill be connectedin
parallelfor suppression purposes,so that when one
transmitsthey are all suppressed.The antennais
mounted on the undersideof the fuselagein an
approvedposition. Sufficientspacingbetweenall
Lband equipmentantennasmust be allowedto help
prevent mutual interference,althoughsuppression,
different frequencies,p.r.f.s and pulsespacingall
contribute to this.
Tuning information to both DME and the v.h.f.
nav. receiveris likely to be 215,althoughb.c.d. and
slip codesmay be found. Screenedcables,preferably
twisted and screened,areusedfor transferof
analogueor digital data and alsofor audio
identificationto the audio integratingsystem. The
audio may be routed through the controllerif a
controller/DMEinterconnectionsare for self-test,off,
standbyand on.

111
Controls and Operation
A drawingof a combinedcontrolleris shown in
Chaptera (Fig.4.9). Controlsfor DME areminimal.
Frequencyselectionis usuallyby rotary click stop
knobs,the digitat readoutof frequencyon the
controllerbeingthe v.h.f.nav.frequency,e'g.
108'00 MHz. The DME on/off switching may
'standby'
incorporatea standbyposition. Usually
indicatesthat VOR/ILS is on, while DME is on
standbyi.e. transmitterdisabled.Sucha switchis
'off'-v.h.f. nav, and DME off;
often marked
'receive'- v.h.f.nav.on, DME standby;
'transmit' - both v.h.f. nav.and DME on. A self-test
switch will be providedon the controlleror, rarely,
be panel-mounted.Further switchingtakesplaceon
the indicatorfor groundspeed(KTS or SPD)or
time-to-station (TTS or MIN). A hold switchmay
alsobe found (see previousnote on'hold').
Operationis simple;just switchon, tune to
requiredbeaconand ensurelock-on after a brief
search.lf the indicator employsa mechanicallydriven
digital readouta flag will obscurethe readingduring
search, whereaswith an electronicdigitalreadoutthe
displaywill be blanked. Whentuning to a different
beaconthe ident signalshouldbe checkedto ensure
the correctchannelhasbeenselected.Also if the
DME is of a type which searches out from its
last-knownreadingthe self-testmust be operatedto
return the dialsto near zeroso that an outbound
searchwill resultin lock'on to a line-of-sightreply
andnot an echo. Evenwith DMEswhich
automaticallysearchout from zero af'tera channel
changethe self-testshouldbe operatedoccasionally'
Simplified Block Diagram Operation
The bl<rckdiagramof Fig. 7 .7 canbe usedto explain
the operationof virtuallyall DME interrogators.
Naturallyvariationswill occur when comparingtypes
of DME; in particularthe range'measuring circuitswill
reflect the ingenuityof the designerand further. as
one rvouldexpect,havein recentyearsmadethe
transitionfrom analogue to digrtaltechniques.
A jitter generatordividesthe p.r.f. of a timing
oscillatoroutput by a variabledivisor. For example
with a basicp.r.f. of 400 a divisorof approximately
20 would providea track p.r.f' of 20, while a divisor
of approximately 4 would providea searchp.r.f. of
100. Of vital importanceto the operationof DME is
that the divisorvariesrandomly,so that if on track
thenbetween,say, l5 and 25 timingpulsesmay occur
betweensuccessive output pulses/s from the jitter
generator.
112
The pulsests are fed to the modulator and thus
decidethe time of transmission.The modulator
producespulsepairsof the appropriatespacingwhich
in turn key the transmitterpower amplifiers. The r.f.
is generatedby a frequencysynthesizerthe output of
which servesas receiverlocal oscillatoraswell as
transmittermasteroscillator. The amplifiedr.f. is fed
to and radiatedfrom an omnidirectionalantenna.
The peak power output of a modem airline standard
DME will be about 700-800W nominal.
Receivedpulsesare fed to the receivermixer via a
tuned preselectorwhich givesimagerejectionand
someprotection from the transmittedsignal. In
addition duplexingaction will normally be employed
to ensurereceivermixer protection during
transmission.Sincethe transmit and received
frequenciesare always63 MHz apart,the frequency
synthesizercan be usedasdescribedaboveand the i.f.
amplifieris tunedto 63 MHz. A dual superhetmay
be employed. The receiveroutput will be the
detectedvideo signal.
The decodergivesan output pulsefor each
correctlyspacedpair of pulses.The decoderoutput
consistsof repliesto all interrogatingaircraft plus
squitteror pulsesat the identificationp.r.f. of
1350Hz, in which casea bandpassfilter givesa
1350Hz tone output to the audiointegratingsystem.
The auto standbycircuitcountsthe pulsescoming
from the decoderand if the rateexceeds a
predeternrinedfigure(say400 per second)euablesthe
jitter generator.If the rateis low therewill be no
modulatortriggerandhenceno interrogation.A third
decoderoutput is fed to the rangegate.
The zero time pulses/o are effectivelydelayedand
stretchedin the variabledelay which is controlled
eitherby the searchor track circuits' The output of
the variabledelay,often termedthe rangeSate
waveform,opensthe rangegate?'ps after every
interrogation.If a reply or squitterpulseis received
at a time when the rangegateis open.a pulseis fed to
the cr.rirrcidence counter' Assumethe DME is
searching with an interrogationrateof 100,and
further,assume the rangegatewavelormgatingpulses
are20 ps in'duration,then on average duringa period
of l/100 = 10000 prsthe range gate will be openfor
o n l y 2 0 p s ,i . e . l / 5 0 0 t h o r 0 ' 2 p e r c e n to f t h e t i m e '
Now squitterand unwantedrepliesoccurrandomly
so the chanceof full coincidenceat the rangegateis
roughly I in 500 for eachof the decoderoutput
puises.Sincethere are2700 received pulsepairsper
secondwe will have,on average' 2700/500,i'e.
5-6 pulsesper secondfrom the rangegate.
During searchthe variabledelay is continuously
increasedat a rate correspondingto anythingfrom
 Suppression
pulse gen.

PRF change

t-
I *-oirt"-nJl
to ind.
I
r l
l l
_ll Range.
I measunng
I circuits
I
I
I
I
I
replios

Rx supprcssion
Frg.7 .7 Interrogator block diagram

liming gen.
o/P i li l i l l i l i l i l l l l l ll ll ll ll ll l l l l l l l ll ll l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l
Jittcr gcn.
otP r t l
Rengo gate
YVtVCtOrm

Dodcr

H
otP

l|nec g!r.
otP
r---1
F3 7.8 Stroboscopicprinciple

It3
 20 to 400 nautical miles per second,dependingon the zero crossingsof the delayedsine wave turn on
vintageof the design. While in searchthe rangegate, (Q = l)a bistablewhich is turned otr (Q = 0) by the
output rate, as detectedby the coincidencecounter, zero time pulsesfrom the jitter generator. The
is low. When the delay lps is equalto the round bistableoutput is connectedto the positive-going
trip travel time plus the 50 ps beacondelay the range triggerinput of a monostable;in this way the
Bateoutput rate increases by a sigrificant amount. resulting30 ps pulsesoccur at a time determinedby
Assumingas abovea searchp.r.f. of 100, and also a those delayed timing pulseswhich occur I ps after
50 per cent reply rate, then the output.of the range transmission.The elapsedtime I representsthe
gatewill jump from say 5 pulsesper secondto 50 rangereadout which will be obscured'by a flag during
pulsesper second. This is the situation shown in search.
Fig. 7.8. Whenthis easilydetectedincreasein rate In the logic employed in Fig. 7.9 a low rate output
occursthe mode control circuit will: (a) enablethe from the rangegate will give a logic zero output from
tracking circuit; (b) inhibit the searchcircuit; the coincidencecounter, so enabling the search
(c) senda p.r.f. changesigral to the jitter generator; circuit but disablingthe early and late gates.When
and (d) lift the indicator blanking or flag as Zps correspondsto the actualslant rangeofthe
appropriate. beaconthe rangegateoutput rate is high, hencethe
During track the variabledelay is controlled by thesearchcircuit is disabledand a logic one is fed to the
trackingcircuitsso as to keepeachwanted reply in early and late gates. The other inputs to the earlyand
the centreof the correspondingrangegatewaveform late gatesare the decodedpulsesand a ramp
pulse. Should the aircraft be flying towards the waveformsymnietricalabout zero volts and coincident
beacon,successive replieswill appearearly within thewith a 30 ps rangegatewaveformpulse. The ramp
gatepulse,so causingthe delay to be reduced. The input to the late gateis invertedso that the late gate
opposite occurswhen the aircraft is flying away from is open for almost all of the latter half of the 30 ps
the beacon. The variabledelay representsthe slant period,while the early gateis open for almostall of
rangeand so a signalproportionalto or representing the first half. The slopeof the ramp waveformis
this delayis fed to the indicator and/or RNAV chosenso as there is a period (equalin duration to the -
computer. decoderoutput pulsewidth) when neither early nor
Ifwanted repliesare lost, the coincidencecounter late gateis open. Thus when on track the wanted
output registersa zero tate and hencethe mode repliesare steeredto the decreaseor increaserange
control switchesto memory. With static memory the circuits,dependingon whether the repliesarriveearly
trackingcircuits are 'frozen', whereaswith velocity or late within the rangegatewaveformpulse
memory the trackingcircuitscontinueto changethe respectively.
variabledelay at the last known rate. The motor drive circuits supply the motor so that
when in searchthe readoutand delay progressively
increases.While in track the motor will turn in a
RangeMeasuringand ModeGontrol direction dependenton which of the decreaseand
increasecircuits givesan output. It can be seenthat
Analogue in track we havea servosystemwhich maintainsthe
Typically in an older analogueDME the variable delay wantedrepliesin the centreof the rangegate
takesthe form ofa phaseshifter resolver,the rotor of waveformpulses.
which is fed from the timing oscillator and is The memory circuit is enabledwith the early and
mechanicallycoupledto a distancemeasuringshaft. late gateswhen it clearsthe flag. Subsequently,should
The trackingcircuitsin suchequipmentoften employ therebe a lossof replies,searchwill be inhibited and
a ramp generatoi. Figure7.9 illustratesa block the motor held (staticmemory)or madeto continue
diagramand waveformswhich may be used to explain rotating with the samesenseand speed(velocity
the operationof sucha DME but is not meant to memory) for the memory time.
representany particularequipment.
The timing generatoroutput is sinusoidaland so Digital
must be fed to a pulseformer (zero crossingdetector) What follows is an explanationof the principlesof a
beforethe jitter generator.The timing signalis also first-generationdigital DME basedon, but not
fed to a phaseshift resolverwhereit is phase-shifted accuratelyrepresenting,the RCA AVQ 85. Currently
(delayed) by an angledependingon the position of the trend is to usea special-purpose l.s.i. chip to
the distance-measuring shaft which also drives the perform the rangemeasurementand mode control
readout. Pulsescoincidentwith the positive-going tasks.

114
 ----l
I

I
I
I
I
I
I
roln I
ming I
\ - l l
en. i
l I
Delayed I t -'l I
timing ; \ I
t l
pulses i____ -J---..i

M
o
T
o
R
D
Ranoe R
oat"" Enable I
V
E

ro
r r l
Delayed +iTe ' I
tlmrng
pulses

Bistable
o
t ' l

Mono^stabre h j* so r,s h
o l

Monostable
o

Ramp gen.

Earlv n Late
Decoder o/P

Fig. 7.9 Analoguerangemeasuringand mode control block

diasram

The AVQ 85 hasa searchp.r.f. of 40, a track p.r.f.
of l2 and a maximumrangeof 400 nauticalmiles,
which correspondsto a two-way travel time of
5000ps. Duringthis time the nuntberof pulsepairs
receivedfrom a beaconwill be, on average:
5000x10-6x2700=13.5.
Of the thirteen or fourteenpulsepairsreceivedone
will, hopefully,be a wantedrepiy.
During the searchmode the elapsedtime between
f6 and the time arrival of a particulardecodedpulse
is measured.If rn is the time measured after the
nth interrogationthen /1111is the time to the first
decodedpulseto arrivesuchthat tn+1) tr, where
r,l= 0, L . ., and /o = 0. Whenwe haveequality,i.e.
tn+L = /r, then /r, is, subjectto further checking,the
roundtrip traveltime to the beacon.It can be seen
that if the aircraftis at rnaximunlrangewe shallneed,
on average, l3-14 successive interrogations to complete
the searchtime- At a searchrate of 40 this will take
sayl3'5/40 s,i.e.about one-thirdof a second.The
acquisitiontime of the AVQ 85 is quotedaslessthan I s.

115
 Int.rrogatiorl
lst mcesurornont
2nd measuremart
3rd measurement
4ttl melsurc|tranl
Sth mcaermont
6th measuremetrt
7th- moasurotnctrt
- search
Fig.7.l0 Digital rangemeasurement
With the aboveoperationonly one time
measurement needsto be storedin a register. With a
modestamount of memory the wanted reply could
be identified within two successive interrogations,
providedthat sucha reply was receivedafter eachof
the interrogations.If we assumea 50 per cent reply
rate then four interrogationswould be needed.
During a 5000 ps interval lessthan eighty-fourpulse
pairswill be received,assuminga minimum spacingof
60 ps betweenbeaconsquittertransmissions and
allowingfor a 60 ps deadtime. Eachtime
measurement would need l2 bits if a resolutionof
one-tenthof a nauticalmile is required. Thus'a faster
searchtime could be achievedif a RAM of
12 X 84 X 4 = 4032 bits were provided. A practical
circuit would consistof 4 X lK bit (lK = 1024\
RAMs, the pulsearrivaltimes,expressedas distances,
dfter eachof four interrogationsbeing recorded
successively in eachRAM chip. The first chip would
thus record the arrival times after the first, fifth,
ninth, etc. interrogations,similarly for the second,
third and fourth chips. Of courseonly one 4K bit
drip is needed,providedit can be organizedinto four
linear arraysof l2-bit words. With a searchp.r.f. of
40 thereis a periodof 30000 ss (= l/40) less
5000 ps in which to checkfor equal arrivaltimes
116
Valid
reply
which, when detected,signalthe end of search.
In Fig. 7.1I we return to the one measurementper
interrogationsituation. Initially the distance
measuringcircuit countersand registersare cleared.
Time measurementfrom /6 is carriedout by the
distancecounter which counts809 kHz clock pulses,
thus givinga rangeresolutionof one-tenthof a mile.
The sequenceof eventsfollowing the (r + I )th
interrogationof a searchcycle is as follows:
l. te+20ps
Distancecountgrciears.
Blankingcounter loadedwith contentsof
distancestorageregister= rn.
2. ts + 47 tts
Blankingbounterstartsto count down.
3. ls + 50 r/s
Distancecounter startsto count up towards
maximum range.
4. to+tn
Blankingcounter reacheszero and hence
enablesblanking gateand triggersrangegate
waveformgenerator.
5. ts + tral
A decodedpulsearrivesand passes through
enabledblanking gateto stop distancecounter
 tlccodcd
pulsos
Distance
to lnd s PRF Ind
8O9kHz T chang€ enable
o
P

Range
gate
wavaform Decoded
809 kHz gen. pulsss

F!. ?.ll Digital rarge measuringand mode control block

diagram

and trigger transfer of data to distancestorage
register;n becomesn + I and circuit waits for
next to.
The abovesequenceis repeatedafter each
interrogation. Within, on average,fourteen
interrogationsthe time to a wanted reply will be
counted and the distancestorageregisterwill contain
the number of tenthsof a nauticalmile actualrange.
After the next interrogationthe blanking counter will
enable the blanking gate 3 prsbefore the arrival ofthe
wanted reply, sincethe blankingcounterstart is
47 ps after re while the distancecounter start is
50 ps after fe. It thereforefollows that the distance
counterwill recordthe samed'.stance, subjectto
aircraft movement.thereafter.
The pulse from the rangegate waveform generator
is of 6 ps duration,its leadingedgebeingX ps after te
whereX is the time of arrivalof the previously
measureddecodedpulseless47 ps. This gatingpulse
is fed to the rangegatetogetherwith the decoder
output. Coincidenceindicatesthat the two latest
pulsesto be measuredhavearrivedwith the sametime
delay t 3 prswith respectto /s and are thus probably
wanted replies. The percentagereply checkingcircuit
then checksthat two of the next eight interrogations
giverise to a decodedpulsewithin the track gateand
if so the mode switchesto track. On track the p.r.f. is
reducedand the indicator givesa readoutofthe range
asmeasuredby the distancecounter. After switching
to track, at leastfour of any sixteensuccessive
interrogations rrtust give rise to a rangeSateoutput;
failure initiates a switch to memory. Five seconds
after memory is entered the mode will revert to
search,subject to auto standby, unlessthe four-from'
sixteen check indicatessuccess,in which casetrack
resumes.
Characteristics
is drawnfromtheARINC
Thefollowingsummary
Characteristic568-5for the Mk 3 airborneDME, it is
not completeand doesnot detail all the conditions
under which the following should be met.
Channels
252 channelsselectedby 215switching.
hise Spacing
Interrogationl2 r 0'5 ps modeX;36 x 0'5 prsmode X
Decoderoutput if lZ ! 0'5 1rsmodeX; 30 i 0'5 tts
mode Y.
Decoder: no output ifspaeing of receivedpulse pain
more than I 5 ps from that required.
Range
0-200 nauticalmileswith overrideto extend to
300 nauticalmiles.
TmckW Sped
0-2000 knots.

717
 :r i : i: -
AcquisitionTime Intenogation Rote
I s or less. Overalllessthan 30, assumingon track 95 per cent of
time, searching5 per cent of time.
Memory
4-12s velocitymemory. Auto Standby
At least650 pulsepairsper secondreceivedbefore
r.f. PowerOutput interrogationsallowed.
> 25 dBWinto 50 O load.

Fig.7.l2 TIC T-24A (courtesyTel-InstrumentElcctronics

Corp.)

118
Tx Frequency Stability 3. Rangerate pulsetransmittedfor each0.01 nautical
Better than t 0.007 per cent. mile changein range.
4. Audio ) 75 mW into 200-500Q load.
Rx Sensitivity 5. Output impedance< 200 st.
-90 dBm lock-on sensitivity.
6. Warningflag( I V d.c. for warning,2i.S y d.c.
satisfactoryoperation.
Suppressiort PulseDurat ion
Blanket: l9 prsmodeX;43 ttsmodeL RangeOutput Accuracy
Pulsefor pulse: 7 gs. From t 0.1 to t 0.3 nauticalmiles,dependingon
sigral strengthand time sinceacquisition.
Antenna v,s.w.r.
l'5: I over 962-1213MHz referredto 50 O.
Ramp Testing
Antenna Isolotion
> 40 dB betweenL-bandantennas.
A DME installationshouldbe testedusinga ramp test
set which will test by radiation,simulatevarious
Outputs
rangesand velocities.operateon at leastone spot
l. Digital: 32-bit serialb.c.d.word at leastfive times
frequencyfor mode X and mode I/, and provide for
per second,resolution0.01 nauticalmiles.
simulationof identification. Two suchtest setsare
Buffers in utilization equipment.
the TIC T-24A (Fig. 7.12) andthe IFR ATC"600A
2. Analogue:pulsephirs5-30 timesper secondwith
( F i g .8 . 2 3 ) .
spacing,in ps, 50 + l2'359d (d beingslant
range). Eachload l2K in parallelwith lessthan
TIC T.24A
I 00 pF.
A battery-operated,one-mantest set operatedfrom

*
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a{{dtir-ril @ *rt tlt
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: 4*. .. :a.r/:{ . a

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,. ..:;,..
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_ft i*+ffi
. t. *.r& nfr
4,frwa.:r
.s,:,ai: d; :i {
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:
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Et
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ld

Fig. 7.13 TIC T-50A (courtesyTel-lnstrument

Elcctronrcs
Corp.)

'!19
 the cockpit and testingby radiation. ChannelslTX
and 17Y are available(108.00 and 108.05MHz VOR
frequencies)with rangesimulationftom 0 to 399.9
nauticalmilesin 0.1 nauticalmile increments. The
velocity, inbound or outbound, can be selectedin
lO-knot incrementsfrom 0 to 9990 knots. Squitter
is selectableat 700 or 2700 pulsepairsper second.
Identity is availableas 1350 or equalized1350 pulse
pairsper second. An additionalpulsepair l0
nauticalmilesafter the reply pulsepair can be
selected,to enablea checkof echo protection. The
p.r.f. meterhastwo ranges0-30 and 0-150. Finally
the percentagereply may be selectedin l0 per cent
incrementsfrom l0 to 100 per cent.
ATC 600A
This test set doesnot have all the facilities ofthe
T-24A but doesoffer comprehensive testingability
for the ATC transponder(Chapter8). Like the
T-24Athe ATC 600A operateson channelsl7X and
l7Y. The rangecan be set from 0 to 399 nautical
milesin I nauticalmile steps. Twelvedifferent
rrelocitiesmay be simulatedin the range
120
50-2400knots inbound or outbound. The identity is
equalized1350 pulsepairsper second. The percentage
reply is either50 or 100 per cent by selection.
Featuresof the ATC 600A not availablewith the
T-24A arean interrogatorpeak r.f. power readout,
accuracyt 3 dB (t 50 per cent) and interrogation
liequency check.
Bench Testing
Various test setsexist for the benchtestingof DME,
one of theseis the TIC T-50A (Fig. 7.13) which also
providesfacilitiesfor ATC transponderbench testing.
This is not the placeto detail all the featuresof sucha
complex test set; sufficeit to say that the test set is
madeup of optional modulesso that the customer
can choosethe most suitablepackage.One feature
which must be mentionedis the ability to measure
the pulsedr.f. from the DME interrogatorwith a
resolutionof l0 kHz. TIC havefound that many
units changetheir output frequency,sometimes
beyond allowablelimits, when a changein pulse
spacingoccurs;i.e. X to I/ mode or vice versa.
I ATC transponder

Recognitionof thesedisadvantages, in particular

lntroduction
No. 3, led to the developmentof a military secondary
surveillanceradar (SSR)known as identification
With the rapid build-up of international and domestic
friend or foe (lFF). With this systemonly specially
civil air transportsinceWorld War II, control of air
equipped targetsgive a return to the ground. This
traffic by meansof primary surveillanceradar (PSR)
system has sincebeenfurther developedand extended
and proceduresis not adequateto ensuresafetyin the
to cover civil aswell asmilitary air traffic; the special
air.
equipmentcarriedon the aircraft is the air traffic
control (ATC) transponder.

?---=__
m
Fig E.l Primarysurveillance radar
BasicPrinciples

Secondarysurveillanceradar forms part of the ATC

radarsurveillancesystem:the other part being PSR.
Two antennas,one for PSR,the other for SSR,are
mounted co-axiallyand rotate together,radiating
directionally.The SSRitselfis capableof giving
A PSRdoesnot rely on the activeco-operationof rangeand bearinginformation and would thus appear
the target. Electromagnetic(e.m.) radiation is pulsed to make PSR redundant:howeverwe must allow for
from a directionalantennaon the ground. Provided aircraft without ATC transponderfitted or a possible
they arenot transparentto the wavelengthused, failure.
targetsin tine with the radiation will reflect energy We can briefly explain SSRin terms of Fig. 8.2.
back to the PSR. By measuringthe time taken, and The SSR transmitterradiatespulsesof energyfrom a
noting the direction of radiation, the rangeand directionalantenna.The directionand timing of the
bearingof the target are found. Display is by means SSRtransmissionis synchronizedwith that of the
of a plan position indicator (seeChapter9). Such a PSR. An aircraft equippedwith a transponderin the
qystemhasthe following disadvantages: path of the radiatedenergywill reply with specially
codedpulsedr.f. providedit recognizes the
l. Sufficient energymust be radiatedto ensurethe interrogationasbeing valid. The aircraft antennais
minimum detectablelevel of energyis received omnidirectional.
b! the p.s.r.after a round trip to a wanted The coded reply receivedby the ground is decoded,
targetat the maximum range. Rangeis and an appropriateindication givento the air traffic
,' proportional to the 4th root of the radiated controlleron a p.p.i..display.The reply will give
energy. information relatingto identity, altitude or one of
2. Targetsother than aircraft will be displayed severalemerElency messages.Figure8.3 showsa
(clutter). This can be much reducedby using typical data presentation. As can be seen,a variety of
Doppler effect (seeChapter l0) to detect only symbolsand labelsare usedto,easethe task of the
moving targets. controller.
3. Individual aircraft cannot be identified except
by requestedmanoeuvre. Interrogation
4. An aircraft's altitude is unknown unlessa One interrogationconsistsof a pair of pulsesof r.f'
separateheight-findingradaris used. energy,the spacingbetweenthe pulsesbeing one of
5. No information link is set up. four time intervals. Different modesof interrogation

721
 Fig 8.2 Secondarysurveillanceradar
Fig. 8.3 Typical data presentation
lre codedby the different time intervals,eachmode
correspondingto +different ground-to-air.question'.
For examplemode A - 'what is your identity'?
Figure 8.4 illustratesthe modesof interrogation.
Many transpondershaveonly mode A ind C
capability;this is sufficient to respondto an
interrogatoroperatingon mode interlacewhereby
mode A and C interrogationsare transmittedin
sequence,thus demandingidentification and altitude
information. Mode D hasyet to be uti[zed.
122
The maximum interrogationrate is 450 although,
in order to avoid fruiting (seebelow - FalseTargets),
the rate is as low as possibleconsistentwith each
targetbeing interrogatedtwenty to forty times per
sweep. The pulsesof r.f. are 0.8 ps wide and at a
frequencyof 1030 MHz (L band) this being the same
for all interrogations.
Reply
A transponderwill reply to a valid interrogation,the
form of the reply dependingon the mode of
interrogation. A valid interrogationis one received
from the interrogator mainlobe(seebelow,- Side
I-obe Suppression),the time interval betweenpulses
beingequal to the mode spacingselectedby the pilot.
In every reply two pulsesof r.f. 1090 MHz, spaced
^-
20.3 ps apart are transmitted,theseare the frame or
bracketpulses,Fl and F2. BetweenFl and F2 there
are up to twelve code pulsesdesignatedand spacedas
shown in Fig. 8.5; a thirteenth pulse,the X pulse,
may be utilized in a future expandedsystem.
The presenceof a code pulsein a reply is
determinedby the settingof code selectorswitcheson
the pilot's controller when the reply is in responseto
a mode A (orts) interrogation.If the interrosationis
mode C the codc pulsestransmittedare autoriaticallv
determinedby an encodingaltimeter.
A pulse4.35 gs after F2 may be transmitted. This 'i
is the specialposition indicator (Spl) pulse.otherwise :i
known as the indicateposition (I/p) or simply ident j
pulse. lf the reply is in responseto a mode A 'i
interrogationthe SPI pulseis selectedby a
spring-loadedswitch or button on the pilot's controller. -3
A brief depressionof the switch will causethe Spl
pulseto be radiatedwith every reply to a mode A 3
.:
I
interrogationreceivedwithin l5-30 s. Someolder
transponderswill transmit a SpI pulsein reply to a
mode C interrogationwhen the reply code containsa
D4 pulse;this corresponds to an altitudein excessof
30 700 ft.
 ldontity

ldentity
o
!
o
=
Altitude

Unassigncd

Fig 8.4 Interrogation pulse spacing

Fr cl A1 c2 A2 C4 A4 'X' 8r _Dr 82 d2 84 D4 F2

l*z.sr,t-l

Fig 8.5 Replytrainformat

Coding: Identification Table 8.1 Group A codeselection(similarly for

The codepulsestransmitteddependon four code groupsB, C and D)
selectorswitches,each of which controls a group of
threepulsesin the reply and may be set to one of A4 A2 AI Selection
eight position,0-7. The code groupsare designated
A, B, C and D, the pulseswithin eachgroup having 0 0 0 0
suffixes4,2 and I (seeFig- 8.5). The resultingcode 0 0 I I
is binary codedoctal, the most significantoctal digit 0 I 0 2
beingdetermined.bythe group A pulses,the least 0 I I 3
significantby the group D. 0 0 4
Selectionof the A pulsesgivesthe familiar binary 0 I 5
code,asshown in Table 8.1. Similarly with selection I : 0 6
of the B, C and D pulses. I I
The number of possiblecode combinationsis
easilyarrivedat sincewe havefour octal digits giving
8a = 4096. Someof the code combinationsare siven
specialsignificance;we have: il ,o,o
'7600 Radio failure 77OO Emergency

Thereis also a specialcode for hijack.

o'o'
Coding: Altitude Fig. 8.6 Examples of pulse trains lbr particular selected
The flight level of the aircraft referencedto a pressure codes

123
 of 1013.25mbar(29.92 inHg) is encoded Table8.2 100-Footincrementcoding
automaticallyin incrementsof 100 ft, the codeused
beinglaid down by the ICAO. The maximumencodedMod,o(A) cr c2 c4
rangeis from -1000 to 126700 ft inclusive.With
100 ft incrementsthis requires1278differentcode 8 0 I
combinations, with 4096 availablewe seethereis 9 0 I
considerable redundancy.It is impracticalto usemore 0 0 0 :
rl

of the availablecodessincethe aciuracy of I I 0

barometricaltimetersis suchthat it is not sensibleto 2 I 0
have,say,50 ft increments; in any casethe objective Reflection
is to indicateflight levelswhich arein hundredsof - I 0
feet. 4 I 0
To accommodatethe redundancythe Dl pulseis ) 0 0
not usedand, further,at leastone C pulseis 6 0 I
transmittedbut neverCl and C4 togetherin a single 1 0 I
reply. Thus for eacheightpossibleA group
combinationsof pulseswe haveeight B group,five C
goup and four D group,giving8 X 8 X 5 X 4 = 1280 The A, B and D pulsesform a Gray code givinga
possiblecodecombinations; two more than necessary.total of 256 incrementsof 500 ft each,i.e.
The extra two. if assigned. would correspondto 128000 ft, commencingat -1000 ft. In orderof
i
I 1 0 0a n d - 1 2 0 0 f r . frequencyof bit changewe have84,82, Bl, 44, A2, ,
The C pulsesform a unit distancereflectedbinary Al , D4, D2; thus 84 changes every 1000 ft whereas
I

codegivingthe 100 ft increments.As shownin D4 doesnot enterthe codeuntil 30 800 ft and D2

Table8.2 the reflectedpattern,startingat :
until 62 800 ft. Needlessto sayaircraftin the general
C l = C 2 = 0 , C 4 = l , b e g i n sr v h e nM o d l e ( A )= 8 ; aviationcategorywill not needto employ encoding
i.e.when the renrainder on dividingthe altitude(in altimetersgivingD4 and D2 selection.
hundredsof feet)by 10 is 8. Thus to find the C To find the A, B and D pulseswe can use
pulsesin the codefor. say,25400 ft we have Table8.3. Sincethe entriesin the tablecommence {
A = 2 5 4 ,M o d 1 6 ( A = ) 4 , s o C l a n d C 2 a r ei n t h e r e p l y . with zero,whereasthe altitudecommences at

Table8.3 500-Footincrementcodins

B4 0 1 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 r 1 0 0 1 t 0
B2 0 0 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 t r 1 r 0 0
B1 0 0 0 0 I. r t 1 1 1 I r 0 0 0 0
A4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 r t I I I I I

D2 D4 AI A2

0 0 0 0 0 1 2 3 4 s 5 7 8 9 l0 lt t2 13 14 15
0 0 0 I 31 30 29 28 27 26 2s 24 23 22 2t 20 19 l8 t7 16
0 0 I 32 33 34 35 36 3 7 3 8 39 40 4 1 42 43 44 45 46 47
0 0 0 63 62 61 60 s9 58 57 56 55 54 53 52 5l 50 49 48
- 0 0 64 55 66 6't 58 69 70 7 t 7 2 . 7f 74 7S 76 77 78 79
o I 9s 94 93 92 9l 90 89 88 87 86 85 84 83 82 8t 80
0 0 I 96 97 98 99 100 101 t02 I 03 104 1 0 5 106 107 108 109 ll0 l1l
0 0 0 t27 126 125 t24 t23 122 t2t I 2 0 ll9 ll8 tt7 116 l15 114 l13 tr2
I 0 0 t28 129 130 131 r32 r33 134 I 3 5 135 137 138 139,140 l4l 142 r43
0 I 159 158 r57 156 155 154 153 Is 2 1 5 l 150 t49 148 t47 146 145 t44
I I I 160 161 162 163 t64 165 166 I 67 168 169 170 l7l 172 r'13 174 t' t5
I I 0 l9l 190 189 188 187 186 185 I84 183 182 r8l 180 t79 178 t77 t76
I 0 0 t92 193 t94 195 196 r9't 198 I 99 200 20t 202 203 204 205 206 207
I 0 I 221 222 22r 220 219 218 217 21 6 2 t 5 2r4 2t3 212 2tr 210 209 208
t 0 0 I 224 225 226 227 228 229 230 23 1 2 3 2 233 234 23s ?36 23't n8 239
0 0 0 255 2s4 253 252 25t 250 249 24 8 2 4 7 246 245 244 243 242 241 240

124
-1000, we must add 1000 to the altitude before
enteringthe table. The tablerecordsthe altitudein
incrementsof 500 ft. The followingalgorithmwill
give the requiredcode:
(i) add 1000 to the altitude;
(ii) enter table with the integerpart of the result
of (i) dividedby 500;
(iii) readthe code:row, column.
As an examplewe will find the completecode for
I l0 200 ft:
( i ) 1 1 0 2 0 0 +1 0 0 0 =l l l 2 0 0 ;
( i i ) I n t . ( l l l 2 0 0 / s 0 0 )= 2 2 2 ;
( i i i ) 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 1= D 2 D 4 A l A 2 A 4 B l 8 2 F . 4 .
To find the C pulses:
Modls (l102) = 2, therefore100 = Cl C2 C4.
C o m p l e t ec o d ei s l 0 l 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 .
False Targets
There are severalcausesof unwanted returnsbeing
displayedon the air traffic controller'sp.p.i.,one of
which is interrogationby sidelobes. This is discussed
in somedetail below under the headingside lobe
suppression.
Sincethe transponderantennais omnidirectional
the reply pulsesnreantfor one interrogatormay also
be receivedby another,providingit is within range
and its antennais pointingin the directionof the
aircraftconcerned.Suchunwantedreturnswill not
be synchronized with the transmission of the
interrogatc'rsufferingthe interferenceand would
appearas randombright dots on the p.p.i. This type
known as fruiting.carrbe dealtwith
of interi-erence,
by makinguseof the tact that different
interrogatorswork on difl-erentinterrogationrates,
P 1 ,P 3
r
*'J
Fig. 8.7 Three-pulse
s.l.s.
repliesmay thus be sortedon this basis.
A reply from a transponderlastsfor a period of
20'3 ps, thus the transmittedpulsetrain will occupya
distanceof 163000 X 20.3 X l0-6 = 3.3 nautical
milesin space(speedof propagationbeing
163000 nauticalmilesper second).As a consequence
any two aircraft in line with the interrogator,and
with a differencein slantrangeof lessthan 1.65
nautical miles,will transmit replieswhich overlapin
spaceand consequently mutuallyinterfereat the
interrogatorreceiver. Such repliesare said to be
garbled. Secondarysurveillanceradaris most useful
when traffic densitiesare greatest.These
circumstances, of course,giveincreased garbling.
Reflectionsof the transmittedenergy,either
interrogationor reply,from mountains,hills or large
structureswill givean indicatedreply at an incorrect
range.Sincethe directpath is shorterthan the
reflectedpath echoprotectionmav be used;i.e. the
receivermay be suppressed or desensitizedfor a
limited periodon receiptof a pulse.
Side Lobe Suppression(SLS)
When a reply is receivedits angularposition on the
controller'sp.p.i.is determinedby the directionof
the main lobe radiationfrom the interrogator.If the
reply is due to an interrogationtiom a sidelobe then
the indicatedbearingwill be incorrect.Two systems
havebeen designedto suppressrepliesto sidelobe
interrogation:they are the ICAO 2 pulseand the
FAA 3 pulseSLS systems.Someoldertransponders
havecircuitry applicableto eithersystem;however
three-pulseSLS hasadvantages over its virtually
obsoleterival and is the only systemconsidered,
The polar diagramfor the interrogatorantenna
systemis shownin Fig. 8.7. Pl and P3 are the
a t 8 , 1 7, 2 l o r 2 5 p s
i n t e r r o g a t i opnu l s e s p a c e d
radiatedfrom the directionalantenna.P2 is the SLS
control oulseradiatedfrom an omnidirectional
I2rs f-
125
 antenna. The field strength for P2 is such that an lnstallation
aircraft within the Pl/P3 main lobe will receiveP2 at
a lower amplitudethan Pl/P3 whereaselsewhereP2 Figure 8.9 showsa typical transport category aircraft
will be greater. The condition for a reply/no reply dual installation. Two transpondersare mounted side
are: by sidein the radio rack mating with back plate
n >Pl connectorsin the mounting tray junction box. Two
no reply
encoding altimetersand the control unit havetheir
P2<Pl-9dB reply
connectorsrouted through the back plate to the
otherwisemry reply
transponderswhile direct connectionsto the front of
In the grey regionthe probability ofa reply increases the transpondersare made from two L-band antennas
with decreasing P2 amplituderelativeto Pl. and the suppressionline interconnectingall L-band
equipments. Powersuppliesare routed through the
Probability backplate.
of reply
The encodingaltimetersmay be blind (no altitude
indication) or panel-mounted.On largertransport
aircraft encodedaltitude information may be derived
from a static pressure-activated capsulemechanismin
a centralair data computer(CADC).
The transpondersare fitted on a shock-mounted
tray. Coolingis by convectionand radiation. Most
transpondersdesignedfor the generalaviation market
combinetransponderand control unit in one box,
which is panel-mounted.To ensureadequatecooling
sufficient clearancemust be allowedaround eachunit.
n-P2 A common co-axialcableinterconnectsthe
(dBsl transpondersand DME interrogators.A transmission
, I 'black
Grey by any one box' will causethe receiversof the
Fig. 8.8 Probability ofa reply :i
j
l
J
{
Supply: 115V, 4OO Hz
and/or 28 V d.c.

lllumination
S0ppressioninlout

.s
..{
EE EE E
,i
,rrl/{o
@@
3
!
*-(/ I

Fig. 8.9 Dual transponderinstallation

126
 other threeto be suppressed for a perioddepending
on the_source; a transpondersuppression puir. will be
about30 ps.
controlunit is, of course,panel-mounted
in
the cockpitandprovidesthe piloiwith.o*fi.t"
controloverthe transponders. Only onetransponder
at a timeis in usewhilethe otheriJon standbv.
alternative. The code setectedappearsin a window
abovethe switchesand will determinethe code
pulsespresentin the reply in responseto a
modeA
(or.B) in_terrogation.Sometranspona.r,
t .u" "
facility for remote automaticteying fo, moOes
e ana
B; this may be selectedby settingtlie code
,rit.h.,
to 8888. In fact the necessaryextra equipment
has
neverbeenintroduced.

Controls and Operation I/P.Syvit-chSpring-loadedto_off pushbuttonor toggle

s'uritchfor selectionof the SpI puise. May be labelled
FunctionSwitch Off-Standby-A-B-C_D. ModeC SPI or ldent.
operationwill dependonly on thepositionof
the
altitudereporting(a.r.)switch;henceif the function Lo SenseSwitch Whenselectedto .on'reduces
the
svitch hasa'C' positionsucha selection wouldserve transponderreceiversensitivityby l2 dB. This
to switchmodesA, B andD off but haveno effect featurewas introducedas an inteiim measurefor
on
the selection
of modeC. Manytransponders have reducingsidelobe response.Subsequent
only A andC capabilityin which.ur. th. function developmentshavemade this facility unnecessary.
switchmighthavepositionsOff-standby-A.
A.R. Switch On-off selectionfor altitude reporting.
Rotaryswitches
mountedco-axiaily
?!:.S*:!rhes
m palrs;thumbwheel Test (T) Switch Spring-loadedto off pushbutton
switches
area common or

Spike
eliminator
pulse width
limiter

Visual monitor
Fig. 8.10 Transponderbtock diagram

727
 .,i
i
I
j
j
i
.{
toggleswitch which energizesthe self'testcircuitry. transmitter. Radiationis by an omnidirectional ?
antenna. {
Indication of a successfulself-testis givenby a green *
The sidelobe suppression circuitsare fed with the
visualmonitor lamp which alsoilluminateswhen a
reply is sent in responseto a valid interrogation. The receivervideo output. In the event of an interrogation I1
by sidelobe, the receiverwill be suppressed for about :q
self-testswitch and visualmonitor may be repeated ii

on the transponderunit for the use of the 35 ps commencingat a time coincidentwith the P2 n

maintenance engineer. pulse,thus blocking the passage of P3.

The suppression circuit is triggeredwheneverthere
is a reply. The suppression pulseso producedis used
TlansferSwitch Selectseither transponderNo' I or
No. 2 in a dual installation. to suppressthe receiverand is alsofed to other
Pilot work load with transponderis minimal, there L-bandequipmentfor the samepurpose. The
beingno indication other than the monitor lamp suppression featurebetweenL-bandequipmentsis
while control switch changesareinitiated on ATCs mutual.
instructionseitherby r.t. or throughstandard Automaticoverloadcontrol(a.o.c.)otherwise
procedures. known asgroup countdown,progressively reduces
the receiversensitivityafter the reply rate exceeds
typically 1200groupsper second.AssumingI 5 pulse
replies,0'45ps pulsewidths and a maximumreply
Simplified Block Diagram Operation
rate of 1480 groupsper secondwe havea typical
airline requirementof a I per cent duty cycle to
The interrogatingpulsesofr.f. energyare fed tcl the
handlernultipleinterrogations.
receiverby way of a 1030 MHz band passfilter' The
Self-testfacilitiesareprovided.On beingactivated,
pulsesare amplified,detectedand passedas a video
a test signalis injectedinto the front end of the
iignal to the spikeeliminator and pulse-wihthlimiter self-testis indicatedby the
receiver.A successful
circuits;theseonly passpulsesgreaterthan 0'3 gs in visualmonitor lamp which lights wheneverthere is an
duration and limit long pulsesto lessthan that Sometransponders havean
adequatetransmission.
duration which will causetriggering.The decoder
audiomonitor facilityin additionto the visual
examinesthe spacingof the interrogationpulsesPl
monitor.
and P3, if it is that for the mode selectedan output
will be givento the encoder.If the Pl-P3 spacingis {
2l prsan output will be givenregardless of the mode n
I
selected. Block Diagram Details :
The encoder.on being triggeredby the decoder.
Transmitter Receiver !
':i!
producesa train of pulsesappropriateto the required
reply which is determinedby codeswitches(mode A) The r.f. sectionswill employnormalu.h.f. techniques .t

or encodingaltimeter(modeC). The encoderoutput suitablefor processingsignalsin the regionof $

internalco-axialleads i
triggersthe modulator which keys the 1090 MHz 1000MHz. Interconnecting
l
.;
j
l
l

I
'i

To vidco
st6gos

Fig. 8.1I Logarithmici.f. amplifier

128
must be of a length laid down by the manufacturer as Table8.4 Comparison of conventionaland
they play a part in the circuit action; in particularthe logarithmic
amplifiers
lead to the transmitterwill be of a leneth such that
receivedsigralswill seethe transmitteifeed as a high Input signal Output signal
impedance,thus assistingin the duplexing action.
In flying from maximum rangetowards the Conventional Logarithmic
interrogator a large dynamic rangeof signalstrength
is received,at least50 dBs from minimum triggering V AV AV
level. Providingadequateamplification for the weak I3
signalscan result in saturation of the last stage(s)of
the i.f. amplifier when strongersignalsare received. V AV 2AV
Such saturation may give rise to the suppressionof T2
valid interrogations by the SLS circuit since the
strongerPl main lobe pulseswill be limited. V AV 3AV
Successive detectionof the video sigral can T
overcomethe saturationproblem. Figure 8.11 shows
a logarithmicamplifier usingsuccessive detection. v AV 4AV
fusuming a gain of A for each stageand a maximum
stageinput signalZ before saturationof that stage,
an input to the i.f. amp. of VlAi wrll causestage4 to beingpassedto the decoder. Long pulseswhich
saturate.In this event the detectedoutput to the might causea'reply are reducedin duration by the
video stagewill be (VlA') + (VIA) + (V) + (AV) pulse-widthlimiter monostable,the output of which
which is approximatelyequal to AV for'a reasonable is a pulseabout 0'5 ps in duration regardlessof the
gajrnA. Table 8.4 illustratesthe differencebetweena width of the input pulse.
conventional and logarithmic amplifier. The decoderinput monostableensuresthat only
the leadingedgeof Pl (positive-goingt) triggersthe
Decoder mode A and C delay circuitseachof which consistsof
Many transpondersstill in serviceuse multi-tapped a monostableand a differentiatingcircuit. The mode
delaylinesin both decoderand encoder;howeverall A and C AND gateswill givean output if the delayed
moderntranspondersemploy monostablesand shift Pl pulsesfrom the differentiatorsare coincidentwith
registers,in the form of integratedcircuits,which will the undelayedP3. An output from either AND gate
be the only type of transponderconsideredhere. will give a trigger('T') output from the OR gate.
The detectedvideo signalsare appliedto the spike
eliminator and pulsewidth limiter in series. The Encoder
action of the 0'3 ps delay and AND gateis to prevent ln the exampleof an encodershown,two lO-bit shift
any pulsesor noisespikeslessthan 0'3 ps in duration registersare used(e.g.Signetics8274).The operating

O ' 5p s

Output
O'3lrs
Pulse width
limiter
Odprrt

Spike eliminator

fig. E.f 2 Spike eliminator and pulse width limiter

wavcforms

129
 .{
r
,{

J
{
Pulse :
.!

width :
limiter :.

Fig.8.l3 Decoder

n
t t
n
t l
Input | Ln-]
P'I P2 P3

l . l
30 trs mono output -

8 lrs mono-output
I lrs

21 1rsmono output

n
t l

Differentiator I O/P

Differentiator 2 O/P
n
n
l l
'A'
output

'C'
output

T'output

- modeA intertogation
Fig,8.14 Decoderwaveforms

mode is controlledby inputsS0 and Sl, hold, clear, 'lhc

load and shift being selectedby the input values
$rown in the truth table(Fig.8.l5). Thesetwo
control waveformsare producedby two monostables,
one triggeredby the positive-going edgeof the T
output from the decoder,the other by the
negative-goingedge. This anangementgivesus the
s e q u e n o el o a d , s h i l t , c l c a r , h o k l . S 0 w a v e f o r mi s
a . l s ou s e d t ( ) g a t c a c l o c k g c r r c r a t o r p
, c r i o d 1 . 4 5g s .
'l
Load l'ha lcading cdgc of triggcrs thc controlling
m o n o s t a b l c ss o t l r a t S ( ) = l , S l . , ( . 1a n d t l r c s h i f t
r e g i s t e re l e r n c n t sw i l l b c l o a d c r lw i t l r t l r c b i n a r v
information present on tlrc input lirres. Since il an<l

130
 sxo $lBo,,o

10 bit 10 bit
shift register shift re$ster

I Pilot ct
: code
switch
Encoding
altimeter D4
switch

r-
Fig 8.15 Encoder

F2 are requiredin all replies,the appropriateinputs
arehigh (+5 V). The one time-slotbetween.A4and
B1 and the two time-slotsbetweenF2 and SPI are
neverused;consequently their input lines,together
with the two spareafter SPI.arelow (earth). The
dynamicinput linesCl to D4 will be high or low
dependingon the code switch selection(mode A
interrogation)or the altitude(modeC interrogation).
Assuminga validmode A interrogationhasbeen
'A' line
receivedtherewill be a pulsepresenton the
from decoderto encodercoincidentin time with the
'T'line. After inversionthis A pulseis.
puiseon the
appliedin parallelto one of twelveNOR gates,the
otherinputsof which areconnectedindividuailyto
the twelvepilot code switches.Thosecode pulses
selectedresultin a groundon the appropriateNOR
gateinput. Sincethe other input in eachcaseis also
low for the dur4tion of the load mode, the NOR gate
outputscorresponding to selectedcodesgo high and
thusset the appropriateshift registerelement. Similar
action.occurs whenevermodeC interrogations are
receivedalthoughDl selectionis not involved.Noise
filteringis employed(r.c.networks)within the
transponder for eachof the altitudeinformation
input leads.SPIloadingoccurswhen the A pulseis
coincidentwith the l5-30 s output pulsefrom the
SPItimer producedon depression of the SPIswitch.
Shift The trailing edgeof pul5eT triggersthe S1
monostablethus S0 = Sl = I and the shift registers
arein the shift operatingmode. Shiftingoccurswith
a high to low transitionof the clock pulses,thus in
the l'45 1lsafter the first transitionthe shift register
output is high (Fl); after the next transitionthe

131
 :l
::
s1 I

l
:

so

cLx
c2 A2 C4 A4 D2 B4 D4 F2

S/R out
oooo :

S/R out
7777

Differentiator
o|rt

AND out
oooo

AND out
7777

Fit. 8.16 Encoderwavefolms

output will be high or low dependingon hqw the Cl monostable is to provide pulsesof the correct
elementwas loaded,and so on. duration to the modulator.

Aear and Ho;ld S0 and Sl pulsesare each of Encoding Altimeter

approximately30 ps duration, thus S0 goeslow ltrst
= =
$ving S0 0, Sl I when all the elementsclear.
ln fact during shift all elementswill haveclearedso
this clearmode of operationis not vital. What is
important is that S0 goeslow first, sincewe do not
want to load againuntil just before the next
transmission.At the end of SI we haveS0 = SI = 0,
the hold mode which is maintained until the next
valid interrogation.
The output ofthe shift registercontainsthe coded
information but not in the form required,i.e. a train
of pulses. Differentiatedclock pulsesare fed to an
AND gatewhich is enabledby the shift register
output, thus positivepulsesappearat the output of
the AND gatein the appropriatetime-slots. The final
As the aircraft ascends,the decreasein static pressure
causesexpansionof the capsuleand consequent
movementof a position-sensing device,an optical or
magnetictransducer (Fig. 8.17). The resulting
servo-assisted drive, through appropriategearing,
drivesthe altitude display and encodingdisc. The
pressurereferencefor the indicatedaltitude can be
lhangedby the barosetcontrol. It should be noted
*rat this doesnot affect the encodingdisc position
which is alwaysreferredto 1013'25 mbar (29'92 in'Hg)
the standardmean sea-levelpressure'As a result all
aircraft report altitude referencedto the samelevel;
an essentialrequirementfor ATC purposes.
Variationson the aboveareencodingaltimeters
which give no indication of altitude, blind altimeters,

132
 ffi Barowr

i l
i'---@
I
I
Tach.
gen.
fu--ffi
-{ no,o,
I T
-l ffi' t--:
I
I
I

Posi ----- Lioht

sensrng Light sonsitive
d e v i ce sourcc devices

Encoding
disc

\-^-N
Capsule
I *1.- Porver
crr(urts
-l switch i n g
c l r c u l ts

Static connection Supply To transponder

Fi& 8.17 Servoenodingaltimetet

drivesbut
and thosewhich do not haveservo-assisted minimizesthe error when the readingline is aligned
do employ a vibrator to givesmooth movementof with the junction of two segments.
pointer and encodingdisc. In the simplifiedencodercircuit shownin
Fig. 8.20 with A/R switchON ZenerdiodeVR2 is
Altitude Encoding shortedand emitterof Q2 returnedto earth. When
A transparentdisc,usually glass,is divided into tracks light from LED VR1 falls on photo transistorQl, via
and segments.Eachconcentrictrack representsone a transparent part of the encodingdisc,currentis
of the code pulses,the outer track beingC4, while a drawn through R switchingon Q2. Thus collector of
segmentrepresentsa oarticularaltitude. An opaque Q2 falls to a low value,i.e. input 2 to NOR gateis
pattern is formed on the disc so that on a particular low. If input I is drivenlqw by an output from the
s€gmentthe areaof intersectionwith eachtrack will decodera high output lrom the NOR gateis available
be either opaque or transparent depending on the for loadinginto the encodershift register.
code assignedto the altitude representedby that If no light falls on Ql we haveno volts drop across
segment. R, thus Q2 is off and input 2 to NOR gateis high.
The disc rotatesbetweena light sourceand Undertheseconditionsa'zero'will be loadedinto
photosensitive.devices, one for eachtrack, aligned the appropriateshift registerelement.The circuitry
'reading describedis repeatedfor eachtrack of the disc.
along the line'. As the disc is driven by the
barometricaltimeterthe appropriatesegmentis read.
Referringback to Tables8.2 and 8.3 we seethat Side Lobe Suppression
the codechanges by I bit for each100 ft increment. Of the severalpossibleways of desigringan SLS
This useof a l-bit changeor unit distancecode circuitone is illustratedin Fig. 8.2l, with the

133
 ft---*
||-.+
lF-+
ll-> To
ll-- transpondcr
tl-+
ll-*
t=
\.,r n,
sensitivc
devices

Fi& E.lt Encodingdisc Tracks

Fig.8.l9 Segmentfor12300ft,code0l0ll0l0o. Segments

Encodingaltimcter range- l000-32 700 ft

Mode C
load

f- +v
tl
U
I A/R onloff
*-1
Encoding j
alttmeter

-L
=
Transponder
Fig. 8.20 Simplifiedaltitudeencodercircuit

134
 D2
R1

-v2 Ditch
digger
t-__

circuit
Fig.8.2l Sidelobe suppression

associated waveformsin Fig. 8.22. MonostableMl

and AND gateGl separatethe Pl pulsefrom P2 and
P3 so that M2 will be triggeredby Pl only and will
not be triggereduntil the next interrogation. M2 and
M3 provide a gating waveform about I ps wide in the
P2 pulseposition.
Th" input pulsesarealso appliedto a'ditch-digSer'
lnput circuit. Prior to Pl, Dl is forward biasedand the
junction of Cl/R2 is low. Both inputs to G2 ate
low. The leadingedgeof Pl causesDl to conduct
chargingCl rapidly. The laggingedgeof Pl causes
in, d Dl to cut off, sincethe junction Cl/R2 falls by an
amount equal to the amplitudeof Pl . Cl now
discharges through Rl and R2. WhenP2 arrivesDl
will conduct providingthe amplitudeof P2 is
GI sufficient. The time constantClRlR2 and the bias
voltagesVl and Y2 ue chosenso that if P2>Pl
AND gate G2 will receivean input via D2 which will
M2,O be coincidentwith the gatingwaveformfrom M3'
Thus the SLS pulsegeneratorM4 will be triggeredif
and only if Y2> Pl, the subsequent suppression
pulsebeing usedto inhibit the receivervideo output
M3, O to the spikeeliminator.

Characteristics
Junction
c1 R2 The followingsummaryis drawnfrom ARINC
CharacteristicNo.572.1for theMk 2 ATC
transponder. It is worthpointingout that several
featuieson the Mk I transponder arenot requiredfor
the Mk 2, however the will
engineer find many
transponders whichhavesomeor all of
still in service
Fig. 8.22 Side lobe suppressionwaveforms the following:

135
 l. two-pulseSLS;
2. SLS countdown - receiverdesensitized when
the number of SLS pulsesexceedsa limiting
figure;
3. low sensitivity selection;
4. receivervideo signaloutput socket;
5. remote automatickeying;
6. externaltransmittertriggeringposition;
7. audiomonitor:
8. transmissionof SPI pulsewheneverD4 is one
bit ofthe altitudereportingcode.
Receiver
Minimum Ttiggering Level (MTL)
-77 to -69 dBm at antennaor
-80 to -72 dBm at transponder.
Dynamic Range
M T L t o 5 0 d B sa b o v em . t . l .
Frequency and Bandwidth
Centrefrequency1030MHz.
- 3 d B p o i n t sa t 1 3 M H z .
-60 dB pointsat ! 25 MHz.
Decoding Facilities
Decoderoutput lbr pulsesspaced8, I 7 and 2 I ps
tolerancet 0.2 gs on spacing.Automaticmode C
decodingregardless of modeselectionswitch.
Spaceprovisionfor 25 ps decoding.
Side Lobe Suppression Facilities
Pl > P2 + 6 dBs shouldgive90 per cent reply rate.
6 dBsratherthan ICAO 9 dBsensures adequate
marginto allow for performancerundown in service. A popular test set is the IFR ATC 6004 illustratedin
SLSPulse Duration
25-45 ps.
Transmission
Tlansmitter Frequency
1 0 9 0 13 M H z .
Minimum Peak Power
500w.
Reply hIttlseCharacteristics
Duration 0.45 1 0'l ps measuredbetween50 per cent
amplitudepoints.
0'05-0'l ps risetime, l0-90 per cent.
0'054'2 ps delaytime,90-10per cent.
136
Reply Delay
3 t 0'5 ps.
Reply RateCapabiliry
1200repliesper second.
Reply Pulse Interval Tolerance
t 0'l gs for spacingof any pulse,other than SPI.rvith
respectto F I ; t 0'15 ps for spacingof any pulsc'with
respectto any otherexceptFl: t 0.1 prsfor spacing
of SPI with respectto F2.
Mutual SuBpression P.ilse
25-331s duration.
Manitor Lamp
To light when five repliesaredctectedat a rategreater
thar 150 repliesper second.To stayilluminatedfbr
l 5 s a f t e rl a s tr e p l yd e t e c t e d .
Antenna
Polarization:vertical.
v . s . w . r .b: e t t e rt h a n l . 4 l : I a t 1 0 3 0a n d 1 0 9 0M l t z .
Ramp Testing
A transpondercan be testedril situ usingone of
s e v e r apl o r t a b l et e s ts e t s .A s u i t a b l er a n t pt e s ts e t
will testby radiatitrrr._bc. ceplbleof interrogatingon
at leastmcldesA and ( . be capablerlf simulatinga
sidelobe interroXptlon. displaythe transponder reply
and providea ffeansof measuringthe transponder
transmitterfrequency.
ATC 5OOA
Figure8.23. A reasonfor its popularity is the fact
that it can testboth DME and ATC transponder with
a comprehensive rangeof checks,making it suitable
for functional testson the ramp or bench.
Pl, P2 and P3 pulsesaregenefatedand usedto key
a crystal-controlled 1030MHz oscillator.The interval
betweenPl and P3.isswitchedto simulatea mode
Ay'Cinterlace,two mode A interrogationsbeing
transmittedfor eachmode C. The following
characteristicsmay be variedby front panelcontrols:
l. Pl-P3 intervd - to checkdecoder;
2. P2 amplitude- to checkSLS;
3. Transmitterpoweroutput - to checkMTL.
The reply is displayedby a bank of lamps,one for
eachcode pulseand oire for the SPI pulse. There is
 ) poweroutput of transponder
(1 50 per cent

#ffi "n[f* x: accuracy);

3 . frequencyof the'transpondertransmitter;
4 . percentage reply;
l * t
* * )
l l r t 5 . invalidaltitudecode,i.e.no C pulsesor C I and
l

r* # ' $'tl*$ i . r t

';*'!,r,".t'-'.1;u
,:-:
C4 together;
6 . absenceof code pulsesin reply to nrode C
interrogation.
i
I
ffi
t+ Supplyis by rechargeable batteryor a.c.,battery
operationis limited by a timer. Further l'eatur.es
are
Fig.8.23 ATC600A(courtesy
tFR Electronics directconnectionto the transponder via an external
lnc.)
34 dB pad, self-testing
of display,lampsand battery
and direct connectionofencodingaltirneter.
alsoa numericalreadout which showseither the pilot
codeor the altitude in thousandsof feet. In addition TIC T-33B and T-438
to this basicinformation the following can be checked: The TIC approachto ramp testingis to useseparate
testsetsfor L bandequipments,the T-338 and
l. F2 timing; T-43B beingthosefor ATC transponder.

Fig. 8.24 TIC T-438 (courtesyof Tel-InstrumentElectronics

Corp.)

137
Specificationsfor the two test setsare identical
exceptfor the addedfacility of direct connectionof
an encoderwhich is availableon the T'438.
The capabilitiesof thesetest setsand the ATC
6O0Aare similar in so far as ATC transponderramp
testingis concerned,in that they both meet the FAA
requirements.Differencesarelargelydue to the use
of the ATC 6004 as a bench test, although it should
be noted that a particularATC 600A is best usedas
eithera benchtest setor a ramp test setbut not both.
To detailthe differences, the TIC test setsdo not
havefacilitiesfor continuouslyvaryingPl -P3spacing
or strobingthe F2 pulse,and do not indicateinvalid
'no altitude'informationor transmitterpower.
or
, t
<<"
138
Featuresof the TIC test setsnot availableon the
ATC 600A are provisionof all military and civil
modesof interrogationand changeof scalefor
percentage reply meter(0-10 per cent SLS on:
0-100per cent SLS off). Thereare other minor
differences, and one other major difference.in that
the TIC test setsare designedftlr use in the cockpit
on the groundor in flight, the antennabeing
mountedon the test set asopposedto the ATC 600A
wherethe antennais mountedon a tripod nearthe
aircraftantenna-The antennaarrangements l'or the
TIC test setsnecessitatethe useol direci connection
to the tr;ulsponderfor receiversensitivitychecks.
:
.J
 I Weatheravoidance

Introduction
can remainin a cloud without falling to earth is
dependenton the speedofthe up-draughtof air.
Weatherforecastingis by reputation and, until the
In the appendixto this chapterit is shown that the
introduction of satellites,in fact, notoriously signalin a weatherradaris proportional to the sixth
unreliable. Evenwith modern techniquesrapidly power of the droplet diameter,so strongsignaisare
changingconditions and lack of detailed associated with a rapid up-draught. If a small volume
information on the exact location and severityof bad of the
cloud resultsin strongsignalsfrom one part
weatherresultsin diversionsor cancellation,of fligt t, and
weak from an adjacentpart we havea steep
where the forecastis the only availableinformation. 'rainfall
gradient',most probably due to a down- and
What is requiredis an airbornesystemcapableof up-draughtcloseto one another. The region around
detectingthe weatherconditionsleadingto the this verticalwind shearis likely to be highly
hazardsof turbulence,hail and lightning.. turbulent.
Attention has been concentratedon developins The correspondingargumentfor associating
systemswhich will 'detect'turbulence.tf an alrcr-aft electricalactivity with turbulencegoes
as follows.
passesthrough regionsofsevere turbulenceit is A wind shearwill resultin the separationof positive
obviouslysubjectto rnechanicalstress,which may and negativeelectricalchargesin the air due to the
causedamage,possiblyleadingto a crash. On friction of the moving air currents. An electrical
commercialflights, passenger comfort is also dischargeoccursafter sufficientchargeof opposite
important sincethe number of customerswould soon polarity has accumulatedin
distinct parts of the
declineif the discomfort and sicknesswhich cloud. Thesedischarges occur repetitively,most
turbulencemay bring becamecommonplace. beinghidden from view but occasionallyseenas
Unfortunatelythe phenomenonof rapidly and lightning. Each dischargeis accompaniedby a large
randomlymoving air currentsis not amenableto burst of e.m. radiationwhich canbe receivedat some
detectionby any currently realizabletechnique; distance.In most radioapplications the 'noise'
however,someprogressmay be madeby utilizing a receiveddue to lightning is a nuisancebut its
pulsedDopplersystem. associationwith turbulenceis put to good usein a
As a consequence of our inability at presentto Ryan Stormscopein a way similarto that in which a
detect the turbulencedirectly, systemshave been weatherradarusesithe'nuisance'signalsof weather
developedwhich detect either water droplets or clutter.
electricalactivity, both of which are associatedwith We can summarlzeand combinethe above
convectiveturbulencein cumulonimbusclouds. arguments by saying:convective turbulenceoccurs
Clearair turbulencehas no detectableassociated wherewe havelargeshearforceswhich imply:
phenomenawhich can give a clue to its presence. (a) an up-draughtsupportinglargeraindropsformed
To detectwater dropletsor raindropsa from the water vapour in the warm moist air rising
conventionalprimary radaris usedwith frequency from ground level;(b) a nearbydown-draughtwhich
and specialfeatureschosento optimize the cannotsupport largeraindrops;(c) frictional forces
presentationof signalswhich would, in a normal search givingriseto
chargeseparation; and (d) electrical
radar,be unwanted. Weatherradar hasbeen usedfor discharge due to chargeseparation arida saturated
many years,and is mandatory for largeaircrift. interveningmedium.
Therehasbeena steadymove into the generalaviation Causeand effect are very much bound up iri this
market by radar manufacturersbut here a relatively argument,the variousphenomenabeing
recentinnovation is the Ryan Stormscope,a patented interdependent.Howeverreasonable the theory, the
devicewhich detectselectricalactivity. ultimatejustificationfor the association between
The maximum diameterof a water droplet which turbulence,steeprainfallgradientand electrical

139
activity is recordedcorrelationduring many flights.
Weatherradar is certainly well provenwith many
yearsin service,while the Stormscope,although only
availablesince1976,hasbeenindependently
evaluatedand shown to be a useful aid'
WeatherRadar
Basic Principles
Weatherradar operationdependson three facts:
l. precipitationscattersr.f. energy;
2. the speedof propagationof an r.f. waveis
known;
3. r.f. energycan be channelledinto a highly
directionalbeam.
Utilizing thesefacts is fairly straightforwardin
principle. Pulsesof r.f. energyare generatedby a
iransmitter and fed to a directionalantenna. The r.f.
wave,confi4edto asnarrow a beamaspracticable,
will be scatteredby precipitationin its path, someof
the energyreturning to the aircraft as an echo. The
and receptionis
elapsedtime betweentransmission
in particular
directlyproportional to rangeR,
= of propagation
R ct 12 where c is the speed
(= 162000 nautical miles per second);t is the
elapsedtime; and the divisor2 is introducedsince
travelis two-way. The direction of the target is
simply givenby the direction in which the beam is
radiated.
Sincethe pilot needsto observethe weatherin a
wide sectoraheadof the aircraftthe antennais made
to sweepport and starboardrepetitively,hencewe use
the term scannerfor a weatherradarantenna.Any
stormcloud within the sectorof scanwill effectively
be slicedby the beam so that a cross-section of the
cloud is viewed.
Displayof threequantitiesfor eachtargetis
requirid: namelyrange,bearingand intensityof echo'
.l ptanpositionindicator(p.p.i.)displayis invariably
utid tinc. this allowsthe simultaneous displayof the
'
threequantitiesand is easyto interpret.
A cathoderay tube (c.r.t.)is usedin which the
beamof electronsis velocitymodulatedin
accordance with the receivedsignalstrength'
Whereverthe beamstrikesthe'phosphorcoatingon
the back of the viewingscreena glow occurs,the
intensity of which is dependentof the velocity of the
electrons.Thus a strongsignalis associated with a
bright spot on the screen;hence the term intensity
modulaiion. The beamis made to sweepacrossthe
screenin synchronismwith both the time of
transmission and the antennaposition'
140
In a conventional(rho'theta) display the beant
strikesthe screenat bottom centre(origin) at the
instantthe transmitterfires. Subsequentlythe beam
will be deflectedacrossthe screenin a direction
dependenton the scannerazimuthposition,e.g.if the
scanneris pointing dead aheadthe beant is deflected
vertically from the origin. In this way a time'baseline
is tracedout on the screenand is made to rotate in
synchronismwith the scanner.'
The duration of the time-base,i.e. the length of
time it takesto tiaversethe screen,dependson the
rangeselectedby the pilot. Everymicrosecondof
round trip traveltime corresponds to a rangeof
0'081 nauticalmiles,thus for a selected rangeof
the time-base will be about
20 nautical miles
250 ps in duration. An echo received125 ps after
transmissionwould causea bright spot to appear
half-wayup a 250 ps.time-base, so indicatingto the
of the target is l0 nautical miles'
pilot that the range
The net result of the aboveis that a cross-section
of the targetswithin the selectedrangeand scanned
sectorof the radarareviewedin plan. The position
of the bright patcheson the screenrelative to the
origin is representativeof the position of the targets
relativeto the aircraft. Figure9.1 illustratesthe .-
situation.
and Features
Choiceof Characteristics
Frequency
The higher the frequency(smallerthe wavelength)
the largeris the backscattercross-sectionper unit'
volumeof the target (see A9.12) hencethe greater
the echo power. However, high frequenciessuffer
more atmosphericabsorptionthan do low, and
further cannotpenetratecloudsto the sarneextent'
Thus the choiceof frequencyis a compromise'An
additionalconsiderationis the beamwidth; for a
givenscannerdiametera narrowerbeamis produced
with a higherfrequencY'
Practically,takinginto accountavailabilityof
standardcompqnents,the choicecomesdown to
eitherabout 3'2 cm (X'band) or 5'5 cm (C-band)'
The majority of radarsin serviceand currently
manufacturedare X-band.
Pulse Width
The volume of the target givingrise to an echo is
directly relatedto the pulsewidth (seeA9.8) thus use
of long pulseswill give improvedrange'
There are two argumentsagainstlong pulses:
l. Sincethere is only one antennaand a common
 (-,\\ ,\l
L_ \",
r\-l c\', ()
--^-\-1

l \
) \

Time-base

a
{

r \
\__

Fig.9.1 Displayprinciples

frequencyfor transmit and receive,the antenna Sincerangeresolutionand minimum rangeare not

must be switchedto the transmitter for the criticalin a weatherradar,pulsestend to be longer
duration of the pulse;thus the pulsewidth than in other radars,say2-5 ps. A shorterpulsewidth,
determinesminimum range. For a 2 ps pulse say I ps, may be switchedin when a short displayed
no return can appearfor the first 2 ps of the rangeis selected.
time-base, givinga minimum range= A techniqueis availablewhich realizesthe
2c X tO-612t one-sixthof a nauticalmile. advantages of both long and short pulses. The
2. Rangeresolutiondeteriorates with increasing transmittedpulsecan be frequencymodulatedso that
pulsewidth. A pulseof 2 ps durationoccupies the r.f. increasesover the duration of the constant
about 2000 ft in space. If two targetsare on the amplitude pulse. The frequencymodulatedreturn is
samebearingbut within 1000ft of one another passedthrough a filter designedso that the velocity
the echofrom the nearesttargetis still being of propagationincreases with frequency. Thus the
receivedwhen the leadingedgeof the echofrom higher frequenciesat the trailing edgeof the echo
the furthest targetis received.The resultis that 'catchup'with the lower frequencies at the leading
both targetsmergeon the p.p.i.display.The edge. In this way, the duration of the echo is
rangeof the targetsdoesnot affect the resolution. compressed.It shouldbe noted that the bandwidth

141
 TargetI Target 2
Harfa | |
wavelength k-
= IOOO' i +

t-\-\l I --- t
l---

+ 2 time (7rs)

------ t + 3

+ 4

+ 5

Rang€

[D Incidentpulse (2 1rs)

K3 Reflectedpulse

Fig.9.2 Range
resolution

requirementsareincreasedby usingfrequency
modulationof the pulsedr.f., this being the penalty
lbr obtainingbetterrangeresolution.This technique
is known as pulsecompressionbut, so far as the
author is aware,is not usedon existingairborne
weatherradars.

hrlse Repetition Frequency,p.r.f.

Changingthe p.r.f. will affect the number of pulses
striking agivenvolume of the targetin eachsweep
and hencechangethe displayintegrationfactor
(see A9.17). Howeverin order to maintain a constant
duty cycle(pulsewidth X p.r.f.) an increasein p.r.f.
must be accompaniedby a decrease in pulsewidth, so
keepingaveragepower and henceheat dissipation
constant.Alternativelyan increase in p.r.f.
accompaniedby a reductionin peak power will also
keepheatdissipationconstant.The net resultis that
for constantaveragepower a changein p.r.f. doesnot,
in theory, affect the maximum rangeof the radar.
Limits areimposedon the choiceof p.r.f. sinceif
it is too low the rate at which information is received
echoes
Fig.9.3 Second.trace
is low, while if it is too high the seriousproblem of
secondtraceechoesmay arise. If the characteristics
of the radarare such that the maximum rangefrom
which echoescanbe detectedis, say,200 nautical
miles then the round trip travel time for a targetat
maximumrangewould be about,2500ps. In sucha
systema pulserepetitionperiodp.r.p.(= l/p.r.f.) of
2000 gs would meanthat the time-basestart would
occur 500 ps before the return of an echo of the
previoustransmittedpulsefrom a target at 2OO
nauticalmiles. This secondtraceecho would appear

142
to be at about 40 nautical miles range. It follows that is that ground returnswill appearat closerrangesfor
in the aboveexamplethe maximum p.r.f. would be wider beamwidths,thus maskingthe cloud retums.
400 and in generalp.r.f. ( c/2R whereR is the
maximum range. Tilt and Stabilization
A popular choicefor older radarswas a p.r.f. of The reasonfor requiringstabilizationis relatedto the
4O0 synchronizedto the supply frequency. With previousparagraph.A weatherradarmay scanup to
improved performanceleadingto increasedrange,a 300 nauticalmiles aheadof the aircraft.within azimuth
submultipleof the supply frequency,e.g.200, was scananglesof typically t 90". Unlessthe beam is
used. In modernsystemsinternaltimingis controlled to move only in or abovethe horizontal
independentof the supply frequencyand one finds planepart or all of the weatherpicture may be
p.r.f.sfrom about 100 to 250. maskedby ground returns. Imaginethe aircraft rolling
with port wing down. If the sweptregionis in the
Power Output sameplane as the aircraft'slateraland longitudinal
In older radarspeak power outputs of about 50 kW axes,then when the scanneris to port the beamwill
or evenhigher were common,while maximum range be pointing down towardsthe ground,while when to
wasmodest. In modernradars,peakpoweris about starboardthe beamwill be pointing up, possibly
l0 kW with increasedrangecompared with previous abovethe weather. Figure9.4 illustratesthis
systems.This apparentspectacularimprovementis problem.
put in perspectiveby consideringthe rangeequation In fact stabilizationholds the beamnot in the
(see A9.7) where we seethat maximum rangeis horizontal planebut at a constantelevationwith
proportional to the fourth root of the peak power. respectto the horizontal. This constantelevationis
Thus reducingpower by four-fifths reducesmaximum determinedby the tilt controlassetby the pilot.
rangeby about one-third. This shortfall of one-third Detailsof stabilizationand tilt arediscussed later.
hasbeen more than madeup by improvementsin
rerial design,receiverdesignand sophisticatedsignal Contour
processing. The pilot will be interestedin thoseregionswherethe
precipitationis greatest.In order to make the
Beam Width situation clearer,thosesignalswhich exceeda certain
Although the largerthe beamwidth the greaterthe predeterminedlevel are invertedso as to show the
volumeof the targetcontributingto the echo this cellsof heavyprecipitationas dark holeswithin the
'paint' causedby the cloud surroundingthe
effect is more than cancelled out due to the inverse bright
'paint' aroundthe cell is an
relationshipbetweenaerialgainand beamwidth cell. The width of the
(G o ll02). A narrowbeamis alwayspreferred, indication of the rainfall gradient. The narrowerthe
sincethe net effect is to increaserange and improve width the steeperthe gradient,and hencethe greater
bearingresolution.Simplegeometricconsiderations the probabilityof encountering turbulence.This
show that with a 4" beamwidthtwo targetsseparated techniqueis known as iso€cho (equal echo) contour
by about 3! nauticalmiles,at a range) 50 nautical pre sen tation.
miles,will appearas one on the p.p.i. Bearing
resolution,unlike rangeresolution,is dependenton Sensitivity Time Control, s.t.c.
the targetrange.An equallyimportantconsideration For correctcontouroperationthe signalstrength

No stabilitv

./ B\
<______ __ \
Stability

No stabilitY

7///////////////////////////////ru 7//////27'////////////////////////ru
Fig. 9.4 Scannerstabilization

1/13
strould depend only on the characteristicsof the
target,but of coursethe rangealso affectsthe received the time immediatelybefore transmission
ifthe contour inversion
power. As a consequence
so as to indicate storm cells at a certain
levelis set
rangethen innocent targetscloserthan that range
may causeinversionwhile storm cellsbeyond that
rangemay not. In order to solvethe problem the
receivergainis made to vary with range, being
minimum at zero range and increasing thereafter
(i.e. with time), hencesensitivitytime control or
sweptgain,asit is sometimescalled.
Tx
------+Time fade and contour
Rx
gain
(S.t.c.)
Fig.9.5 Sensitivity timecontrol
The aim is to make the receiveroutput
independent'udrange. Unfortunately the received
power decreascs as the squareof the rangefor targets
which fill the beam,but as the fourth power of the
rangeotherwise(seeAppendix). To achievethe aim
would requirea complex gain control waveform
which would, even then, only be correct for a certain
sizedtarget. Many systemshavebeendesigned
assuminga 3 nauticalmile diametercloud as standard;
amongsuchsystems, s.t.c.hasoperatedto a range
wheresucha targetwould fill the beam;beyond that
gainis constantwith time. It hasbeen observedthat
it is uncommonfor water dropletretumsto come
from a regionwhich fills the beamvertically except
at closeranges.
Following from the above,s.t.c.may be arranged
to compensatefor the rangesquaredlaw out to
about 30 nauticalmiles for a 6o beam. A changein
scannersizewould lead to a changein maximum s.t.c.
rangesincethe beamwidthwould alter. Alternativeiy,
a modified law may be compensatedfor out to, say,
70 nauticalmiles,ignoringthe possibilityof beam
filling.
Automatic Gain Control, e.g.c.
It is neither practicalnor indeed desirablewith
contour operation to have a'g.c.determined by signal eachglowingelementof phosphoris excited
level asin receiversfor other systems. The normal
1U
arrangementis to havea.g.c'noise'derived.During
the output
from the receiver is noiseonly, since the p.r.f. will
have been chosen to avoidsecond-trace echoes,i.e.
the time correspondingto maximum rangeexpires
well before the next pulse. The a.g.c.circuit is gated
so that the receiveroutput is connectedto it only for
a short time beforetransmission.
The result of havingsuch a.g.c.is to keep the
receiver noise output constant,which under normal
conditions means the gainis constant. If, for any
reasonthereis excessive noisegenerated or received,
the gainwill fall, so keepingthe backgroundnoise
displayedat a constantlevel,althoughsignalswill
will not highlight all storm cells.
An alternativearrangementis to keep the receiver
gain constantregardless of how the receiveroutput
may change.This hasthe virtue of keepingthe
conditionsfor inversionin the contour circuit
unchanging.Such presetgain is found in modern
digital systems,whereasnoise-derived a.g.c.is found
in older analoguesystems.
Display
A problem in displaydesignfor cockpit useis the
largerangeof ambientiighting conditions. Some
storageof the informationreceivedis inevitableif it is
to be viewed,owing to the relativelylow refreshrate
of the fleetingbasicinformation.
In olderand simplerradarsthe c.r.t. screenis
coatedwith a long-persistence phosphorwhich
continuesto glow sometime after the electronbeam
haspassedon its way thusstoringthe information
overthe scaninterval. Unfortunately.suchphosphors
arenot very efficient and very high shieldingis
requiredfor adequateviewingin bright conditions.
The directview storagetube (d.v.s.t.)is a solution
to the problemsof a conventional c.r.t. A meshis
mounted immediately behind the phosphor-coated
screen. Electronsarriveat the meshfrom two
sources:a locusedbeam,velocity-modulated by the
signal,comesfrom a conventionalelectron gun while
a flood gun provides,continuously,a wide beamof
electronsover the whole mesh. Sincethe modulated
beamis deflectedacrossthe meshin accordancewith
scannerposition and time sincetransmission,a charge
pattern is written on the mesh. The pattern determines
where and what fraction of incident electrons
penetratethe meshand strike the phosphor. Since
continuously,very bright displaysare possible. A
 i

slow discharge.pathfor the mesh must be provided to exception

of a few noisc spotsper memory update.
preventsaturation;the possibility of changingthe
dischargerate exists and a pilot-adjustablecontrol Scanner
may be provided. On changingrangethe meshwill be There
'instantly' are two typesof scanneremployed to obtain
dischargedto prevent confusion between the requirednarrowbeam,namelya directly fed
1ew and old screenpositionsof the targets. If the parabolicreflectoror a flat plateplanararray. Of the
dischargepath is broken and updating inhibitrd *" two, for a givendiameterand wavelength,the flat
havea frozenpicture. platehasthe highergain/narrower beam/least
The modern approachto information storageis to sidelobe power,but is most expensive.Sincethe flat
..
digitize the signalwhich is then storedin an plateis almosttwice asefficientasthe parabolic
intermediatememory at a location dependingon the reflectorit is invariablyusedwith a modernsystem
scannerazimuth angleand the time of arrival
exceptwhere cost is an overridingfactor or the space
measured with respectto the time of transmission. availablein the noseof the aircraft allows a larse-
The p.p.i. time-basescanformat can be either . parabolicreflectorto be used.
rho-thetaor X-Y as per a conventionaltelevision.
The flat plateantennaconsistsof stripsof
In either casememory can be read at a much higher
waveguideverticallymounted.sideby side with the
rate than that at which information is received. With
broad wall facing forward. Staggeredoff-centre
many more picturesper secondpainted we havea
verticalslots are cut in eachwaveguideso as to
bright, flicker-freedisplay without the need for
interceptthe wall currentsand henceradiate. Several
long-persistence phosphorsof low efficiency or the
wavelengthsfrom the antennasurface,the energy
e4pensive d.v.s.t.
from eachof the slotswill be summedin space,
In the caseof a rho-thetadisplay thc scanformat is
cancellation or reinforcement takingplacedepending
the samefor receiptand displayinformationbut, as
on the relativephases.In this applicationthe phase
explained,the repetition rate is different,so only
of the feedto eachslot, and the spacingbetween
scanconversionin time is required. With a television_
slots,is arrangedso as to givea resultantradiated
type displayboth the scanformat and repetition rate
pattern which is a narrow beamnormal to the plane
are different, so completescanconversionis required
of the plate. The greaterthe nurnberof slotsthe .
from input (received)format to readout(displayed)
betterthe performance; sincethe spacingbetween
format. Useof the television-typedisplay makes
the slots is critical we can only increasethe number
multipleuseof the weatherradarindicatorrelatively
of slotsby increasingthe sizeof the flat plate.
simpleso we find such indicatorsable to display data
The parabolicreflectorworkson a similarprinciple
from other sensors (e.g.Area nav.)or alphanumeric
to a car headlampreflector. Energystriking the
datasuchaschecklists.
reflector from a point sourcesituatedat the focus will
Digitizing the signalinvolvesthe recognitionof
oroducea plane waveof uniform phasetravellingin a
only discretevaluesof signalintensity. ihe standard
direction parallelto the axis of the parabola. The
practiceis to havethreelevelsof non-zerointensity,
feedin a weatherradarparabolicantennais usuallya
the highestcorresponding to the contour inversion dipolewith a parasiticelementwhich, of course,is
level. Although thesethree levelscorrespondto
not a point source.The consequence of a dipole feed
different degreesof brightnessof the paint, with the
is that the beam departqfrom the ideal and there is
useof a colour tube they can be madeto correspond
considerablespill-over,$ivingrise to ground target
to threecolours. While thereis no standardization of returnsfrom virtually helow the aircraft, the so-called
the colour code as yet (1979) red is the obVious
height ring.
choicefor contourabletarsets.
In both typesofaptenna,scanningis achievedby
Perhapsthe mosl signifilant virtue of a digital
r o t a t i n gt h e c o m p l e t ea n t e n n aa 5 s e m b l yt h, u sa
weatherradaris the absenceof noiseon the display.
r o t a t i n gw a v e g u i djeo i n t i s r e q u i r e d .A n
The output of the receiver,the videosignal,is
electronicallysteeredbeantis possiblewith the flat
digitizedand then averaged in both time and position, platebut the considerable
complications of arranging
i.e. the videooutput occurringp gs after a
the correctphasingof the feedto all slotshavemade
transmissionis averagedwith that occurringp ps after
this impracticalfor airborneweatherradarsystems.
the next transmission and the video datawhich would Some
of the simpler.cheaperweatherradars
appearat adjacentpositionson the screenare subject
employinga parabolicreflectorrotatethe reflector
to a weightedaver-agingprocess. With a suitablechoice only. leavingthe feed
fixed and so eliminatingthe
o f m i n i r n u ms i g r a ll e v e lf o r a ' p a i n t ' u n c o r r e l a t e d
needfor an azimuthroratingjoint. A disadvantage of
noiseis virtuallyelirninatedfrom the displaywith the
this latter systemis that the feed is not at the focus

145
exceptwhen the reflector axis is deadahead;the rotation, memory write/read and all display circuitry.
'brain'
resultingdeteriorationof the beam shapemeansthe Thus in a modern weatherradar we seethat the
anglethrough which the beamis scannedmust be of the systemis situatedin the indicator while the
restricted. heart'remainsin the t.r. This view is reinforcedby
the fact that the pilot/systeminterface is achieved
completelythroughthe indicator,both for display
lnstallation and control.
The scanneris a flat plate array plus associated
Figure9.6 illustratesa typicalinstallationin block circuitry for scannerstabilizationand.azimuthdrive.
form asrepresented by the BendixRDR 1200.a The t'lat plate is mounted on a gimballedsurfaceu'hich
digitalweatherradardesigned with the upperend of allowsrotationin response to pitch and roll signals
the generalaviationmarketin mind. The installation from the aircraftverticalreferencegyro (VRG).
will be discussed in termsof the RDR I100 first. and Radiationis througha radomewhich ideallyis
then variationsand refinements will be described. transparent to the X-bandenergybut at the same
Radome time provides protectittnfor the scanner,preserves
the aerodynamicshapeof the aircraftand has
VRG adequatestructuralstrength.
Waveguide Most of the interconnections aremadeusing
N,
Trar ---i---l standard approved cables with signal and control lines
recev e r scanner J l ) s c r e e n e dT. h e i n t e r c o n n e c t i obne t i v e e nt . r . a n d
l /
2 8 V d . c .t t s v ' c f f scanlrer is, of necessity. by way of waveguide. losses
V in co-axialcablebeingunacceptable at X-band(or
Supply e v e nC - b a n d ) .
lndrcator Whilethe aboveis a simplifieddescriptionof the
BendixRDR 1200the units and tl.reircontentsare
Fig.9.6 BendixRDR 1200installation very much the samefor all moderndigitalsystems.
A trend in lightweightsystemsfor generalaviation
The transmitterreceiver(t.r.) containsall the r.f. aircraftis to combinethe transmitterand scannerin
circuitryand componentsaswell as the rnodulator, one unit. The nrainadvantage of a two unit system,
duplexer,IF stages, analogueto digital(a/d) converter t.r./scanner plus indicator,is that the waveguide run is
and powersupplycircuits. Unlikeolder systems,the eliminated,so reducingcapitaland installationcosts
basictiming circuitryis in the indicatorratherthan andwaveguidelosses.The argumentagainst
the t.r. This timing controlsthe p.r.f.,scanner combininsthe t.r. and scanneris that the unit

Fig.9.7 Primus 200 multifunction colour weather radar.

Two-unit sensor on the left, multifunction accessorieson the
right (courtesy RCA Ltd)

1tt6
 installedin the noseis costly in terms of maintenance cornersand flexible sections,except where necessary,
strouldit require regularreplacement;thus reliability so reducingcostsand losses.A choke flangeto plain
assumes evengreaterimportancein such systems. flangewaveguidejoint is normal practice,the choke
Singlecnginedaircraft havenot been neglected,the flangehavinga recessto take a sealingring.
problemhavingbeen tackled in two different ways, The radomeis usuallya coveredhoneycomb
both of which involve a combined t.r./scannerunit. structuremade of a plasticmaterialreinforcedwith
Bendix havegone for an under-wingpod-mounted fibreglass.The necessityfor mechanicalstrength,
unit, while RCA have developeda wing leadingedge smallsizeand aerodynamicshape may compromise
mountedunit in which a sectionof a parabolic the r.f. performance. Lightning conductorson the
reflectoris used,as well as a pod-mountedunit. insidesurfaceof the radomewill obstruct the beam,
Corrosiondue to moisture collection is a problem but their effect is minimizedif they are perpendicular
in the waveguiderun, which may be easedby to the electricfield of the wave. Horizontal
pressurization.The ideal is to havea reservoirof dry polarizationis normal sincethere is lessseaclutter,
air feeding,via a pressure-reducing valve,a waveguide althoughwith moderateto rough seasthe ldvantage
run which hasa slow controlled leak at the scanner; is minimal.
this method is not usedon civil aircraft. Several On largeaircraft a dual installationis used.
installatiorpailow cabin air to pressurizethe Obviouslythe scannercannotbe duplicatedbut both
waveguiderun via a bleedervalve,desiccantand filter. t.r. and indicatorcanbe. In somecasesonly the
If the cabinair is not dried and filteredmore problems indicatoris'duplicated, thus eliminatingthe needfor
may be createdthan solved. Two interestingcases a waveguideswitch. Unlessone indicator is purely a
that havebeenbrought to the author's attention are: slavewith no systemcontrolsother than,say,
a nicotine depositon the inner wall of the waveguide brilliance,a transferswitch will be necessaryto
causingexcessiveattenuation,and rapid corrosion transfercontrol from one indicatorto another. Even
causedby fumes from the urine of animals if two t.r.s are fitted a transferswitchis still necessary
transported by air. lfno activepressurization is for scannerstabilizationon-off and tilt control.
enrployedthe pressurewithin the waveguidemay still
be higher than static pressureif all joints are tightly
sealed.A primary aim of waveguidepressurizationis Controls
to reducehigh-altitudeflash-over.
The following list of controlsis quite extensive;most
will be found on all radarsbut someareoptional.
The nomenclature variesbut alternativenamesfor
someof the controlsarelistedwhereknown.

RangeSwitclr Usedto selectdisplayedrange. Will

alsochangethe rangemark spacing.Selectionmay be
by pushbuttonor rotary switch,the latter possibly
incorporatingrOFF','STANDBY' and 'TEST'
positions.

OfflStandby Pushbuttonor incorporatedin the range

switch. With standbyselectedtherewill be no
transmissionwhile indicatorextrahigh tension(e.h.t.)
may or may not be on.'

Fig.9.8 Installation
of Weather
ScoutI t.r./scanner
unit
(courtesyRCALtd)
The waveguiderun should be kept as short as
possible.Inaccessibilityor inadequatecoolingmay
nreanthat the t.r. cannotbe situatedso as to
minimizethe lengthof the run. Straightrigid
waveguide shouldbe used,avoidingbends,twists.
Functibn Switch Selectsmodet-rf,operation
. N O R M A L " ' C O N T O U R " ' C Y C L I C i. ,M A P P I N G "
'BEACON'.
The last two of thesemodesare
described later. Normaloperationallowsthe useof
a . g . c(.p r e s egt a i n )o r v a r i a b l g
e a i n :s . t . c .i s u s u a l l y
a c t i v e .C o n t o u ro p e r a t i o ns e l e c t i o cna u s ebsl a n k i n g
o f s t r o n g e ssti g n a l sa,. g . ca. n ds . t . c .a u t o m a t i c a l l . ,
s e l e c t e dC. y c l i co p e r a t i o nc a u s enso r n r aal i r dc . r i r t o u r
presentations to alternate.Pushbuttonor rotar.y

147
 'NORMAL'switch
control may be used. may be
omitted, this mode of operationautomaticallybeing
selectedwhen a rangeswitchincorporating'OFF' and
'STANDBY'
is selectedto any rangewhile
'CONTOUR'
or'CYCLIC' switchesare off. (Seealso
'gain
control'.)
Gain Control Usedt6 set gainof receivermanually.
A continuouslyrotatableor click-stopcontrol is
normal. The control may incorporatecontour
on-off;by rotatingthe knob pastthe maximum gain
positioncontour plus presetgainwill be selected.In
this latter casea separate
springreturn pushbutton
may be usedto turn contouroff momentarily. In
other systenrsthe gaincontrol may simply
incorporatea presetgainon-off switch at its
maximumposition.
Test Switch A specialpatternspecifiedby the
manufacturers replace5weather(or mapping)picture
when test is selected.
ScannerStob Switch On-Off Switching.
Tilt Control Adjustment of scannerelevationangle
t y p i c a l l yt 1 5 " .
Brilliance or Intensitlt Control Adjustsbrightnessof weather. Severalwords of warningarein orderwhen
displayto suit arnbientlighting.
Free:e or Hold Su,itch Dara updateof display
stopped.last updatedpicturedisplayed.Transmissionblockedfurther ahead;weatherconditionscan change
and scannerrotationcontinues.Warninglamp rnay
be provided.Only availableon digitalsystemor
w h e r ed . v . s . ti.s e m p l o y e d .
(usually)sectorscanangtes,e.g.Bendix RDR 1200
hast 30o or + 60o options.
Contrast Control Adjusts video amplitier gain and
henceallowssomecontrol of pictureas opposedto
displaybrightnessevenwhen i.f. ampsareoperating
undera.g.c. Sonretimescalledintensity.
Manual Tune Contol Associatedwith automatic
liequencycontrol (a.f.c.)on-off switch. Whena.f.c.
is selectedto off, local oscillatormay be tuned
manuallyfor bestreturns. Generallynot usedon
modernsystems.
Operation
The actual operation ofa weatherradar is quite
straightforward, but to get the bestuseof the system
a considerable amountof experienceand expertiseis
requiredon tl'repart of the pilot. Beginnersare
advisedto avoidby a wide marginany contourable
targetwithin s.t.c.rangeand any targetat all outside
that range.
With experiencethe pilot is able to distinguish
betweensal-eand unsafetargetsto the extent that
he may be ableto penetrate,ratherthan just avoid,
attemptingpenetration:one shouldalwaysselectone
of the longerrangesbeforeattemptingto fly
betweenstorm cellssincethe way throughmay be
rapidlylthe limitationsof X-bandradarin so thr as
signalpenetrationis concernedshould be remembered.

Eraseor Trace Contol Springreturn switch to

rapidlydischarge meshin d.v.s.t.,so wiping picture
cleanor continuouslyvariablecontrol which alters
d i s c h a r grea t e .

RangeMark Cttntrol Alters intensity of rangemarks.

Finger
Azimuth Marker Sv'itch Electronicallygeiterated.
azimutlirnarksnraybe turnedon or ofl'.

TargetAlcrt Sx'itct On-off. Whenactivatedflashes

a n a l e r to n t h e s c r e e ni f a c o n t o u r a b ltea r g e ti s
'window'
detectedin l aheadof the aircral't(window
s i z - feo r R C A P r i n r u 2 s 0 0 i s 7 ' 5 ' e i t h e r s i d eo f h e a d i n g
. l r n i n gg i v e n
i i t a r u n g eo . l ' 6 0 - l i 0 n a u t i c arl n i l e s ) W Scalloped Edge U-Shap€d
regardless rli selectedrangealsorvhenin 'freeze'mode
Fig.9.9 RDR 1100displays(courtesy Bendix Avionics
Sec'torSrurrSrl'ilci Allowsselectionof one of two Division)

148
 It has alreadybeenmentionedthat a narrow paint scannerstabilizationfaults exist. With the scanner
around a storm cell is a good indication of severe tilted down and stabilizationon a bright circular band
turbulencebut whateverthe width the cell should be ofterrain targetscentredon the originshouidbe
avoided;the only questionis by what margin. The presented.If the band is not circularbut is severely
'toppled'or
strapeof the return on the screenis alsoa pointer to distorted,then most probablythe gyro is
'spilled', the spin axisis not vertical.The gyro
the type of weatherahead. Targetswith fingers, i.e.
hooks, scallopededgesor that are U-shapedhavebeen will be in sucha conditionif its rotor is running
observedto be associatedwith hail. Long hooks or slow, aswill be the caseif it hasjust beenswitchedon
crescent-shaped indentationsmay indicatea tornado, or there is a supply or gyro motor defect. A gyro fast
but thereareno guarantees eitherway. erectswitchmay be providedwhich,when depressed,
This chapter,and its appendix,havethus far been increasesthe supply voltageso acceleratingthe run up
concernedmainly with rain, so a word is in order here to operatingspeed. The switch shouldnot be held on
about returns from other types of precipitation. Dry for more than half a minute or so, otherwisethe rotor
mowfall will not be seenbut wet snowfall may be speedmay exceedthat for which it was designed,so
sen with difficulty. Fog and mist will not be causingdamage.
detected.Hail may givestrongor weak returns:if it To completean airbornecheck of stabilization,the
b dry and small comparedwith the wavelength, aircraft shouldbe bankedand pitched,within the
rctums areweak:if it is water-coated. returnsare stabilizationlimits, satisfactoryoperationbeing
strong; if it is dry and of a sizecomparable with the indicated by an unchanging circularterrainband.
wavelength(an extrelnecondition with 3 cm radflr) Note that with tilt down selected. the amountof nose
lhe echo is very strong. The increasein scatteringfor up pitch that the stabilizationcircuitscan dealwith is
water*oated ice particles,hail or snow, may give rise limited.
to a'bright band'at an altitudewherethe temperature Spokingis any p.p.i. presentationwhich resembles
bjust above0"C. Lightningcreatesan ionized the spokesof a wheel. lt is almostcertainlycaused
gaseousregionwhich may, if oriented correctly, by a fault within the weatherradarsystem,although
backscatterthe radarenergy. it can be causedby unshieldedelectromagneticdevices
Severalthingsmay affect the weather picture on producingstrong changingmagneticfields. There are
the p.p.i. Icingon the radomewill causeattenuation two main classes of fault which causespoking:
ofthe transmittedand receivedsignal,so targets (a) video sigrraland noisespokesdue to abnormal
which would havebeen displayedmay, under these video output amplitudevariationssuchas might be
circumstances, remainundetecteduntil very close; causedby the automaticfrequencycircuits(a.f.c.)
'innocent'precipitationwill alsoattenuatethe signal. sweepingthrough the local oscillatorfrequenciesand
Ground or searetums may mask a storm cell; the tilt (b) sweepspokesdue to faulty displaycircuitry such
control shouldbe usedto separate weather.and ground asdamagedslip ringsin the time-baseresolver
targets,a difficult task in mountainousregions. employedin an older all-analogue radar. To
Interference, which takesthe form ofbroken, curved determine which of (a) or (b) is the cause,the gain
or straightlineson the p.p.i.display,is caused by may be tumed down and the antenna tilted to
other radar systems.The exact effect varieswith the maximumup; if the spokingpersists, the fault is in
type of videosignalprocessing and scanconversion the displaycircuitry.
(if any) and with the p.r.f. of the interferingradar. The aboveis only a brief discussionof someof the
The older type of weatherradarwith no scan factorsone.mustconsiderwhen operatingweather
conversionand no averaging of the videooutput is radar. Because of the degreeof skill involved,a pilot
particularlysusceptible to interference.High p.r.f. new to weatherradarshouldstudy the manufacturer's
interferingsignals,suchasGCA, givemany fine pilot's guidecarefully;thqy areusuallyvery good.
broken radiallineson the screen.If the interfering Equallyimportant,he shouldlearneachtime he uses
p.r.f. is closeto a harmonicof the p.r.f. of the radar the system;for example,if a detouris madeto avoid
beingintert'ered with, then curvedbrokenlines, an unusuallyshapedreturn, a simplesketchand a
apparentlymoving into or away from the origin. will phone call on landingto enquireabout the weather
result. Wheremotion is apparent,the interferenceis associated with that targetwill add to his experience.
'running Rememberthat to a largeextentthe body of
commonly referredto as rabbits',another
commonll'encountered 'rabbit tracks'. knowledgeconcerningweatherreturnsis empirical.
term is
Selectionof contourmay alleviateinterference What betterway to learnthan to collectone'sown
problems. results?
',dbnorrnal p.p.i.presentations will be observedif A final and most important point needsto be

149
 /

made,and that is that weatherradarpresentsa
considerable hazard,when operatedon the ground.
Detailsare givenlater in this chapter.
Block DiagramOperation
We shallconsiderboth analogueand digital systems:
the former sinceit illustratesthe principlesof
weatherradardirectly and rystemsof this type are
still very widely used;the latter sinceit is th; currenr
approachof all manufacturers.Two types of digital
systemwill be considered:rho-thetadisplayand X-y
display.
All Analogue System
The p.r.f. generatorprovidestimb synchronizationfor
the completesystem;the output is often calledthe

lAzimuthI
drive
I I
-ti
FT I

1 S
Balenced
mrxer.

l@
;l on/
I off

P.R.F.
gen. tl
-l-,- I
Mod.
I
Tx
+
Time
base
Bright
M t l
up
Range
marks ,l
A.G.C./
s.T.c. T I
Video

Fig. 9. | 0 All analogue weather radar block diasram and

waveforms

150
 pre-pulse,sincethe laggingedgeis usedto triggerthe waveform coincidewith the
start of the run-down.
modulator. The transmitteris a magnetronkeyed by If the balancinghalf-cycleis madelargerthan
the modulator which determinesthe pulsewidth. necessary we havean open centrewhereby zero range
The burst of r.f. energy(main bang)ii fed from the is represented by an arc,ofnon-zeroradius,on the
transmitter to the scannervia a duplexerand p.p.i. display.
waveguiderun. The duplexerallowscommon aerial The gatewaveformis fed to the marker and
working in that it is an electronicswitch which bright-up circuitswhich providethe necessaryfeeds
automaticallyconnectsthe scannerto the transmitter to the c.r.t. for the duration
of the time-base.Range
for the duration of the transmittedpulse,thus marksare producedat equally spacedintervalsduring
protecting the receiver. the gate,and areusedto intensitymodulatethe c.r.t.
A sampleof the transmittedfrequencyis fed to the electronbeam. The bright-upwaveformprovidesa
a.f.c.(automaticfrequencycontrol)mixer alongwith biaswhich preventsthe velocity of the beam berng
an output from the l.o. (localoscillator).If the sufficient to excite the phosphorcoatingon the
differencefrequencyis not equal to the requiredi.f. screen,except during the time-baserundown.
the a.f.c.circuit appliesa controlsignalto ihe 1.o.,s<j Pitch and roll stabilizationis providedby a
adjustingits frequencyuntil we haveequality. If the ryro-controlledservomechanism.
differencefrequencyis outsidethe bandwidth of the
a.f.c.circuit, the control signalis madeto sweepuntil Digital Weather Radar - Rho-Theta Display
suchtime asthe a.f.c.loop can operatenormaliy. The radio and intermediatefrequencypart of the
The main receivermixer is balancedto reducel.o. block diagramis much the samefor analogueand
noise. The i.f. amplifierchainis broadband digital systems,so here only the video,timing and
(bandwidth ) 2 X reciprocalof pulsewldtn) with gain control blocks will be considered.The following
is
controlledby the a.g.c./s.t.c. circuitsor the manual basedon the RCA Primus40.
pin control. The videoenvelopeis detectedand after Analoguevideodatafrom the receiveris
further amplificationis usedto intensitymodurare digitizedin an analogueto digital (a/d) converter.
( Z - m o d u l a t i o nt )h e c . r . r . The rangeselectedis dividedinto 128 equalrange
With contour on, the videosignalis sampled,and if cells,for example,with 300 nauticalmilesselected
abovea presetinversionlevelthe videofed to the eachcell is 300/128 = 2.344nauticalmiles,or, in
c.r.t.is effectivelyremoved. termsof time, 3607 ps is dividedinto 128 time-slots
The pre-pulseis fed to the a.g.c.gatewhich thus of 28.96ps. Duringeachtime-slotthe videolevelis
allowsthe videooutput throughto the a.g.c.circuit first integratedthen encodedas a 2-bit word, thus
o n l y f o r t h e d u r a t i o no f t h e p r e - p u l s(es a yl 0 p s ) . I n givingfour discreterepresentations from zeroto
this.waythe gaincontrolline voltagelevelis madea maximumsignal.In the Primus40 a complemented
function of receivernoise. The laggingeclgeof the Gray codeis usedfor the conversionbut is then
pre-pulsetriggersthe s.t.c.circuitwhich reducesi.f. changedto standardbinary.
gainat zero rangeand returnsit to normalafter, The scanneris drivenby a steppermotor suchthat
typically,30 nauticalmiles(about 370 ps). 1024stepsaretakenfor 120" ofscan. The
The laggingedgeof the pre-pulse alsoiniriatesthe transmitterfireson everyother stepso providing512
start of the time-base and gatewaveforms,the azimuthdirtictionsfrom which echoesmay be
durationofwhich dependon the rangeselected.The received.Thuson eachof 512 azimuthanglesdatais
time-base wavefornrl(r)is f-edto a magslip(synchro acquiredin 128 rangeincrements.
resolver)in the scanner; sincethe rotor of the magslip The averaging/smoothing circuitsreducethe
is drivenin synchronism with the scannerazimuth numberof lines(azimuthdirections)by a factor of
m o v e m e ntth e o u t p u t sa r e1 ( r ) s i nd a n d1 ( r ) c o s0 4 to 128(= 51214)and apply a correctionto the
where0.is the azintuthanglenreasurecl with reference gradientof the sigralin rangeand azimuth. The 4 to
t o t h e a i r c r a f th e a d i n g U. s i n gt h e c o s i n eo u t p u t f o r I line reductionis achievedby averaging the sum of
verticaldeflectionand the sineoutput for horizontal four adjacentazimuthtime cellsasshbwnin
deflectionprovidesthe necessary rotatingtime-base. F i g .9 . 1 3 a n dT a b l e9 . 1 . A f t e r a v e r a g i nwge h a v e1 2 8
The start of the time-base run-downmust lineswith 128 rangecellsper line grving
correspondto zerodeflectionof the c.r.t.spot. Since 1 2 8X 1 2 8= l 6 3 8 4 d a t ac e l l s .T h e d a t ai s t h e n
the magslip.beingbasicallya transformer,removes correctedfirst in rangethen in azimuthas follows:
any d,c. levela balancinghalf-cycleis required if in a seriesof threeadjacentcellsthe outer two cells
imrnediatelyafter the time-base flybackto makethe arethe samebut the inneris different,then the inner
average (zero)valueof the compositetime-base is correctedso asall threearethe same;forexample,

151
 icccivcr vidco

3 5 7 10 1 1 12 13 1 4 1 5 127 128
Range cells
(NoisGl
1 ,| 0 1 3 2 0 0
Video levol (O thru 3) I 1 z

(,, 0 0 1

--{
Complemented
binarygray I
code 0 1 1
tt

Fig. 9.1I Analcgueto digital conversionin the Primus40

(courtesyRCA Ltd)

256 LINESPERFRAJVIE
FRAMEREFRESH RATE
l S 6 0 . 7H z ( 1 6 . 4 7 5 m S |
1 6 . 4 7 5 m-S2 5 6 = 6 4 3 5 5 , r SL I N ET I M E

128CELLS DlsPtAVCELTS
P€RLrNEX 256LTNES=32.768

,"*\
"',*",j,ffik%
-urr;fll.\
. c4ce{
.

Fig. 9.12 Rho-thetarasterscanformat in the Primus40;

512 transmissions per scan,128 linesin memory,256
displayedlines (courtesy RCA Ltd)

152
Table9.1 Four to one line averaging 'nemory
as it is received.Sincethe signallevel within
eachrangecell is codedas a 2-bit word the memory
Sumof four azimuth Average capacitymust be 2X 128 X 128 = 32'168bits. The
adiacenttime cells memorycomprisessixteen2 X 1024-bitshift
registers,so applicationof clock pulsescausesthe
0-l 0 circulationof dataprovidedthe output is connected
2-5 I to the input which is the casewhen new data are not
6-9 2 beingloaded. New datamust be loadedinto memory
r0-12 3 at the correcttime in the sequence of circulating
data;this timing control is providedby the new data
313 would be correctedto 333 while 012 would line control circuit which synchronizesthe loading
remainthe same(seeFig.9.l4). The aboveprocesses, with scannerposition. Loadingis inhibited when the
togetherwith the integration of the video signal freezebutton is pressed but circulationof data
within eachrangecell prior to digitization, reducethe continues.The datais continuouslyreadout asit
displayednoice to negligibleproportions. circulatesat a rate of about 7'772\inesper second
Eachof the 128 lines of 128 cellsis placedin comparedwith loadingevery fourth main bang,a rate
of 121'414= 30.35linesper second.The different
load and readratesgivethe scanconversionin time,
a-----------l a--.,--=-l leadingto a flicker free bright picture.
Although 128 linesof videoarestored,256 lines
aredisplayed,so it is necessary to doublethe stored
After averaging- lines. The line-doublingcircuit averages two adjacent
storedvideolinesto generatea middleline, so giving
the required256 lineseachof 128 cells(i.e. a total of
32768 displayedcells). In the averaging processthe
rule is to averageup if an integeraverageis not
possible.The following example,consideringpart of

Fig. 9.13 Fout to one line averagingin the RCA Primus 40

Noise

E'l corrected

F8. 9.14 Rargc and azimuth smoothing and correction in

the RCA Primus40

153
 Video Averaging
from Rx smoothing
circuits

Tx
trigg6r

CRT
Frame retrace

tI
Freeze

and rho-thetadisplayblock
Fig,9.15 Video processing
diagram

32768 bit Data out

shift register

Clock

Fig. 9.15 Simplifiedmemory

three adjacent stored lines, illustrates the process: mile is represented by 128125= 5'12 cells,so the first
mark is locatedat cell 26 (= 5 X 5'12) with subsequent
storedline...3 3 2 2 1 . . . m a r k sa t c e l l s5 l , 7 1 , 1 0 2 a n d 1 2 8 .
middleline...3 3 2 2 t . . . Azimuth marksareobtainedby raisingall 128
storedline...3 2 2 I 0 . . . cellsof the appropriatelinesby I in a similar way t^o
m i d d l el i n e . . . 2 I I I 0... that describedabove. The sweepis 120",so for l5-
storedline...0 0 0 0 0 . . . azimuthmarkerswe requireI + 120/15 = 9 linesto
Rangemarks are obtainedby raisingthe appropriate be enhancedin intensity. With 256 linesthose
rangecell levelfor eachof the 256 linesby l, i.e. 0 chosenare line 2 and line 256 Nl8 = 32ly' rvhere
-60o markersince
becomes1, I becomes2,2 becomes3 while 3 remains N= 1-8. Line 2 is usedfor the
at 3. Thus rangemarksappearslightly brighter than blankingis applied to the first'trace line, tltus the
azimuth marker is in fact at -59'0625".
targetreturnsexceptfor level3 targets'Identification leftmosi
of the appropriaterangecell in each line is achieved The contour circuit converts a video 3 levelto a
by a counter. For example on the 25 nautical mile video 0 level. If we had a range sequence of cells
rangethere are five rangemarks 5 nautical miles apart. 0 2 3 0 0, say,then the contouredcell of level3
Sincethere are 128 rangecellsper line eachnautical would not be bordered,the sequencebeing

154
 0 2 0 0 0. To avoid this, the rangecell adjacentto a The rho-thetarasteris generated by tlte deflection
contouredlevel 3 cell is raisedto level 2 if necessary,
circuitswhich are triggeredby the frame andX-Y
thusin ourexampleO 2 3 O 0 would become retracewaveforms.A linearramp currentrvaveform
0 2 O 2 0 after contouring. Borderingis guaranteed needsto be generated for both_the)/ (vcrtical)
in azimuth as a result of the line-doublingprocess deflectioncoilsand the X (horiz.r,ntal) deflection
since,for example,if we haveadjacentazimuth cells coilswhich form the yoke. The durationol'the ramp
with videolevelsI 3 0 from'memory,then i s 5 3 ' 8 9p s w i t h a 1 0 ' 4 6p s r e t r a c e( f l y b a c k ) g i v r nag
line-doublingwillgive | 2 3 2 0 and after totalline time (time-base period)of 64.35 gs. The
contouring | 2 O 2 0 as required. This bordering amplitudesof the rampwavelbrmsdeterminethe
-featwe is.necossarywhere the video gradientis steep, amountof deflectionin the X and X directionsand
suchaswhen we receivereturnsfrom mountainsor thus the particularline which is tracedon the screen;
distantweathertargets. line I is at -60o, line 256 is at +60o. In.pracrice,
sinceon the completionof one frameat line 256 on
vlotor-EvtLs 0 0 r I 2 3 2 t O the right we start the next frame on the left after
frameretrace,line I is blankedin order to allow the
* ( , o deflectioncircuitsto settledown. The franrerateis
SINAiY CODI
6O'7Hz.
,,1. o The X and )z ramp waveformsare initiated by thc
X-Y relracepulses.The amplitudeof the I/ ramp
must be a mininrumat the beginningand end of the
frameand a maximumhalf-waythroughthe frame;
its polarity is constantthroughout.The anrplitudeof
ANALOGVIDEO
the X ramp must be a maximurnat the beginningand
end of the frame and zerohalf-way through the
frame,when the polarity reverses.To achievethe
amplitudevariationsdescribedthe X and Y ramp
Fig,9.17 Digitalto analogue (uncontoured)
conversion wavefolmsare amplitude-modulated by appropriately
(courtesy RCALtd) shapedwaveformstriggeredby the frame retrace
pulse.
The c.r.t.is intensitymodulatedby one of four It shouldbe evidentthat timing and synchronization
d.c.levelsappliedto its control grid. Sincethe output are all-important. We seefrom the simplifiedblock
from the contourcircuit is digitalwe must employ a diagramthat the timing and controlcircuitsare
digital to analogue(D/A) conversioncircuit. connectedto virtuallyall partsto ensurethe

Frame
retrace
I

ffi,,, Mod

X-Y retrace _ r l l l l l l
'-- Y x -
Ramp Ramp

Fig. 9.18 Ramp generation

t55
necessarysynchronization. All timing signalsare
derivedfrom d 4'972459 MHz crystal-controlled
oscillator(period0.201 1077 ps). Of particular
significance is the scannerpositionwhen new datais
loadedinto the memory. A counterin the scanner
drivecircuitscountseveryeighthstepin the sweep,
first clockwisethen counterclockwise and so on.
The counterthus givesthe memoryline numberfrom
I to 128 (= 1024/8)which is usedby the new data
load circuit. lt is possiblethat the scannerstepping
motor may missa few beats,in which casethe count
referredto abovewill not representthe scanner
positioncorrectly. In order to preventcumulative
errorsthe count is Jammed'at 64 wheneverthe
scannercrosses the deadaheadpositiongoing
clockwise.The informationrequiredfor Jam centre'
operationis derivedfrom the X-axisstator output of
a resolver,the rotor of which is drivenby the azimuth
motor. This output variesin amplitude,and
phase-reverses when tl'rescannerpases through the
deadaheadpositi<-rn..
The aboveis a much-simplified descriptionof the
essential featuresof the Prirnus40; many detailshave
beenomitted. Other digitalweatherradarswith
rho-thetadisplayssuchas the BendixRDR 1200will
differ in detail but will operatein a similar way.
Digital WeatherRadar - Television(t.v.) Display
In the nrevioussectionwe sawthat a disital weather
t \
FlRsl t lttD RAsltRLltrt. oNt tr 126Llilts wRlTTiN
r l R 5 1F l t l , 0B T A NRKI T R A C t liN t o N t 0 f 1 2 8G t N f R A l tA
E t A t i rfKL Y B A CLKl N i r R O nt N D0 t f l R 5 Ir l t L oT 0 B t C I NINN G0 f S t C o l ' lfDl i t o A I R A l t 0 f 1 0 7 . H
----- stcoNDFliLR 0
0 A S T ILRI N € . 1 . 10tf l ? 8 L l N t !
-- s f c 0 N Dt l t L D E L A NR KI T R A C
FLYBACKLINtfR0!,!t!D0tStCOt!0FltLDT0EtClNNlNC0frlRSIfltLDAIRAT[C[1075H.
Fig. 9.t9 Simplifiedrasterfor the Primus30 (only eleven
linesshown)(courtesyRCA Ltd)
156
radarwith a rho-thetadisplay requiredscan
conversionin time only. This follows sincethe data
arecollectedin the sameorderasthey are presented;
only the ratesare different. With a t.v. display this is
not so, thereforewe needscanconversionin both
position and time. Sincethe basicdifferences
betweenthe two types of digital radar are the rasters,
scanconversion,and the organizationof memory we
shallconcentrateon thesetopics. What follows rs
basedon the RCA Primus30.
The rasteris similar to a standardt.v. display
except that the field and line directionsof
displacementare reversedand it is quantitatively
different. The rasterconsistsof 256 verticallineseach
with 256 cells,thus we have256 X 256 = 65 536
displayeddata cells. Eachframeof 256linesis
displayedin two interlacedfieldseachof 128 lines.
The field rate is approximately107'5 per secondso
the interlacegivesapproximately53'75 framesper
second(fasterthan conventionalt.v.).which givesa
flicker-freepicture.
Azimuth drive is similar to the Primus40, the angle
of scanbeing 120" achievedin 1024steps. An
azimuth counter counts every fourth step so that
when the count has gone from 0 to 255 there is a
phasereversalof the drive signalcausingthe scanner
to reversedirection. When switchingfrom standbyto
a transmitmode(normal,contour,cyclic or mapping)
the scanneris driven counterclockwiseto the
)'
\l ',
\
\ \ \
t \i !
\i\
r t
| l
rl \i
ATRATI0f 10, t Hz'
Dl R A T0i f l 0 / t H 2 '
5r
s ! R l I T I N
A l R A r t0 f l o i 5 H z '
L Il N t .o t \ t 0 r I 2 8C t f t t R A T tA0TR A T0I f 1 0 7t H ] '
'llt60 UMs PtR stc
leftmost position, and 'chatters'there until the usedasa lock-up table to give the valuesof cos 0 and
azimuth counter reaches255 when clockwise s i n0 .
rotation is initiated; this ensuressynchronizationof T h e 1 2 8 X 1 2 8= l 6 K R A M c e l l sm u s tb e
counter and position. convertedto 256 X 256 = 64K displaycells;this is
Digitized data is written into a random access achievedby a datasmoothingcircuit. EachRAM cell
memory (RAM) consistingof eight 4096-bit RAM is convertedinto four displaycells,the videolevelin
chipsgivinga total of32K bit storage(lK bit = lO24 eachdisplaycell beingdeterminedby a weightedand
bits). Thus with a cell containinga 2-bit word there is biasedaverage of levelsin the corresponding RAM cell
provisionfor l6K cells(= 128 X 128). Conceptually and someof its neighbours.With the cellsdesignated
the memory is arrangedas a grid with orthogonal asshownin Fig. 9.21we have:
ixes, so the addressat which datais to be storedmust
be in X-Y format. SCanconversionis required to ' Ia = inr. + Is + It + l)lal
IQI6
provide the correct addressgiventhat the data is being Ib = int. +'t7 + IL + l)l4l
l(2ly
receivedin a rho-thetaformat. /c = int. + Is + Ia + l)l4l
IQIy
Id = inr. l(Zty + Ir + In + l)l4l

whereint. [. . . .] meansintegerpart of f . . . .1.

(x+AX,Y+AY) An exampleoi the processfor one RAM cell is given

in the figure.
Four concentricarcs,with centreat the middleof
the bottom edgeof the display,serveas rangemarks.
The addresses of the displaycellsto be illuminated
(o'O) frrr rangemark purposesarestoredin a ROM. The
I l[-+ 8K bit ROM is time-shared with the scanconverter
AX--ri e
which utilizesit asa sin/coslook-uptable,asstated
Fig.9,20 Rho-theta to X/I scanconversion previously.
The rho-thetasectorof targetreturnsoccupies
only part of the X-Y display. The unusedareaof the
Assumed word hasbeencorrectlystoredat
address (X,Y) the next word, assuminga unit range screen is usedfor alphanumerics identifyingthe
operatingmode and the rangemarks. A ROM, used
step,must be storedat (X + LX, Y + A)z) where
only lbr alphanumerics, containsthe positioncode
AX = sin 0 and AY = cos0, 0beingthe scanner
for the bottom ofeach characteron any givenline of
azimuth anglegivenby the azimuth counter (see
F i g . 9 . 2 0 ) . T h e r a t eo f g e n e r a t i o n the raster.
ofnew addresses
is determinedby the rate of generationof new data Eachof the circuits providingthe functionsof
raster generation, azimuthdrive,digitization,RAM
cells,of which there are 128 for eachazimuth count.
ROM addressing
The first datacell in eachgroup of 128 corresponds and and transmissionmust be
to the address (0, 0). A readonly memory(ROM) is synchronized in time. All timing signals are derived
from a 10.08MHz crystaloscillator.Suitable
sub-multiplesof the basicfrequencyare fed
lr throughout the systemas triggersand clockswhich
lb td keep everythingin step.
lr lM lR
la lc
l8
Scanner Stabilazatioh

2 The needfor scannerstabilizationhasalreadybeen

2 3 stated;herewe shallreviewthe implementation.
1 3 3 i-
I 2 3
There are basicallytwo types of stabilization:
platform and line-of-sight.With the former the
3
movingpart ofthe scannercanbe considered asbeing
mounted cin a platform controlled,independentlyin
Fig. 9.21 A RAM cell to display cell conversion in the RCA pitch and roll, by a vertical referencegyro (VRG).
Primus 30 With the latter, pitch and roll signalsare combined,

157
 Timing
and
control

Control
panel
(rangel

tsig.9.22 XIY displayblockdiagram

taking into accountthe azimuth angleof the scanner, The aboveparagraph is the basisfor line-ot-sight
the compositesignalbeingusedto control the beam stabilization. Pitch and roll signalsfronr the VRG are
tilt angle. Sincethe platform systemrequires combinedin an azirnuthresolver, the rotor of which
rotatingwaveguide joints for azimuth,pitch and roll is drivenby the azimuthmotor. Tl.restatorsof the
movenrentplus pitch and roll motors,the line-of-sight resolverareconnectedto the pitch (P) and roll (R)
systemis preferredin most modernweatherradars. outputsof the VRG, in sucha way that the rotor
Only the line-of-sight systemwill be explainedbelow. output is P cos0 + R sin d, where0 is the azimuth
'
Whilethe scanneris pointingdeadahead,aircraft angle.
movementin roll will haveno effect on the beam The compositedernandsigrralis fed to a servo
direction sincethe axis about which the aircraft is amplifierwhich alsohaspositionand velocity
rotatingis in line with the bearnaxis. With the feedbackinputs. If the sunrof the inputsis non-zero,
scannerpointing90" port or starboardpitch an error signalfrom the servoamplitierwill drivethe
movementwill havea negligibleeft'ectsincethe axis motor so as to reducethe error to zero. The position
aboutwhich the aircraftis rotatingis paralleland close feedbackfrom the tilt synchrois modifiedby the tilt
to the beamaxis. Conversely with the scannerdead control so that the angleof the beanraboveor below
ahead,aircraftpitch must be correctedin full while the horizontalmay be setby the pilot. Velocity
the scannerat t 90" aircraftroll rnustbe correctedin feedbackis providedby a tachogenerator to prevent
full by pitchingor tilting the scanner. excessive oversltoot.'

158
 Antenna
Elevation Azimuth
rotary joint rotary

q) 6h
I
F

Azimuthmotor
controllogic
from indicator
L--- Pitch/roll
I amplifiers
I

I Cable and I
Oear reductionl
I

(T)
I
Pcos0
+
R . s i n0

le and
reduction Summing-
pre-amplifier

Position
feedback

Indicator

Fig.9.23 RDR 1200scannerblock diagram(courtesyBendix

AvionicsDivision)

The componentsusedin the stabilizatidnsystem restrictedto say145o, ason variousgeneralaviation

canvary. The positionfeedbacktransducerand tilt
control may be two- or three-wiresynchrosor indeed
potentiometers.Someequipmentsusea d.c. rather
than a.c.motor althougha.c.is normalfor demand
and feedbacksignals.On somesystemsno roll
correctionis employedif the scannerazimuthangleis
systems.
Unlessan azimuth steppermotor is usedthe
azimuthangularvelocityof the scanneris not constant.
Reversal of directionat the extremitiesmeansthat
the scanneraccelerates towardsthe deadahead
position and slowsdown going away from deadahead.

159
It follows that lesstime is availableto make
stabilization correctionsat the deadaheadposition.
If the servoloop response is fastenoughto copewith
the nrostrapidrRovement in azimuthit will be too
thstat the extremities.In order to vary response
the velocityfeedbackmay be modifiedso that it is
greatestin amplitudewhen the azimuth angleis a
maxlmum.
With a flat plateaerialthe beamis tilted by
pitchingthe plate,thus a pitch-rotatingwaveguide
joint is needed.Thereis a choicewhen the system
usesa parabolicreflector,eitherthe reflectorand
feedmovein pitch or the reflectoronly. In the latter
caseno pitcli-rotating joint is usedbut the beamshape Fig.9.24 Weather-mapping facility using a parabolic
deterioratessincethe feed point is displacedtiom the reflector
focuswith tilt applied.
Other Applications for Weather Radar
AJthoughthe primary function of a weatherradaris
to detectconditionslikely to giveriseto turbulence, plate array designecl
variousother usesfor the systemor part of the system However,a fan-shaped
havebeen;and continueto be, found. Thesewill be
briefly described.
Mapping
Virtually all weatherradarsoffer a mappingfacility.
At its most crude,selectionof mappingmerely
removes s.t.c., whereupon the pilot can tilt the beam
down to view a limited regionof the ground. At its
bestthe beamis changedto a fan-shaped beam,
wherebyreceivedechoenergyis constantfrom all
partsof the illuminatedgroundregion. In the
Appendixit is shownthat the receivedpoweris
inverselyproportionalto the squareof the rangefor a
beam-fillingtarget(A9.9). alsoif the beamis
depressed at an angle@to the horizontal the range
R = ft cosec@wf "e /r is the aircraft height. So for
equalreturnsfrom ground targetsat different
depressionangles(hencerange)the transmittedpower shift frequenciesis narrowestwhen the beam is
needsto be distributedon a cosectd basis.sincewe
will thenhave(Pr)o(PtlR2i". lcosec2Qlh2 cosec261= canbe displayedon a suitableindicator(A-type
Q l h ' ) , i . e . P , i s i n d e p e n d e notf r a n g e .
With a parabolicreflectoran approximatecosec2 noiseelevatedonto the top of the returnpulse.With
beamcanbe obtainedby useoi a polarization-
sensitivegrid aheadof the reflectorsurface. In the
weathermodethe grid is transparent to the beam
sincethe E field is perpendicular to the conducting
vanesof the grid while in the mappingmode the grid
reflectspart of the beamenergydownwardsincethe
E field is parallelto the vanesand thereforedoesnot
satisfythe boundaryconditions.To achieveremote
switchingbetweenweatherand mapping.eitherthe
160
Grid vanes
Weather Mapping
/---=--\
time
I,
z'.-\"'
Horizontally
polarized feed
reflector is rotated through 90" (asin Fig. 9.24) or
the directionof polarizationis rotatedby usinga
waveguide rotatingjoint or a ferritepolarization
twister.
The cosec2beamis difficult to achievewith a flat
specificallyfor a pencil beam.
beamcanbe obtainedby
reversingthe phaseof the r.f. energyfed to the slots
in the top half of the plate.
Whenselectedto nrapping,rivers,lakesand
coastlines areclearlyidentified,so allowing
confirmationof position. Built-upareasand
mountainswill givestrongreturns.An interesting
phenomenonmay be noticedoverthe plainsof the
United States:sincefences,buildingsand powerlines
tend to be laid out with a north-southor east-west
orientation,returnsfrom the cardinalpoints are
strongest,thus givingnoticeablebright lines on the
radarcorresponding to north, south,eastor west.
Drift Indication
With downwardtilt the retumedecho is subjectto a
Doppler shift due to the relativevelocity of the
aircraft alongthe beam. The spectrumof Doppler
alignedwith the aircraft track. The Doppler signal
display)where,due to the spectrum,it appearsas
manualcontrol of the azimuth position of the scanner
'noise'
the pilot can adjustuntil the Doppler
(spectrum)is at a minimum, when the drift anglecan
be readoff the control. This option is rarely found.
a
Beacon Interrogation
The transmittedpulsefrom the weatherradarcan be
usedto triggera suitably tuned beacon(transponder)
on the ground. The beaconreplieson 93 l0 MHz,
so a weatherradar with a local oscillatorfree.rencyof
9375 MHz and a transmit frequencyof 934i MHz will
producea differencefrequencyof 30 MHz for normal
returnsand a differencefrequencyof 65 MHz for the
beaconreply. Two differently tuned i.f. amplifiers
can be usedto separatethe signals.As an alternative
two local oscillatorsmay be used.
On somesystetnsthe selectionof beaconeliminates
the normal returns from the display;on others it is
possibleto show weatherand the beaconresponse.
The easewith which this facility can be uied to
find offshore oil rigs makesradarsoffering beacon
operationan attractiveproposition for helicopters
supplyingthe rigs. Such radarsusually havea
Fig. 9.25 Primus 30 with page-printeroption (courtesy
RCA Ltd)
short-rangecapability;for example,the Primus50
offers 2 nautical mile rangeusinga 0.6 ps pulse,thus
givinggood rangeresolution.
Multifunction Display
The weatherradarindicator is increasinglyusedfor
purposesother than the displayofweather or
mappinginformation. X-I rastersin particularmake
the displayof alphanumericdata straightforward,
henceall the major manufacturersnow offer a
'page-printer'
option with one or more of the radars
in their range. Similarlydisplayof navigationdatais
availableasan option with the latestcolour weather
radars.
nrotr
xon*
rftoffi
161
 A page-printeroption is normally used to display
checklists.The alphanumericdata is arrangedand
storedin pageson EPROMs,either in the indicator or
in an external auxiliary unit. EachBagemay be
calledup in turn usinga page-advance button. Pages
containingthe normal checklistindex and
emergencychecklistindex are particularlyimportant,
and usually havededicatedbuttons usedto call them
up for display. Havingdisplayeda pageof one of the
indexesa line-checkbutton may be usedto advancea
cursor(line highlightedby displaying,say,black alpha-
numericson greenbackgroundrather than greenon
black asfor the other lines).With the cursorset,the
chosenchecklistcanbe displayedusinga list button.
Apart from checklistsother alphanumeric
information which may be listed includeswaypoints,
or indeedany pilot+ntered dataif pagesare allocated
to this facility. One method of allowingthe pilot to
enter data is to usea calculatorkeyboard;
Hewlett-Packardand TexasInstrumentsmake
calculatorswhich can be modified to interfacewith
the page-printersystem.
Display ofnavigation data from externalsensors
suchasVORTAC, Omega,INS or Loran is achieved
through an interface unit. Typically the pilot is able
to displaywaypointsjoined by track lines,together
with the weatherdata. As an examplethe RCA Data
Nav. trI systemallowsthe displayof current VORTAC
frequency,rangeand bearingto current waypoint and
up to three correctly positionedwaypoint symbols
from twenty which can be stored. An additional
featureof the Data Nav. I I is a designatorsymbol
which may be set to any desiredlocation on the
screen:this location can then be enteredas a new
waypoint to replacethe current one, so providingan
alternativeroute if stormsareobservedon original
intendedcourse.
Progressin this areais rapid' ln 1979,with the
appropriateinterface,the weatherradar could display
projectionsof aircraft position on straightor curved
paths,ETA at waypointsand warningsof sensordata
failure in addition to the data referredto above.
WeatherRadarCharacteristics
ARINC Characteristic564-7 allows the designermore
freedomthan do most other suchdocuments;
howeverit is quite clearwhat performanceand
facilities are to be made available. The following is a
summaryof someof the more significantand/or
interestingitems.
Range
At least 180 nautical miles for subsonicaircraft and
162
300 nauticalmiles for s.s.t.is usually demandedby
customers.
Rangemarks at 25 nautical mile intervalsup to 100
nauticalmiles are suggested, as are the availablerange
selectionsof30/80/lS0 or 30/100/300or 30/80/180/
360. The advantages of a continuouslyvariable
displayed range from 30 nautical miles to maximum
arestated.
Displayed Sector
nt ieast + 90" but not more than t 120". Displayed
rangeat + 90" to be not lessthan 60 per cent of
maximum range. The scanmay be reciprocatingor
circular. (Note in the caseof the latter, sincethe
scannerrotatesthrough 360' RAM (radar absorbent
material)screeningis neededon the nosebulkheadto
prevent excessivelystrong receivedsigrrals.)
Radio FrequencY
C-Band 5400 MHz x2OMHz (nominal)
X-Band 9375MHzt 20 MHz (nominal), or
9345 MHz L 2O MHz (nominal)
Bandwidth
Minimum bandwidth = l'216 where the pulsewidth 6
must be lessthan l0 Ps'
Dispby AccumcY ^
Azimuth angle:t 2-.
Range:the greaterof t 5 per cent or I nauticalmile.
Sensitivity Time Control
Range2law from 3 nautical miles to the point where
a 3 nauticalmile target ceasesto be beam filling.
Two-wirelogic from scannerto set s.t.c.maximum
rangein accordancewith antennagain (and hence
bearnwidth).
Scanner Stab and Tilt
Two-wire pitch and roll sigrralseach(E/2300) V
+ 2 per cent per degreewhereE is nominal I 15 V
400 Hz referencephase(50 mV per degreebut
expressed in terms of supply). The phaseof signalsis
specified. Dummy load of 20 kQ where signalnot
used.
Pilch and roll rate capability 20o per second.
Line-of-sight(two-ais system):combinedroll, pitch
and tilt freedomt 35" with accuracy+ lo, manual
tilt i 14".
Split axis (three-axissystem):roll t 40', pitch
t 20o,manualtilt I 14",combinedpitch and tilt
!25",accuacy t 0'5".
Droop nosesignal(tr/575) V per degree,samephase
asnosedown. (Two-wire signal,20 mV per degree
 EnrouteNavigation.
fry
1 ) T h e i n t e n d e dt r a c k l i n e o r i g i n a t i n gf r o m l h e a i r c r a f t
s y m b o ld i s p l a y sl h e p r o g r a m m e dr o u t e o f f l i g h t .W a y p o i n t s
a n d t h e i r n u m b e r sc a n b e d i s p l a y e do n t h e t r a c k l i n e .W h e n
D a t a N a vi s u t i t i z e dw i t h R N A V ,t h e a s s o c i a r e dV O R T A C
s y m b o l i s d i s p l a y e da l o n g w i t h i t s f r e q u e n c ya s i l l u s t r a t e d
W h e n u s e d w i t h a V L F / O M E G Ao r I N S s v s l e m .t h e D a t a N a v
w i l l d i s p l a ys i m i l a ri n f o r m a t t o nW
. h e n w e a t h e ri s e n c o u n _
tered lhe current Waypoint may be ottsel by using RCA'S
e x c l u s i v eD e s i g n a t o rf e a t u r e T h e D e s i g n a t o rc a n b e m o v e o
to any location on the screen by means of the Waypoint
3) The aircraft has now completed the turn and intercepted
t h e n e w l r a c k l i n e w h i c h w i l l s a f e l yc i r c u m n a v i g a l et h e
d a n g e r o u sw e a t h e r .l f d e s i r e d ,y o u c a n r e l u r nt o t h e o r i g i n a l
Waypointand track line by pressing lhe cancel button on
t h e D a t a N a vc o n l r o l o a n e l .
FiE 9.26 En-route navigation with the (colour) Primus 200
(courtesy RCA Ltd)
for SSTaircraft where scannermount is droppedwith
nose.)
Scalerequiredon scannerwherebytilt anglemay be
read.
o f t s e tc o n t r o ls h o w i n gt h e D e s i g n a t o sr y m b o la t 3 5 " r i g h t ,
46 nm.
2 ) W h e n t h e D e s i g n a t o ri s a t t h e d e s i r e dp o s i t i o n ,t h e n e w
W a y p o i n tc a n b e e n t e r e di n t o t h e N a v i g a t i o nS y s t e mb y
m e a n so f t h e " E N T R " b u t t o no n t h e D a t a N a vc o n t r o lp a n e , .
T h e c u r r e n tW a y p o i n tw i l l b e m o v e dt o t h e n e w l o c a t i o na n d
a n e w t r a c k l i n e e s t a b l i s h e dT. h e R a n g ea n d B e a r i n go f t h e
a i r c r a f lt o t h e V O R T A Cs t a t i o nw i l l a l w a y sb e d i s p l a y e di n
t h e l o w e r r i g h t h a n d c o r n e ro f t h e d i s p l a y .
4) Waypoinl Listing Mode can be sebcted by means of-the
"MODE"
b u t t o no n t h e D a l a N a vc o n t r o lp a n e l .I n f o r m a t i o n
f o r 3 W a y p o i n t sc a n b e d i s p l a y e do n t h e s c r e e n .T h e c u r -
r e n l W a y p o i n lw i l l b e d i s p l a y e di n y e l l o ww i t h a l l o t h e rd a l a
i n g r e e n .A l l t h e W a y p o i n t sc a n b e d i s p l a y e di n g r o u p so f
"Waypoint
lhree by moving the Offsel Control" left or right.
Ilaveguide
C-Bandtype ARA I 36 or WR I 37. X-Bandtype
RG-67U. Ridgedwaveguide rejected;v.s.w.r.
m a x i m u ml . l : l .
163
Magnetron Magnctic Field
No more than lo compassdeviationwith sensorl5 ft
from the t.r. The t.r. shouldbe mounted at least2 ft
from the indicators,other t.r. units and other devices
sensitiveto magneticfields.
Maintenanceand Testing
Safety Precautions
There are two hazardswhen operating weather radar,
namely damageto human tissueand ignition of
combustiblematerial.
The greaterthe averagepower density the greater
the health hazard. A figure of l0 mW cm' is a
generally acceptedmaximum permissibleexposure
level(m.p.e.l.). Among the most vulnerableparts of
the body are the eyesand testes.
The greaterthe peak power the greaterthe fire
hazard. Any conductingmaterialcloseto the scanner
may acf as a receivingaerial and have r.f. currents
induced. There is obviouslya risk, particularly when
aircraft are being refuelledor defuelled.
An additionalhazard.which doesnot affect safety
but will affect the serviceabilityof the radar,is the
possibilityof very strongreturnsif the radaris
operatedcloseto reflectingobjects. The result of
these'returrlsis to burn out the receivercrystals
which are of the point contacttyp€'
The following rulesshouldbe observedwhen
operatingthe weatherradaron the ground:
l. ensurethat no personnelare closerto a
transmittingradarscannprthan the m'p.e.l.
boundary, aslaid down bY the sYstem
manufacturer;
2. nevertransmit from a stationaryscanner;
3. do not operatethe radarwhen the aircraft is
being refuelledor defuelled,or when another
aircraft within the sectorscannedis being
'4. refuelledor defuelled;
do not transmitwhen containersof inflammable
or explosivematerialare closeto the aircraft
within the sectorscanned;
5. do not operatewith an open waveguideunless
r.f. power is off; neverlook down an open
waveguide;fit a dummy load if part of the
waveguiderun is disconnected;
6. do not operatecloseto largereflectingobjects
or in a hangarunlessr.f. energyabsorbing
materialis placedover the radome(RAM cap)'
The safedistancesfor radarsvary widely,
dependingon averagepower transmitted and beam
164
width. It is normal to calculatethe m.p.e.l. assuming
a stationaryscannerand a point source'in which case
an averagepower of 6 X F X Pt is spreadover an area
of n X D2 X 1Jin2(e l2)i thus the distanceD in rnetres
for an exposurelevel of l0 mW/cm2is givenby:
'l
I 6FPt o't-
^ |- *
D=m6 hffil
L ' J
where: 6 is pulsewidth in seconds;
F is pulse repetition frequency in pulses
per second;
P1 is peak Powerin milliWatts;
0 is beamwidth.
Thus consideran older airline standardweatherradar
(Bendix RDR IE/ED) usingmanufacturers'nominal
figuresfor the longestrangeoption, i.e.6 = 5 ps;
F = 2 O O ; P t = 7 5 k W ; 0 = 3 " ; w e h a v eD = l 8 ' 6 6 m
(ev60 ft), while for a modern generalaviation radar
(RCA Primus20) where6 = 2'25 ps, F = 107'5,
= =
& = 8 k w , 0 8 6 w e h a v eD l ' 1 2 m ( e , : * f t ) '
To ensuresafety precautionsare observedconsult
manufacturers'data for safedistancesthen, if
operatingthe radar for maintenancepurposes,place
radiationhazardwarning noticesthe appropriate
distancefrom the nose. Whenworking by the scanner
with the radar on standby a notice should be placed
'do not touch', or better still
by the controlsstating
the transmittershouldbe disabledor the waveguide
run broken and a dummy load fitted. If the radaris
switched on prior to taxiing, the transmitter should
not be switchedon until clearof the apron'
X-ray emissionis a possiblehazard when operating
the transmitter with the caseremoved, such as might
be done in a workshop. The likelihood of dangeris
small but the manufacturers' data should be
consulted.
Check for Condition and AssemblY
Obviouslythe weatherradar systemas a whole is
subjectto the samerequirementsas all other airborne
equlptn.nt in respectof securityof attachmentand
condition; however,certainpoints need to be
highlighted.
-Thi
waveguiderun should be the subject of fairly
frequentinspectionsand shouldbe suspectedifpoor
performanceis reported. Wheninspectingthe
waveguide,corrosionand physicaldamagesuchas
cracksand dents are obviousthingsto look for'
Flexible waveguidecoveringsare subject to perishing,
crackingand a detachedmechanicalbond at the
flanges.lnternal damagein flexible waveguidecanbe
founa Uy gently flexing while listening and feeling for
clicks. There shouldbe no more than minor bendsin
the H plane of flexible waveguideand the radiusof l. Checkwarm-uptime for magnetron.
bendsin the E planeshouklbe greaterthan about Zlrn.2. Checkfan motor (a light pieceof papershould
'stick' to the filter).
If it is thoughtnecessary to dismantlethe
waveguide,un1o curryoui an internalinspection, 3. Checkinternalpowersupplyvoltagesand currents
or if i pieceof waveguide needsto be replaced, care with built-inmeter,if fitted. or testmeterconnected
must be takenwhen re-installing. Choke joint flanges to testsocket,if supplied.
must mate to plain flanges.Seaiingor O-iingsmusi NB'. when disconnectinga test lrleter from the
be fitted to achieveu pr.rrut. seal. The E planesof test socketit is vital that the shortingplug
adjoiningwaveguide piecesshouldbe paraliel.Undue shouldbe replaced, otherwisecrystalearth
forceshouldnot be usedin aligningwaveguide, either returns, broken for current measurement,
within the run or at the endsof the run. All will not be made'
waveguide supportsshouldbe secureand undamaged. 4. Checktest facility: patternshouldbe asspecitied
If an internalinspectionusinga probelight reveals by manufacturer.In particularcheckthe pattern
dirt or moistureit may be possibleto cleanby pulling is centredand neitheroverfillingor underlilling
througha cleansoft cloth andior blowingout with an screen,and that the rangemarksareequallyspaced
air pressure line. Caremustbe takennot to scratch (lineardeflection,rho-tlieta).symmetricalarcs
the insidesurfaceof the waveguide sincethiswould (lineardeflection,X-Y)andcorrectin number
renderit scrap,aswouldsignsof corrosionor deposits (time-base duration,rho-theta)'A rho-thetaraster
which cannotbe removedis suggested above. may showa smallopencentre(about{ in'; but no
Any drain trap in the waveguide run shouldbe tail.
checkedfor blockage,and accumulated moisture 5. Observegroundreturnson all ranges.Operateail
shouldbe removed.Filtersand desiccators in the controlsand ensurethe desiredeffcct is achieved.
pressurization feed,if fitted, shouldbe inspectedfbr
cleanliness (filter) and colour(if desiccator is pink it Notes
is unserviceable). The aboveis only a brief outlineof the checksto be
The scannershouldbe checkedfor freedom of carriedout. OneshtlLrld alwaysusethe manltfacturers'
movementaswell asgeneralconditionand securityof recornmended procedures when tcsting.When
attachment.In carrying()ut scannerinspcctions the carryingout itenr(5) above.experience is necessary if
dishor plateshouldnot be turneddirectlyby hand o n e i s t o s t a t e w
, i t h a n y c e r t a i n t yt,h e c o n d i t i t l o
n f
but throughthe gearing.Backlashin the gearscanbe the systenr.The pictureobtainedwill dependon the
checkedby gentiyapplyingforwardand backward headingof the aircrali;asan extremeexantplean
movementto the edgeof the dishor platein both aircraf'tpointingout to seawill givevery diflerent
azimuthand pitch directions:in a 30 in. diameter g r o u n dr e t u r n so t t i t s r a d a rw l t e nc o m p a r e w d ith an
imtenna,movementof ; T at the edgein<licates a aircraftpointingin the directionof a rangeof hills.
total backlashof nearly 1". No chafingof cables The technicirnshouldbe awareof the f orm of thc
shouldoccur due to scannermovernent. t a r g e t / n o i spei c t u r ee x p e c t e d a t a p a r t i c u l aar i r l l e l d
Whenreplacingthe scanner, ensureshirnsor o n a p a r t i c u l ahr e a d i n g .
washersareusedfor the replacentent, in the same The testfacility variesfrom systemto system. At
positionsasthey wereusedlbr the item rentoved, its sirnplesta ramp or tri{ngularvoltageis generaled
this ensuresthe azimuthscanaxisis nrutually which variesfrom siSnallevelzeroto a maxitnuntof
perpendicular to the roll and pitch axis o1'the aircraft. signallevelthree. If suclra waveformis appliedto the
Somescanners may be mountedwith input waveguide t l i g i l i z e trh e na l l t l r r e cl e v e l so f i l l u m i n a t i o nl n d
flangeup or down, but polarizedconnecliorts will be c o n t o u ro p c r a t i o nc a r rb 6 c h e c k e d A . d t l l t i o n atl e s t s
correctfor only one orielttaticln: tailureto checkthis w h i c hl r a v cb e e np r o v i d d dn r c l u d ea g a t e dn o i s es o u r c t '
point may resultin an incorrectsenseol rotationin for checkings.t.c.and contparing with nornral
and pitch. ' r c c e i v enr o i s e r. e f l e c t e tpfo w e rt t t t r l t i t o ra, . l. c .
azimuth
The t.r. is likely to havean internalcoolingtan, in r n o n i t o ra n d a . g . ct.n o n i t o r .
which casethe filter shouldbe secureand l'reet'rom
o b s t r u c t i o n I. t m a y b e p o s s i b l teo c l e a ra b l o c k e d Radar SystemsTester
l i i t c r b y a i r b l a s ti n t l t eo p p o s i t ed i r e c t i o nt o n o r n t a l Because of the possiblentisinterpretation of the
a i r i l o r vw. h i c l rs h o u l db e i n t o t h e u n i t . systenrcclnditionwhen.iudged olt returnsI'rtltn
groundtargctsa systctnstesteris stlnletimes usedto
Functional Ramp Check Radar - give nrore control ttvefr tlre fcalures ofthe target.
Ohsr'rr.. S:rlety l)reclut ions A p i c k u ph o r n i s a t t a c h e d t o t h e r a d o r n ea t d c : l d

165
NAHOOTIEACKGROTIND
rSISE PIAKS
(uGr{Tt{olsE}
r/tFfs
TrsTsAt{ffi

coHroun
TE'T BAND
il TESrilfffE B*lw
{ ilff{*s $iltctr}
-lT{o EFFscr
{ *fffiIcrD sAlH}

F t g . 9 . 2 7 R D R I E / F t e s t p a t t e r n ( c o u r t e s yB e n d i x A v i o n t c s
Division)

scannerand radomeaswell as the t.r. If both

attenuatorsreadlessthan normal then the fault must
be in the commonr.f. components; if only the input
attenuatorreadslow then transmitterpower output is
down;while a low output attenuatorsettingindicates
ivity.
poor receiversensit

Functional Test - ScannerStabilization

ObserveSafetyPrecautions
Fig 9.2E Simplifiedradarsystems tester
centreposition. A co-axialcableconnectsthe horn to
the testerwhich is insidethe cockpit. The tester
servesasa beaconand returnsa signalwhich should
appearat zerodegreeson the p.p.i. displayat a range
determinedby the testerdelay. An input attenuator . 3 . I n c h s c a n n etro t h e d e a d - a h e apdo s i t i o n .W i t h . - \
can be adjustedso if the testerjust fails to be
triggered,the attenuator will give a measure of the
radiatedpower. An output attenuatorcan be
'echo' just visible(radar
adjustedso that the is on
presetgainwith standardized brilliancesetting),thus
the attenuatorwill givea measure of system
sensitivity.The output attenuatormay alsobe used
to checkthe contourinversionlevelsetting.
Note the testerwill checkthe wavesuiderun.
1. Removeradome. Switchto standbywith
stabilizationon and tilt zero. Check,usinga spirit
level, that the flat plate or the plane acrossthe
rim of the reflectordishis verticalwith the
scannerdeadaheadand at the extremitiesof the
sectorscan.
2. RemoveVRG from its mounting and fit on a tilt
tableadjust.ed so that its surfaceis horizontal
alongboth axes.
stabilizationon, adjusttilt controluntil scanner )
is vertical.
4. Simulatea suitablepitch angle@noseup. Using
a protractorspirit levelensurescannerelevation
changes by @degrees down. Repeatfor nose
down.
5. Sinrulateaircraliroll, ensureno changein .
s c a n n eer l e v a t i o n .
6 . I n c hs c a n n etro p o r t e x t r e n t i t ya, z - i m u tahn g l e0 .

166
 Simulatea suitableroll anglea port wing down
and ensurescannerelevationchangesby o sin 0
up. Repeatfor starboardwing down.
7-Simulateaircraft pitch angle@and ensurescanner
elevationchangeis @cos0 in oppositesense.
Repeat(6) and (7) but with scannerat starboard
8.
extremity noting senseof roll correctionis
reversed.
9.Inch scannerto deadahead. Simulatesuitable
pitch angle. Switch stabilizationfrom on to off
and back to on, and ensurescannermovesin
elevationwithout excessive overshooting.
10. Switch stabilizationoffreplace gyro in aircraft
mounting.
I l.
Carry out final checkof tilt controlbefore
switchingoff and replacingradome.
Notes:
The aboveappliesto a typical line-of-sightsystem.
For any particularequipmentthe manufacturers'
procedureshould be followed, observingstated
tolerances.
A platform systemcheckoutvariesfrom the above and cracksmay be seenby shininga light on the
in that changesin elevationare independentof
azimuth angle.
In items (6), (i) and (8) an azimuth angleof 90"
strouldbe chosenif possible,sincethis will make
cos 0 = I and sin 0 = 0, so simplifying checking.
Pitch and roll correctionpotentiometers areoften radome. Wherethe resistancemeasuredis lower than
accessible in which casepitch correctionshould be
carriedout with the scannerdeadaheadand rol-
correctioncarriedout to balanceany errorsat the
extremities.
A gyro simulatormay be usedfor a checkoutof
the completesystemlessthe VRG. The VRG is
disconnected and the simulatorconnectedin its
place. The procedureis then similar to that above,
with the appropriatepitch and roll anglesbeing
selectedon the simulator. Sincethe VRG is not
testedthis is not a full functional test but is useful for
fault-finding. The signalsfrom the simulatorshould
correspondto the VRG output signalstandards
(e.g.ARINC).
Check of v.s.w.r.
If the waveguiderun or scanneris suspect,v.s.w.r.
checkscan be carriedout to find the faulty itcnr. To
carryout sucha checka directionalcouplermust be
fitted in the run, and power in the forward and
reversedirectionsmeasured using,for example,a
thernristorbridgepowermeter. The checkshouldbe
carriedout at both endsof the wavesuide run so that
a measureof waveguidelossescan be obtainedfrom
the differencesin forward power at either end.
Practicaldifficulties occur in fitting the directional
couplerin a rigid waveguiderun. In some
installationsa couplermay be permanentlyfitted at
one end, usuallyat or closeto the t.r.
In order to measurethe v.s.w.r.of the waveguide
the scannershouldbe disconnectedand a dummy
load fitted in its place. ARINC 564-7 specifiesa
maximumv.s.w.r.of I .l : I for a new installation.
Whenmeasuring the v.s.w.r.of the scannerthe
radomeshouldbe removedand the scannertilted up
to maximum to avoid returns. Figuresobtained
shouldbe checkedagainstmanufacturers'data. On
fitting the radomethe v.s.w.r.at the antennawill
deteriorate,measurementat variousazimuth and tilt
angleswill givean indication of the radome
performance.
The most likely causeof lossof radomeefficiency
as a transparentmaterialto r.f. is ingressof moisture
through small pinholesand crackswhich may appear
on the outsidesurfaceof the radorne. Such pinholes
outsidesurfaceand viewingfrom the inside. A
moisture detectorcan be usedto measurethe
resistance betweentwo adjacentpoints on the
radome. The detectorhastwo probeswhich are
pressedfirmly againstthe insidesurfaceof the
normal it may be due to an ingressof moisture.
Bench Testing
There is not spacehereto considerbenchtesting'in
depth,but mentionshouldbe madeof a special
.c.frd
radartestset(courtesy
Fig.9.29 RD-300weather IFR.
Electronics
Inc)
weatherradartest set,the IFR RD-300which,
togetherwith an oscilloscope,can be usedto perform
all the commonradartestswithout the proliferation
of signalgeneratorsand other instrumentsnormally
found on a radartest bench.
167
RyanStormscope measurement possibleand reasonably accurate'For
rangemeasurement the received signalsarecompared
'standard'to giveso-called pseudorange.The
Beinga relativelynew developmentthe Stormscope with a
is, asyet, not to be found in servicein anythinglike methoduscdto deterntirte ratlgelrteansthat particularly
asmany aircraft asis weatherradar' Sincespaceis at strongsignalsappearto be closerthan they actually
a premium the coverageof the Stormscopein this are.which is not reallya disadvantage sincethe source
book has been limited to allow a more detailed of such signals is a region of severe electrical activity
coverageof radar. The numberof pagesallocatedhere andhenceturbulence.
reflectsthe importanceof eachof the systemsto Eachdischarge appearsasa bright greendot on the
maintenance staff and aircrewtoday. The situation circulaldisplayscreenat a positionrepresentative of
may well be reversed in the future or, more likely, the source position relative to thc aircraf't. An
equalized. aircraftsymbolis locatedat the centreol-tlredisplay
As statedin the introduction to this chapter,the w i t h r a d i a l i n e sm a r k e da t 3 0 " i t l t c r v a last t dt w t t
Ryan Stormscope dependsfor its success on detecting equallyspacedrangerings. The rangeol'tlre outer
electrical activity which is associated with turbulence. ring is asselected on the panel-mounted receiver'
Sincethe radiatingsourceis naturalonly a receiveris 40, 100 or 200 nauticalmiles. Sincetlre outer ring is
required;an immediateadvantage overweatherradar. not at the peripheryof the displaythe rnaximuttl
To obtaindirectionalinformation,useis madeof an rangeavailable is of the orderof 260 nauticalrniles.
ADF loop and senseantenna,both eitherdedicatedto Eachdischarge is only a momentaryeventso
the Stormscope installationor time'shared with ADF. storagein memoryis required.The trlemorycan
The restof the installationcomprises a displayunit storethe positionof 128 dots,thesebeingdisplayed
and a computer/processor unit. to form a mapJikepicture. Whenthe 129thdischarge
Caremust be taken in installation planning since occurs the oldestdot in memoryis replaced;in this
Stormscope is proneto interference lrom generators, way the imageis continuouslyupdated. lf the
motors,strobelights,etc. Interference from aircraftheadingchanges or a new rangeis selected
communication transceivers is avoided by inhibiting the dot positions are incorrect until all I 28 havebeen
the Stormscopewhenevera transceiveris keyed' updated,a process which cantake up to 25 s on a

displayunit andcomputer/
Fig.9.30 RyanStormscope
(courtesy
processor RyanStromscope)

Operation stormyday (only 5-10s with tomadoactivitywithin

Signalsfrom the two orthogonalloops and the sense
antennaareutilized to giverangeand bearingof the
sourceof electricalactivity received.The propertie:.
of the loop and senseantennamakebearing
range).On quiet daysa dot may remaina long time
erased.A'clear'
but after 5 min it is automatically
button allowsthe pilot to erasethe displaystarting
with the oldestdataand progressing to the newestin

lSe
a total erasetime of I s. Another button allows the Appendix
display of that activity which is forward of the
aircraft with, of course,the full memory dedicatedto
thesesignals. FactorsAffecting WeatherRadarPerformance
The 128 dots appearin clusterson the display,
indicatingwhere bad weathercan be expected. As the TheRadarEquation
weatherbecomesmore severethere is a spreading If powerP1 is radiatedfrom an omnidirectional
inward towardsthe centre due to the pseudorange antennathen the power density(power per unit area)
reducingas a result of the strongersignals.Witll decreaseswith range. At a rangeR a sphereof
increasingstorm intensity the display becomesvery surfacearea4nR2is illuminatedby the e.m. wave,
animated. thus:
A test facility is built in whereby when the
appropriatebutton is presseda dot cluster appears Powerdensityfrom omni antenna=# (A9.1)
nearto a positionof 45o; 100 nauticalmiles. In
addition, a test set is availablewhich can simulate Sincea directionalantennais usedwith gain G (over
sigrralsat variousrangesand azimuth anglesfor an isotropic antenna,i.e. perfectly omnidirectional)
systemcheckoutand calibration. we have:
Powerdensity from = PrG-
(Ae.2)
Comparison of Stormscope and Radar directionalantenna 4rRz
It would appearthat, purely from a functional point
The targetwill interceptpart of the radarbeam,the
of view, i.e. ability to avoid turbulence,there is little
sizeof the part dependingon the radarcross-section
to choosebetweenthe two systems.Someadvantages
ofthe target o. Sincethe reflectedpower is subject
ofStormscopeover radar are:
to the samespreadingout in spaceasthe incident
l. no moving parts and no transmitter,hence powerwe have:
meantime betweenfailures(m.t.b.f.) should be
higher; Power density of _ P,GO
(4rR2)z
(Ae.3)
2. simplerantennainstallationwhich keepsdown echo at aircraft
installationcosts;
The radar antennainterceptspart of the echo signal,
3 . only the cheapestradarscomparein capital cost; the sizeofthe part dependingon the effectivecapture
4. fully operationalon the ground with 360" field areaA, so receivedecho powerPr is givenby
of view.
Pr= (Ae.4)
of Stormscopecomparedwith
Somedisadvantages
radarare:
The relationshipbetweenantennagainand effective
capture areacan be shown to be
l. sensitiveto interference;
2. limited rate and accuracyof data acquisition 4nA
although it would appearfrom operational G =f (Ae.s)
evidencethat this doesnot preventthe
Stormscopefrom being used for efficient and
of thee.m.wave.So
where), is thewavelength
safeweather avoidance; equation(A9.4)becomes:
3. lacking in any other applications such as - o
P,G2).3
mapping, navigation data display or page & =1ffi . (Ae.6)
printer option.
ReplacingP, by the minimum detectablesigtal pow.er
Two things should be pointed out here; firstly the rn and rearranging,we have the well-known radar
extras with weather radar have to be paid for; rangeequation:
secondlythe Stormscopeis a relatively new
developmentby a company small in comparison to =ffi
R*"*t (Ae.7)
the giantsofweather radar. It should not be beyond
the ingenuity of the designersto develop the system
so as to eliminate some, if not all, of the The Radar Equation for Meteorological Targets
disadvantages. With meteorological targetswe have a large number of

169
independent scatterers of radarcross-section
o; so;
providingthe targetfills thebeam,we may represent
thetotal radarcross-section bv:
o = V42oi
where: Xoi is the averagetotal backscatter
cross-section of the particlesper unit
volume;
V^ is the volume occupied by the radiated
pulsewhich can be approximatedby
( n l 4 ) R 20 2c 6 l 2 ;
0 is the beamwidth(equalin horizontal
and verticalplanesfor a pencil beam);
c is the velocity of propagation:
6 is the pulseduration.
Substituting for o in (A9.6) we have:
P t G 2 ^ , 20 2 c 6 2 o i
'rD _- -SIZFF- (Ae.e) conventional(analogue)weatherradars. In digital
Equation(A9.9) is applicablewhere the targetis
beam-filling,for examplea sphericalcloud of 3
nauticalmiles diameterwill fill a 4" beam up to about
43 nauticalmiles. For a ta-rgetoutsidethe beam-filling
rangethe proportion oi'beam filled can be shown to
be (Dl0R)2 whereD is the targetdiameter.So
equation(A9.9) would become,for sucha target:
P , G 2 ) yc26 D 2 2 o ;
r, = *-:;.IFFF- (Ae.r0) radar
an equationin which the fourth power of R occursas
in the basicradarequation(A9.6) and contrasting
with equation(A9.9) wherewe havethe squareof R.
Againwe can producea rangeequationassuming
non-beam-fillingtargets:
R*a*o = P r G 2 ) t 2c 6 D 2 2 o i
5l2r2m
If the wavelengthis long comparedwith the
diameterd of a scatteringparticlethen it can be
shownthat:
ns lklz>d;6
zoj = --Ia=
where lkl2 is relatedto the dielectricconstantand
hasa valueof about 0'9 for water and 0'2 for ice.
It is helpful to replace2d16 by an expression
involvingrainfall rate, suchan expressionis provided
by 2di6 - 200rr'6wherer is the rainfall rate in
mm/h. lt shouldbe noted that this is an empirical
relationship,the constantsbeingsubjectto variability
from one experimentalobservationto another.
Replacing2 o; in equation(A9.9) and usingthe
relationshipbetween,dir we have
170
lS0l,t'6P,G02 c6 n3
P, = - '7ff;n- (Ae.l3)
as the echo power receivedfrom a beam-filling rain
(Ae.8) cloud. (Note that 180 x2OO lkl2).
Minimum Detectable Signal
E q u a t i o n( A 9 . 1 l ) g i v e st h e m a x i m u mr a n g eo f a
weatherradar in terms of the minimum detectable
signalfrom a non-beam-fillingtarget. A threshold
levelmust be chosenwhich is greaterthan the r.m.s.
valueof the noise occupyingthe samepart of the
frequencyspectrumas the signal. If the signal
exceedsthe thresholdit is detected:if not it is missed.
Too low a thresholdwill give rise to falsealarms.
In choosingthe thresholdlevel the interpretation
of the operator is significant,particularly in
weather.radars the choiceof thresholdis taken out of
the hands, or eyes, of the operators. Noise spikes
which do not occur in the sametime-slotafter
severalsuccessive transmissions are not displayed;
they are said to be averagedout. As a result in a
digitalweatherradara lower threshold,or minimum
signalto noiseratio (s.n.r.),can.betoleratedwith
consequent improvementin maximum range. I
In introducingthe factorsrelatingto noiseinto the
equationit is convenientto usethe noisefigure
F grvenby
p
' = *l*
S"IN"
(Ae.l4)
where: S;/N; is the input s.n.r.;
Sofly'ois the output s.n.r.
The input noisecan be taken askTB
(A9.1l) constant,= l'38 X 10-23
where:k is Boltzrrrann's
joules/degree:
?nistemperature in degreesKelvin;
.Bis the noisebandwidth(differentfrom
3 dB bandwidthbut often approximated
bYit).
(Ae.t2) So rearranging equation(A9.14) and substitutingfor
ly'; we have:
Si = kTBF SslNe (A9.15)
Substitutingfor m in equation(A9. I I ) gives:
o n2).3c62o;
R."*' = n#ftngl;i;; (Ae.r6)
Equation(A9.16) resultsfrom considering a single
pulse;ho.vevermany pulsesarenormallyreceived
from a targetduring one sweepof the aerial. The
numberof pulsesreturnedfrom a point targetis
 0 X p.r.f. 564 togetherwith an empirical fornrula
n = +
(n
(Ae.r7)Characteristic
relatingPI and maximum range. The primary purpose
of the PI is to enablea comparisonto be made
wherec^.r is the scanningrate in degreesper second;
betweendifferent radarsratherthan effect the
p.r.f. is the pulserepetition frequency.
accuratecalculationof maximumrange.
We can utilize someor all of the n pulsesto improve
detectionin a processknown as integration. Use of a Atmospheric Effects
c.r.t.,togetherwith the propertiesof the eye and Therearethree effects.namelyattenuation,refraction
brain, constitutesan integrationprocess.Digital and lobing,which can degradeor evenenhancethe
techniques,whereby the signaloccuning in successive performance of a radaroperatingin the earth's
correspondingtime-slotsis averaged,is also a form of atmosphere.
integrationin this sense.We can define the integration Attenuationdue to absorptionby gases, primarily
efficiencyas follows: oxyBen and water vapour, will reduce the maximum
rangeattainable.Precipitation particlesalsoabsorb
- = (s/.^/),
L" the e.rn.energyand caus.'scattering.The scattering
reET,. is csscntiallirr the opelutionof weatherradarbut
=
where(S0/)r s.n.r.of a singlepulsetbr a $ven absorption will decrelsethe rangeand reducethe
probability of detection; a b i l i t yo l ' t l r er a d a rt o p e n e t r a tcel o u d si n o r d e rt o
'see'what is bc.r"ond.Ernpiricalresultsareavailable
(S/ffh = s.n.r.per pulsefor the same
ri probability of detection when n but we nraysirnplystatethat degradation increases
pulsesare.integrated. with frequency. I.rencc the descriptions of C-band
equipmentasweather-penetration radarand X-band
The integrationimprovementfactor nEn canbe asweather-avoidance radar.
includedin the rangeequation. Sincethe densityof the atmosphere is not
The averagepower P of the radaris relatedto the uniform, refractionor bendingof the radarwaves
peakpowerP; by: may take place. Watervapouris the main contributor
P = PtX6 Xp.r.f. ( A e . l 8 ) to this effect. The radar.waves will normally be bent
aroundthe earth sincethe atmosphericdensity
Substitutingfor Ps in equation(A9.16) and usuallyincreases with decreasing altitude, thus leading
incorporatingthe integrationimprovementfactor we to an increasein radarrange.
have: Lobing is the arrivalat the targetof two radar
PG2l,2o3c EnDo; waves,one via the direct path and one by way of
R*"*o (Ae.le) reflectionfrom the earth'ssurface. Depend'ingon the
5t2r2 VTBF Q (S/l/),
relativephasesrangemay be enhancedor degraded.
ln an effort to simplify the rangeequation In an airborneweatherradarwith smallside lobesthis
EUROCAEand RTCA havederiveda Performance doesnot createthe sameproblemaswith
lndex, PI, from the basicradarequation. Detailsof ground-based radars.
the calculationsinvolvedare givenin ARINC

ltl
10 Dopplernavigation

Introduction 300 knots. Thus after I rnin the systemgivesa

readoutof position asbeing 2995 nautical milesfrom
A Doppler navigatoris a self containeddead.-reckoningB on trackt after I h 2700 nautical miles from B; after
systemgivingcontinuousreadoutof aircraft position l0 h the indicatedpositionis B.
usuallyrelatedto waypoints. Military aircraft have
madeuseof suchequipmentsincethe mid- 1950s
while bivil usefor transoceanicnavigationcommenced
3OOOn.m.
in th6 early 1960s. In recentyearsihr ut. of Doppler
navigatorsin long-rangecommercialaircraft has
largelybeen superseded by inertial navigators,triple
systemsbeing fitted to airlinerssuchas the 747 and l"
J
-'
Concorde. Military developmentsinclude composite
Doppler and inertial systemsand we may expect to
seesuchsystems'gocivilian' in the future.
There are still many civil aircraft carryingDoppler
lo

,l
navigatorsbut theseare older, long-rangeairlinersand
assuchthey are fitted with equipmentwhich,
althoughnot in any way primitive, doesnot employ
Fig.l0.l Effectofheadingerror
the very latest techniques.A classof civil aircraft for
which there is a continuingneedfor Doppler
navigatorsis surveyaircraft which, by the very nature With a + | per cent error in computedspeed,the
of their work, operatein areas not covered by tolerance on the position readoutafter 1 min, I h and
ground-based navigationaids(exceptOmega)and l0 h will be I 0'05. + 3 and t 30 nauticalmiles
requireaccuratepositionalinformation. Use of respectively.With a + 1" error in the heading
Doppler navigatorsin helicoptersis not unusual;there information we have the situation givenin Fig. 10.r .
is equipment specificallydesigned for such aircraft. We can seethat d = 2 X 300/ X sin 0'5, thus after
The advantageof Doppler navigationlies in the I min, I h and l0 h the aircraftmay be up to 0'087,
fact that it is a self-containedsystemwhich doesnot 5.24 and 52'4 nauticalmilesaway from the indicated
rely on ground-based aids and can operatein any part position. In both casesthe absoluteerror increases
of the world. This advantageis sharedby inertial with distanceflown. In practiceit is the heading
navigationwhich alsosharesthe disadvantage of information which usuallylimits the accuracyof the
degradationof positionalinformation as distance wslem.
flown is increased. The degradation of information
arisesfrom the fact that startingfrom a known
position subsequentpositionsare computedby
sensingthe aircraft velocity and integratingwith
respectto time. Errors,oncethey are introduced,
can only be eliminatedby a position fix.
A simplisticexamplewill illustratethe build-up of
error. An aircraft takesoff from A to fly to B, 3000
nauticalmiles awayin a direction due west from A.
Usingheadinginformation from a directionalsensor
suchasa gyromagrleticcompassthe Doppler
navigatorsensesthat the iircraft is flying due west at Fig. 10.2 Doppler effect - transmission

172
Doppler Effect l. ct ,l
ln 1842 the AustrianscientistChristianDoppler l l r l
predictedthe Dopplereffect in connectionwith
r r l l
soundwaves. It was subsequentlyfound that the
effect is also applicableto e.m. waves.The Dpppler
effect can be describedas the changein observed t
Aircraft
l
Ground
frequencywhen the source(transmitter)and observer
(receiver)arein motion relativeto one another. The Fig. 10.3 Doppler cffect - reception
noiseof moving trains and road traffic is a
demonstrationof the effect commonly observed.
The applicabilityto e.m. wavesis illustratedby the fr=(c+v)l\. (10.2)
useof police radarspeedtraps,to the cost of Again we seey = 0 leadsto c = )\,f and the aircraft
offenders. moving away from the ground targetgives
In an airbome Doppler radarwe havea transmitter f r = ( c - y ) / I .
which, by meansof a directionalantenna,radiates We must now considerboth effectssimultaneously.
energytowardsthe ground. A receiverreceives the The wavelength tr in equation(10.2)is the
echo of the transmittedenergy. Thus we havethe wavelengthof the echowhich must be ).' in equation
situation whereboth transmitterand receiverare (10.1). .Thussubstituting).' for X we have:
movingrelativeto the ground;consequently the
^ k+v\ ^
original frequencytransmittedis changedtwice. The
Ir = (-fi I.
differencebetweentransmittedand received
frequenciesis known as the Doppler shift and is very We are interestedin the Dopplershift,
/2r, which is
nearly proportionalto the relativemotion between the differencebetweentransmittedand received
the aircraft and the ground alongthe direction of the sigralsthus:
radarbeam.
- _((c+v) .) 2v
Considerthe transmissionof e.m. energytowards f o = f , - -f = ' f( {( c- _
- vl l} = = . f .c - v "
the ground. Let the relativevelocity of the aircraft in t
the direction of the beambe r, the frequencyof the Now c = 186000 milesper secondso I is obviously
radiation/ and the speedof the electromagnetic very small comparedwith c, so with negligibleerror
wavesc (= 3 X tO8ms-l ). Referringto Fig. 10.2we we may write:
seethat in t secondsthe wavewill havemoveda
distancect to b while the aircraft will havemoveda fo = 2vflc. (10.3)
distancevt to a. The wavesemitted in time r will be This equationis the basisof a Doppler radar.
bunchedup in the distancebetweena andb which is Observing,as above,the conventionthat y is positive
ct - vt. The numberof wavesemitted will be /r for movementtowards,and negativefor movement
cycles. Thus the wavelengthobservedat the target, away,the groundtargetgivesan increasedreceived
).', is givenby: frequencyon a forward beamand a decreased
t r ' - ( c r- v } l f t = ( c - v ) l f ( 1 0 . 1 ) receivedfrequencyon a rearwardor aft beam.
From Figs 10.4and 10.5we seethat the relative
We can seethat if the transmitteris stationarywith velocity of the aircraft in the direction of the beam
respectto the groundthen y = 0 and equation(10.1) centroidis v = V cosI cosc where Iz is the masnitude.
'
reducesto the familiar relationships =/tr. If the of the aircraft velocity with respectto the grou-nd.
transmitteris movingaway from the ground target, So equation(10.3)becomes:'
that is the beamis directedtowardsthe rear,then
r in equation(10.1)becomes-y andwe have fp = (2Vf cos0 cosc)/C. (10.4)
\'=(c+v)lf. It is at this stagethat the studentis often convinced
Now considerthe receivedsigtal. In a time / the that a Doppler radarcould not possiblywork due to
aircraft would receiveall the wavesoccupyingspace the smooth earth paradoxand the mountalnparadox,
cf in Fig. 10.3. Howeverin this time the aircraft which arehopefully dispensed with below. i
movesa distancer/ and hencewill receivethe number It is falselyarguedthat if an aircraft is moving
of wavesoccupyingct + vt in f secondsor (c + r)/tr parallelto flat ground then thereis no changein range
wavesin I second.Thus the receivedfrequency,fr, betweenthe aircraft and the groundand thereforeno
is given by: Doppler shift. That this is falsecan be seenby

173

Fig. 10.4 Airborne Doppler single-beamgeometry in thc
vertical Dlane
geometryin the
Fig. 10,5 AirborneDopplersingle-beam
horizontalplane
consideringthe actualtargetswhich produce
backscattering of the energy. Thesetargetsare
irregularlyshapedscatteringobjectssuchas pebbles
and there is. of course.relativemotion betweenthe
aircraft and individualtargets- hencea Doppler
shift. If the illuminatedareawere perfectly smooth
no reflectedenergywould be receivedat the aircraft.
The othdr falseargumentconcernsslopingterrain.
If the aircraft is flying horizontally abovea slope then
its rangeto the ground along the beam is changing
and thereforethe Doppler shift will be affected.
Again this falsehoodis exposedby the fact that the
'slope'
actualtargetsare individualobjectswhose with
respectto the aircraft is randomand henceis not
related to the slope of the ground.
AntennaMechanization
The aircraft velocity has three orthogonal
@mponents:
Vfi the headingvelocity component;
V) the lateral velocity component; and
171
Vi the verticalvelocity component
asshown in Fig. 10.6. Thesevelocitiesare in antenna
co-ordinateswhich, with an antennafixed rigidly to
the aircraft, are airframeco-ordinates.As the aircraft
pitchesand rolls the antennamoveswith it and hence
Vil, Vn' and Vf will not be the velocitiesin earth
co-ordinatesrequiredfor navigation.
vir
vi
Fig. 10.6 The resolved velocity vectot
Fig. 10.7 Drift angleandgroundspeed
One conceptuallysimple solution is to stabilize
the antennain pitch and roll, in which casethe earth
co-ordinate-related velocitiesVg, V1 and VV are
equal to Vi, Va' and Vpi respectively.If the lateral
velocity V4 is non-zeroit meansthat the movement
of the aircraft is not in the direction of the heading
and a non-zerodrift angle,6, existsasin Fig. 10.7.
The resultantof Vg and Va is the velocity vector
with magnitudeequalto groundspeeds, and
direction that of the aircraft'strack. It is convenient
for navigationpurposesto presentthe pilot with
ground speedand drift angleinforrnation rather than
Vs urd V1.
With movingantennasystems,the antennais
stabilizedin pitch and roll and alsoalignedin
azimuth with the track of the aircraft,that is to say
track-stabilized.The drift angleis givenby the angle
betweenthe antennaand aircraft longitudinalaxes
measuredin the horizontal plane. SomeDopplersuse
pitch but not roll stabilizationsinceerror due to roll
is small for smalldrift anglesand furthermoretends
to averageout over the flight.
 Fixed antennasystemsmust compute the
velocitiesVry,Vn and Vv eachbeinga function of
yi, V;, Vf R andp, whereR and
, F are roll and
pitch anglesappearingin the expressions
as
trigonometricfunctions. The relationshipsarederived
in the Appendix.
Doppler Spectrum
The beamsare of finite width, henceenergywill
strike the ground alongdirectionsof different relative
velocities.As a consequence a spectrumof Doppler
shift frequenciesis receivedasshownin Fis. l0.g
wherethe effectsof sidelobesareisnored.
%power
-3 dbs
fd Dopplershift
Fig.10.8 TheDopplerspectrum
Sucha phenomenonis undesirable but providing
the spectrumis reasonably'peaky'the meanDoppler
shift is easilymeasured.If Z is the anglebetweenthe
beamcentroidand the aircraftvelocityvectorthen
e q u a t i o n( 1 0 . 3 )b e c o m e s :
- 2Vf
lo =; "otr.
Differentiation with respectto 7 givesa first
approximationto the half-powerbandwidth of the
spectrum:
2A gy.rinT
Lfo =
whereA7 is the half-powerbeamwidth. The ratio of
Lfp to fp is thusgivenby dividingequation( 10.6)
by ( l0.s).
Lfp =
-f;
a7.tan7.
Wilh A? typically 0.07 radians(4") and I typically
70- we haveAfp lfp rypically 0.2.
Sincebackscatteringfrom the illuminatedtarget
areais not constantover the whole areathere is a
random fluctuation of the instantaneousmean
frequencyfp. To determinethe aircraft'svelocrty
accuratelythe time constantof the
velocity-measuring circuitsmust be sufficientlv lone
to smooththis fluctuation,but not so long asio be-
unableto follow the normal accelerations-of the
aircraft.
BeamGeometry
Sincethere are three unknowns Vi, Va' and Vf , a
minimum of threebeamsarerequiredto measure
them. ln practicethree or four beamsare usedin a
configurationinvolvingfore and aft beams;assuchit
is known asa Janusconfigurationafter the Roman
god who could seeboth behind and in front.
The beamsradiatedcan be either pencil.asin
Fig. 10.10or narrowin elevation(nO) Uut wide in
azimuth(Ac) asin Fig. 10.9. The hyperboliclines
fo, h , f*, f-u are linesof constantDoppler shifts
calledisodopsand are drawn assuminga flat earth.
Whenwide azimuth beamsare useda fixed antenna
systemwould leadto the beamcrossing a wide
rangeof isodopsunderconditionsof drift, resultingin
an excessivelywide Doppler spectrum. Consequently
suchbeamsvirtuallydictatea track-stabilized anrenna.
A wide azimuthbeamhasadvantages in that smaller
antennaareasare requiredand roll performanceis
improvedin the casewhereno roll stabilizationis
employed.
Figure 10.9 showsthat for a fully stabilizedsystem
the Doppler shift on all four beamsis the same.
Without roll stabilizationsmallerrorsareintroduced
which tend to average out. Stabilizationcan be
achievedby servoloops which drive the antennaso as
( 1 0 . s ) to equalizethe Doppler shifts. Alternativelypitch
information (and possiblyroll) can be fed to the
Doppler from a verticalreferencesuchasa gyro or
evena mercury switch leavlngazimuthstabilizationto
be achievedby equalizationof Doppler shifts.
Typically in suchradarsground speedand drift angle
( r 0 . 6 ) are the only outputs wheregroundspeedis givenby
equation(10.4) and drift angleby the amountof
azimuthrotationof the antenna.Headine
information is usuallyaddedto the drift ingle to give
aircraft track.
Figure 10.10showsthat for a fixed aerialsystem
the Doppler shifts on all four beamsare,in general,
(10.7)
not equal. It is shownin the Appendix to this
175
 Fig. t0.9 Moving aerialsystem- typical beamgeometry
chapter that the velocitiesin airframe coordinates,
Vri, VA' and Vf , dependon (f2 - f l),(f2 -/3) and
(.f | + f3) respectively,where/l ,f2 andf3 are the
Dopplershifts on beamsI ,2 and 3. Relationshipsfor
thesevelocitiescan alsobe derivedusing/4 and two
other Doppler shifts. With this redundancywe have
the possibilityof self-checking or continuedoperation
after one beam failure.
Computationof groundspeedand drift anglein a
fixed antennasystemcan be dividedinto three parts:
firstly computationof Vi , V; and Vl, usingthe
Dopplershifts from three of the four beams;secondly
computationof Vg, V4 and Zy usingpitch and roll
information and the previouslycomputedairframe
co-ordinatevelocities;and lastly, drift angle=
uctan (ValVn) and ground speed= (Vn'+ Vnzlo's
(seeFigure 10.7).
176
TransmitterFrequency
The choiceof r.f. is, asever,a compromise.The
advantageof using a high frequency is that the
sensitivityof the radarin Hertz per knot is high, as
can be seenfrom equation(10.3); furthermore,for a
givenantennasize,the higherthe frequencythe
narrowerthe Dopplerspectrum. If, however,the
radiated frequency is too high atmosphericand
precipitationabsorptionand scatteringbecomemore
of a problem. Another considerationis the
availabilityof componentsfor the variousfrequency
bandswhich might be considered.Most Doppler
radarsoperatein a band centredon 8'8 GHz or
13'325 GHz, the former, to date,beingperhapsthe
most common for civil aircraft use.

Fig. 10.10 Fixed aerial system - typical beam geometry
Modulation
At first sight it would appearthat no modulation is
necessary, indeed c.w. Doppler radarshavebeen built
and operated,a great attraction being simplicity.
Difficulties,however,arisein transmitter receiver
isolationand discriminationagainstreflectionsfrom
nearbyobjectsin particular the dielectric panel
(radome)coveringthe airframeopeningfor the
antenna. At other than low altitudes unwanted
reflectionsare comparablein amplitude to ground
returns. Noiselike variationsin vibrating radome
echoeswill more than likely be in the same frequency
band as the gxpectedDoppler shifts, and thus
indistinguishableexcept where the s.n.r. is sufficiently
high at low altitudes.
To overcome the above problems both pulsed and
Heading
frequencymodulated(f.m.c.w.) radarshavebeen
used. The earliestDopplerswere pulsedso that
echoesfrom nearby objectswere receivedduring the
recoverytime of the diplexer and hencewere not
processed.In the so-calledincoherentpulsesystemsa
Doppler signalis obtainedby mixing receivedsignals
from fore and aft beams;thishas two undesirable
consequences.Firstly the returnson the fore and aft
beamsmust overlapin time if mixing is to take place,
this meansstabilizationand/or wide beamsmust be
used. Secondly,the Doppler shift on the individual
beamsis not available,hencethe senseof direction of
the velocity vector (forward or backward)and the
verticalvelocity cannot be computed.
With modern radarsf.m.c.w. is the most common
type of transmission.The spectrumof the transmitted
sigrd consistsof a largenumber of sidebandsas well
177
 asthe carrier. Theoreticalanalysisof f.m.c.w. reveals
an infinite number of sidebandsspacedby the
modulation frequency f,n amplitudeof individual
sidebandsbeing determinedby Besselfunctions of the
first kind of order n and argumentrn where n is the
sidebandconcerned(first, second,third, etc.) and rn
is the modulationindex,i.e. ratio of deviationto
f.. By usingthe Doppler shift of a particular
sideband,and choosingan appropriatevalueof m to
give sufficient amplitudeof the sidebandconcerned,
suppressionof noisedue to returnsfrom the radome
and other nearby objectsis achieved.
A problemcommonto both pulsedand f.m.c.w.
Doppler radarsis that of altitude holes. In a pulsed
systemifthe echo arrivesback at the receiverwhen
a subsequent pulseis beingtransmittedthen it is
gatedout by the diplexer and no Doppler shift can
be detected.Similarlywith f.m.c.w.,if the
round-trip travel time is nearly equal to the
modulationperioda deadbeatwill occurwhen
mixing transmittedand receivedsignals,and again
no Dopplershift will be detected.
If a low modulatingfrequencyis use'dthe first
altitude hole may appearabovethe operating
ceiling. Howeverlow p.r.f. in pulsesystemleadsto
low efficiency and the possibilityof interferenceif
the p.r.f. is in the rangeof Dopplerfrequencies
expected(eudio). For f.m.c.w.givena choiceof
sidebandused,typically third or fourth, and
modulationindex,typically2l or 3, suchasto
avoidradomenoise,the modulatingfrequencymust
be fairly high to allow a reasonabledeviation. A
fairly high modulatingfrequencyis usually varied
eithercontinuously(wobble)or in discretestepsto
avoid altitude holesat fixed heishts.
Over-WaterErrors
Doppler navigatorsmeasurethe velocity of the
Fig lO.l I Frequencymodulatedcontinuouswave
transmittedsignaland receivedgroundechospectrum
174
aircraft relativeto the surfacebelow them. When
flying over water that surfaceitself may be moving
due to seacurrentsor wind-blownwater particles.
Randomseacurrentsare of speedsusually a good
bit lessthan half a knot, and this small el'fect
averages out sincethe currentsare in random
directions.Major seacurrentsdo not exceed,say,
3 knots and sincedirection and approximatespeed
areknown they can be compensatedfor.
Wind-blowndropletswould give an error lessthan
the wind speed,about 3 knots error for l0 knots
wind with the error varying as the third root of the
wind. On long flights such an error will be reduced
by averaging.
.
o
i
k___ Overwater
o- : caltoralon
I shrfterror
Frequency
Fig.10.12 Over-water
calibtatiory
shift
Whenflying overland the beamsilluminatean
areacontainingmany scatteringparticles.Generally
the backscatteringcoefficientsover the whole
illuminated areawill be of the sameorder givingrise
to the Dopplerspectrumshownin Fig. 10.8. Over
smooth seathe situation is different; a larger
fraction of the incident enerS/ will be returnedon
the steepestpart of the beam sincethe surface
backscatteringcoefficient will dependon the angle
of incidence.The net resultis to shift the Doppler
spectrumasshownin Fig. 10.12,so that the mean
Doppler shift is lessthan it should be for the
aircraft velocity.
The error introduced,which could be up to 5 per
cent,is known as over-watercalibrationshift error.
The narrowerthe beam widih the lesssignificantthe
error,so someDopplersaredesignedto produce
beamsnarrow enoughto keep the error within
acceptablelimits. Other Dopplershavea manual
land-seaor seabias switch which, when in the seaor
on position respectively,causesa calibrationshift in
the oppositesenseby weightingthe response.of the
Doppler shift frequencyprocessingin favour of the
higherfrequencies.For a carefully chosen
compensationshift the error can be reducedby a
f-actorof about ten.
 Antenna axis N(ml
Ground track

Lobc
o
]
o I
switched

t '
.L
beams

Frequency

Fig. 10.13 Lobe switching

Lobe switching is a more successfulmethod of

reducingcalibrationshift error. The beam angleof
incidenceto the ground is switchedby a small
amount periodically. The illuminated areasfor the
two switchedanglesoverlap,as do the Doppler
spectra.The Doppler shift frequencyused for
velocity measurementis where the spectracross. Fig. 10.14 Navigationcalculations
This crossoverpoint correspondsto the retum from
the samegroup of scatterersat the sameangleof
incidenceand is thus not affectedby over-water
flight. Figure 10.13 illusrratesthe technique,which
porks far better when track-stabilizedantennassince To arriveat along distanceto go (X) and across
then the lobe switchingis at right anglesto the distance(y) the true track (?') and track error angle
isodops. (E) areneeded. We have,assumingdrift to starboard
aspositive:
T =H+6 (r0.8)
Navigation CalculationS :
E = T-Td (10.e)
The ground speedand drift angleinformation is x = D -JjScosf,'dr (10.10)
normally presentedto the pilot but in addition is
used,togetherwith headinginformation,to givethe Y = tssinEdt / ( 1 0 . l1)
aircraft position relativeto a destinationor where I is the time of flight, and the senseof the
forthcomingwaypoint. To achievethis the pilot
acrossdistanceis positiveto the right.
must set desiredtrack and distanceto fly before
take off. In Fig. l0. | 4 the pilot wishesto fly from
A to B, a distanceof 50 nauticalnriles,with desired
track 090. Thc aircraft has flown for 6 min at a Block DiagramOperation
speedof 500 knots on a headingof 100 with a drift
o[ 27" starboard,thus the total distanceis 50 Moving Antenna System
nauticalnrilesand the aircraftis at point C. The Figure 10.15 illustratesa block diagrambasedon the
MarconiAD 560, a systemintroducedin the
trackerror is 37-, tlre alongdistanceto go is
mid-I960s and usedon a'varietyof civil aircraft. It is
X = l0 nauticalmiles:the acrossdistanceis
still to be found in service.
Y = 30 nauticalnriles.
The sensoris an f.m.c.w. type employing
In order to seehow the Doppler navigatorarrives
wobbulation of the modulatingfrequencyf^ to
at the alongand acrossdistances indicatedto the pilot
avoid altitude holesand usingthe Nth sideband
we must considerthe informationavailable:
(tr/ = 3 in the AD 560) to avoid unwantedinterference
' Groundspeed(s) and due to radomevibrations. For the choice.ofthe third
dril't angle(6) - Doppler radar sidebanda suitablemodulationindex is 2.5. obtained
Heading(I/) - gyromagneticcompass by usinga deviationof t I MHz on the 8800 MHz
Desiredtrack (Til)and carrierand a modulatingfrequencyof 400 kHz.
Distance(D) - pilot Two mixer stagesgive the Doppler shift frequency

179
 I
Transmitter/receivcr
Ground
speed
=T-
Trackcr + i Computer I
Memory To diStance
Fig. 10.15 Moving aerial Doppler block diagram based on
the Marconi AD 550
fo. The first mixes the receivedsignalwith a sample
of the transmittedsignal,the requiredsideband
(1200 kHz in the AD 560) beingselectedby the
intermediatefrequencyamplifiers. The secondmixes
.fy'times f^ with the selectedsidebandto extract fi.;
by meansof a low passfilter with a cut-off frequency
' ofabout 20kHz.
There are two transmit and two receivelinear
slotted arrays. Anti-phaseand in-phasearraysare
usedfor transmit and receive,an arrangementwhich
can be shown to compensatefor changesin
wavelength.The arraysareconnectedto appropriate
inlets/outletsby an r.f. switch(varacterdiodesin the
AD 560). Fore and aft beamsareobtainedby
providingfor connectionto eitherend of eacharray,
while port and starboarddeflectionis achievedby use
of sidereflectors.The beam-switching sequence is
180
Aerial unit
p-- Heading
F----+ Drifi
Set tiack
Autopilot
Steering
ind.
Set
zero
Set
distance
Displayunit
! :
important where pitch and azimuth drive of the aerial
is concerned;the AD 560 sequenceis port forward,
starboardaft, starboardforward, port aft, a complete
cycle taking I second.
The Doppler spectrumis fed to two loops: one
coarseand one fine. The searchloop providesfor
coarseadjustmenlof a ground-speedmeasuringshaft
which determinesthe frequency of a voltagecontrolled
oscillator(v.c.o.) in the tracking loop through a
feedbackpotentiometer. With the searchloop nulled
the v.c.o. frequency is approximatelyequal to the
meanDoppler shift frequency,a discriminatorwithin
the tracking loop is then able to apply an error signal
to the speeddrive so as to position the ground-speed
shaft accurately. The Doppler can then be saidto be
locked on, and any changein ground speedwill be
trackedby the fine trackingloop.
 Pf SA drift angle(azimuth drive) and so give track to
another differential synchroin the displayunit. The
Sterboard
drift rotor of the seconddifferentialsynchrois set by the
operatorat the desiredtrack angle,hencethe output
is the differencebetweentrack and desiredtrack,
Timo i.e. track angleerror6.
Noseup The resolverin the computerunit resolvesground
speedS into its alongand acrossspeedcomponents
S cos.EandS sin^Erespectively.In the AD 560 a ball
1 second resolveris used,thus givingmechanicalanalogue
a tracking
Fig 10.16 Change in Dopplershiftwith aerialmisalignment computing. The ball is drivenby
oscillator-fedsteppermotor, hencethe rate of
rotation is proportional to ground speed. The axis of
If the antennaaxis is not aligred with the track of rotation dependson the angleof the drive wheel
the aircraft, either in pitch or in azimuth, the Doppler which is set by a servoposition control systemto be
strift will changewith beam-switching.With equal to the track error angle. Two pick-offwheels
misalignmentin azimuth the change in Doppler occurs mounted with their axesat right anglesrotate at a
at a rate of I Hz, while if the misalignmentis in pitch rate dependingon the alongand acrossspeeds.These
the rate is 2Hz. This follows from the beam-switching rotations are repeatedin the displayunit by meansof
sequence and rate (seeFig. 10.16). Reference servodrivesand causethe counlersto rotate. The
waveformsof 2 and I Hz arefed to the pitch and alongdistancecounter is arrangedto count down from
azimuth drive circuits respectively; any misalignment the initial distanceto the waypoint until it reaches
of the antennawill be detectedby the drive circuits, zero when the aircraft will be on a line perpendicular
resultingin the antennarotating so asto align itself to the desiredtrack and passingthroughthe waypoint.
with the aircraft track. At this stagethe Doppler shift If both alongand acrossdistancesreadzero
is the same on all four beams and accurately simultaneouslythe aircraft is over the waypoint.
representsground speed,alsothe anglebetweenthe
aircraft and antennalongitudinalaxesis equal to the Fixed Antenna System
drift angle. Figure10.17may be usedto explainthe principlesof
The s.n.r.is measured in both the search and a fixed antennasystemto block diagramlevel. The
tracking loops. If the searchloop checkis not antennaconsistsof planararraysof slotted waveguide
satisfactoryfor three out of the four beamsthe three or printed circuit, separatearraysbeingusedfor
servodrivecircuits are disabled.The sigrralto noise transmissionand reception. Beam'switchingis
checkin the tracking loop causes the system to.go to achievedusingvaractordiode or ferrite switchesto
memory if it is not satisfactory. In memory the couple the transmitterand receiverto the
antennaand ground-speed shaft are fixed and a appropriateport.
memory flag appearsin a ground'speed and drift The receivedsignalis mixed with a sampleof the
angleindicator. The sensor continues to give the f.m.c.w. transmittedsignaland the wanted sideband
last-measured ground'speedand drift anglefor as filtered out and amplified. If only ground speedand
long as the poor s.n.r.continues. drift angleare requiredfurther mixing may take place
Ground-speedoutput from the sensoris in two to extract the Doppler frequenciesasin the moving
forms.- A synchrorotor is mechanically coupled to antennacase;howeverthe senseof the shift (positive
the ground-speed shaft giving a three'wire feed' The or negative)is lost. If the three velocity vectorsin the
trackingv.c.o. frequency,which is proportional to direction of the aircraft cq'ordinatesare required,an
ground speed,is fed to a sine'cosineresolverin the intermediatefrequency,feis retainedwhich will be
dependingon
computer and alsoto a frequencydividerwhich scales reducedor increasedby an amount
and shapesthe sigral so that one pulse per nautical which beam is being radiated.
mile is fed to a distance flown indicator (integrating The time-multiplexed Doppler shifted ,fq siSnals
counter). are separatedby a demultiplexerdriven by the
A synchrotransmitterin the antennaunit gives a beam-switching control and feedingfour tracking
drift angleoutput sincethe body is bolted to the loops. Voltage-controlled oscillatorsbecomelocked
fixed part ofthe antenna and the rotor is driven by to the incoming frequencies fO ! fo by sweeping
the azimuth motor. A differentialsynchro through their range until they lock on. The four
transmitteris usedto add heading(from compass)to tracker outputs are then summed and differenced,as

181
 Heading Attitude

x
o
x ]
o
z
=
E -
E

Air speed Variation

initial position
and waypoints

Fig 10.17 FixedaerialDopplerblockdiagram

appropriate,in a combiningnetwork to provide ground-speedand drift-angleoutputs and, with a

signals/r, fy and/2 proportional to aircraft compassinput, will providenavigationdata to a CDU
co-ordinatevelocities(seeAppendix, Al 0.3). givinga two-unit Doppler navigationsystem. Digital
Within the computer/display unit (CDU) the outputsareprovidedin accordance with ARINC 429
aircraft referencedvelocity componentsare (DITS) and ARINC 582, thereis alsoan optional
transformedinto track-orientatedearth-referenced synchrooutput for drift angle.This unit, introduced
componentsusingattitude signals(pitch and roll) n 1979,may heralda comebackfor Dopplerin
from a verticalreferencegyro (seeAppendix, A10.4). airline servicesinceit has beenorderedby Boeingfor
With a headinginput and waypoints,in terms of installationin their 727s and,737s.
to be usedin
desiredtrack and distance,set in by the pilot the conjunction with Lear Siegler'sperformanceand
computercan integratethe alongand across navigationcomputer system(PNCS).
velocitiesto givedistanceto go and across-track
error (distance)respectively.
The CDU may offer latitude and longitude
rcadoutof position by transformingthe aircraft
velocitiesinto north-orientatedhorizontal components.
True north, as opposedto magneticnorth, may be
usedas the referenceif the pilot is ableto enter the
variation. With attitude, headingand true air speed
inputs the output from an airspeedtransformation
circuit or routine may be comparedwith the velocity
transformationto give wind speedand direction.

Installation

TheDopplernavigator
system
illustrated
in
Fig. 10.I 5 requiresfive units asindicated;i.e. antenna,
transmitter-receiver, tracker,computer and display
unit. The Marconi AD 560 comprisesthe five units
mentionedplus a junction box, ground-speed and
drift-angleindicator, distance-flownindicator and a
control unit (or simply a panel-mountedswitch).
The weight of the AD 560 is about 30 kg which
shouldbe comparedwith Marconi'slatest Doppler
the AD 660 which weighs5 kg (sensoronly).
The AD 660 is a single-unitDoppler sensorgiving Fig. 10.18 AD 550 (courtesyMarconiAvionicsLtd)

'182
 :1 I

i
t .
{:,-:"*
.
l::
ril,:.:
tri l
i ,
i f

Fig. 10.19 Doppler7l antenna/electronics

unit (courtesy
the DeccaNavigatorCo. Ltd)

Figure10.18showsthe AD 660 with cards

removed.Note the useof large-sca1e integrated
circuitscommonin all modernsystemsaswe
approachthe 1980s.The antennais a printed circuit
microstripproducingfour beamstransmitted
sequentially.The transmitteris a f.m. Gunn diode
oscillatorgeneratingover 200 mW at a carrier
frequencyof 13.325GHz. Computationand control
is achievedthrougha microprocessor.
The DeccaDoppler7l and 72 aredesisnedfor
v./s.t.o.l.(vertical/shorttake-offand landing)aircraft
operatingbelow 300 knots and fixed-wins aircraft
operatiggup to 1000knots respectively. these
Efstemshavehad civilian saleslimited to aircraft with
specialneedssuchas certainhelicopteroperationsand
surveying.Figures10.19-10.22 showunits of a
typicalDeccaDoppler7l installation.Interconnections
aresimple;all three indicatorsbeingdriven directly
from the antenna/electronics unit. A headinginput is
requiredfor the PBDI which, togetherwith the
antenna/electronics unit, forms a basictwo-unit
system,the two metersbeingoptional. Another
optional unit is an automatic chart display driven by lq._19.?0 Doppter7l position,bearinganddrift indicaror
(PBDI)(courtesy
theDeccaNavigator Co.I_tay
the PBDI or a more sophisticatedreplacement,a
TANS computer.

183
 Across-track error areusually
error and track-angle
availableasoutputsfrom a CDU fbr useby an
autopilot. Obviouslywarningsignalsmust alsobe
providedto indicatethe integrityof the steering
signalsto the userequipment.

Controlsand Operation

We shallconsiderthe Doppler71 as an example,

althoughobviouslyconsiderablevariationsexist.

P.B.D.I.
Indicator,controllerand generalpurposeprocessor
w i t h p r o g r a m m cea p a c i t yo f 1 5 0 0 1 6 - b i tw o r d s .
Battery-protected memory.

Switches
l. DOP TEST: groundcheckingof sensor;
ST BY: inputsinhibited,displaytlashes;
LAND/SEA: allowscorrectionfor overwater
Fig. 10.21 Doppler7l ground-speed
and drift meter
(courtesythe DeccaNavigator
Co. Ltd) calibrationshift error to be switcltedin.
2. LMP TEST: checkof displayand lamps;
HDG/VAR: displayof headinginput and insertion
of m agneticvariations;
FIX: positiondisplayedis fixed; Doppler
incrementaldistances arestored;warninglamp
flashes:slewswitchesoperable:
POS:aircraftlatitudeor longitudedisplayed;
GS/DFT: groundspeedand drift angledisplayed:
BRG DIST: bearingand distanceto next waypoint
displayed;
WP: selected waypointlatitudeor longitude.
3 . W A Y P O I N TI t o l 0 : a l l o w s f o r w a y p o i n t
selection.Waypointscan be insertedor changed
at any time.
4. LAT LONG: three-posttion latitude,longitudeor
both (alternately)displayed.
5. SLEW:two switchesusedfor insertingvariation.
presentposition,waypointco-ordinates and
resettingthe numericdisplaysas required.

\Displays
l. Numeric:twb groupsof threeseven-segment
(courtesy
Fig.10.22 Doppler7l hovermeter theDecca filamentsshow data selectedby seven-position
Co.Ltd)
Navigator switch.
2. Sectordisplay:indicateslatitude no*fh (N) or
The Doppler 70 seriessystemsare c.w., three-beam south(S), longitudeeast(E) or west(W).
(not switched)K-bandradars.Adequatedecoupling 3. Trackerror: analogue displayshowingtrack error,
betweentransmitterand receiveris inherentin the in degrees,to the selectedwaypoint.
desigr,so allowingthe useof c.w. A localoscillator 4. Warningindicators:incorporatedin analogue
signalis usedfor mixing, so providingan intermediate displayto givewarningof Doppler failure
frequencyt the Dopplershift. Furtherdetailsof the (or memory),computerfailureor test mode
systemareincludedbelow. selected.

184
Ground-Speedand Drift Meter
Displayofground speedup to 300 knots and drift
angle+ 30o (expandedscale).
Powerfailure and memory warning flags.
Manualsettingof drift and ground speedprovided for.
Hovcr Meter
Displays:
along-heading velocity- range-10 to +20 knots: built-in test equipmentwith which to carry out
across-heading velocity- ranget l5 knots;
verticalvelocity - ranget 500 ft min-r.
Characteristics
ARINC Characteristic540, airborneDoppler radar,
wasissuedin 1958 and lastprinted in January1960; checkcould be carriedout, but ifin the signal
it is no longermaintainedcurrent. For this reason
detailsof a currently availablesystem,the Decca
Doppler7l arelisted. Sincethis is primarily a
helicoptersystema'very brief data summary for the
MarconiAD 660 systemaimed at the airliner market
hasalsobeenincluded.
Drift anglerange:i 39.9o.
Altitude: 45 000 ft abovesround level.
Supply2 : 8 V d . c . , 2A .
Testing
ModernDopplershavea considerable amountof
checks.Syntheticsignalsmay be generated by
switchingantennasat a much higherrate than normal,
thus leadingto the memory flag clearingand a given
readingpossiblyappearingon the ground-speedand
drift-angleindicator. This might be the effect of
pressingthe test switch on the ground under memory
conditions.If airborneand in memorya similar
condition,i.e. Dopplershift presentand s.n.r.
satisfactory, then a goodand easycheckis to operate
the slewingswitchesto offset ground-speedand
drift-anglereadings;on releasethe readingsshould
return to their original positions. This check will
causea small error in the computedposition but this

DeccaDoppler 7l
Power: 100 mW
Frequency:13'325and 13.314GHz. End
Intermediatefrequency:10.7MHz.
Beamwidth: 5o in depressionplane, I lo in broadside
plane. Simulated
flight path
Depressionangle'.67".
151
Modulation:none,c.w.
Number of beams:three continuous. Sta$ 2
Along-headingvelocity rangeto computer: -50 to
+300knots. 065
Across-heading velocity rangeto computer: ! 100
knots.
Supply: I l5 V, 400 Hz, single-phase.
Altitude range:0-20 000 ft over land or over water
WPT 2
when surfacewind ) 5 knots.
Accuracyof sensor- lessthan O'3Voor 0.25 knots
(whicheveris the greater(overland)).
Acquisitiontime: within 20 s. Stage 1
Indicatedaccuracy,ground speedand drift meter:
3'5 at 100 knots; 5 at 300 knots, drift t 0'5o.
Indicatedaccuracy,hover meter: along and across
velocitiesI I knot, verticalvelocity t 40 ft min-I.

Marconi AD 660
Power:200 mW.
Frequency: 13'325 GHz.
Start
Modulation:f.m.c.w.
Number of beams:four, sequential. Fig, 10.23 Test conditionsfor simulatedflight to check
Velocity range: l0-800 knots. computer(seetext)

185
can be eliminatedby sleivingin the oppositedirection Appendix
by the sameamount to producea cancellingerror.
To check the computer/displaypart of a Doppler Aircraft and Earth
RelationshipsBetrrveen
navigatora coursemust be simulatedby setting
Co-Ordinates
compassheading(d.g., directionalgyro, selected),
drift angleiground speedand waypoint courseand
A s i n F i g .A l 0 . l l e t i ' , i ' , k ' b e o r t h o g o n aul n i t
distanceusingappropriateslewingcontrols. Having
vectorsdefining a right-handedco-ordinatesystem
set everythingup the computeris switchedon for a
with the positivedirection of the axis spannedby i'
timed run, at the end of which the displayedreadings
beingforward along the aircraft'slongitudinal axis
d-rouldbe asindependentlycalculated. Usually a
figuresfor and ihe positivedirection of the axis spannedby i'
written procedurewill give the necessary
beingstarboardalong the aircraft'slateral axis.
sucha checkbut in any casethey are reasonablyeasy
to work out. As an example,startingwith the
following:
Waypoint I track 335" distance15 nauticd
miles
Waypoint 2 track 065" distance15 nautical
milqs
Heading OlO"
Drift l0o starboard
Ground speed 600 knots

at the end of the simulatcd two-hg flight the across FE. At0.l Aircraft co-ordinates
distanceshouldbe zeto, the distancefTown42
nauticalmiles and the time taken 4 min l4'5 s, all to As in Fig. A 10.2let i, i , k be orthogonalunit
within the tolerancelaid down for the system. vectorsdefining a right-handedco-ordinatesystem
Ramp test setshavebeenproducedfor Doppler with the positivedirection of the axis spannedby f
systems,usually purpose-builtby the manufacturerof beingforward alongthe aircraft'slongitudinalaxis
the radar and not general-purpose as are, for example, projectedon to a plane parallelto the ground and the
VOR, DME, ILS, etc. test sets. Sometimes one will
positivedirection of the axis spannedby 7 being
find meterswith associated switcheswhich can be
starboardalong the aircraft'slateral axis projectedon
usedto monitor variousinternal voltagesandior to a planeparallelto the ground.
currentsbut this is more likely on older multi'unit
equipment.
It is important for accuracyto ensurethe antenna
is alignedwith the aircraft'slongitudinalaxis. The
Doppler will interpret any slight misalignmentasa
drift-angleerror. lnitial alignmentof all antennasis
importantbut with a fixed antennasystemoncethe
hole is cut in the airframe,correctly aligned,the only k
causefor concernafterwardsis that the antennais
fitted the ccrrectway round. With moving-antenia Fig.A10.2 Earthco-ordinates
systemsan alignmentprocedurefor the antenna
mounting is carriedout initially by usingsightingrods Further le! positivepitch be nose'upand positive
on the mountingand the aircraft' Viewingthe rods roll be starboardwing-down,then from Figs.A10.3
from a distanceto ensurethey arein line, and then and A10.4 we have:
tiglrteningthe securingbolts throughthe slotted i'= icosP-ksinP
holesin the mountingplate,will ensurethat the k'= isinP+kcosP
antennacan be subsequently changedwithout a need.
for an alignmentcheck.- althoughone shouldbe i'= TcosR+/rsinR
carried out on rnajor inspections. k'= -i sinR+kcosR

r86
 sinceZ is thevectorsumof Vd,VA' and l/y'. Thus:
vn = hvi+av{+vvl
whereft, a andv arethe magnitudesof the projeition
ofz on to eachaxisof the co'ordinatesystem
i . e . u= h i + a i + v k
FromFigsA10.5,A10.6andA10.7we seethat for:
b e a mI h= -H a= A v = V
beam2 h= H a= A v = V
b e a m3 h= H a= -A v = V
beam4 h=-H a=-A v = V
whereI/ = cos0 cosa;.4 = cos0 sina; Z = sind.

k'

F8. A10.4 Aircraftroll

Thus the matrix of transition from l, i, k to i', i',

/c' is givenby:

F:: '[i
:-il lrrhn] Fig. A10.5 Velocities in longitudinal/lateral plane

vi{
f cosf sin P sinR sin P cosRl
=10 cosR -sinR l=U
l-sin P cosP sinR cosP cosRJ
If the aircraftvelocityvectorl/ hasco-ordinatesl!1,
Vt, Vv with respectto i, i, k andVfi , Va', Vf with V(/
respect lo i',i',k'we have: Fig. A10.6 Velocitiesin planenormalto longitudinal/lateral
plane

w=Mxv,,\
i.e. Vy = Vrt cosP + Vj sinPsin R + Vi sinPcosR
- Vl sin R
(Al0.l)

V.e= Va' cosR

Vv = -Vi sin P + Va' cosP sin R + Izf cosP cosR

The Doppler Shifts for a Four-Beam Janus

Configuration Fig. A10.7 Aircraft velocity vector

Themagnitude of the relativevelocityvector24, in Now the Dopplershiftsaregivenby/2 =2Vnf lc'

thedirectionof anybeamis the innerproductof the. therefore:
aircraftvelocityvectorV andthe unit vectoralong
fi = 2f (-H Vl +,a Va'+ Y Vl)lc
thebeamcentroid, a. Thus: Vx'+ V Vf)lc
fr=2f(HVil+A (Ar 0.2)
VR= V'u f s = 2 f ( H V r i - A vA'+ v vi)lc
=(Vi+V71'+Vv).u fc = 2f(-H vi 'l v; + v vi)lc
187
 The Aircraft Velocity in Earth Co-Ordinates
Expressedin Termsof DopplerShifts
- From equations(A10.2) we have: W=MxWir;:itil
Kp = 47cof .", "
(Ar0.4)

v1i= c(fz;fr\=+*-fr
where

c
v; =c(20p.=-rrr
c(h - fe) (A10.3)
i,4 = AEos;1il-;

__:_
a
"! Y
v l = c ( fi +ft) - __4TT
c(fz + fq) 4f sin 0 are known constants.
rl4 is obtained from pitch and roll signalsandf1,f2,fg
are the Doppler shifts measuredon beamsl, 2 and 3.
Substituting (A10.3) Note beam4 is redundantbut could be usedfor
for Vfi, Vt' , Yi from equations
into equations(Al0.l) we have: checking purposes.

188
11 Radioaltimeter

Introduction necessary in orderto 'mark' tlie time of transmission.

both f.m. and pulsedtransmissions areused. The
The meaningof the terms aircraft altitude or height is methodof time measurement dependson the type of
complicatedby the variousreferencesused from modulationusedand the complexityof the airborne
which the height can be measured.A barometric equipmentwhich is acceptable.Threebasictypesof
altimeter sensesthe static pressureat aircraft leveland altimeterare marketed:pulse,conventionalf.m.c.w.
givesa readingdependenton the differencebetween (frequencymodulatedcontinuouswave)and constant
{his pressureand the pressureat somereferencelevel. diflerencefrequencyf.m.c.w.
For aircraft flying aboveabout 3000 ft, the reference The bgsicprinciple of a pulsedsystemis simple,
of paramountimportanceis that levelcorresponding sincethe transmittedand receivedpulsesclearly
to a pressureof 1013.25mbar(29-92in.Hg),the representeventsbetweenwhich the time can be
so-calledmean sealevel. The other barometric measured.With f.m.c.w.thereis no singleevent
referencesusedare local sealevel and airfield level. duringone cycleof the modulatingfrequency;however
The pilot is able to set the referencelevel pressureat specifictimesduringone-halfcyclecanbe identified
l0l3'25 mbar,QNH (localsealevel- regional)or QFE by the instantaneous frequencybeingtransmitted.
(airfield level),the Q codesbeingusedin
Sincethe transmitterfrequencyis continuously
communicationwith air traffic control(ATC). changing,the receivedsignal,which hasbeen subject
Converselythe radio altimeter measuresthe height to delaydue to the round-triptraveltime, will be
of the aircraft abovethe ground. lf an aircraft is in different in frequencyto the transmittedsignalat
levelflight the barometricaltimeter readingwill be any instant in time. The differencefrequency,fi,
steadywhile the radioaltimeterreadingwill be can be shown to be proportional to the height as
varying unlessthe aircraft is ffying over seaor plain. follows.
It follows that radio altimetersare most usefulwhen Assumea triangularmodulatingwaveformof
closeto the ground, say below 2000 ft, and frequencyfm and amplitudesuchthat the carrier,'/",
particularly so when landingproviding the final is modulatedovera rangeA/. This situationis
approachis over a flat surface. As a consequence, illustratedin Fig. I I .l . Th€ two-waytraveltime is
radio altimetersdesignedfor usein civil aircraft are 2Hlc where11is the heightand c the speedof light.
low-levelsystems,typical maximum rangesavailable The magnitudeof the rateof changeof transmitted
being 5000, 2500 or even500 ft in the caseof usein frequencyis 2 . A/. f^ (= 0.5 Lf lO10.25fil. The
automaticlandingsystems.Military aircraft can productof the elapsedtime and the rateof changeof
utilize high-levelradio altimeters. frequencywill givethe diflerencein frequency
betweentransmittedand receivedfrequencythus:

BasicPrinciples f n = 2 . L f. f ^ . 7 ,
= 4 . A f. f ^ . H l c ( rl . r )
Radioheightis measuredusingthe basicideaof radio Tltus the measurement of the beatliequencv
ranging,i.e. measuringthe elapsedtime between determinesthe heightsince4 .Lf . f^jc is a known
transmission of an e.m.waveand its receptionafter constantfrrr any particularsystem.
reflectionfrom the ground. The heightis givenby The beatfrequencyis constant,for triangular
hAlf the productof the elapsedtime and the speedof modulation,exccptat thc turn-aroundregiontwice
light: & & & & & & & & & & & & & & & & & & & & & & & & & & & & & & & & & & & & & & & & & & & &p&e&
r c&y&c &
l e&. & & &S&i&
n&c e&t&
u&r n&- &
a r&o&u&
n&d t&a&k &
e s&p=l 4a 9c 2
e ti n
( r?b.egisnwget h e e l a p s e d t i m e i n
microseconds). havethat the average beatfrequencyfor 2Zps is
Energyis radiatedat a frequencyh the band fnl2 l'orthe restof the moclulatingcycle;thebeat
42OO'44O0MHz. Modulation of the carrieris frequencyis constantat fi . If the averagebeat

189
 Transmittcd Thfi will result in'a vertical dhplacetnent of thc graph
of the receivedsigral in Fig. I l.l. The effect for a
descendingaircraft (positiveshift) is shown in
Fig. I1.2. As canbe seenthe beatfrequencyis
fn - fa andfi, + f6 for equalperiods. If we take the
averageover half a ntodulationperiod we get
Un +fa +fn - fil2 =fh asrequired.Thisassumes
fn ) fa which will be the casewith a radio altimeter.

Received

o
C
o
t
ct
o
E
o
.9
!
o
G
Fig.I l.l A FMCWradioaltimeter- frequency/time
relationship

frequencyover one modulatingcycle is detectedwe

will havea measuredfrequencyfi givenby: C'

= (((tlf; -2r)fn + rfnl2)fm

fn '= o

fm(r - 3Tfmlz) (l1.2) o Q'

6
With the aircraft at about 2000 ft andf^ = 2OOHz
we have:
Fig.I 1.2 Theeffectof Dopplershifton beatfrequency
fn = fn (l _ 0.0012)
i.e. an error of about 2.4 ft at 2000 ft. On the ground
therewill still be an elapsedtime, due to built-in tlsingequation(l l.l) we seethat for a systemwith
delay,ofabout 0.12 ps corresponding to a residual A.f = 100 MHz (42504350 MHz) andf ^ = 200 Hz
altitude(seelater)of 57 ft, say. Whenwe use the beat frequencyfi = (4 X 100X 106X 2OOH)/
0'12 ps andf^ = 2OOHzin equation(l 1.2)we
Illlll= (984 X 106)= 8011sothe rangeol fp lor a
find that the erroron the grounddue to the averaging 0-2500ft altimeterwith a residualaltitudeof 57 ft
of the non-constant beatfrequencyis about 0.002 ft would be 4'56-?.04'56 kHz. Thiswide bandrvidthcan
which is insignificant. be reducedby' maintaininga constantdifference
In practicea perfecttriangularmodulating frequencythusimprovingsensitivity.Sincefi
frequencyis difficult to achieve,someroundingat dependson both Lf andf * we canvary eitherin
the turn-aroundtakingplace. In fact with any inverseproportionto the heig.htso keepingfi
reasonably shape-modulation waveform,it canbe constant.
shownthat the average beatfrequencywhen usedin The necessary servoloop nrustmonitor the
equation( I I .l ) will yield a heightreadingwhich is diff'erencefrequencyand control the modulatorso as
c o r r e cw
t ithinacceptable i m i t s . A p p e n d i xI L I to changeLl'or frt accortlingly.The control signal
provesthis for sinusoidalfrequencymodulation,whichrepresents the heightof the aircraft, Sincethe
is easierto obtainsincethe rateof changeof carrier controlledvariableis madeinverselyproportionalto
frequencyis boundedin magnitudeby unity. heightit becomesdifficult to employthe technique
lf thereis relativemotion betweenthe aircraftand at lower heights.particularlywhenA/ is varied. This
the groundimrnediatelybelow the receivedfrequency latterproblenrcanbe overcorne b1'the contpromise of
will experience a Dopplershift,/a (seeChapterl0). operating c o n v e n t i o n a l al yt l o w a l t i t u d e sa n d r v i t h

190
constantj[ otherwise,or by modifying feedbackin
the loop such that fp varieswith any changein
altitudebut not oversucha greatrangeas it would
with no feedback.The Frenchlnanufacturer TRT
producealtimeterswith constantfi at all heights,
control beingachievedbyvarytngf^; the tolerance
+ I ft or I per centis met.
FactorsAffecting Performance
Ihe accuracyof a radioaltimeterdepends
fundamentallyon the precisionwith which the time
of transmission is marked. For precisetiming a wide
transmittedspectrumis requiredsincethis would lead
to a steepleadingedgein a pulsedsystemor, in the
caseof f.m.c.w.,a largefrequencydeviationwhich
effectively givesan expandedscale. Ofcourse a finite
spectrumis transmittedand in fact is limited to a total
spreadof between4200 and 4400 MHz by
internationallegislation (the band 1600-1660MHz
hasalsobeenallocatedfor useby radioaltimetersbut
is no longerused).
In an f.m.c.w.systema countermay be usedwhich
measures the numberof cyclesor half-cyclesin one
periodof the modulation.Sincethe counteris unable
to measurefractionsof a cycle,other than possiblya
half, the count is a discretenumber. The process
resultsin a quantizationerror calledstepor fixed
error. We may rewriteequation( I I .l ) as:
H=&,=#
where,rV= fnlfn is the number of beat frequency
cycles(to nearestintegerbelow)in the modulation
cycle. Sincely' is an integerthe height measuredwill
be subjectto a quantizationerror calledsteperror
equalto cl4Al'which with A/= 100 MHz is2.46 ft.
In practicein any one rnodulationperiodthe
actualcount will dependon the nurnberof
positive-going zerocrossings of the beat frequency,
this could be N or N + I dependingon phasing.So if
the phasingvariesthc count will jurnp betweeny'y'and
Iy'+ | and backso avertgingout the steperror
p r o v i d i n gt h e t i r r r cc o n s t l n t< l ft h e i n d i c a t i n g
l a r g ec o r n p u r ew ' t li t h t l t 0 t i r r r eb e t w e e nc o u n t
f l u c t u a l i o n s l. t c l n b e s h o w t rl h a t t h ec o u n tw i l l
changelirr a charrgc- in lrcightol'u quarterof a
w a v e l c n g tohl t l r c r . l ' . A t t l r el ' r c q u e n cuys e df o r
r a d i oa l l i r r r c t c ri .st( l u i t r t cor l ' a w a v e l c n g tilsr l e s st h a n
I i n . l n d l r c n c cr r r r l c sl lsy i r r go v e ' vr c r ys n t o o t h
s u r l a c etsh c l l L r c t t r l t i r r g l d i o l r c i g hw
t ill cause
a v e r a g i nogr r l o l ' t h c e r r o r . l ) e . l i b e r a t ewl yo b b l i n gt h e
phaseof the modulation frequencywill alsohavethe
desiredeffect providingthe wobbulation rate, say
l0 Hz, canbe filteredout.
lf a frequencydiscriminatoris usedto measure
frequencythe steperror is not presentsince
measurement is continuousratherthan discrete.With
conventionalf.m.c,w.altimeters. however.the ranse
of frequenciesto be measuredis largeand
discrirninatorcircuitssufficiently stableand linear are
difficult to achieve.With a constantdifference
frequencyf.m.c.w.altimetera discriminatorcan
easilybe usedto detect the smallchangeswhich
occur in l7r.
The receivedsignalstrengthvarieswith the height
ofthe aircraft. From the radarrangeequationthis
variation is as the fourth power of the range;however
with an altimeterthe greaterthe range(height) the
greaterthe areaof the target(ground)is illuminated.
For radio altimeterstherefore.the variationis as the
squareof the range.The gainfrequencycharacteristic
of the differencefrequencyamplifier(f.m.c.w.)
should be suchthat the higher frequenciesare
amplifiedmore than the lower. Sucha characteristic
helpsby reducingthe dynamicrangeof the
frequency-measuring circuitand alsoreduceslow
frequencynoise.
Part of the two-waytraveltime is accountedfor by
the aircraftinstallationdelay(AID). Since,ideally,
the radio altimetershouldreadzero feet cln
touchdown,the residualaltitudewhich accountsfor
the AID is madeup of cablelength,multipliedby a
(l r.3) factor (typically l'5) to allow for propagationspeed,
and the sum of the antennaheights.It is important
that the systemis calibratedso asto allow for AlD.
One method which hasbeenr.rsed for an altimeter
utilizedfor blind landingis to measurethe difference
frequencyon touchdownon a numberof flight trials
of a particulartype ofaircraft. The frequencyarrived
at empiricallycanbe injectedinto the difference
frequencyamplifieron the benchand the setcan then
be adjustedto givea zero feetoutput. A mole
commonmethodis to calibrateby cuttingthe
antennafeedersto an appropriatelength;this will be
describedunderthe heading'lnstallation'.
Transmitter-receiver leakagecan be viewedasnoise
c i r c u i ti s which limits the receiversensitivityand alsomay
causean erroneousreading.Useof separate transmit
and receiveantennas will givespaceattenuation,a
figurein the regicnof about75 dB shouldbe aimed
f o r i n a n i n s t a l l a t i ow
n here,tha e l t i m e t eor u t p u t i s
usedin critlcalsystemssuchasautomaticIandingand
g r o u n dp r o x i m i t yw a r n i n g( g . p . w . s . ) .
Signalsoccurringat nearzerorangearecausedby
reflectionsfrorn landinggearand other appendages,
191
 (al (cl
Tx

r.caraf \ Multipath
t
\
\
Time (pulsed).
Freq.(f.m.c.w.)

performance
Fig,I1.3 Somefactorsaffecting

aswell as the leakagesignalreferredto above. In pulsedsystemsand lowest frequencytracking

both constant-difference frequencyand pulse (spectrumfiltering)in f.m.c.w.systemsis usedto
altimetersa trackingloop is employedto follow the retain accuracy.
changesin altitude. Initially, the altitude will be The altimeter can be designedwith a responsetime
unknownso a searchmode is enteredwhich,while in the orderof a few milliseconds; howeverone does
seekingthe correct altitude, will vary receivergain. not normally wish to follow the snrallestvariationsof
As previouslydiscussed, at low altitudesthe gainwill the groundbelow. The output is usuallyfilteredwith
be low, thus while searcfuing in the frequency a time constantof saya few tenthsof a second.
(f.m.c.w.)or time (pulsed)regionof the unwanted
signalsthe largegain reductionensuresthey are weak.
The groundreturnis relativelystrongensuringlock-on Block Diagram Operation
to the correctsignaland henceindicationof the
actualradioaltitude. As alreadymentionedtherearethreemain approaches
Multipath signalsarisesincethe first-time-around to radio altimeters.Most altimetersareof the f.m.c.w,
echowill be reflectedfrom the airframeback down type, the majority of thesebeingconventionalfor the
to the groundand returnasa second-time-around sakeof simplicity. Althoughtrackingf.m.c.w.and
echo. Whilethis multipathsignalwill be considerably pulsedsystemsare more complex they do have
weakerthan the requiredsignalthe height-controlled advantages overconventionalf.m.c.w.aswill be
gainwill in part nullify this favourable situation. In appreciated from the previousparagraphs.Simplified
trackingaltimetersthe initial or subsequent search block diagramsfor the threetypeswill be considered.
canbe in the directionof increasing altitudeso
lockingon to the correctsignalfirst, a similar Conventionalf.m.c.w. Altimeters
approachto outboundsearchin DME. The transmitterin a modernequipmentcomprisesa
Aircraft pitch and roll will meanthat the beam solid-stateoscillatorfrequencymodulatedat typically
centreis no longervertical;howeverif the beamis 100-150Hz rate. Whilemost of the power
fairly broad,at leastpart of the transmittedenergy (0'5-l W) is radiatedfrom a broadlydirectional
will take the shortestroute to the ground. Provided antennaa smallportion is fed to the mixer to beat
receiversensitivityis adequatetherewill be sufllcient with the receivedsignal.
energyreceivedfrom the nearestpoint for accurate The echois mixedwith the transmittersamplein a
measurement. strip-linebalancedmixer to producethe beat
A consequence of broad beamsis that in flying frequency.Useo{ a balancedmixer helpsin reduction
overroughterrain,reflectionswill be receivedfrom of transmitternoisein the receiver.The gainof the
anglesother than the vertical.Sincethe non-vertical wide bandbeat frequencyamplifierincreases with
pathshavea longertwo-waytraveltime the spectrum frequencyto compensate for the low signallevelof
of the differencefrequencywill be spread(ground the high frequencies (highaltitude). Signallimiting
diffusion). The spectrumshapewili be steepat the removesunwantedamplitudevariationsand givesa
low frequencyend corresponding to the correci suitablesignalform for the counter.
altitudemuch the sameasthe pulseshapein a pulsed A cycle-counting frequency-measuring circuit
systemwill havea steepleadingedge,(see Fig. I l.3b providesa d.c. signalto the indicator. Basically
and c). This spectrumwideningis increasedby suitableswitchingcircuitscontrol the chargingol'a
aircraftroll and pitch. Leadingedgetrackingin capacitorso that a fixed amountof chargeis

192
 Fig. I1.4 ConventionalFMCW altimeterblock diagram
Ft. | 1.5 Constant difference frequency FMCW altimeter
block diagram
pnerated for each cycle (or half-cycle) of the
rmknownbeat frequenry. With the simplesttype of
indicatorthe total chargeper second(current) is
hdicated on a milliammeter calibratedin feet.
Condant Differencc Frequency f.m.c.w. Altimeten
This approachis similar to a conventionalf.m.c.w.
dtimeter at the r.f. end. The beat frequency
anplifier is a narrow band with gain controlled by
&e loop so that it increaseswith altitude. A tracking
discriminatorcomparesthe beat frequency,/6, with
ainternal reference,fr;if the two are not the same,
tr crror signalis fed to the loop control.
The outputs of the loop control circuit are usedto
-t the modulator frequency,f^ (or amplitude if
&viation, Al is controlled), to set the gain of the
anplifier and to drive the indicator. The changein
f- (or A/) is such as to make/6 = /' . Obviouslyany
dage in height will lead to a changein/6 and
consequentloop action to bring/6 back to the
requiredrate;in doing so the indicator feedwill
change.lf f6 andf, are far removed,searchaction is
instigatedwhereby the modulator frequency(or A/)
is made to sweepthrough its rangefrom low to high
until lock on is achieved.
hrlsed Altimeters
A simplifiedblock diagrarfiof a typical pulsed
altimeteris shownin Fig. I 1.6. Suchaltimetersare
manufacturedby, amongothers,Honeywell;the
figuresmentionedin the descriptionof operation
which follow arefor the Honeywell7500Be series.
A p.r.f. generatoroperatingat 8 kHz keysthe
transmitterwhich feedsthe antennawith pulseof r.f.
of 60 ns duration and frequency4300 MHz. The
radiatedpeakpower is about 100W. A time reference
signal,/6, is fed from the transmitterto initiate a
precisionramp generator.
19:t
 reliablesignal(tive or six pulses)is receivedwhen the
Tx -JI||l-- track loop becomesoperational.
During track the overlapofthe track gatepulse
and videopulsedeterminesthe magnitudeof a current
to which is comparedwith a reference(offset) current.
Wherethe two currentsareequal,the output of the
rate circuit (integrator) is zero, otherwisea positiveor
negativevoltageis fed to the rangecircuit. The range
circuit (integrator) adjustsits output voltage,Vp, if
Ramp
its input is non-zero. Since I/p determinesthe timing
r l \ of the track gatepulse any changein /p will cause
1r6ck gate I I the previouslymentionedoverlapto alter until such
pulse | | time as the loop is nulled,i.e. overlapcurrent=
I N reference current. Any changein height will
Video rcturn
thereforeresult in a changein Zp to bring the loop
back to the null condition.
Automaticgaincontrol (..g.c.)and sensitivitytime
Fig.I 1.6 Pulsealtimeter
blockdiagram control(s.t.c.)are fed to the receiverwherethey
control the gain of the i.f. arnps. During searchthe
The ramp voltageis comparedwith the range a.g.c.circuitsmonitor the noiseoutput of the receiver
voltage,/4, which is proportionalto the indicated and adjustits gainso asto keepnoiseoutput constant.
height. When the ramp voltagereachesVp atrack The s.t.c.reducesthe gainof the receiverfor a short
gatepulseis generatedand fed to gateB and an time, equivalentto say50 ft after transmission, and
elongatedgatepulseis fed to gateA. The detected then its controldecreases linearlyuntil a time
video pulseis also fed to gatesA and B. A further equivalentto say200 ft. This actionprevents
gatepulseis fed to the a.g.c.circuits. ircquisition of unwantedsignals, suchasleakage,
Unlessa reliablesignalis detectedwithin the duringthe searchmode.
elongatedgatepulsethe trackisearch circuitwill During track the a.g.c.maintainsthe video signalin
sigralthe commencement of a searchcycleand break the a.g.c.gateat a constantlevel. This is importantto
the track loop by removingits reference currentfeed.. ensureprecisetracking of the receivedsignalsinceany
During searchthe searchgeneratordrive to the range variationin amplitudewould causethe areaof overlap
circuitensuresthat I/p, startingfrom a voltage to track gateand videosignalsto change.At low
representing zerofeet,runsout to a voltage heightson track the a.g.c.reducesthe receivergain,
representing 2500 ft. The searchcyclerepeatsuntil a so helpingto avoidthe effectsof leakage.Whenthe

194
heightincreasesthe leakagesignalis, of course,gated height readingof the radio altimeter it is likely that
out. givingtime discrimination. therewill be a signalfailure detected. Sincethis is
due to attenuationbecause ofexcessiverange,and
not a failure or degradationof the altimeter,it is
Monitoring and Self-Test desirablethat no warningof failure is given and that
the pointer on the indicator is parked out of view.
The integrity of the radio altimeter output is vital, A cruise-monitoring circuitmay be incorporated
particularlyin automatic landingapplications. Circuit which, usinga delayedand attenuatedfeed between
redundancyand comparisonis an effectiveway of transmitterand receiver, checkscontinuing
dealingwith the problem. For exampletwo separate satisfactoryoperationin the absenceof a detectable
dtitude-measuringcircuits may accepta feed from receivedsignal.Any warningto the autopilotmust
the mixer and independentlyarrive at the aircraft's not be affectedby cruisemonitoring;it shouldbe
height. Should the two heightsbe different by more activewheneverthere is a lossof r.f. or when any
than an acceptableamount, a warning signalis sent to other failureis detected.Contraryto the above,
the indicator and any other systemsto which the many radioaltimetersreactto a lossof signalby
height inlormation is fed. A disadvantage of using parkingthe pointer and displayingthe flag.
redundancyand comparisononly is that no attempt ii The antennaand feeder,if not properlymatched
madeto eliminatethe causeof failure, so information to the transmitter,will give rise to a reflectionwhich
is lost. may causeproblemssinceit will be delayedwith
Self-calibrationis an approachwhich is able to respectto the transmittedsignal.A directional
compensatefor small errors. If a part of the couplingcircuit may be usedto monitor the reflected
transmitteroutput is passedthrough a precisiondelay signal and so givea warningof excessive v.s.w.r.
line the resultingsignalcan be usedto provide a The monitoring and self-calibration circuits vary
'check
height'. For examplein a conventionalf.m.c.w. greatlyin detail and in how comprehensive a checkis
systemthe delayedtransmittersamplemay be mixed carriedout. All, however,on detectinga failurewill
with an undelayedtransmittersampleto give a beat providea warning signalto operatea flag in the
frequencywhich may be comparedwith a suitable indicatorand a similar,but usuallyseparate, warning
reference frequency. lf the two frequenciesare signal to other systems, dependent on radio altitude
different the modulatingsignalis adjustedto bring information. In particularif a tie-inwith autopilot
them in line; for example,if the beat frequencyis too hasbeenestablished, the warningsignalwill control
low, equation( I I . I ) tellsus that increasing
A/ by an interlock circuit within the autopilot systemwhich
increasing the modulating signalamplitude will, in prevents erroneous information dictatingthe flight
turn, increasethe beat frequencyas required. Similar path. Somemanufacturers providelatchedindicator
ideasmay be appliedto constant-differencefrequency lightson the front panelof the transmitter-receiver
f.m.c.w.and pulsedaltimeterswheresuitable which give an indicatioq of the areaof failure.
parametersare adjustedasnecessary. A self-testfacilityis usuallyprovidedwherebya
A self-calibrationloop suchas describedabove delayline, ideallybetweenantennas, is switchedin,
may operatecontinuouslyusingwhat is essentially thusgivinga predetermined readingon the indicator.
redundantcircuitry. Howeverin equipmentwhere A disadvantage of sucha facility is that it introduces
the altitude is measuredby meansof a loop, suchas a electromechanical devicessuchasco-axialcablerelays
servoedslope(controlledf^) f.m.c.w.system.we which are,of course,somethingelseto go wrong. It
may havesequentialself-calibration wherethe may be arguedthat checkingthat the readingon the
measuringloop is switched,perhapsthree times per groundbefore take-off is somespecifiedIigure near
second.into self-calibrate mode. zerois adequate, but nevertheless, someform of
Checkingreceivedsignalquality is a featureof in-flighttest facilityis usuallyrequired.
most altimeters. In a pulsedsystemthe presenceof On pushingthe self-testbutton, providingthe
detectedreceivedpulsesin a gatepulseis feasible;in a equipmentis operatingcorrectly.the failurewarning
constant-difference frequencyaltimeter the presence output shouldbe activeso causingthe warningt'lagto
of a spectrumcentredon the requiredbeat is checked. appearon the indicatorand,moie important.
With a conventionalf.m.s.w.altimeterone cannot preventingthe autopilotutilizingradioaltimeter
checka particularpart of the time or frequency information. As an extra safeguard. an interlock
domainbut signalplus noiseto noiseratio may be shouldbe providedso asto preventself-testoncethe
monitored. autopilotor any other systemhasbegunto makeuse
Whenthe aircraft is flying abovethe maximum of the radioaltimeterheightoutput.

195
Indicator
As mentionedpreviously,a milliammetermay be used
to indicateheightbut an altemativeis a servo-driven
pointer. A decisionheight(DFI)facility is also
provided.The pilot setstlle DH bug to the required
heightreadingand in doingso determinesthe voltage
V1, fed to a comparator.The other comparatorinput
is a d.c. analoguealtitudesignalwhich if lessthan Iz4
w i l l c a u s et h e D H l a m p t o l i g h t ,s o w a r n i n gt h e p i l o t
that the aircraliis flying below the DH setting. A
b l o c kd i a g r a mo f a n i n d i c a t o irs s h o w ni n F i g . I 1 . 7 .
whereisolationamplifiershavebeenomitted for
simplicitv.
usedparticularly laterally to avoid roll error in which
caseleadingedgetracking(pulsed)or spectium-filtering
(servoedslopef.m.c.w.)must perform adequately.
The antennasmust be mountedsufficientlyfar apart
to avoidexcessive leakagebut not so far apartasto
producea largeparallaxerror at touchdown,a spacing
between20 in. and 8 ft may be required.
lf the spacingbetweenantennas,mounted
longitudinally,is 8 ft and the midpoint of the line
joining the antennasis, say,7 ft abovethe groundon
touchdown,then half the shortestdistancebetween
the antennasvia the groundwill be (42 + 72)o'sx g 11
givinga parallaxerror of I ft on landing. This may be
takeninto accountwhen calculatinethe residual

t :
l E
a-L-$oH set
\ E
Comparator
DH bug
or index
Differential amp

Fig. I 1.7 Simplified servodriven indicator

Indicator
Installation --T-
lFla( Self
FigureI 1.8 illustratesa singleradio altimeter test I
installationshowinginterfaceand selectionlinks.
Co-axialfeederspassr.f. energyto and from the Supply
separate transmitand receiveantennasby way of Transmitterreceiver To other
ato
switches.Whenself-testis activatedthe transmitted L r n K sfl M systems:
OD
energyis fed to the delayunit whereit is attenuated autopilot,
GPWS,
anddelayedbeforebeingfed back to the receiver.
flight
For a particularinstallationfeederlengthand delayis director
known so the correctreadingon self-testmay be
calculated and enteredin the pilot checklist and
functionaltest procedure.
The antennasarebroadlydirectional,flush-mounted
hornsoften beingemployedgivinga beamwidth
betweenabout 20o and 40o. Broaderbeamsmay be Fig.I1.8 R a d i o a l t i m e t e r i n s t a l l a t i o n

196
Fig. I1.9 ALA-5lA (courtesyBendixAviohicsDivision)

DH ind.

lrt Lamp\
Alt display
tape
DH Select
-_''Buq DH ref. Flag
symbol
AlC ret.
Mast(_ DH tao symbol

DH adjust
and self
test button
./
oH select/'
Test Knob Fig. ll.ll Typical moving vertical scale indicator

FiE I l.l0 KI 250indicatorfor usewith KRA l0 radio reachof the antennarsincethe feederlength is
altimeter (courtesy
KingRadioCorp.) critical. Sincethe transmiiteris relativelylow power,
coolingis not a severeproblembut forced-aircooling
ableto copewith up to 50 W of dissipated energy
altitude. Good performance in respectof leading
may be required.The powersupplywill be I l5 V a'c'
edgetrackingor spectrumfiltering will make parallax
in antenna 4OOHz if the equipmentis to ARINC specifications
error worse. A further consideration
but 28 V d.c.equipmentswill be found.
positioningis avoidingexcessivereflectionsfrom
protuberances suchasthe undercarriage; in this
respectsidelobe energymust be kept low (say 40 dB Aircraft Installation DelaY-
down).
The transmitterreceivermust be mountedwithin Aircraft installationdelay(AID) is the elapsedtime

197
betweentransmit and receivewhen the aircraft is at interchangeability of transmitter-receivers between
touchdown,and is due to the delay in the feedersand different installations.
the height of the antennasabovethe ground. In order In practiceon a new installation,havingdetermined
that the indicator will readzero feet on landins the suitablepositionsfor the antennas, a minimum cable
installationmust be calibrated. Variousmetho-dshave length for feasiblet.r. location will be found.
bien used,by far the most common being that laid Equation( I I .4) cannow be usedto decidethe AID
down in ARINC 552,{; AID is definedby the formula: and to calculatethe cablelengths.ARINC 552A and,
AID = P+K(Ct+Cr) ( r 1 . 4 ) usually,manufacturers' installationmanualsprovidea
graphfrom which cablelength can be readoif. Ar un
where: . e x a m p l ec o n s i d e r P =l 0 f t , m i n i m u mt o t a l c a b l e
P is total minimum path length between transmit l e n g t h =l 0 f t a n d K = 1 . 5 .W e h a v e
and receiveantennasvia the ground when the P + K (Ct + Cr) = 25 ft so the 20 ft AID cannot be
aircraft is in the touchdownposition (minimum used. If we choose40 then total cablelenethis
path length is specifiedto avoid parallaxerror); (40 - l0)/l .5 = 20 ft, whereaswith 57 *.luu.
K is the ratio of the speedof light to the speedof 3l'3 ft. One shouldbe careful,when usinga graph,
propagation of the co-axialcable(typically 1.5); to ensurethat it corresponds to the type of cable
C1is the transmitterfeederlength; beingr"rsed (RG - 9/U in ARINC 552A) and further
C, is the receiverfeederlength. check the axeswhich may be total cablelength or
(AID is not in fact aircraftinstallationdelay eachcableand total path or antennaheight(each
sinceAID is an elapsedtime whereasthe cableys.antennaheightin ARINC 552A).
right-handsideof ( I I .4) is in feet. A more
accurateterm would be residualaltitude.)
Calibrationis achrevedby cutting the cablesto a Interface
lengthwhich givesan AID of 20, 40 or 57 ft (figures
of 40,57 and 80 fr arequoted in draft proposaisfrom Wereit not for the usewhich is madeof radioaltitude
ARINC in 1978). The transmitter-receiver is bench informationby other systems, it is doubtful whether
calibratedfor the 57 ft AID standard.Groundingone many civil aircraftwould carry radioaltimeters.The
of threepins on the t.r. plug by meansof a jumper outputsavailableareheigirt,rateof changeof height,
externalto the unit selectsthe appropriatezero-bias trip signalsand validity (l1agor warning)signal. Some
adjustmentto give the 20,40 or 57 ft AID as of thesewill be fed to the autoland/autopilot system,
required. The result of choosingthis method is the g.p.w.s.and a flight director.
Most frequentlyusedarea d.c. analogueof aircraft
heightwherevera systemneedsto continuously
monitor radioheightand,essential, a switched,
lail-safevalidity signal(invalid low). The rate signal,
i.e. rate of changeof height,may be derivedin the
systemutilizingthe heightsignal,but if providedwill
take the form of a phase-reversing a.c.analoguesigral
(ARINC 552A). The trips areswitchabled.c. voltages,
switchingtaking placewhen the aircraft transits
(J
througha pre-setheight,the DH bug is sometimes
+ calleda pilot set trlp. Againtrip signalsmay be
o
generated in thosesystemsusingthe heightanalogue
sigrral.
Autolandor blindlandingsystemsmust haveradio
heightinformationwhich will be usedto progressively
reducethe gain of the glideslopesignalamplifier (not
radio)in the pitch channelafter the aircraftpasses
overthe outer marker,and will alsobe usedto
generatetrip signalswithin tlte autoflarecomputer.
The followingis a brief summaryof eventswith radio
P------->
heights:
Fig.ll.l2 chart(& = 1.5)
An AID calibration 140 ft (a) radioaltimeterinterlockswitchedin;

198
 (b) changes in response to glidepathsignals; used. Whetherdual or triple installationsare used
120 ft (a) preparatoryfunctions;
90 ft (a) check 140 ft operation:
50 ft (a) glidepathsignaldisconnected;
(b) throttle closureinitiated;
(c) pitch demandmaintainscorrectdescent
rate;
20 ft (a) rudderservodisconnected;
(b) aileronscentred.
This sequenceis applicable,for example,to a
-l
BAC I I series500 aircraft usingan Elliott series
ll00 auto touchdownsystem.The 140and 90 ft
trips are fed from the radio altimeter;the othersare
generated
in the autoflarecomputer.
The g.p.w.s.needsradioheighttrips on all modes
profile
sincethe changesabruptlyat differentheights.
Mode2 operationisexcessive
terrainclosurewarning
and so dependson the rateof changeof radio height. angles(seeFig. I l.l3).
The trip signalsand the rate signalwill normally be
generated within the g.p.w.s.using
validheight
irrformationfrom the radioaltimeter.
Somemulti-functionflight directorinstruments
havea risingrunwaysymbolwhich movesup to meet
an aircraft symbol as the aircraft descendsto
touchdown. Operationis typicallyoverthe last
100 ft. The verticalmovementof the rising runway
dependson the height analoguesignalfrom the radio
altimeter,while its lateralmovementis controlledby
the ILS localizeroutput. Failure of either radio
altimeteror localizercauses the risingrunway to be
obscuredby a'RUNWAY' flag.
dependson the probabilityofan undetected
degradation; consequently dual radioaltimeterswill
only be usedwhere monitoring, self-calibrationand
redundancyare deemedsufficiently comprehensive
and reliable.
As soon as'onefits more than one radio altimeter
to an aircraftthe possibilityofinterferenceexists. If.
the number I systemwere to receivea leakagesignal
from number 2 a falseheight readingmay result. Also
sincethe antennasarebroadlydirectionaland all
facingdownwardsthe echo from number I will be
receivedby number 2 (and 3) and vice-versa.
Various safeguards areemployed. Minimum
coupling may be achieved by separatingthe pairsof
antennassufficiently (at least8 ft, say) and possibly
ensuringthat the E fieldsof adjacentpairsare at right '
As a iurther precautionmultiple-installation
altimeters will employ different modulation
frequencies.As an exampleof how this helps,
considerFig. 11.14wherewe havetwo altimeters,one
operatingwith a modulation frequencyof 100 Hz,
t l
--rj t F-
t t l
o l-+:
c fb
o { iA
f ' c
I
o
r
IOO MHz

Multiple Installations 1/105

1/100
All-weatherlandingswill only be safeif information
fed to the autolandsystemis reliable.To achieve F i g . I l . l 4 D u a l - i n s t a l l a t i o nm o d u l a t i o n l i e q u e n c i e s
reliabilityof radioheighta multipleinstallationis (100 and 105 Hz)

til
i >20in
til
l.- *l
E >20 in
Er- -l
til
>20 in
m
F
No. I No. 2 No. 3

Fig. I l. | 3 Triple-instaltation
aerialarrangements

199

..]:GJ,:
 the other 105 Hz (e.9.CollinsALT 50). Assumethat (b) Two trips: singlemake contactsswitchingsupply
at one instancein time 're' in one of the receiverswe from userequipmentbelow pre-setheight.
havetwo signalsboth at fc F 4300 MHz) and both Adjustable0-2500 ft t 6 per cent and
increasingin frequency;one at 100 Hz rate,the other 500-1500ft I 6 per cent.
at 105 Hz rate. One-hundredth of a secondlaterthere
will be a non-zerobeat frequencyf6 glen by rateof Optional (additional to above)
changeof frequencyof the most rapidly changing (a) Synchrooutput representingheight to be
signalmultiplied by the time lag of the slowesr. So: employedfor displaypurposes.Sameaccuracyas
= (a) above.
f n ( L f x 1 0 6 x1 0 0 x 2 ) x ( / ) (b) Altitude rate 400 Hz phasereversing,200 mV
= ( 1 0 0x 1 0 6 x 1 0 0x 2 )x ( l / 1 0 0- l / 1 0 5 )
= 9'5MHz. 1 0 0f t - r m i n - l
Accuracy:greaterthan t 20 f.p.m. or f l0 per
Thus after one cycle of f^ the interferingbeat is well c e n tu p t o 5 0 f t ; t 3 0 f . p . m .o r t l 0 p e r c e n t
out of rangeof the differencefrequencyamplifier 50-500ft.
bandwidth. The beat will changeat a 5 Hz rate, (c) Additional trips: three at 0-200 ft t 3 per cent t
rcachinga nraximumof 100 MHz. 3 ft; two at 0-500 ft t 3 per cent t 3 ft; one at
The different modulation frequenciesare selected 1000-2500ft t 6 per cent. i
in a sinrilarway to AID, i.e. by a jumper between
appropriatepins,the jumper beingpart of the fixed
installation.A similartechniquefor pulsealtimeters Ramp Testing and Maintenance
could be to employ sufficiently different p.r.f.s to
'height'
ensurethat the changedue to an,interfering It is importantto stressthat due to the extensive
pulsewould be at a rate fast enoughto prevent interfaceit is essentialthat the radio altimeteroutputs
lock-on by virtue of the altimeter time constant. are compatiblewith thosesystemswhich it feeds.
If we alsoconsiderthe programpins usedto select
modulation frequencyand AID and, further, critical
Characteristics feederlengths,it is clearthat replacement of units or
partsof the fixed installationmust only bd carried
The following are selectedand summarizedfrom out when completecompatibility,both internaland
A R I N C5 5 2 4 . external,hasbeenestablished.
A functional test on the ramp is quite straightforward.
Input I Output r.f. Coupling The radio altimetershouldreadnearlyzero feet when
50 f,) RG-9/U (or equivalent)co-axialcable. switchedon. If the antennasaremountedforwardof
Cable+ antennas.w.r.lessthan l.l : I over frequency the main wheelsthe readingwill be lessthan zero;
rcnge4210-4390MHz. if aft of the main wheelsgreaterthan zero. The flag
shouldclearshowingthe r.f. path is not brokenbut
Altitude Range not provingthe loop gainis sufficient;attenuation
From 2500 ft to a'few feet'belowtouchdown. shouldbe introducedto checkthis but is unlikelv to
be calledfor.
Loop Gain Whenself-testis operatedthe correctreading
Sufficientto ensureproper operationup to 2500 ft shouldbe obtainedand the flag should appear. While
assuminga total feedercablelength of 30 ft of keepingthe self-testswitch pressedthe DH bug may
RG-9/U,a groundreflectioncoefficientof 0'01 and be adjustedfrom.a higherto a iower readingthan the
with an additional9 dB loop gain for contingencies height pointer, the DH lamp being first lit and then
(e.g.longeror differenttype ofcable). extinguished asthe bug passes the pointer.
Special-to-typetest setsare availablewhich allow
Outputs variationof simulatedaltitude:this is usefulfor
checkingtrip signals.On somealtimetersoperating
Basic the self-testcausesthe pointer to sweepagaindue to a
(a) d.c. altitudeanalogue:V = 0.2h +0.4 below variationin simulatedaltitude.
480 ft; V -- l0 + l0 In ( (/, + 20)/500)above
480 ft (ln beinglog to the basee).
Accuracy:greaterof ! 2 ft or 2 per cent up to
500 ft, 5 per cent thereafter.Time constant0.1s.

200
Appendix Alsozlz= Lf l2f^, whereA/is total range'od7 /
frequencyvariationso: l

vl,,= kV1V, sin (nAlI cos(2nf^t * n f*T)

Sinusoidal Frequency Modulation
+ 2nfrT) (A I I .4)
If the carrier Vs sin 2nf.t is frequencymodulatedby The beat frequencymay be found by differentiating
a sinusoidalwaveform, V* sin 2rf^t, then the the argument(angle)in (Al 1.4)with respectto time
output of the transmitter,vs,and the receivedsignal, and dividing by 2z to give
vr, are givenby:
fn = -((n LfT)(2nf^) stn(2nf*t - nf^T))l2r
vt = Vtsin(2rfrt +rnsin2nf*t) (All.l) = nLfTfln sin(2nf^t -nf*T+n) (All.5)
rr = Vr sin (2nf, (t - f) + m sin 2nf* (t - T)) Note the minus sign resultingfrom the differentiation
( A l 1 . 2 ) of the cosineterm hasbeenreplacedby a phaseshift
of n radians.The average beatfrequencyoverhalf a
where ?nis the two-way travel time and m is the
modulatingcycle,l 12fm, is:
modulationindex (constantin this application).
If receivedand transmittedsignalsare fed to a 7n= 2f* Ullrr^1a,1
multiplicative mixer we have, after some = r LffmT cosnf^T (Al l_6)
manipulation,a differencefrequencysignalof:
AgainsinceT 4 | I fm, cosn/rrI= l, so:
v1 = kV1V, sin(2m sin(nf*T)X
cos(2nf*Q - fl2)'1 + ZtrfrT) (All.3) 7n o 2Lff^r
= 4Lff^Hlc (Al1.7)
wherek is a constant of proportionality. Since T is
much smallerthan I I f^ we may write: This is the sameasequation(l l,l) derivedassuming
a
linearmodulatingwaveform.
sin nf*T x f^T

201
12 Area navigation

Development of Airspace Organization controlled airspaceis lacking in detail but is sufficient

to make clear the disadvantages.With heavy traffic
Beforeradio aidswere available,pilots navigatedby we havemany aircraft occupying a relativelysmall
in particularthe scheduled
visualcontact with the ground and were responsible proportionof the airspace,
air transport aircraft in the airways. To free aircraft
for their separationfrom other aircraft. With the
from the airways one needs a navigationsystemwhich "
adventof radio and improvedinstrumentationit
can be safely used over a large area,hence area
becamepossibleto fly in situationswhere the ground
navigation, and not irrevocably tied to fixed points,
couldno longerbe seenand separation could not be
such as VORTAC beacons, on the ground. But one
guaranteed.From suchbeginningsthe need for air-
cango too far; the thought of aircraftconverging on ,',-
and ground-based navigationaids and controlled
an airport from all directionsis frightening.Whatis
regionsbecameapparent: 'dog
is new airwayswhich can remove legs'
In the 1930sthe airspaces':rroundingcertain busy needed
and parallel existing ones, thus shorteningroutesand
airportsbeganto be designated controlledzoneswith
times.
restrictions, relatingto weatherand to qualifications, flight
placedon thosewho wantedto enterthe zone. With The benefitsof areanavigationare not alwayseasy
growth of a or even possibleto realize. For examplein the United
the growth of air traffic has come the
system. Kingdom the areasmost usedby air traffic of the
worldwidecontrolledairspace
'shape'ofthis
controlledairspace was scheduled transport type is largely coveredwith
The
influencedby the introductionof one of the earliest airways, control areasand zonesalreadyand an
ground-based navigationaids,radio range. This extension to area navigationwhich will benefit
equipment,introducedin the 1930s,gavefour beams economically is difficult to achieve. However,in
geographically small but busy regionssuchasBritain,
which suitably equippedaircraft could follow. Beam
area navigation equipment is an extremelyusefulbool
flying wascontinuedand intensifiedwith the adoption
VOR and so a system of controlled to the large number of general aviation aircraft which
of confirmed
potter around beneath the airways and in uncontrolled
airwayswhich radiatefrom ground stations. The
airspace generally. It was possible before, but with
airwayslink control areaswhere a number of airways
the correct equipment it is now much easier.
convergeover c€ntresofhigh-density traffic. Neither
the airwaysnor the control areasstart at ground level,
asdo control zoneswhich arecentredon one or a
groupof airports. Generalized Area Navigation System
The airwavs.control zonesand coritrol areas
constitutecontrolledairspacewithin which instrument Area navigationequipment is not new although the
flight rules(lFR) are in force. Only.instrument-rated acronym RNAV. is fairly recent. In fact RNAV could
pilcts flying aircraft fitted with a minimum havebeenimplementedin the 1950shad the choice
iquipment complementcan usecontrolled airspace for an internationalstandardbeen the Decca
for navigationalpurposesalthough,for non-conformingNavigator. Other equipmentsproviding navigation
flights, i specialvisualflight rules(VF'R) clearance facilitiesover a wide areaand not tied to fixed points
canbe obtained from air traffic control (ATC) to are Loran and Omegaof the ground-basedsystems
enteror cross.Within controlledairspaceseparation and Dopplerand InertialNavigationSvstemsof the
is the responsibilityof ATC, whereasin uncontrolled self-contained variety. Unfortunatelyall of these
airspacei1 is the responsibilityof the pilot who, systems are more expensivethan VOR/DME which is
however,canbe givena separation serviceif in an in widespread use. The adventof airbornecomputers
advisoryserviceareaor on an advisoryroute. hasnow madepossiblesophisticated navigation
The abovedescriptionof the structureof systemsincludingan RNAV systernbasedon

m2
 R/DME. The trick is to 'shift' the position of the
headingand drift angleor
co-locatedbeaconsto a phantom beaconor waypoint
track angleand ground speedor
location chosenby the pilot. The pilot useshis
wind directionand speedor
VOR/DME instrumentationh the sameway as
cross-trackdistanceand track error,etc.
before,exceptthat steeringcommandsare ielatedto Analoguepresentation on HSI:
a waypoint remote from the beacon. headingand track
The computer power, of course,allows much more coursedisplayand setting
than the generationof steeringcommandsto phantom desiredtrack
beacons,severalnavigationsensorand air data lateralsteeringcommand.
outputsmay be mixed to provide a meansof lateral Analoguepresentation on attitudedirector:
and verticalnavigationand a display of data which pitch and roll steeringcommands.
can take many forms. The all-purposesystemis Analoguemap presentation:
illustratedin Fie. 12.1. route,beaconand waypointdata.

Control and
Flight data display unit
Conventional
storage unit instrumentation

Navigation
Automatic data computer unil Electronic,
moving
entry untt or proJected
Map display

Possible
sensor inputs
t
II

Aar data inputs

Fig. l2.l Generalareanavigationsystem

The computer. usingstored data and inputs from a No attempt hasbeenmadehere to give a definitive
list
rzriety of sensors.calculatesthe aircraft position of displayeddatasincethereis considerable variation.
absolutelyin termsof latitudeand longitudeand also The datarequiredfor the computerto performits
relativelyin terms of deviation tiom the desiredflight functionareof threetypesand canbe input to the
path. A variety of display formats may be usedas systemin threedifferentways. For regularlyflown
follows. routes'hard' datasuchaslocation,elevationand
frequencyof VORTAC beaconsand airports,
Digital read-outon display and control unit: standarddepartureand arrivalroutes(SIDSand
presentposition, latitude/longitudeor STARS) etc. will be storedin a flight data storage

203
unit (FDSU), typically on magnetictape. Waypoint
position,'soft' data.may be enteredor amendedin
'scratchpad'
flight by meansof a keyboardand
displayon the control and displayunit (CDU).
Real-timedatafrom navigationand air datasensors
arecontinuouslyavailablefor input from a varietyof
sources.
'soft' the
The data relatingto waypoints are in
sensethat they canbe amendedbut they may be
'hard' dataon a magneticor punchedcard
storedas
and input via an automaticdataentry unit (ADEU).
This facility is usefulsincean operatorcould havethe
waypoint data for all regularlyflown routes recorded
on cards,the correctone being chosenfor a particular
flight. {r
Sincethe information from the sensorsis in
analogueform analogueto digital conversation
(A/D) is necessary beforethe computercan handleit;
A/D circuits may be in the areanavigationsystem
itselfor in the systemswhich feedit.
The form of areanavigationsystemsis by no
meansfinalized,and with the varietyof inputsand
outputspossibleit seentsunlikelythat functional
to the sameextent as
standardization will be achieved
it haswith other systemssuchaslLS, VOR, ADF,
eLc- Onecoukl write a bttok on those RNAV and
VNAV (verticalnavigation)eqttipttrents availablenow
(1979) but herespacewill only allow a brief
discussion of VOR/DME-based RNAV. with
examples, and ARINC Characteristic 583'l ' Future
developments depend on use of microcomputers and
utilizationof flexiblec.r.t.-baseddisplaysystems(see
ChapterI 3).
RNAV PrinciPle
VOR/DME-Based
The basicidea is simple;signalsfrom existingVOR
and DME co-locatedbeaconsareusedto giverange
and bearing,not to the stationbut to a waypoint
;pecifiedby its rangeand bearingfrom the station.
To achievethis the RNAV triangle(Fig. 12.2)hasto
be continuouslysolved.
We have:
pr: distancebetweenbeaconand aircraft;
0 1: magneticbearingfrom beaconto aircraft;
p2: distancebetweenbeaconand waypoint,
02: magneticbearingfrom beaconto waypoint;
p3: distancebetweenaircraftand waypoint;
03: maflneticbearingfrom aircraftto waypoint.
The quantitiesp1 and 0I areknown from normal
VOR/DME operation.the quantitiesp2 and02 are
enteredby the pilot, hencetwo sidesand an included

V O R/ D M T

-\ /"
t'z
/

Waypotnl 1,3

(
Fig. 12.2 RNAV. trirnglc

204
 angleof the RNAV triangleare known, so p3 and 0 3
can be found.
41!s
,,,LK
Fig. 12.3 Vector solution of RNAV. triangle
The solution of the trianglecan be found by
analoguemethodsasin one of the earliestRNAV
computersfor the generalaviationmarket, the
King KN74. The vectorsP{0 1 un6Pzf02 ^t"
representedby squarewaveslilfroseamplitirdesare
proportional to p1 and gz and whosephasesrepresent 0 " is 216'87.
to 01 and 02 respectively.From Fig. 12.3we see
that:
P r l t = =p z l 0 z : p r l t l ( r 2 l. )
wherethe minus sigr indicatesvector subtraction.
Thusif we reversethe phaseof the squarewave
representingOrl0: anAadd this to the squarewave
representingpz l!2 we will havea waveform the
fundamentalof which represents p3 and 03 in
amplitude and phaserespectively.
Y axis (N)
(X, Y) andpolar(p, 0) co-ordinates
Fig.12.4 Cartesian
The solution may also be found by a digital
computer. Expressions for p3 and 03 canbe found
by convertingto cartesianco-ordinates (seeFig.12.4)
then revertingto polar co-ordinates.Thus:
&-
h = ((iz-xr)2 + (y, - yr)')6t
b, = i;:' rdi-i',l4,i:it Q2:)
wherexL = p1-sin0 p
yk=pkcosok k=1,2
lf (y, - y r)l(x, - x,) ) 0, 0. is in eitherthe
north-eastor south-westquadrant;if
Oz - y t)l@z xr) ( 0, 03 is in eitherthe north-west
or south-east quadrant,if yz - y, = 0, 0g is either
0 o r l 8 0 " , w h i l e i xf z _ x r = 0 , 9 : i s e i t h e r g 0 o r
270". The ambiguitycanbe resolvedby observing
that 03 will only changeby a smallamountfor
successive calculations.An exampleis givenby
Figure12.5wherewe have:
01 = 9 0 . 0 2= 1 8 0 p, r = 4 0 , p 2 = 3 0 1s o :
x1 = 40 sin 90 = 4O,yr = 40 cos90 = 0
x2 = 3 0 s i n l 8 0 = 0 , ! z= 3 0 c o s l 8 0 = - 3 0
pr = ( e 4 q ' + ( - 3 0 ) 2 ) o ' s= 5 0
0r = tan-r (-30/-40) = 36.87 0r.
1 8 0+ 3 6 ' 8 7= 2 1 6 ' 8 7.
If the previouslycalculatedd3 was 216 then the new
Fig.12.5 RNAV.triangle
example
The programfor the solution of the RNAV
trianglecould be basedon the aboveor someother
formulation of the problem. Sincethe programis
fixed it will be storedin read-onlymemory (ROM).
The trigonometricfunction valuesmay alsobe stored
in ROM to speedup calculations.Note that complete
sine and cosinetablesneednot be storedsince
sin d = cos (0 -90), also
c o s 0 = - c o s | 1 8 0- 0 l i f 9 0 1 0 1 2 7 0 a n d
c o s0 = c o s ( 3 6 0- 0 ) i f 2 7 0 < 0 < 3 6 0 .
Thus, for example,a cosinetable for angles0 to 90
only is sufficient. A look'up table for the inverse
tangentfunction is more problematicaland can be
avoidedby a reformulationof the equations(12.2) to
be solved,for exampleby usingthe cosinerule
althoughhere ambiguity is introducedin the solution
for 0 3 which is slightly more complicatedthan that
arisingfrom (12.2). DME/VOR
a
Mean sea level
N(m)

Fig.12,7 Slantrangetriangle

RNAV. vector tl3 distance(pt) *e needto solvethe slantrangetriangle

shown in Fig. 12.7. The beaconelevationmust be fed
into the equipmentfrom a FDSU, ADEU or by
meansof a keyboard. Aircraft altitudeis obtained
from an encodingaltimeter. Usingthe notation of
Fig. 12.6 we have:
Waypoint
Course
deviation Pr = (@r), _ (A_E)\o3
distance
Sim.ilarcalculationsare necessaryif the systemhas
VNAV capability,i.e. if steeringcommandsin both
pitch and roll are obeyedthe aircraft will achievea
Inbound specifiedaltitudeat the activewaypointor at a
course selected specifieddistancefrom the current waypoint.
(o8s)
Fig. 12.6' Deviationtriangle
NP-2041A
BendixNav.ComputerProgrammer

Introduction
Coursedeviationcalculationinvolvesthe solution
The NP-2041Ais a ten waypointRNAV computer.
of another triangleshown in Fig. 12.6. It is normal
The waypointparameters may be enteredfrom a
with RNAV to give the deviationin terms of distance
keyboardon the front panelor from a portable
rather than angle,at leastout as far asa specified
magnetic-card reader.Bearingand distanceto the
range. Solution of the deviationtriangleis possible
activewaypoint are found by solvingfirst the slant
sinceone side,p3,.andall anglesareknown. So using
rangetrianglethen the RNAV triangle.ln addition
the sine rule:
the unit can be usedfor frequencymanagementfor
both v.h.f.communicationand navigation.
#=m&'r ( r2.3) The completeRNAV systemcomprisesan
N P - 2 0 4 1 Aa, C N - 2 0 1l A c o m m . / n a vu.n i t , a
'-p3sin(0"-0t)
t.p
DM-2030DME, an IN-20l44' electroniccourse
Ifp is negativefrom (12.3) then the aircraft is to the deviationindicatorand an bncodingaltimeter.
left of the desiredinbound course. For examplein Presentation of HSI and RMI is achievedthroughan
F i g . 1 2 . 6i f 0 3 = 2 7 0 " , 0 c= 3 0 6 ' 8 7 "( t o ) a n d IU-2016Ainterfaceunit. The abovepackagecanbe
pr = 50 thenp = 50 sin 36'87 = 30 nauticalmiles complemented with an ADF and a transponder to
(a 3 ,4,5 triangle)with aircraft to right of courseby makeup a BX 2000 system.Other optipnsarea
30 nauticalmiles,whereas if 03 = 306'87" znd0c.=2700 weatherradarinterfaceand a magnetic-card reader
then p = 50 sin (-36'87) = -:0 nauticalmiles,i.e. (modifiedTexasSR52 or Hewlett-Packard HP-67
aircraft to the left of courseby 30 nauticalmiles. scientificcalculator).Largebusiness aircraftowners
In the abovefor accuratenavigationthe RNAV would be possible customers for a full or nearlyfull
triangle;hould be in the horizontal plane; package, while small singlecngined aircraft may be
unfonunately distance to the DME beacon from the f i t t e dw i t h t h e b a s i V
c F R s y s t e m : i . ec. o m m . / n a va.n d
aircraft is givenas slant range. To obtain ground an indicator.

206
 RNAV.system
Fig.12.8 BendixNP-2O4lA-based

Although herewe are concernedmainly with the KTS/TTS: displaysground speed(BRG/KTS window)
RNAV computer,a brief descriptionof the other and time to station in minutes(DST/TTS window)
unitswill be given. The CN-201lA (Fig. 2.2) is a to waypoint in RNAV or APR modd or to
panel-mounted unit containingtwo v.h.f. VOR/DME stationin VOR/LOC mode.
communications two
transmitter-receivers, The SBY and ACT windows displaythe number
VOR/LOC receivers, an audioselectionpanel, (0-9) of the standbyand activewaypoint. The
'IN'
glideslope receiver(optional),markerreceiver legendis illuminatedif courseshown(CRS
(optional)and varioussystemcontrols(a less window) is inboundwhile'OUT'legend(below
'IN' legend)is illuminatedif courseshown is
comprehensive CN-2012Amay be usedwith the
NP-2041A).The IN-2014,{indicatoris discussed and outbound.
illustratedin Chapters4 and 5 (Figs4.7 and 5.3).
The Mode selectorcontrolsthe mode of operation
The IU-20164 remote-mounted interfaceunit
asfollows:
convertsVOR/LOC and glideslope outputsto levels
that satisfyHSI and/orRMI requirements and OFF: self+xplanatory.
performsother functionsnot of interestin this VOR/LOC: conventionalnavigation,the waypoints
context. The DME, encodingaltimeter,HSI and arethe stations.
RMI requireno commenthere,havingbeendealt RNAV: waypointsare remotefrom the associated
with elsewhere.The calculatorsare simply modified stations.Lrft/Right coursedeviationis linear
to attacha plug-inconnector. within 100 nauticalmiles,full-scaledeflection
(f.s.d.) being 5 nauticalmiles,from 100 nautical
Display and Control miles out deviationis angular.
Figure 12.9 illustratesthe front panel of the APR: as RNAV but linear deviationup to 25 nautical
NP-2041A.Therearesevenseparate digitaldisplays miles,f.s.d.being l'25 nauticalmiles.
eachemployinggas-discharge seven-segment indicators. 'TEST': specifieddisplayfor satisfactoryoperation.
The quantity displayedin eachof the windows
Data is enteredby meansof the keyboardor by
dependson the position of the DisplaySelector
magneticcardreader.Of the l6 keys 1l aredual
witch and,for someof the displays,the Mode
functione.e.FREQ./I , NAV.2/. (decimalpoint), etc.
Selectorswitch. With the DisplaySelectorset to:
Data entry must alwaysbe in the correctsequence
SBY: standby waypoint parameters shown in FREQ., asfollows:
, ST/TTSE
B R G / K T S .D , L X l 0 0 a n dC R S
windows. l . p r e s sS B Y W P T ,F R E Q . ,C O M . l , C O M . 2 ,
ACT: activewaypoint parameters shownas for SBY. B R G ,D S T ,E L , C R S ,N A V . I , N A V . 2 ,A D F
BRG/DST:displaysbearing(BRG/KTSwindow) and or XPR (transponder) key asrequiredto select
distance(DST/TTSwindow) to activewaypointin appropriateaddress for data;
RNAV or APR mode or to VOR/DME stationin 2. pressnumberkeysto enterdata;
VOR/LOC mode. 3. checkdata in app.r-opriate window and if correct

207
\__',,
Fig. 12.9 NP-2041A (courtesy Bendix Avionics Divrsion)
press'ENTER' key.
An annunciatorlight indicateswhen a key is being
pressed.
As an examplethe sequencefor the entry of
NAV.I frequencyis:
l. selectKBD on COM.iNAV. unit;
2. setmodeselectorto VOR/LOC;
3. pressNAV.I key, ensuredot in FREQ.window
flashes;
4. pressappropriatenumberkeys,e.g. 109'80,
ensurereadoutin FREQ.window (scratchpad)
is correct:
5. press'ENTER' key. Frequencywill be
transferred from FREQ.window to NAV.I
window in COM./NAV.unit within which the
NAV.I receiverwill be tuned to that frequency.
A lurther exampleis given by the insertion of a
waypointparameter,saystationelevation200 ft for
with waypoint3:
beaconassociated
l. modeselectorto any positionother than'OFF'
or'TEST':
2. displayselectorto SBY;
3. pressSBY WPT key;
4. pressnumber key 3, ensure3 appearsin SBY
u,rndow:
20a
5. pressEL key, ensuredot in EL X100 window
flashesl
6. pressnumberkeys0 and 2 in that order,ensure
02 appearsin EL Xl00 window (scratchpad);
7. press'ENTER'key.
The other waypoint parameters i.e. FREQ.,3RG,
DST, CRS may be enteredin a similarway. To enter
outbound coursewe pressthe CRS XFR key having
previouslypressedCRS key and enteredinbound
course.
Two keys not previouslymentionedareWPT XFR,
which transfersSBY waypoint number to ACT, and
LPP,which loadsthe presentposition of the aircraft
into waypointzero.
Block Diagramdperation
Microcomputer The heart of the NP-2041Ais a
microco-rnputerwhich comprisesa central processor
unit (CPU),systemcontroller,ROM, RAM, system
clock and hput/output (l/O) ports. The CPU is an
8080A 8-bit microprocessor, the associated
chips
being drawn from the same8000 seriesfamily e.g.
8224 clock generator8228 systemcontrol and bus
driver,8255 programmable peripheralinterfaceetc.
The microcomputeracceptsdata in a suitableform
 fRot{t
PAr{tt-
0tSPLAYS

0tsPtAY
0ArA
coitIR0t

CARDRTADTR
M I CROCOM
PUITR
INPUT

v(n mf
lilPUl

PARAtttt
|Il v^t I U NI N C
NPUT DAIA

ll,AY POllil
8 I A RI N G
IURI

t I N I A RI Z T D
WAYPOINT
v A RI A8 r t

t?.t9 Np-2041Ablock
lq. diagram(courtesyllendir
AvionicsDivision)

from the keyboard. selection-switch,carrl

receiver, reader, nav.
DMEreceiver anoatti_ei.r.-ii"ln"o", a",, long asa memoryhold voltage(external)is
is subjectedto arirhmericonatugj.oi'oo.r;tii3",
maintained.In additionthere
_o is 2K bits of storein
thenoutputin a suitablef*;;i"",h..
itoi,'Bra,
*o]r whie-hprovid.,, ,".;;;;riJlug" ro,
comm./nav. andInterlaceunits.Theoperations
l:li,:1.
oara trom the CpU. disranceto
on *aypoini. L."rringto
dataareperformedby rr,r.cpti-*iri.r, waypoint,qtc. Volatii
instructions ffi;;;; whentheequipment lost(<lumPeri)
and/ordatafrom nOU',naii rl'r#;l:?js
_
porrs.Thelistof instructions^(progia",i'iri" flO
CPUstoringthea<jdress i<OU, Inputs Waypointpararneters.enter
,tjr^e. of thecurrentandnext the microcomputer
rnstructionin internalregisters. via the keyboardor card_reider;;.;i;.;:';?n
An inr;;;.;;;; ,uy a key
ild;:i:i'*:f?f int"iu"
"t,i*n.,'i"."
beto carryout anarith
solutionof oneof ,h. JT:t::^:ptration aspartof tire
or to readdaraout of,
or wntedatainro,," ,/lfi:i:: microprocess". a*j"ept,,iiiH:,?i|.,l,?i.:t:.r.
TheROMprovides A key can be pressedZo rni urt., ,fr. p*ri.", ,"..
a.t3t1l^19n-v^olatile
(permanent)
menrory
ofe6Kbits(e6x l0l4 = ,816; The card-readirinterfaceraises
the signallevelto that
storagespaceis usedfor rhe prograr's friri. rr,o suitablefor TTL operation,"d
tbr the four s;;;;;;; rn'i"irrrrp,
signalw-hichcauseithe microprocessor
basic service
loopsVOR/LOC, ;fdsi,.'**OV to break the
APR..The totatnon-votatile l"o serviceloop in prosresswhile it ,.;;;;
[eM i, zriiir' Datafronr tne VOR receiver
i"ii*onr.
r,?.rage
for the.
gar1m9 ters for I 0 is in rhe form ol two
lir^"td_t-lg.
Inedarain rhenon_volatile waypoin rs. constantamplitudesquare.
RAMin onlyr"iuii,.O waves,
,, phaseand variable(var.)phase. reference(ref.)
Th. ;L;;;;;;;*"*

zop
between the ref. phaseand var. phasesignals waypoint are serially shifted out to the ECDI lbr
representingthe bearing to the VOR station. A Ospiayin the courseand distancewindow.
voltagecontrolled oscillator(v.c.o.) is phase-lockedto Comm./nav.frequencymanagementis achievedby
the ref. phaseusingan exclusive -OR type phase parallel b.c.d.addressand dataoutputsfor tuning
purposes.
comparator. (If two squarewaves,of equal frequency
'0' 'l' The bearingto the waypoint is fed to the ECDI
and phase,switchhg between and are applied
and alsothe interface unit in the form of the RNAV
to an exclusive-OR gatethe output will be zero since
30 Hz ref. phaseand RNAV 30 llz var. phasgderived
0@0 = 0 and I @l = 0; if not in phasethe mean level
from the waypoint bearingoutput LSI and waypoint
of the output will be non-zero). The ref. phase-locked
variable d/a converter. The feed to the waypoint
signalis fed to the var. phase-lockloop where it is
bearing LSI from the I/O ports is in digital format.
phase-compared with the var. phase,the difference
The ECDI processesthe RNAV 3QHz ref. and 30 Hz
controlling the repetition rate of pulsesfrom a second
var.phasesto produce left/right deviationsignalsto
v.c.o. The VOR LSI (large-scale integratedcircuit) 'bar'. The interfaceunit sirnilarlyprovides
drive the
countsthe pulsesfrom the variablerate v.c.o.to
left/right deviation signalsfor the HSI (and possibly
obtain the bearingwhich is fed to the l/O ports as a
autopilot).
four-digitb.c.d.numbertwo digitsat a time (since
The displayintensity control setsthe intensity
databus is only 8 bits wide).
level of the sevensegmentindicatorsand front panel
The DME distancedata input is in the form of a
annunciators in accordance with the settingof the
pulsepair where the time interval betweenpulses ' D I M ' c o n t r o l o n t h e c o m m . / n a vu' n i t . A c o m m o n
represents the distance(12'36 ps per nauticalmile)' 'DIM' control is usedfor all units of the BX 2000
The DME ISI convertsthis time-intervalinto a
systemto ensureuniform intensity of lighting.
four-digitb.c.d.numberwhich, asin the caseof the
VOR LSI output, requirestwo readingsfo transfer
the data through I/O Ports.
An encodingaltimeterfeedsdatavia buffers' King KDE 566
(interface)to setlatchesin the I/O ports. The data
changes in 500 ft incrementssincethe C1, C2 and C4 Introduction
linesfrom the encodingaltillleterarenot connected The KDE 566 is an automaticdatainput/output
(seeChapter8). system(ADIOS) usedwith the KCU 5654 control
The flag signalsof externalequipment(e.g.nav. u n i t ( F i g . 1 2 . 1 2 )f o r m i n gp a r t o f t h e K N R 6 6 5
and DN{E)aremonitoredby the flag interface.If an digitalRNAV systemillustratedin Fig. 12.11. The
invalidsignalis detectedthe flag interfaceoutput is completesystenr,which may havemore units than
transferred through l/O ports to the computer. thoseshown.will not be describedsincea systemwith
Finally,the mode and displayselectorinterface similarcapabilities hasalreadybeendiscussed'
translatethe informationrelatingto the position of We have not considered an ADEU in any detailso
the appropriateswitchesinto logic levels that are a brief description of the KDE 566 follows. In f'act
applied to the I/O ports. the unit is called an ADIOS rather than an ADEU
sincethe magneticcardsmay be recordedby the
Outputs Data to be displayedon the front panel is unit usingdata frotn the KCU 5654.memoryaswell
transferredthroughthe I/O ports to the display data asprovidingthe dataentry or input function from
control. T h e d a t ac o n s i s tos f b . c . d a
. d d r e s b
s ,. c . d . pre-recorded cards.
dataand decimalpoint. The displaydatacontrol The magneticcardsare about the sizeof a business
cathode cardand can storethe waypointparameters (frequency,
decodesthe dataand providesthe necessary
and anodedrivesfor the gas discharge displays' course inbound, course outbound, and waypoint
ten
The appropriatedatawill not be displayedbut will distanceand bearingfrom the beacon)for up to
be replacedby dashes if a flagsignalis detected.For waypoints. A numberof cardscanbe preparedfor
(from-to) can
examplethe BRG/DST flag in RNAV mode will show frequentlytravelledroutes. The route
for any of the following: nav. flag, DME search' DME be noted on each card and the top right corner
test,DME not frequency paired with nav. 1, loss of clipped off to fix the data so that they cannot be
nav.or DME input signalsor ILS frequencyselected. changed.
The RNAV flagsignalgenerated by the computer
must alsobe fed to appropriateexternalequipment. Block Diagnm Operation
The selectedinboundor outboundcourseof the The KDE 566 operationis bestexplainedin termsof
activewaypoint and the computer distance to the its modesof operationwhich aremonitor, record,

210
 Card slot

KCU 565A
memory/control/display

DME Tune
Digital KDr571
dist. spd/tts
distance indicator
DME dist.

Digital course
glideslopedev. and flag
RNAV./VOR/LOC dev. and ftag

KN 581 RMI

Fig. l2.l I King KNR 665 RNAV. system

thereis a synchronizing sequence of 6 bits set to I

followedby 2 bits at 0. The datacycleconsistsof
l0 X 5 X l6 = S00 bits sincethereire l0 waypornts,
5 waypointparameters and l6 bits for each
parameter.A further96 bits followingwaypoint9
aredesignated 'test
waypoint'. Thuswe havea total
of 904 bits from the KCU 5654 which arestoredin
four shift registermemoriesprovidinga more than
adequatestoragespaceof 1024bits. In this mode
the KDE 566 memoryis a mirror imaseof the
K C U 5 6 5 , 4m e m o r y . U p d a t i n go . . u r c e v e r yI 1 . 3m s .

RECORD
The recordmodeis activatedwheneverthe recorcl
button is pushed.The modewill not be entereduntil
Fig.12,12KCU565A(courtesy KingRadioCorp.) the end of a memory-refreshing cycleassignifiedby
tl.reoutput of the memorysynchronizer to the mode
enterand error. The mode control circuit nronitors
control circuit.
the recordand enterbuttonsand the belt position
On insertinga cardin the slot a microswitchis
detectorto determinewhich mocleshoul,ibe actlve
closedby the cornerof the cardunlesspreviousiy
andso instructthe restof the svstem.
clippedoff. The recordbutton switchis in series
w i t h t h e m i c r o s w i t c ht ,h u sw h e nt h e b u t t o ni s p r e s s e d
MONITOR t h e n t e m o r yi s t e m p o r a r i l yf r o z e n .t h e m o t o r d i i v e
& r i a l d a t ai s c l o c k e di n f i o m t h e K C U 5 6 5 A t h r o u g h systentis activatedand the cardbegins
to travelout
the memorydatagatingand voltagetranslation of the slot providedrhe cardis whJe and fully
circuit.the clock pulsescomingfrom the rnasterclock inserted.The motor.drivesa belt which has
small
in the KCU 5654. lmmediatelyprior to a data cycle holesin it at appropriatepointsallowinglight
from a

211
 KDE 566 KCU565

!KDE 566

Front Mastor
panel clock in

Serral
data out

Serial
data in
Read/write

Enter button
I
Record button

PWR switch 1 4 vI
tov I to all l.C.'s
s v j

Fig. 12.13 KDE 565 block diagram(courtesyKing Radio

Corp.)

lamp to shinethrough onto a photoresistorin the belt
p o s i t i o nd e t e c t o ri n p u t .
- Whentl.recardhasbuilt up speedthe mode control
is notified by the positiondetectorthat all is ready
for recording.The datais clockedout of the four
shift registers to four magreticheadswhich record
the digitaldataat the appropriatepointson the card
by magnetiz-ing thc ferromagneticoxide in one of tlyo
directions.depcrrdilrg on whether0 or a I is toie--''
recorded.A systt:nicounteris advancedone count
eachtirlc thc nremoryis clocked. Bctweenwriting4
bits (at a lirrre)the card advances and previously
recordeddatais erased.After 256 countsthe data
hasall beenrecordedand the systemreturnsto the
m o n i t o rn t o d e .

212
 ENTER
A card, on which a set of data are recorded,is pushed
fully home in the slot closinga microswitch so
positionedthat it will closeeventhough the corner of
the cardis clipped. Whenthe enterbutton switch,in
serieswith the microswitch,is pressed,the motor
drive systemis startedand the card travelsoutward.
When the card reachesa position slightly before where
datarecordingbeganthe belt positiopdetector
notifies the mode control when then'enablesall enter
circuitry.
The magneticheadsread data from the cardssince
the changingmagneticfield, asthe card passesover a
magnetized part, will causea currentto ilow in the
coil wrappedaroundthe headcore. Because of the
way in which the datawererecordedthis current
occursin pulses,positiveor negativedependingon
whether I or 0 was recorded.Eachof the four heads
feedsan amplifier and thencethe thresholddetecrors
which providedigitaldataoutputs. The digitaldata
arefed to the datadecoderswhich enterthe datainto
the correctmemory channelsequentially.The
four-channelcount multiplexergathersthe counts
from all four channelsproducingone count ourpur
for the counterand decoder.
Whenthe cardhastravelledpastthe end of the
datatracksthe belt positiondetectorinitiatesthe
error checkphasevia the mode control. The counter
and decoderoutput is examinedto determineif
4 X 256 = 1024bits havebeencounted. If the count
is correctthe mode control gatesthe masterclock to
memory,actuatesthe read/writeline to the KCU
565A and entersthe contentsof memoryinto the
KCU 565.4memory. After datatransferis complete
the KDE 566 returnsto the monitor mode.
ERROR
If the count from the counterand decoderis not
1O24the mode control initiatesa flashinered error
light and returnsto the monitor mode. lio attemptis
madeto enter datainto the KCU 565A.
Standardization
The first meetingsof the AEEC areanavigation
sub-committee wereheld in 1969to discussan ATA
statementpreviouslyprepared.Threepossible
systemsfor airlineusewereproposed:a simpleMark
l, a sophisticatedMark 2 and a Mark 3 which involved
an expansionof INS. The ARINC characteristics
lor
the Mark I and 2 systemswerepublishedin i970:
however,beforepublicationof the Mark 3
characteristic
it wasdecidedthat the Mark I system,
which by this stagewas no longer '$mple', and the
Mark 3 systemshouldbe combined,hence the
publicationin 1974of the ARINC Characteristic
583-l Mark l3 areanavigationsystem.The remainder
of this sectionwill be usedto briefly describetne
Mark 13 system.
The Mark 13 is a three-dimensional systemdesisned
for usein all typesof commercialtransportaircrafi.
The basicinformationrequiredfor lateraland vertical
navigationis derivedfrom a mix of VOR/DME and
INS dataplus altitudefrom an air dlta iomputer or
sinrilarsource.If INS dataarenot available
VOR/DME fiing with air data/magnetic heading
smoothingis usedin which caselossof VOR/DME
dataleadsto an air databaseddeadreckoninsmode.
The parameters of at leasttwenty waypoiits are
providedfor usingmanualor automaticentry. Two
successive waypointsdefine a greatcircle leg with
respectto which navigationand steeringcommand
or deviationsignalsarefed to conventional indicators
to givelateraland verticalcommandsand in addition
areproducedfor useby the AFCS. Both parallel
track and verticalpositioningat any point on the
track arecapabilities providedby the system;in the
latter casevisualand auralaltitude alert sisnalsare
generated.
The Mark l3 systemcomprises two units, a
navigationcomputerand a controland displayunit,
with the possibleaddition of a flight data storage
unit. Processing of the inputsand generating the
outputsshouldbe performedby the NCU while the
CDU providesthe pilot/systeminterfaceincluding
control of the INS when usedasan RNAV source.
The sys.eminputs are as follows:
VOR omni-bearing:analogueor digital;
DME slantrange:pulsepair,variablespacing;
INS: presentpositionlatitudeand longitude;
INS: true headingand velocity(NiS and E/W);
altitude:analogueor digital;
baronretriccorrection:only if analoguealtitude
uncorrected;
TAS: synchro,a.c. analogueor digital for data
smoothingand d/r;
magneticheading:synchro;
VOR warning:discretehigh or low level;
D M E w a r n i n g :d i s c r e t e ;
altitudewarning:discrete;
TAS warning:discrete;
magneticheadingwarning:discrete;
progralncontrol: pinswired to chooseinput
rlpiions:
a.c.reference phase:26 V 400 Hz;
go-around:discretefrom AFCS,
213
 altitude alert cancel:discrete;
Mach number: synchroor digital;
IAS: synchro;
ILS localizer/glideslope deviation:d.c. analogue;
localizerfailure: discrete;
glideslopefailure: discrete;
AFCSengaged: discrete;
autothrottle engaged:discrete;
digitalclock input: ARINC 585.
The systemoutputs are as follows:
Fig 12.t4 TIC T.34A RNAV. test set(courtcsy
Tel-lnstrumentElectronicsCorp.)
214
omni-bearingto waypoint: sin/cosfrom four-wire
resolver;
relativebearingto waypoint: synchro;
crosstrackdeviation:high- or lowlevel d.c. analogue;
vertical track deviation:ascrosstrack;
lateral track angleerror: synchroor'digital (b.c.d.);
drift angle:synchroor digital (b.c.d.);
lateral track changealert:.28V d.c.;
vertical track changealert: 28 V d.c.;
lateralsteering(roll command):a.c. or d.c.
analogue;
 vertical steering(pitch command):as lateral;
to/from: high-or low-leveld.c.;
desiredlateraltrack: synchroor digital(b.c.d.);
track angleerror plus drift angle:synchro;
distanceto waypoint:digital(b.c.d.)0_399.9
nauticalmiles;
presentposition(lat./long.):digital(b.c.d.);
groundspeed:digital(b.c.d.)0-2000knoti:
t i m e t o g o : d i g i t a (l b . c . d . 0
) - . ] 9 9 . 9m i n :
crosstrackdistance:digital(b.c.d.),O-3gg.g
nauticalmiles;
lateraltrack angle;digital(b.c.d.);
desiredaltitude:digital(b.c.d.)0-50000 ft;
secondsystemdata: two-wiredatabus:
RNAV systemfailure:high-or low-leveldiscrete:
altitudealert failure:discrete;
digitalbus warning:discrere;
a u t o t u n ev a l i d :d i s c r e t e ;
altitudealert: discreteauraland visual.:
VOR frequency : 2l 5 selection;
systemstatusannunciation:28 V d.c. onceper
second;
high deviationsensitivity:28 V d.c. when selected;
VOR frequencyalert: 28 V d.c.when discrepancy;
paralleloffset track alert: 28 V d.c.when selected:
speederror: d.c. analogue;
speederror warning:discrete.
The precedinglist of input and output signalsis
ratherlengthybut illustratesthe computingpo*.,
availablein modernequipment.Detailsof ihe sienal frequencyremainsthe same
characteristics canbe found in ARINC 5g3. The last flux is slowerand hencethe headoutpui
eightof the inputsand the lasttwo of the outputsare Whenrecording
designated asbeinggrowthinputsar outputs. The
method of achievingthe necessary outputs, giventhe the drivespeedsup the bit is recordedovera longer
inputs, is left to the designerand will vary in both lengthof track leadingto incorrectheadoutput if
hardwareand software.
TestingRNAV
An RNAV systemis simply a computerwhich actson
data from externalsensors.In order to check for
standardoperationthesesensorsmust give known
inputs to the RNAV system. For examplewe could
useappropriateVOR and DME test setsto give a
bearingand distancefrom beaconof lg0'anA fO
nauticalmiles respectively,then with a waypoint
positionof 090" and .10nauticalmilesfrom the
beaconthe RNAV bearingto the waypoint shouldbe
53.13" and the RNAV dislance50 nautlcalmiles
sincewe haveset up a 3 : 4 : 5 triangle. This simple
examplecan be extendedto incorporatethe other
inputs demandedby more sophisticatedsystems.
Flagoperationmust be thoroughly tested. A self-test
which checksthe displayand displaydrive and
perhapsother circuitsis usuallyprovided.
Tel InstrumentElectronicsproducean RNAV test
set,the T-34A,which is in fact a combinedDME/VOR
ramp tester. The convenience of suchan
arrangement is obvious.The DME sectionis virtually
the sameas the TIC T-24A (Chapter7) the VOR
sectionis similaFffffie TIC T-278 (Chapter4) but
with additionalfeitures,i.e. 108.05MHi r.f. ind
b e a r i n gosf 4 5 " , 1 3 5 o 2, 2 5 " ,3 I 5 o .
It shouldbe remembered when trouble-shooting
that, if the systemincludesan ADEU or FDSU,
mechanicalproblemsmay occur affectinginput of
data. Poor contactbetweenreadingheadand
magneticcardor tapecancausea lossof data. If the
cardor tapednve slowsdown but the readine
-magnetic
then the rateof
is lowered.
a slowdrivecauses biis to be wntten
on top of eachother (pulsecrowdinglosses) while if
replayedat normalspeed.
215
13 Gurrentand future
developments
lntroduction
Changesin aircraft radio systemsoccur more and
more frequently due to the improvingstateof the
art. The first airborneradio equipnrentsused
thermionicdevices, cat'swhiskerdetectorsand large
parallelplate tuningcapacitors; power,weightand
sizewere restrictionson the developrnentof such
equipments.In the 1950stransistorized equipment
beganto appearalthoughnot completely
transistorized, the r.f. stagesbeingreluctantto
succumbto solid state. Even now the thermionic
deviceis still with us in the shapeof the magnetrortr
and the c.r.t.but not, I think, for very long. Claims
concerningan all solid-state weatherradarweremade
aboutmid-1979,a commerciallyviableequipment
appeared in 1980(e.g.CollinsWXR700). The c.r.t.
will remainwith us for many yearsbut will, I'm sure, computerpowerand memorycapacitynecessary
eventuallybe replacedby a matrix of
electroluminescent elements.
Transistorizedequipmentis of coursestill
marketed,but many of the transistors, diodesand
resistors now appearon integratedcircuits. The
emergenceof first small scaleintegration(SSI) then
medium scale(MSI) and now.largescaleintegration
(LSI) of evermore componentson one chip has
revolutionized the designof air radiosystems.In
particularusingLSI techniques to produce
microprocessors opensup a wholenew world.
The rate of developmentin the last decadeor so
means that many aircraft fly with a rangeof
technologiesrepresentedin their electronicsystems.
It is not inconceivablethat an aircraft could be in
servicewith a valveweatherradar,a transistorized
ADF and an RNAV systememployinga
microprocessor, or someother combinationwhich
would make it a flying electronicsmuseum. That this thoughts,occasionallysupportedby facts, on what is
happensand will continueto do so is the company
accountant's choicenot the engineer's or the pilot's..
The replacementof one systemby another
performingessentiallythe samefunction must be
justified in termsof increasedsafety,increasedpay
load,increased reliabilityor an improvementin
performancewhich allowsflights to be made in
216
conditionswhere previouslythe aircraft would have
to be grounded.
The reluctanceto replacean equipmentwhich is
perfbrmingadequatelyreducesthe sizeof the rnarket
for the radio systemmanufacturer.Of coursethereis
no problem with new aircraft which will have the
latestprovenequipmentfitted. Paradoxically, the
situationwe haveis that the aircraftfitted with
equipmentemployingthe lateststateof the art are
more likely to be in the generalaviationcategory,
sincethat marketis very much biggerthan that for
conrmercial airliners.
Completelynew systemsdo not appearvery
frequently,althoughwhen they do it is often
because the improvementin the stateof the art has
made the impossiblepossible.An airborneOmega
receiverwasnot a viablepropositionuntil the
could be economicallymade availablein a box of
reasonable size.
SyqtemssuchasVOR, DME, ILS, etc. require
enorrnouscapitalinvestmentand so once adoptedon
a largescaletend to last an extremelylong time.
During and immediatelyafterWorldWar II many
airborneradiosystemsweredeveloped but only a few
survived; new systems developed sincethe 1950shave
not been internationally agreed replacements for
existingsystemsbut providedcompetitionfor them.
The microwavelandingsystem(MLS) which will
succeedILS will be the first replacement system,as
opposed to competing system, for decades.
It must be mentionedin the introductionto a
chaptersuchas this that the changeswe are seeing,
haveseenand will be seeing,are to a largeextent due
to vastexpenditureon defenceand spaceresearch.
Havingstatedthe obvious,I will now briefly give my
to come.
The State of the Art
The microp*ocessor and other LSI circuits are usedin
the currentgeneration of radiosystems(1979). lt
seemsclearthat such circuits will be used more and r.f. field continueswith perhapslessobviousresults.
more for succeedinggenerationsnot only for A logicaloutcomeof the development of low-noise,
computingpurposes,in the conventionalsense,but reliable,small,solid-state r.f. amplifiersand sources
alsofor control of virtually everything. Often, in must be to mount t.r.s adjacentto antennadownleads
equipments,a microprocessor will be under-utilized so that r.f. cablesand waveguides longerthan a couple
but nevertheless it will still be a cheaperapproach of inchesare a thing of the past. Reliability is the key
than usingthe minimal amounfof hard-wiredlogic in this latter developmentsincesucht.r.swould be
and furthermore spareprocessingpower is available relativelyinaccessible.
for expansion. All one needsto do is add the
necessary software. I doubt if special-purpose LSI
circuitswill appearin greatvariety sincethe volume The Flight Deck
ofproduction required for a reasonableunit cost is
very large. Havingsaid that, we alreadyseespecial The flight deck will be radicallydifferent in future
ISI chipsfor VOR and DME signalprocessing. with flexibleelectronicdisplaysreplacing
The cqmpleteall-purposeairborne computer is conventionalinstrumentation and a keyboardwith
'completely
not with us yet and may neverbe. By alphanumeric and dedicatedkeysreplacinga massof
all-purpose',I mean a computer systemwhich rotary and toggleswitches.The trend hasalready
monitors all sensors,drivesall displays,performs all started,examplesbeingdiscussed in Chapters9 and
control functions and is the only equipment with 12. This is not to suggest that conventional
which the pilot can communicatedirectly. Such a display/controlwill disappear completely;
computercould be built today but there are electromechanical instrumentation will be neededas
problemssuchas reliability, duplication or back-upfor the electronicdisplaysand toggle
triplication being necessary,the need for performing switcheswill alwaysbe usedfor certain functions. As
severaltasksat the sametime and the huge I/O examplesof the way thingsaregoing,work by Boeing
interface. Certainly in the near future, and indeed and British Aerospacewill be discussed.
now, airbornecomputerswill work in specific
function areassuch as navigation,flight control, flight Boeing767
management,etc. although someof thesefunctions Thereare a number of featuresof the 767 flight deck
may be combinedand performedby one computer. worthy of mention, such asspaciousness, visibility
Interwiring is beginningto changeradically in and comfort; our main concernhere,however,is the
aircraftinstallationsdue to our ability to handle large displayand control of radio systems.Rockwell'Collins
quantitiesof fast time multiplexed digital data. The are to provide their multi-colour EFIS-700electronic
prospectof a main serialdigital data highway with flight instrument systemwhich includestwo shadow
spursout to sensors,for incoming data, and control maskc.r.t. indicators:an electronicattitudedetector
and/or displayunits, for both incoming and outgoing indicator (EADI) and an electronichorizontal
data,is a very real one. Again we havethe problem of situationindicator(EHSI). Computationand
reliabilitybut the savingin interwiring will be alphanumericdisplaywillbe providedby the Sperry
significant.This is happeningnow in certain flight managementcomputersystem(FMCS). There
functionalareassuchas frequencycontrol and will be an EADI, EHSI and FMCSfor eachpilot,
passenger entertainmentsystems,and will be extended. while an additionalcentrallyplacedelectronicdisplay
In this context mention should be made of the useof will be usedaspart of the cautionand warning
optical fibreswhich can handledata at a very much system.
fasterrate than conventionalcables(15 X 106 bits per The EADI presentationis similarto a conventional
second;cf.2400 bits per second,say). In additionto attitude-directorindicator-one of which is fitted as a
the increasedcapability the cheapness of the raw back-up. Blue and black fields representsky and
materialsand the immunity to interferenceare earth respectivelywith a white line, separatingthe
advantages which make it virtually certain that we two fields,as the artificial horizon. There are scales
shallseehbre optics usedin the future and would see for roll (upper),glideslope (left), speeddeviation
them now were it not for the difficulties encountered (right) and pitch (verticalcentreline).In addition
in connectingthem together. there is a risingrunway symbol and a radio altitude
The increasein the use of digital sigrals and the digital readout. The information displayedfrom
ability to processthem has a most noticeableimpact radio aidsis glideslopedeviationagainsta scale,
in the aircraft in that controllers,displaysand localizerdeviationby lateral.,movement of a symbolic
facilities are all changed,meanwhile progressin the runway and radio altitude by verticalmovementof

217

(courtesy
Fig.l3.l Boeing767flightdeckmock-up Boeing
CommercialAeroplaneCo.)
the symbolic runway and by digital readout. Decision
height selectedand operatingmodesare also
displayed. The facility exists,with an EADI, for
blankingof scalesnot in use.
The flexibility of a computer-drivenc.r.t. displayis
fully utilized in the EHSI by providingfor operation
in three modes:map display,full compassdisplayor
VOR/ILS modewith a lull or partialcompassrose.
Weatherradardata can alsobe displayedmaking a
dedicatedweatherradardisplayan optional extra.
Whenpresentingdata in map form the display is
orientatedtrack up; a verticaltrack line with range
marksjoins a symbolicaircraftat bottom centreto a
boxeddigitalreadoutofthe track at top centre.
Headingand presetcours€are givenby distinctive
218
q-"ff
W:.
pointen on a partial scalenear the top of the display.
Ground speed(from INS), a three-segment trend
vector(projectedpath), wind direction and speed,
plannedflight betweennamedwaypoints,vertical
deviation,range.scale, operatingmode and weather
radardata are all shown. A variety of coloursare
usedto avoid confusionin the interpretationofthe
largeamount of data in a 4'7 X 5'7 in. display. A
conventionalRMI providesback-up.
The FMCSwill mix storeddaia and data from
severalradio and non-radiosensorsto provide
position fixing, optimized flightpath and speed
guidance,drive for the EADI and EHSI and also
hardwareand softwaremonitoring to assistin
trouble-shooting.A four-million-bit disk memory
systemwill be employed to provide storageof data easierand saferinterpretation. Work hasbeen done
suchaslocation of airportsand VOR stations, by NASA usinga Boeing737 in which the EADI
selected companyroutes,standarddepartureand displayformat is suchas to give the pilot the next
arrivalroutes(SIDSand STARS)and aircraft/engine best thing to the VFR view when landing(Flight,
parameters.Communicationwith the systemis I I September1976).
providedby a l4-line c.r.t. display with24 characters As conventionalelectromechanical instruments
per line, for display of navigationand performance giveway to c.r.t.sso c.r.t.swill one day giveway to
data,and alsoa full alphanumerickeyboard plus solid-state devices.Litton Systemsof Toronto have
dedicatedkeys. recentlyannounced(1979) a 3 X 4 in. displaymade
up of nearly 50 000 LEDs. The matrix is
computer-drivento providethe requireddisplay.
British AerospaceAdvanced Flight Deck
The advantages over the c.r.t. are reducedsizeand
Work by the British Aircraft Corporation and Hawker
longerlife (m.t.b.f.).
SiddeleyAviation on the evolution of flight decksinto
A displaytechniqueparticularlysuitablefor ILS
a form which would include integratedelectronicdis-
playsbeganback in the early 1970s. The resultswere approaches is that of a head-updisplay. Such
displaysare commonplaceon modern military
sufficientlyencouragingto commence,jointly, an
aircraft.Whenlandingusingpanel-mounted
advancedflight deck programin January1975. Elec-
instrumentsthe pilot must look up to establishvisual
tronic displaysand controls havebeen studiedwith
contact. If suchcontactis not possiblelookingdown
regardto engineeringfeasibilityand human factors.
againto return to instrumentscould createproblems
The programhascome up with an exciting view
of fastassimilation of the dataon instruments.With
of the flight deck of the future. The main display
a head-updisplay the approachguidancesymbolsare
consists of seven9 in. c.r.t.ssplit into two discrete
projectedby somearrangement of opticaldevicesso
sub-systems. Threedisplays(Sl, 52 dnd 53) centrally
that they canbe viewedthroughthe windscreen.
locatedon the instrument panel presentaircraft
Civil airlinerswill be fitted with suchdisplays(e.g.
systemsand engineinformation while four displays
Airbus4300) althoughit shouldbe noted that with
(Fl, F2, F3 and F4) split two eachsideof the panel,
two pilots one couldbe eyes-upand one eyes-down
presentflight information. ln addition,two further
duringapproachto avoidan abortiveattemptto
c.r.t.s(Dl and D2) areprovided,one eachsideof the
acquirevisualcontact.
maininstrumentpanel,for documentation,e.g.
checklist,performancedata,etc.
The flight information displaysare an EADI and
m EHSI. Presentation of informationis in a Packages
Multi-System
conventionalformat, the EADI being similar to an
ADI but with information in both analogueand With the adventof micro-electronics and the
digital form surroundingthe ADI earth/groundcircle. consequent smallunit size,it is possibleto bring
The EHSI canpresenta conventionalHSI type varioussystemstogetherin one package.In the days
displaywith full compassroseand lateraldeviation of valveswe had one system- many boxes,whereas
bar or a map-likedisplaycompletewith route and now it is possibleto think in termsof onebox - many
weatherradardata. Like the EADI the EHSI has qystems.In fact we havealreadydiscussed examples
flight information either sideof the main displaybutof multi-systempackages in Chapter12. As a further,
andyet-to-be
in this casein digital form only. A facility to switch -implemented, example,considera
the displayfrom one c.r.t. to the other will help Doppler radar antenna.Thereis no reasonwhy the
shoulda malfunctionoccur. In additionthereare electronics for the Dopplerradar,an inertialsensor,
conventional back-upinstruments. a radio-navigation sensor,srichasLoranor Omegaor
VOR/DME,and a navigationcomputershouldnot all
Altemative Instrumentation be mountedon top of the fixed Dopplerantenna
The Boeingand BritishAerospace developments forminga singlepackage.Control,displayand radio
abovedo not depart from the conventional sensor antennaswould all needto be remote in suchan
discussed
displayformat for the main part of the EADI and the installation.
EHSIdisplay.Obviouslyin usingelectronicdisplays
showingcomputer-generated symbolsa wide rangeof
possibilitiesfor display formats exist; however,any Data Link
departurefronr conventionwould requirepilot
retrainingand would haveto be justified in termsof A two-waydigitallyencodedautomaticinformation

219
 ::'$
.

m#G iG*- I

Fg. tf.Z Experimentaladvancedflight deck (courtbsy

BritishAerospace)

link hasbeenthe subjectofperiodic discussion by project paper 586 providesdetailedinformation on a

variousworkinggroupsfor over30 years.If and possiblesystemwith an entertainingappendixon the
whenthesystemwill be implemented andwhatr.f. history of automatic communicationsfor aircraft by
dtannelswill be usedif any arestill unknown. ARINC the then Chairmanof the AEEC. W.T. Carnes.

?,20
lFr

In fact an ATC automaticdatalink doesexist

in systemwill provide for a transferof more
the form of the secondaryradarsurveillance radar informationthan is possiblewith currentSSR,enable
system(Chapter8) which will probablybe extended
ntoreaccurateand reliabletrackingby ATC and
sometime in the future(seeADSEL/DABSbelow). so
help in the development of automatecl approach
Herewe areonly concernedwith a two_way
control systems(CAAS _ cornplrterassisie.t approach
automaticdatalink utilizingv.h.f.,h.f. or Satcom
sequencing) and further.form an indispensable part
for universaluse.
of a proposedbeacon-based collisionavoidance
s y s t e m( B C A S ) .
Participatingaircraft A memorandumof understanding wassignedby
b the FAA (for the USA) and the CAA (for tie UK)
earlyin 1975to allow for future deveiopment
\ \ of
selectively addressed SSRsystemson a co_operative
\ \ basis.We arestill someway off an ICAO standard
\ \ system,but wheneverit comesit will be compatible
\ r with SSRso that existingairborneequipm.ni
may
continueto be used.
A R I N C C h a r a c t e r i s t7i c1 8 ( N o v e m b e rl 9 7 g _
draft) laysdown a specification for a transponder
which lorms part of rhestandardSSRsvstem
(ATCRBS- ATC radarbeaconsystemjandDABS.
In that characteristic pl , p2 and F: pulseparameters,
, / // t| \\\ \
, / frequencies and SLSprovisionsur. ui fu, itandard
r ' / I \ \ SSRbut the ability to respondto modesA and C
Subscriber
terminalsline or interrogations only is requiredratherthan A, B, C
radio(microwave)
link and D.
Fig.13.3 DataIink system - Two typesof interrogationwill be possiblewith
the new system,an ATCRBS/DABSail_callor a
The datalink is essentjally DABS only. The all-callinterrogationwill consist
ground-controlled. of
Aircraft participatingin the syitem are .polled, threepulsesPl, P3 and p4 togetherwith a SLS
by the control pulseP2. The pl, p2 and p3 pulseparamerers
groundstationwhich transmitsa sequence
of digital are as for the ICAO SSRwhile p4 is a 0.g pulse
signalssplit into messages eachof which containsa irs the
particularaddress leadiirgedgeof which is 1.5gs after the leadingedge
(aircraftregistrationnumber)and
suitabletext. The airborneequipmentresponds A" ICAO transponderwill ignorep4 *f.,it.
if it :f.P: a
recognizes DABS transponder will recognize the interrogationas
its addressin the pollingsequ.n.. which is
repeatedat a rate determinedby the giound all-calland respondwith the all-callreplv.
station. A DABS interrogationconsistsof pt and p2
Messages will be eitherto/from ATC 6r to/from the
airline- preamblepulsesand a datablock. The datablock
companyand may relateto clearances, is a
altitudechanges, singler.f. pulseeither 15.5or 29.5ps longemploying
positionreports,flight_planchange,
weatherdata,etc. The text of the messages differentialphaseshift keyed(d.p.s.k..y midutation.
will be With this type of modulationa lg0" phasechangeof
routedto/from terminalson the grounaita a
polnt-to-pointcommunications the carrierat a databit phasereversal position
network
interconnecting represents a 'l'while no phasechangerepresents a .0,.
the groundstationand the terminals.
The first phasereversaloccurs0.5 pi after the leading
edgeof the datablock,this is the sync.phasereversal.
Subsequent phasereversal positionsoccurat time
ADSEL/DABS 0'25l/lrs (N>2) after the sync.phasereversal.The
maximumvalueof iy'is 57 or I l3 giving56 or I l2
The problemsof fruit and garblingwerediscussed in databits transmittedat a 4 M bitls rate. The trailing
Chapter8; suchproblemsincrease with trafflc edgeof the datablock has0.5 ps of r.f. addedto
d e n s i t y .A d d r e s s e l e c t i vS
e S R( A D S E L )a n d ensurethe demodulationof the lastbit in the dara
discrera e d d r e sbse a c o ns y s r e m( D A B S )h a v eb e e n block is completedwithout interference.
developedin the UK and USA respectively in an An optionalP5 may be radiatedasan SLS control
effort to postponethe dateby which the iCAO SSR pulsein the sameway that p2 is radiatedfrom an
systemwould becontesaturated.In additiona new ICAO interrogator.p5 will be transmitted0.4 ps
 Preamble3.5us Data Block 15'5or 29'5rs

t 2rs I 0.5 0.5 0.25

ffi 53 54 55 56 57
H 0'8 rs
' Sync.
phase 56 or 112
reversal phase reversalpositions

o'l------{l* O'aj ".- o.r

FS ll FS ll pS

rf = t03O MHz

Phasereversal Phase reversal

'l
- Positionbit : position bit : 0

Fig. 13.4 ADSEL/DABS format

interrogation

before the sync.phasereversal.For an aircraft fitted leadingedgeof the first preamblepulseand usespulse
with a DABS transponderthe receivedP5 amplitude positionmodulation(p.p.rn.)at a data rateof I M
will exceedthe amplitudeof the data block hencethe bit/s. In the I gs intervalallottedto eachdatabit a
transponderwill not decodethe d.p.s.k.modulated 0'5 gs pulseis transmittedin the first half il the data
sigral. An ICAO transponderequippedaircraft will b i t i s a ' l ' a n d i n t h e s e c o n dh a l f i f a ' 0 ' . T h e d a t a
not reply to a DABS interrogationsincethe P2 pulse block is thus 56 or I l2 ps long. The r.f. is 1090MHz
will triggerthe SLS suppression circuit. asfor the ICAO SSR.
A DABS transponderwill generateICAO replies Thereare four typesof interrogationfrom an
(12 information pulses)in responseto ICAO ADSEL/DABSinterrogatorall of which havethe
interrogationsand DABS repliesin responseto all-call samepreamble.The all-calldatablock containsa
and DABS interrogations;DABS transpondersalso sequence of 28 onesin a 56-bitblock,the all-callreply
generatesquitterat randomintervalsto allow containsthe aircraftaddress, detailsof data
acquisitionwithout interrogation(similarto DME interchange equipmenton boardand parity bits for
auto-standby, Chapter7). error-checking purposes.A surveillance interrogation
A DABS replyis only similarto an interrogationin ol 56 bits containsaddress and parity bits and alsoa
so far asit containsa preamblefollowedby a data r e p e aot f t h e h e i g h ti n f o r m a t i o nr e c e i v e o dn t h e
block of 56 or I l2 bits. The preambleconsistsof four ground. An aircraftrecognizing the address in a
0'5 ps pulseswith the spacingbetweenthe first pulse surveillance interrogationwill replywith a 56-bitdata
andthe second,third and fourth pulsesbeing 1.0,3.5 block containingthe altitudeor identity. The
and4'5 prsrespectively, measured from leadingedge remaininginterchanges of dataarein I l2-bit blocks
to leadingedge. The data block begins8 prsafter the both ways,a comm.-Ainterrogationgivingriseto a

222
 5 6 o r 1 1 2p s
Preamble
Data Block
br o.5 o.5 o.5
<H
l+-) <H {+
l'','l',,r1
r-r-r:l-T-'l
I'lolrlolrl

P.P.M.cxample
lol ....0
. 11

Fig.13.5 ADSEL/DABS
replyformat

comm'-B reply and a comm''c^inte.rrogation giving. simplexsystememployingfrequencymodulation

riseto a comm'-Dreply' A-B inteichang!involves *orld b.-rr.d with ujtir,l una
.The
altitudeor identity aswell asother data,anican be ao*ntinr. frequencies
separated by between4 and l0 MHz. Aircraft
usedlbr trackingpurposeswhile the c-D interchange
Saicom.unt.nnu,would be broadlydirectional,
contansan extended-ren_gth message segmentof g0 possiblywith switchablelobes.
bits in both directions'one thingnot yet decidedis
The accuracyof any Satnav.systemwill dependon
the methodby which datawill be traniferredinto
the knowledgeof satellitepositionand so a numbe.f
and out of the transponder from varioussensors and trackingstationsare requiredon the ground. Since
to variousdisplaysvia a suitableprocessor.Two. the airb"orne equipmenimusthaveth! oatarelatingto
areproposedfor the interface,firstly using the satelliteporition a link must be established
T:tl99t
ARINC 429 digitalinformation transferryrt*r betweenthe trackingstation and the aircraft, most
(DITS) format, secondly.a synchronousI M bitisec probablyvia the satellite.Knowingthe positionof
interfacewhich would allow datarequested in an the satellitethe airborneequipmentmustestablishthe
uplink to be containedin the next downlink. aircraft'spositionrelativeto the satellitein orderto
The systemhasonly beenbriefly described: the obtaina dx.
readeris referredto ARINC 718 for further details. The variousmethodsby which a fix canbe
obtainedinvolvesomecombinationof measurement
of angularelevationof a satellite,rangeof a satellite
Satcom. and Satnav.
and rateof changeof rangeof a satellite(Doppler
shift). Directionof arrivalof a signalat tire saiellite
Therearemany satellites ih orbit aroundthe earth may be
beingusedfor relayingtelephoneand television -foundusinginterferonteter methodswhereby
the satelliteantennas aremountedon long booms
signals,.weather sensing, observation and military (say50 ft) and the phasedifferencein signals
navigationand communication.(For a comorehensrve arrrvins
at the antennasis measured.Rangemeasurement
reviewseeFlight,28 October197g.) Unforiunately
may be obtainedin a similarfvay to that employedin
noneso far areusedby civil aircraftand it is not
DME. In a range-rate systemthe Dopplerstrilt tf a
known (by the author)when suchusewill occur.
signalfrom the satelliteis recordedovlr a periodof
However,brief commentscanbe madeon the
say l0 min, then the aircraftpositioncan be computecl
principlesinvolved.
from the time of zeroDopplershift and the slopeof
A possiblev.h.f.Satcom.systemis described in the frequency/time graphat zeroshift.
ARINC Characteristic 566. The satelliteis simplya The range-ratem.ethodcanprovidean accuratefix
repeaterfor voiceand datacommunications beiween aboutonceevery lI h, usinga satellitein a 500-mile
a i r a n dg r o u n d . I f t h e s a t e l l i t e
isat synchronous circularorbit, obviouslyfor aircrafta largenumberof
altitude(22 000 nauticalmiles)the service
areawould satellites must be usedto reducethe tirne_interval
be 4l per centof the earth.ssurface.a OouUle_cfrannel
betweenfixes. The aircraftvelocityand altitucle
must be accuratelyknown during the time taken to simulationsshowedthat both systemswould do the
obtain a fix asthe satellitemakesa passover the line job and the choiie must havebeendifficult. One
of closestapproachto the aircraft. The US Navy use factorwhich helpedswingthe vote musthavebeena
sucha systemflorsurfaceship navigation. reductionin cost of the TRSB systembroughtabout
Angle-only,rangeonly or angle-range methods by the developmentof cost-minimizedphased-array
may be used. In thesesystems,by usinga two-way techniques(COMPACT)by Hazeltine.A conventional
link betweenthe aircraft and a ground station via theelectronicbeam scanningarray consistsof many
satellite,the computationof aircraft position can be radiatingelementseai,hof which is fed by an
carriedout on the ground,the databeing sent to both electronicphaseshifter. Changingthe phaseof the
aircraft and ATC. A range-onlysystemwhich should r.f. energyradiatedby eachelementcausesthe far
comeon line in the 1980sis the Global Navigation field beam to scan. With COMPACTthere is nearly a
System(NAVSTAR.) using24 satellites;however 4: I reductionin the numberof phaseshifterseach
use
may be restrictedto military aircraft and ground of which feedsall radiatingelementsthrougha
personnel. patentedpassive network. The resultis accurate
The frequenciesinvolvedfor Satnav.are likely to bearnscanningwith low sidelobesat a reducedcost.
be v.h.f.or around1.6GHz. It will obviouslybe The principlesof TRSB are quite simple. Consider
advantageous if a group of satellitescould be usedfor
a radio beam scannedrapidly to and fro; an
both communicationand navisation. appropriatelytuned receiveron an aircraft within
rangeof the beamsourcewould receivetwo pulsesin
one completescan,as the beamswept past twice.
Microwave Landing System (MLS) The pulsespacingis relatedto the anglemade
betweenthe centroid of the scannedsectorand the
The long, controversialand heated argument about line joining aircraft to beamsource. Note that the
which systemwill be adoptedas the successor to ILS systemas describedis ambiguoussincethe computed
endedin 1978 with the choiceof a time-referenced anglecould be either sideof the centroid of the
scanning beam(TRSB)system.The requirementwas scannedsector. Ambiguity may be removedby,
'to' and which is the 'fro'
for a landingsystemthat would allow for a variety of knowing which is the scan,
curvedor straight-lineapproacheswithin a large or by knowing the scancycle start time, i.e. the
volumeof airspaceand that would not suffer to the 'to'
commencementof the half cycle. For accuracy
sameextent as ILS from multipath effects. precisiontiming circuits must be used.
The main contendersby the time the final decision For lateraland verticalguidanceazimuth scanning
wasmadewere the USA with TRSB and the UK with and elevationscanningbeamsare required. Preamble
a commutatedDoppler. Demonstrationsand instructionsmust be usedto identify the beamswhich.

Scan cycle

tt related to {l

Fig. I 3.5 Principlesof TRSB

224
 are synchronizedso that one time dift-erencefor each and C2.
The particularmodc useddependson the
beamis measuredin a 150 ms frame. Back beamand aircral'tllt and
the type of groundstaiion.
flare measurements are alsopossibleon a t'ull system
which will be usedin conjunction with a high-accuracyMode AB Angular
and rangeinformation is available
DME. Reflectedbeamreceptioncan be elinrinatedby usinga standardland-based
MADGE station. The
time_gating(echo suppression).The r.f. employed direction from which the aircral'tis interrogatineis
will be in the Ku band. nreasured by the groundstationinterferom-eterfthe
The battle lbr ICAO recognitionis not the whole subsequent reply containinghorizontaland vertical
story of MLS, systemshavingbeendevelopedior deviationfrom an approachor overshootpath
specialapplications;MADGE (microwaveiircraft determinedby the sitingof the grounduni.nno arrays.
digital guidanceequipment) is an MLS-based The azimuth deviationwith respectto the approach
on-groundderivedinterferometry, developedby the path centreline is displayedon a purpose-built
British company MEL(see below); SCAIvILS(small precisionrangeand azimuthnreter(pRAM). while on
communityairport MLS) is a Hazeltineproduct using a standardcross-pointer
deviationindicatorazimuth
their COMPACTantennasfor the TRSRsystem. and elevationguidanceis givento an approachpath
selectedby the pilot. The overshootpath is selected
Microwave Aircraft Digital Guidance by the pilot in azimuthonly, elevationdeviationis
Equipment(MADGE) with respectto the ground-dellned overshootpath.
Rangedata,derivedby measuringthe elapsedtime
Introduction betweeninterrogationand reply.is displayedon a
MADGE is a microwave,secondary radarsystem PRAlvl.With an appropriatelink in the wiring of the
which providesguidanceto a landing site for any airborne installationor on receiptof a commandin
suitablyequippedaircraftwithin a rangeof abour l5 the ground stationreply the rangedatais sentto the
miles. As well as providing flexibility in the approach groundinterlacedwith subsequent interrogations.
path,asone would expectin any successor The two typesof air-to-ground transmission are
to ILS, a
two-way data link is establishedwhich resultsin referredto asA channel- interrogation:B channel-
deviationand rangeinformation being availablenot rangedata.
only in the air but alsoat the landinesite.
The MEL EquipmentCompanyllmited (A Mode C Two alternativesfor Mode C are available,
PhilipsCompany)havewon sufficient military orders both providingguidanceto a point offset horizontally
to assurethe future of MADGE. The first extensive from the landingsite,by at least200 metres. Such
civilianusewill be in the North Seaoil fields where. guidanceis suitablefor helicoptersoperatingto
one platform is alreadyequipped. offshore platforms. In addition to azimuth ind
elevationand rangedataone of two arrowson the
Basic Principles PRAM indicatesto the pilot on which side of his
The systemprovidesboth rangeand angulardata. aircraftthe landingsiteis situated.
The rangeis derivedin the sameway as with DME, Unlike Mode AB the pilot-selected angularoffset
i.e.measurement takesplacein the airborne of the approachpath is not available with Mode C.
equipmentafter an air-to-groundinterrogationand a The particularapproachpath usedis ground-defined,
subsequentground-to-airreply. The air-derivedrange henceMode C is known asthe groundcontrolled
may be containedin the interrogations, subsequent to mode(GCM). The platform installationis rotated
the recognitionof valid replies,in order to make this to the correctcompassbearingwithin one of four
information availableon the ground. sectorschosenby the pilot, the choicebeingrelayed
Azimuth and elevationanglesare ground-derived, b y r l t .
usinginterferometryor, in the caseof elevation,radio The two ModeC alternatives areMode Cl and C2
altitudeand range. If the latter is the caseboth range which differ in the way elevationguidanceis derived.
and radioaltitudedata must be transmittedfrom With Mode Cl radio altitudeand rangeare
air to groundin order that the elevationtrianglemay transmittedto the landingsite.wherethe elevation
be solvedfor elevationangle.The angulardatais anglecan be computedsincethe sineof the angleis
containedin the reply to the airborneequipntent's equalto the ratio of the radioaltitudeto the (slant)
interrogation. range.With ModeC2 elevationinformationis derived
asin Mode AB.
Modesof Operation Mode C I allowsgreaterflexibiJityof approach.
Therearethreemodesof operation,namelyAB, Cl The aircraftcan be guideddown a glideslopeto a point

225
remote from the landingsite (say 0'5 nautical miles
away) from where the final approachis completedin
levelflight. The parametersof the approachpath are
under the control of the ground station for both
ModeCl and C2.

lnterferometry
A basicinterferometerconsistsof trvo antennas
feedingreceivers,the outputs of which are compared
in phase. If the radiatedwavearrivesfrom a direction
other than normal to the planeof the two'antenna
array then the energyarrivingat one antennawill
havetravelledfurther than that arrivingat the other
by a distanced. The phasedifferencebetweenthe
antennasignalswill dependon d which, in turn,
dependson the direction of arrival.
A two-antennainterferometeris of little usesince
an ambiguousmeasureof the direction of arrivalis
obtained. For exampleconsiderthe antennasspaced
I cm apart and a wavelengthofthe radiatedwave
equalto tr cm. lf d = 0, I, 2),,etc. the measured
phasedifferencewill be zerocorresponding to
directionsof arrival0, measured with respectto the
Fig 13.7 Two antennainterferometer
normal, givenby sin 0 = 0, tri Q,2ltlQ, etc. Thus with
I = 100 cm, say, and tr = 6 cm, then for zero phase
e c o u l db e 0 , 3 ' M , 6 ' 8 9 , e t c .d e g r e e s .
d i f f e r e n c0
To resolvethe ambiguity severalantennasmust be
usedin a lineararray. Phasedilferencemeasurements
can be madebetweenany two antennasignalsto give
collectivelyan unambiguous directionof arrival.
With the spacingof the antennaschosento be in the
ratio2:4 : 8 : l6 : 32 the derivedangleword canbe
codeddirectly in binary.

" .r"
i
't,i

Fig. 13.8 MADGE,hardware(courtesyMEL Equipment

Co. Ltd)

226
 Conbrlls and Instrumentation
The length and message content of the interrogation
A Mode AB controller has the following controls:
word, which is assembled in the logic unit, depenis
l. 'OFF/STANDBy/ON'. Whenin standbythe on the mode of operation. For A channel(M;de AB)
. input to the modulator is inhibited wirh a a 25-bit word requestingguidanceinformation rs
3-min warm-up delay for the transmitteris transmittedat a jittering meanrateof 50 Hz.
initiated. B channel,containingrangeand other data in a 60-bit
2. GROUND/AIR control. Four thumbwheel word, can be interlacedwith A channelinterrogations
switcheswhich selectthe ground and air a t a f a c t o r ys e tr a t eo f 2 . 5 , 5 , l 0 o r 5 0 H z . C m o d e s
addressand the frequencyof operation. useonly one interrogationword 60 bits long at a
3. Angle offsets. Three rotary switcheswhich jittering meanrate of 100 Hz. -BothCl and C2
allow the pilot to selectone of a variety of interrogations containguidanceinterrogationdata
elevationand azimuth anglesfor approach. and range,but in additionmodeCl transmitsradio
For overshootazimuth offset only is provided. altitude information. Appropriateair and ground
4. 'TEST'. A push switch which activatis the addresscodes,asselectedon the controller, form
built-in test equipment(b.i.t.e.). p a r t o f t h e g u i d a n c ien t e r r o g a t i o n .
The interrogationword pulsetrain,suitably
In addition, if the controller is dual mode i.e. Mode processed
'ANGLE in a line receiverand pulsemodulattr,
AB and C an OFFSETS'/,SECTOR GCM' controlsthe grid voltageof a travelling-wave_tube
five-positionswitch is provided to allow the pilot to which amplifiesthe r.f. from a solid-statesource
selectwhich of the four approachsectorshi desires phase-locked
to 56 timesa referenceoscillator
for ModeC (GCM) operation or, if usinga Mode AB crystal. A 4-bit parallelcode,determinedbv the
station,the angleoffset controls may be enabledby frequencyselectionat the controller,selectiwhich of
s e l e c t i n g ' A N G LO E FFSET'. four crystalsis to be usedasa reference.The pulse
The PRAM and crossed-pointer deviationindicator codeanrplitudemodulatedfrequencyof between
havebeenmentionedpreviously.In additionthree 5 ' 1 8 2 5a n d 5 . 2 0 0 5G H z i s f e d v i aa l o w - p a sfsl i t e r
optionalindicatorsmay be fitted: and circulatorin the microwaveassemblyto one of
l. Overshootwarning. Only activeduring Mode two antennasselectedby a switchwhich is
AB operation. Thereare two activestites of controlledby the logicunit.
this ntagneticindicator.in one of which Receivedsignalsareamplifiedand detectedin a
indicationof the serviceability of the ground double-superhet receiver,then passedto the logic
overshootinterferometeris given;the other unit. lncoming noise pulsesarecombatedby
givingovershootwarning. .Off is displayed reducingthe receiversensitivityasthe rate ofreceived
when the indicatoris not active. pulsesincreases.Interference from multipathechoes
2. Low-fly warning. Similarto ( I ) aboveexcepr is avoidedby settinga thresholdlevelin accordance
that the activestatesshow eitherthat the with the amplitudeof the first pulseof the incoming
elevationfailurewarningflagis pulledin word. The weakermultipathechoeswill be unlikely
(elevationsafe)or that the aircraftis low. to exceedthis thresholdwhich returnsto zero at the
3. Excessazimuthdeviation.Only usedin end of eachreceivedword.
Mode C. A lamp which flasheswhen the The reply is clockedinto a shift registerand then
aircraftis more than 60 metresfrom the checkedfor validityand parity. Validity is
approachpath and within t nauticalmile of determinedby comparingair and groundaddress
the landingsite. codes receivedwith thoseselected.A ranseclock.
w h r c hw a ss t a r t e dw h e n . t h ei n t e r r o g a t i oI o nok place,
is stoppedon completionof .asuccessful validitv and
p a r i t yc h e c k .
Block Diagram Operation The systemfunctionsin eithersearchor track.
The installationcomprises an interrogatorset(logic U n t i l t h e r a t eo f v a l i d a r e rde p l i e si s a c c e p t a b lteh e
u n i t) . a n i n t e r r o g a t osre t( t r a n s m i t t e r - r e c e i v ie r ) . logicunit causes the t/r output to switchbetween
controller,an antennaselector,two antennasand up forwardand rearantennasat a 0.5 Hz rale. llavins
to five dilferentindicators,possiblyduplicated,as acquired a r e l i a b l er a n g ev a l u e a, t r a c k i n gg a t ei s
described previously.All electroniccircuitry is generated so that only thosereplieswithin I gs
c o r r t a i n ewd i t h i n t h e l o g i cu n i t a n d t r a n s m i i t e r - r e c e i vbefore.
er and 2 ps after,the expectedtime of arrival
(ti r) with tl"reexceptionof that containedin the areaccepted.With repliesregularlyfallingwithin the
PRAM. trackinggatethe rangeof changeof rangeis

227
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228
computed. If the rate exceeds30 knots antenna-
svitchingceases, the forwardantennabeingselected
for decreasingrange,the rear antennafor increasing
range. Each antennahas a polar diagramwhich is
180" wide in the horizontal plane and 40o wide in the
vertical plane.
With validity and parity confirmed rangeand angle
data is fed to the output control logic circuits. Digital
rangeand azimuth information is fed to the PRAM,
the azimuth information beingunaffectedby the
selectionof angleoffsets. Azimuth and elevation
information is comparedwith the selectedangle
offsets,the resultingdigital differencesare then
convertedinto analogueguidanceoutputs which are
fed via matchingresistorsin the interfacejunction
box to the cross-pointer deviationindicator. The d/a
convertergainis progressivelyreducedas the range
decreases from I nauticalmile. This reduction in eain
is known as beam-softening and resultsin meter
deflectionbeingpropoitionalto lateralratherthan
angulardisplacementfrom the approachpath.
Warningsignalsaregenerated within the logicunit.
Flag drivesare fed to the cross-pointerinstrument
being28 V for validinformation,0 V duringa fault
condition. A low-fly warningis provided in Mode
AB, or an excesselevationdeviationsignalin Mode C.
Azimuth warningsare the excessazimuth deviationin
Mode C and the overshootsignalin Mode AB. The
PRAM display is enabledby the azimuth flag signal.
For Mode Cl a radio altimeterinterfaceunit is
requiredto digitize the analogueheight signalfrom
the radio altimeter. As a checkthe digitizedheightis
convertedback into analogueform, then compared
with the height input. A fault signalis fed to the logic
unit if a discrepancy greaterthan 1 25 ft is detected.
The fault signalis also generatedif the radio
altimeter'sflagoutput showsa lault condition. With
a fahlt detectedthe elevationflag showsand the
heightinformationpresentbit in the interrogation
word is negated.
Selected System Parameters
Transmitterpeakpower: 150W nominal.
T r a n s m i t t efrr e q u e n c yc h a n n e l s5: 1 8 2 ' 5 ,5 1 8 8 ' 5 ,
5 1 9 4 ' 5 . 5 2 0 0 'M 5 Hz.
Receiverfrequencychannels:5004'5, 5010'5,5016'5,
5 0 2 2 ' 5 .5 0 2 8 ' 5 .5 0 3 4 ' 5M H z .
lnterrogationword rate: 50 Hz mean(A channel);
100 Hz mean(C channel).
Word jitter: + 2 ms (A channel);+ I ms (B channel).
M e s s a gbei t r a t e : l ' 0 1 1 2 5 M H z n o m i n a l .
lnterrogationword length:25 bits (A channel);
60 bits (C channel).
Reply word length:60 bits (all channels).
Message format: non-retum.to-zero(n.r.z.).
Height data, down link: I I bits (binary).
Rangedata,down link: l6 bits (b.c.d.).,
Elevationdata, up link: 9 bits.
Azimuth and flag data,up link: l5 bits.
Analogueazimuthguidance:selectable + 2'5 to t l0o
full scale.
Analogueelevationguidance:selectablet 0'5 fo t 5"
full scale.
Azimuth coarseoutput: t 45o full scale.
Elevationcoarseoutput: t25" (A channel):-5 to
+20' full scale(Cl channel).
Rangeoutput: 25 nauticalmilesat l0 V;30 nautical
m i l e sa t l 2 V .
Velocity output: I 200 knots full scale.
Digitaloutputs: I '01 125 MHz, bi-phasen.r.z.
Anglesand flags:28-bit word at reply rate.
Rangedata: l8-bit word at interrogationrate.
Digital resolution:azimuth0'235'; elevationO'144":
range9'26 metres.
Collision Arioidance
Up until 1979collisionavoidance hasbeenthe
responsibilityof ATC tbr aircraft flying under IFR
while pilots are responsiblefor their own safety
underVFR. This situationis likely to continuelbr
sometime in the future eventhough a workable
collision avoidancesystem(CAS) hasbeen developed.
A self-containedsystemwould protect the
equippedaircraft regardless ofwhether other aircraft
were similarly equippedor an ATC servicewas
available.Sucha systemcould be built measuring
range,range-rate of change,and directionof all aircraft
within a certainvolume of spacearound the protected
aircraft. Receiveddatacould be usedto compute
projectedpathsso that the risk of collisioncould be
evaluatedand,if necessary, a warninggivenor
automaticmanoeuvre initiated. The costof sucha
systemprovidingthe accuracyrequiredis prohibitive,
at leastfor the time being.
As an alternative,we may havea co-operative
systemand this is an areain'which work hasbeen
done. Two possibilities exist:
l. an interrogator/transpondersecondary radar
systemwhich could measurerangeand
range-ratein much the sameway as DME does
but with obviousproblemsin crowdedairspace
wherethe systemis most needed;
2. a time multiplexedsystemin which all aircraft
transmitin turn without interrogation.
The calculationof the rangeat nearestapproach
229
 q
(miss distance)is complicated and requiresprcsent The CurrentGenerationof ARINC
relativepositions,ipcluding altitude, and the speed Characteristics
:g
and track ofeach aircraft involved. One approachis
to usethe componentof relativevelocity ln 1979a numberof new ARINC Characteristics
perpendicularto the line joining the aircraft asshown (700 series)were adoptedby the AEEC. The systems
in Fig. 13.10whereV1 , Va, Vn arethe velocity coveredincluderadio altimeter,DME, ILS, VOR,
vectorsof aircraft A, aircraft B and B relativeto A ADF, Selcal.,p.a. amp.,v.h.f. comms,weatherradar
respectively,while X is the measureof the risk of and ATC transponder.Thesecharacteristics detailthe
collision.Another,simplermethodis to usethe airlinestandards for radioequipmentin the 1980s.
rangedividedby the range-rate,measureof the risk Thereareobviouslymany rninordifferences between
beingknown as tau (r). In both methodsa minimum new and old characteristics and somemajor onessuch
valueof the risk measureis set,below which evasive asthe incorporationof DABS into the ATC
actionis taken. With the latter method,however, transponder.However,the most significantchangeis
when the closingvelocity is small r is not a good the switch to serialdigital signalsfor both system
measureof risk and a minimum rangecriterion outputsand control. The detailsof the digital
shouldbe includedin the system. information transfersystem(DITS) are givenin
ARINC Specification 429-2publishedI March 1979.
Additionalinformationis givenin projectpapers453
and72A,the very high speed(VHS) bus and digital
frequencyifunctionselection(DFS) respec tively,
althoughthesepapershad not beenadoptedby May
1979.
The DITS describes the standards for the transfer
Aircraft of digitaldatabetweenall avionicssystenls, not just
I
/ radio. Data flow is one way only, via twistedand
Aircraft
A-L shieldedpairsof wiresat a rateof l00K bits per
s e c o n d( K b s )o r l 2 t o l 4 ' 5 K b s( 1 0 0 0K b s f o r V H S
Fig.13.10 Collision threatgeometry bus). The systemis basedon 32-bitwords. The
encodinglogic for eachbit is basedon a voltage
'Hi'
As an exampleof a systemwe will briefly consider transition,a stateat the beginningof a bit
was workable as long ago as 'Null' statebeforethe end of
the Bendix CAS which interval returning to a
1969. The systeminvolvesan airborneclock, t h a ti n t e r v arle p r e s e nat sl o g i c ' l ' s i m i l a r l ya ' L o ' t o
while on the ground 'Null' represents '0'. The transmittervoltage
computerand transmitter-receiver a logic
syncl.rroniz-ation and clock accuracyof the systemis l e v e lasr e + 1 0 ! I V . 0 1 0 ' 5 V a n d- 1 0 1 I V f o r t h e
of an atontic clock. During a 3 s ' H i ' , ' N u l l ' a n d ' L o ' s t a t e sr e s p e c t i v e l y .
assured by means
intervalknown as att epoclt,eachparticipating lnlornrationis codedin one oi severalways:binary
aircrafttransmitsduringone of 2000 time-slotseach codeddecirlal(b.c.d.).two's contplementfractional
of 1'5 ms duration:while one is transmittingthe rest binary(b.n.r.)or the InternationalStandards
listen. Transmission of altitudeand other data(e.g. organisation (lSO) alphabetNo. 5. Codel'or graphics
heading) is rnade. data has not yet beendefined. Discretedata suchas
'code'. Wordsare
The groundstationkeepsall aircraftsynchronized on/off switchingis simplya I -bit
in time;and frequencyof transmission and hence synchronized by a gapof at least bits betweenwords,
4
rangernaybe measured from propagation time and a gap is recognized by the fact that thereis no voltage
range rate fiom Doppler shift. Thus r ntay be transition. Errcir checking is carriedout b1'one parity
'bit
calculated onceduringeachepochfor all reporting per word, the requiredparity is odd. i.e. tlte total
aircraft. Commandsto the pilot basedon the numbeo r t ' ' l s ' i n a w o r di s o d d .
computer'sevaluationof the risk are: aircraftabove, The basicorganization of eachword is label.
t e l o w ,p r e p a r et o c l i m b , source/destinatic-rn
p r e p a r et o d i v e ,d i v e .a i r c r a f b identifier(SDI), dirtafield.
clinrband l'ly level. The comrnands are givenby s i g n / s t a t ums a t r i xa n df i n a l l y ,b i i 3 2 , p a r i t l . T h e f i r s t
d g e n dosn o n ei n d i c a t o r .
b a c k - l i g h t el e 8 b i t s o f e a c hw o r d a r ea s s i g n etdo a l a b e l u h i c h
Any CASwhich may eventuallybe adoptedwill identifiesthe informationcontainedin the data fleld,
not necessarily be like the Bendixsystem,but e . g .v . h . f .c o m m .f r e q u e n c yD, M E d i s t a n c es,e l e c t e d
certainlysomeof the tactors and techniques discussed c o u r s ee. t c . B i t s9 a n d l 0 a r eu s e df o r t h e S D I w h e r e
abovewill be relevant. a word needsto be directedto a specificsystemof a

230
multi-systeminstallationor the sourcesystemof a distancewith the most significant bit (m's.b') of
multlsystem installationneedsto be identified. The the most significantcharacter(m.s.c.)beingbit
SDI is not availablefor alphanumericwords (lSO 29. The eximple shown readingback from bit 29
alphabetNo. 5) or where the bits are usedaspart of is
0 1 0 o l 0 l 0 l l l 1 0 0 0 0 l l 0
the data field when the resolutionrequireddemands
it. Bits 30 and 3l areusedfor the sign/status matrix 2 5 7 8 6
which represents t, North, right, to, test,no nautical miles
computeddata,etc. If several wordsareusedto DITS words reprcsentingparametersare generated
transmit a message too long for one word then the in units such asVOR receivers,DME interrogators'
signistatusmatrix is usedto indicatefinal word, etc. and will terminatein navigationcomputers'
intermediateword, controlword or initial word. display driversor indicators. The rate of
The aboveideasare best illustratedby examples: transmissionof suchwords varies,for examplethe
minimum rate for DME distanceis 6 times per
l. ADF. typicalword secondwhile radio height is 20 times per second;
0 0 0 I I 0 I 0 0 0 0 0 0I I 0 I 0 0 0 0 DITS radio controlwordssuchasexamples(l)
l 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 and (2) aboveare transmitted9 times per second'
'0
The label 0 0 I I 0 I 0' is followed by SDI
'0 0' the all-callcode. Data field bits I I ,12 and
l3 areb.f.o. - on/off (0 for off), ADF/antenna ConcludingRemarks
mode (0 for ADF) and sparerespectively.Data
field bits 14-29arethe frequencyselectbits with This book hasconsidered currentradiosystemswith
' examplesof a rangeof technologies.The final
bits 21-29the 1000kHz selectiod,bits 23-26the
chaptir hasattemptedto showdirectionsin which
1 0 0k H z , b i t s l 5 - 1 8 t h e I k H z a n db i t 1 4 t h e
0'5 kHz selection.The exampleshownreading radio systemsmay progress.We will certainlysee
f r o m b i t 1 4 .i s Ut-S and most probablyADSEL/DABS' Flight decks
l l 0 l 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 will makefull useof flexibleelectronicdisplaysbut a
0.5+5 + l0 + 800 +1000 minimalcomplementof conventional instrumentsand
= l8l5'5 kHz. controls will remainindefinitely.
Sign/status is not applicable Modulatingsignalswill probably remainanalogue
herebut in any case
00 canbe readaspositive.The final bit is setto in propagatingsystems,sinceto go digital would
0 to make total one count odd. requlreishifi up the frequencyscaleto accommodate
the wider bandwidthsrequired. Eventhough the
2. ATC transPonder,tYPicalword basisof the systemswill be analoguesigrals,they will
0 0 l I I 0 l I 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0I 'go digital'asearlyaspossiblein the circuitry'
0 1 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 Cornputlngpower will increasebeyond that which we
The datafield bits I l'17 in ascending order are
can employ; this hashappenedalready,the-power is
altitudereportingon/off (0 for on), inertial there,all we needto do is think of the applications'
referencesystem/flightmanagement computer,
after which there will be yet more computingpowei'
i.e. IRS/FMCinputswhich arereserved for future
Perhapsthe biggestquestionmark is ov-erthe
use(0 for IRS),ident. on/off (1 for on)' altitude future of VOR/DME asthe standardICAO
datasourceselect(0 for No. l), IFR/VFR which navigationalaid. Possiblereplacements arev'l'f'/Omega'
is reservedfor future use(0 for IFR) and X-pulse Satniv. in one form or another'or evenLoran C; the
on/off (0 for off). Datafield bits l8 to 29 advantages of thesebeingthat they arelo.ng.range'
representpilot-selected codefor Mode A replies A poisiblescenariois an aircraftfitted with a
with bits l8-20 the D codegroupselect,2l-23 varietyof deadreckoningand positionfixing nav'
the C,24-26 the B and 21'29 the A codegroup aidsin a minimumnumberof boxesbackedup by
select.The exampleshownreadingback from accurategroundtracking,immenselypowerful
bit 29 is groundcomputersand a corpprehensive datalink'
0 0 r 0 l 0 l 0 l 0 0 0 ivith u -ultiple CAS and MLS of the required
r
I
a
J 5 0 =code accuracythe aircraftof the future couldgo from
3. DMEdistance (b.c.d.) ramp t; rampwithout the interventionof the pilot
1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 11 0 0 0 0 1I I I andln almostperfectsafety. This could be
0 1 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 developed now, but would be cost prohibitive;
The datafieldis used for
exclusively the DME and anyway who wantsa robot flying the'plane?
 Recommended
reading
As the readeris probablyawarethereis a dearthof
books on avionics;those that exist and concern
themselveswith aircraft radio are perhapsa little
dated.In contrastthe numberof booksivailableon
electronics,computersand radiois staggering.
I have chosento list most books availableon
avionicswhich I think are worthy of the reader's
attention. For sourcesof backgroundmaterialon
basictheoryof electronics and radio the readeris
perhapsbest advisedto, visit a suitablelibrarv or
bookshopand pick out thosewhich seemto suit him
or her best. Sincethis is a fbrmidabletask. I have
listedsomebookswhich I think may be useful.
A briefnote is givenasa guideto contentand level
of each.
l. M. Kayton and W.R. Fried (Editors\, Avionics
NavigationSystems.John Wiley and Sons(1969). I l . D . C .G r e e nR
Authoritativebook which.isstill of
considerable interest.Coversradio and
non-radioaids. Postgraduate
2. G.E. Beck(Editor),NovigationSysterns.yan
NostrandReinhold( 1971\.
Similarto Kayton and Fried.alsoconsiders
marinenavigationsystems.Equallyworthy
but not, perhaps,ascomprehensive
almost300 l'ewerpages.
3. B. Kendal.Mqnualof Atktnics. Granada'l9791.
Biasedtowardsair tral'ficcontrol aspectsof
aircraltoperations.Complementary
book.
4. E.H.J. Pallert,Airuaft ElectricalSystems.
P i t r n a n( 2 n d e d i t i o n .1 9 7 9 ) .
5. E.H.J.Pallett,Aircraft Instruments. pitman
( 2 n d e d i t i o n .t q Sl ) .
6. E.H.J.Pallett,Automatic Flight Control.
Granada( 1979)'.
All of Pallett'sbooksarewell written with
goodillustrations.Very usefulto avionics
engineers.May be considered
v o l u m e st o t h i sb o o k .
7. N.H. Birch and A.E. Branrson, night Briefing
.&/ors,Volume3,Radb Aidsto Air Nayisatiort.
P i t m a n( 4 t h e d i r i o n .1 9 7 9 ) .
232
A very good book but the emphasis is on
operationaluseso the theorygivenis brief.
C o m p l e m e n t a rt yo t h i sb o o k .
8. S.E.T.Taylor and H.A. parnrer.Grountl Stutlies
for Pilots. Volurne l, Radio Aids. Granada
( 3 r d e d i r i o n ,1 9 7 9 ) .
Coversthe needsof prospective contnrercial
pilots in so far asthe useof raclioaidsis
concerned.
9. J.L. McKinleyand R.D. Brenr.Electricitt,and
Electronicsfor Aerospatc Vchit.les.MeGruw-t{ill
( 2 n de d i t i o n t, 9 7 l ) .
Coversfundamentaltheoryand brielly
d e s c r i b easv i o n i c s y s t c n ) 5B. t s i c .
10. D.C. Green,Transmissiott,st'slarrs, ll. pitnran
(1978'1.
, a d i o S y s t e n r lsl ,. p i r n r a n( l 9 7 g ) .
1 2 . D . C .G r e e nR , a d i o S l t s t e m sI l,l . P i t r r r a (n1 9 7 9 ) .
1 3 . D . ( ' . G r e e nE , l e c t r o n i c s , l l .p i t m a n( l 9 7 g ) .
engineerlevel. 1 4 . D . C .G r e e nL, ' l e t , t r o t i l c ' s , l lpl .i t r n a n( 1 9 7 g ) .
A l l o l ' G r e e n 'b s o o k sa r ew e l l w r i t t e na n d
i l l u s t r a t e dT. e c h n i c i alne v e l .
1 5 . J . E . F i s h e ra n d I l . B . G a t l a n dL, l e c . t n t n i cf sr i t m
Theoryinkt Prac'tice.I)ergrrnon ( lrrd ediiion.
sinceit has t9761.
Mainly concerned with designtif circuits.
U n d e r g r a d u a at e
n d p r a c t i s i negn g i n e e r s .
'
16. G.A. StreitrnatterarrdV. I:iore.Microprocessors
to this Thcoryanl Applit'utr,lrs.Reslorr( lg79).
O n eo f t h c b e s to l ' a r c c e n tn u n r b e o r f books
on mlcroprocessors.
f 7 . A . J . B a d e nF u l l e r M , i c r o w a v e sp. e r g a m o n
( l n d e d i t i o n .l t ) 7 t ) 1 .
L l n d e r g r a d u al cl e' v e l .U s e f udl e s c r i p t i o nosf
c o l n p ( ) n e nat sn dd e v i c e s .
18. Telec'onntwic'utlons S-r,s/enls Llnits, l-6. Course
( - h a i r r n a nG: . S m o l . T h e O p e nU n i v e r s i t yp r e s s
( l(r76).
ascomDanion 19. L.'lect rrtrnag,tct i( s and L'Iect ron ics. Cou rse
C h a i r r n a nJ:. J . S p a r k e sT. h e O p e nU n i v e r s i t l ,
P r e s(sl 9 7 J) .
J'rtr
Both l5 and l(r arehighlyrecomnrended as
c o u r s en t a t c r i a l .
 '
I am sureI have omitted many books which are
equalin merit to those listed. The editions referred
to ( I st unlessotherwiseindicated) are those with
which I am familiar; the readeris rCvisedto check
that theseare the latest editions.
I havenot mentioned any mathematicstextbooks.
but for thosewho wish to study aircraft radio
systemsin depth, considerablemathematicmaturitv
is needed. Many books havetitles which are variations
on the theme 'Mathematics,forTechnicians'most of
which will be useful. The Open University is againa
usefulsourcefor thoserequiringappliedmathematics
at undergraduatelevel.
A huge sourceof materialon avionicscomesfrom
organizations which arenot publishinghouses.The
readeris advisedto consultthe publicationslistsof
nationalaviationauthorities,suchas the CAA and
FAA, and alsoARINC and ICAO. Aircraft and
equipmentmanufacturers producecomprehensive
manualsof varyingstandardswhich will be consulted
by the reader,asa matterof course,in the execution
of his dutiesin the aircraft industrv.
83
Glossary

a.c. - Alternating current: current flow which navigation rystems.

changesdirection periodically. Altitude trip - A discrete signal from a radio
Acquisition - The recognitionof a signal. altimeter which changesstateas the aircraft passes
ACU - Antenna CouplingUnit. through a pre-determinedaltitude.
A/D - Analogueto Digital conversion.,, a.m. - Amplitude modulation: meaningfulvariation
Address- A"Brq,qpof pits which identify a particular of the amplitude of an r.f. carrier
location in memory oi'idiri'e other data sourceor Analog,analogue- A quantity or signalwhich varies
destination. continuouslyand representssomeother
ADF - Automatic Direction Finder: a systemcapable continuouslyvarying quantity;hence an analog
of automaticallygivingthe bearingto a fixed radio circuit which processes suchsignals,an analog
transmitter. computerwhich performsarithmetic operationson
ADI - Attitude Director Indicator: an instrument suchsignals.
which demandsattitude changeswhich, if AND gate - A logic circuit which givesan output of
executed,causethe aircraft to fly a path I if, and only if, all its inputs are l.
determinedby radio or other sensors. Angle of cut - The anglebetweentwo hyperbolicor
ADSEL - AddressSelectiveSSR: British circularl.o.p. at their point of intersection.
developmentof SSR,compatiblewith DABS. Antenna,aerial - A devicespecificallydesignedto
a.f.c. - Automatic frequencycontrol: automatic convertr.f. current flow to electro-magnetic
tuningof a radio receiver. radiation,or vice versa.
AFCS - Automatic Flight Control System. a.o.c.- Automatic overloadcontrol: a circuit which
a.g.c.- Automatic gain control of a radio receiver. preventsan excessive rateoftriggeringofa
AID - Aircraft InstallationDelay: the time elapsed transponder.
betweentransmissionand receptionin a Radio APU - Auxiliary Power Unit: a motor-generator
Altimeter installationwhen the aircraft is in the fitted to an aircraft for the purposeof providing
touchdownposition. ground power and startingthe main engines.
Air Data Computer- A unit which senses, evaluates A/R - Altitude Reporting: automatic coded
and outputs quantitiesassociated with altitude, transmissionof altitude from aircraft to ATC in an
airspeed, verticalspeedand Machnumber. SSRsystem.
Air speed- The speedof an aircraft relativeto the air Array - A group ofregularly arrangeddevices,for
massthrough which it is flying. example,antennasor memorycells.
AIS - Audio IntegratingSystem:the electronic ASP - Audio SelectionPanel.
interfacebetweencrew membersand audiosources Associatedidentity - The identification of co-located
and destinations. VOR and DM!. beaconsby synchronized
Algorithm - A sequenceof stepswhich alwaysleads transmissions of the sameMorsecodecharacters
of a conclusion. from eachbeacon.
Alphanumerics- Displayedcharacterswhich may be Astable- Havingno stablestate.
lettersor numeralsor both. ATC - Air Traffic Control.
Altimeter- Pneumatic:a pressure measuring device ATE - AutomaticTest Equipment.
calibratedin feet;alsobarometric,pressure and ATU - AntennaTuning Unit.
servoaltimeter. Radio:a systemwhich measures A-typedisplay- A c.r.t. displayin which the timebase
the heightof an aircraftabovethe earth'ssurface. deflectionis horizontaland the signaldeflectionis
Altitude hole - [,ossof signalin an f.m.c.w.radardue vertical.
to round trip traveltime beingequal to the Automatic standby- seeSignalcontrolled search.
modulationperiod:of importancein Doppler

234 -
:!
.d
- l

:{
g
 Backlash - PleyGdfrdrani:l linkage such as
scannerdriles,
Balun - Balancedto unbelancedtransformer: used.
for example. rn conncstint a co.axial feeder
(unbalanced)to a (xntrc fed half wavedipole
antenna(balancedl.
Barometric di - The referencepressurelevql of a
barometricdtimeter asset by the pilot.
Base- The integral value of the number of sym[ols
in a countrngsystem. The central regionof a
bipolar transistor.
Baseline- The line joining two ground stations in a
hyperbolicnavigationsystem.
b.c.d. - Binary coded decimal: a positional code in
which eachdecimaldigit is binary coded as a 4-bit
word.
Beamsoftening - Progressivereduction in gain of
demandsignalchannelin landing systems.
Bearing- The angle,measuredin a clockwise
direction,betweena referenceline through the
aircraft and a line joining the aircraft and the
object to which bearingis being measured.The
referenceline may point to magneticor true Norfh
or be in line with the aircraft'slongitudinal axisfor
magnetic,true or relativebearingrespectively.
Beat frequency - The difference frequency resulting
when two sinusoidsare mixed in a nori linear
device.
b.f.c. - Beat frequencyoscillator: an oscillator,the
output of which is mixed with an incoming c.w.
signalin order to producean audiblebeat
frequency.
Bidirectional - Refersto an interfaceport or bus
line which can transferdata in either direction.
Binary number system - A counting system using 2 as
its baseand employing the symbols0 and l.
Binary signal- A signalwhich can take on one of
two states,one lepresentingthe bit 0, the other
the bit l.
Bipolar transistor - A solid state device utilizing two
typesof current carriers:holesand electrons;
capableof amplifying or switchingfunctionspvhen
usedin suitablecircuits.
Bistable- Havingtwo stablestates.
Bit - A singlebinary digit, i.e. the symbol 0 or l.
BITE - Built In Test Equipment.
Blade antenna- A rigid quarter wave antenna,the
bladeshapeof which givesoperationover a wide
band of frequencies;electricalcomponehtsmay be
housedwithin the blade for the purposeof
improvingthe performance.
BNR - Signalrepresentinga binary number.
Bonding- Electrical:interconnectingmetal parts
with conductorsin order to eliminatepotential
differences.Mechanical:joining parts to one
anotherby methodsother than thoseinvolving
bolts,screwsand rivets.
Booleanalgebra- The algebraof two state,or binary,
variables.
Buffer - A circuit used for isolating or matching
purposes.
Bug - A fault, usually in software. A mark, fixed or
set,on a meter face.
Bus - One or more conductorsusedas an
information path. A conductorusedto cany a
particularpower supply to varioususer
equlpments.
Byte - A specificnumber of bits (usually 8) treated
asa group: 8-bit word.
c - Standardnotation for the speedofpropagation of
e.m.wavesin freespace:c = 3 x 108 metresper
sec= 186000 milesper sec= 162000 n.m. per sec.
CADC - CentralAir Data Computer.
Capsule- An evacuatedairtight containerusedto
detect changesin pressure.
Capture- The sensingof a radio beam suchas occurs
in ILS.
CAS - CollisionAvoidanceSystem.
CDI - CourseDeviationIndicator:an instrument
which presentssteeringsignalsto the pilot which,
if obeyed,causethe aircraft to follow a particular
flight path.
CDU - Control DisplayUnit.
Cell - A circuit or deviceusedfor storingone
characteror word, the locationbeinggivenby a
particularaddress.A singlechemicalsourceof
electromotiveforce(e.m.f.).
Chip - A collectionof interconnected electronic
componentsformed on a singlesiliconwafer.
Chokeflange- A type of waveguide joint which.by
use of a short-circuited half-wavestub, givesa good
electricalconnectionacrossthejoint.
CIWS- CentralInstrumentWarningSystem.
Clarifier- Tuningcontrol for the insertedcarrier
oscillatorneededfor s.s.b.reception.
Clear- To placeone or more storagelocationsin a
particularstate,usuallyO.
Clock - The basicsynchronizing circuit in a system;
the waveformfrom sucha circuit.
Clutter- Unwantedradarreturns.
Co-axialcable- A pair of concentricconductors
separated by an insulatingmaterialand usedfor
line transmission of r.f. currentsup to about
4 GHz.
Code - A systemof symbolsand rulesusedfor
represe nting informationsuchasnumbers,letters
and control signals.
2!F
Colocation- VHF navigationand DME beacons
sharingthe samegeographicalsite; such beacons
will operateon pairedfrequencies and use
a s s o c i a t ei d e n t i t y .
Commutator - A mechanicalor electronicrotating
contactdevice.
Compassrose- A circular scalemarked in degrees
and usedfor indicatingaircraft heading.
Computer - A machineor systemwhich performs
arithmeticand logicalfunctions;maybe analogue
or digital,electronicor mechanical.
Contour - Blankingof the strongestsignalsin a
weatherradar.
Control bus - A bus usedto carry a variety of
control signals.
CPU - CentralProcessing Unit: a devicecapableof
executinginstructionsobtainedfrom memory or
other sources,a term often usedfor a
microprocessor.
Crossmodulation - Modulation of a desiredsignalby
an unwantedsignal.
Crosstrackdeviation- The perpendiculardistance
betweenaircraft position and the desiredtrack.
c.r.t. - Cathoderay tube: an evacuatedthermionic
devicewhich hasan electrongun at one end and a
fluorescentscreenat the other;the electronbeam
from the gun writes a pattern on the screenwhich
is a function of analoguesignalsappliedto the
device.
Crystal- A frequencysensitivedeviceusedto
determineand maintain the frequencyof
oscillatorsor establishnarrowpassor stop bands
within closelimits. A point contactdiode which
may find useas a mixer or rectifier in microwave
systems.
CVOR - ConventionalVOR (beacon).
CVR - CockpitVoice Recorder.
c.w.-Continuous wave:continuoustransmission of
unmodulatedr.f. duringthe time the transmitteris
keyed.
Cycle - One of a recurringseriesof events.
D/A - Digitalto Analogueconversion.
DABS - DiscreteAddressBeaconSystem:American
development of SSR;compatiblewith ADSEL.
Ilata - That on which a computeror processor
operates; singular:datum.
Databus - Usuallyeither8 or l6 bi-directionallines
capableof carryinginformation to and from the
CPU,memoryor interfacedevices.
Datasavememory - A memory devicewhich does
not lose the data storedin it when power is
switchedoff. May requirea battery.
dB - Decibel:unit of relativepoweror voltage
235
measuredon a logarithmic scalewith multiplying
factorsof l0 and 20 respectively.
dBm - Unit of power: decibelsrelativeto I rnW.
d.c. - Direct current:currentflow in one direction
only.
d.d.m. - Differencein depth of modulation: refersto
the 90 Hz and 150 Hz modulating frequenciesused
in ILS.
Deadreckoning- Calculationof position using
vehiclespeedor acceleration,time in motion,
direction and the known co-ordinatesof the initial
position. The absoluteerror in a dead reckoning
systemincreases, without bound, with distance
flown.
Deccanavigator- A c.w. hyperbolic navigation
system.
Decimalnumber system- A counting systemusing
l0 asits baseand employingthe symbolsO,1,2,
3,4,5,6,7,8,9.
Decometer- A phasemeter usedin the Decca
navigationsystem;threeareemployed:purple,
red and green.
fletector - An electroniccircuit which de-modulates
amplitude or pulse-modulatedwaveforms.
D/F - DirectionFinding.
DH - DecisionHeight: the height at which the
runway shouldbe in view when on an approach.
Differentiator - A devicewhich givesan output
proportionalto the rate of changbof input.
Digital - A systemor deviceusingdiscretesignalsto
representparticular valuesof a varying or fixed
quantity numerically;a signalin sucha system.
Diode- A semiconductor or thermionicdevicewhich
preventsflow of current in one direction.
Dipole, half wave - An antennaconsistingof two
co-linearlengthsof conductoreachone quarter
wavelengthlong at the desiredfrequencyof
operation. The two polesmay form a 'V' shapeif
a more omni-directionalpolar diagramthan a figure
of eight is required.
Direct access- Capability of readingdata from a
particularaddressin memory without havingto
access throughprecedingstoragearea.
Disc - Storagedevicegivinglargecapacity and almost
direct access.'
Discretesignal- A signalcharacterizedby being
either'on'or'off'.
Discriminator- A circuit which convertsfrequency
or phasedifferencesjnto amplitude variations.
DITS - Digital Informition TransferSystem:
A R I N C4 2 9 .
DME - DistanceMeasuringEquipment: a secondary
radarsystemcapableof measuringthe slant range
of a fixed transponder.
Doppler effect - The changein frequencynoted , nearest100 ft.
when a wave sourceis moving relativeto an EPROM - ErasableProgrammableROM: a ROM
observer. which, usingsuitableequipment,canbe erasedand
Doppler navigation system * A dead reckoning re-programmed.
systemconsistingof a Dopplerradarand a
computer which, with headinginformation from a Fan-in- The numberof inputsthat canbe handled,
compass,calculatesthe position of the aircraft. usuallyby a logiccircuit.
Doppler radar - A primary radar systemwhich Fan marker - A position fixing aid for en route
utilizes the.Dopplereffect to measuretwo or more airwaysnavigation:alsoZ marker.
of groundspeed,drift angle,longitudinalvelocity, Fan-out- The numberof circuitswhich canbe driven
lateralvelocity,verticalvelocity. from an output terminal,usuallyof a logiccircuit.
Doppler shift - The differencebetweentransmit and Fasterect- The applicationof a largervoltagethan
. receivefrequenciesin a systemsubjectto the requiredfor normalrunningto a gyro in orderto
Dopplereffect. reducethe time takento achieveoperatingspeed.
Doppler spectrum- A band of Doppler shift f.e.t. - Field effect transistor:a solidstatedevice
frequencies producedby a Dopplerradarwith a utilizingone type of curretrtcarrier(c.f. bipolar
finite beamwidth. transistor).
DPSK - Differential PhaseShift Keying: a form of Fetch - The part of a digital computercycle during
digitalrnodulationin which a phasereversal which the locationof the next instructionis
'l'.
indicatesthe binary digit determined,that instructionis takenfrom memory
thift angle- The anglebetweenheadingand track. and enteredinto a register.
d.s.b.- Doublesideband: transmission of both side Filter - A circuit which selectswanted or rejects
bandsof an a.m.wave,the carrierbeingsuppressed. unwantedsignals, usuallyon the basisof frequency.
Duplexer - A devicewhich permits sharingof one Firmwave- Instructionsstoredin ROM and hence
circuit or transmissionchannelby two signalsin not easilyamended.
particularuseof one antennafor receptionand Flag- A signalwhich hastwo discretestates,one of
transmission. which (low) usuallyindicatesfailure.
DVOR - Doppler VOR (beacon). Flagbit - The softwareequivalentof a flip flop
d.v.s.t.- Directview storagetube: a type of c.r.t. which may be usedasan indicator,for example,to
with a high intensity display. indicatethe beginningor end of a pieceof data.
Dynamic RAM - A type of RAM in which data Flare - The final phaseof a landingduring which the
storedwill fade unlessperiodicallyrefreshed. rdte of descentis reducedwith height.
Flashover - Dischargethrough air between
EADI - ElectronicADI: similarlyECDI and EHSL conductorsacrosswhich a largepotentialexists.
EAROM - ElectricallyAlterable ROM:seeEPROM. Flight level - With a pneumaticaltimeterreference
Earth - seeGround. s e ta t 1 0 1 3 . 2 5m b a ro r 2 9 . 9 2i n . H gt h e i n d i c a t e d
ECL - Emitter CoupledLogic:logiccircuitsemploying height,to the nearesthundredfeet,is thc flight
.bipolar transistorsgivingvery fast operation, level;thereply from an ATC Transponder to mode
reasonablefan-in and very good fan-out. C interrogations.
e.h.t.- Extra high tension:a sourceof e.m.f.,usually Flight log - A devicewhich recordsan aircraft's
measuredin kilovolts,usedasa supplyfor c.r.t.'s flight path in the horizontalplane,for example,a
and high power transmitters. rollermap.
Elapsedtime - The time betweentransmissionand Flip flop - A circuit havingtwo stablestates,often
receptionin a radarsystem. referredto asa bi-stable.The circuit remainsin
Electroluminescent- A property of deviceswhich one stateuntil triggered,two triggersbeing
convert electricalenergyto light. requiredto revertto the originalstate.A
e.m. wayes- Electromagneticwaveswhich include mono-stablemay be referredto as a flip flop.
radio and light waves. Flowchart- A diagrammatic representation of a
-
e.m.f. Electromotiveforce. sequenceof operationswhich are often algorithmic.
Enable- A signalwhich allowsa circuit to give an f.m. - Frequencymodulation:meaningfulvariation
output; alternativelya gate(signal). of the frequencyof a carrier.
Encodingaltimeter - A pneumaticaltimeterwith a Fruit - UnwantedSSR replies.
parallelcoded output of9 to I I bits representing Frequencypairing - The permanentassociationof
the aircraft'sheight abovemean sealevel to the frequenciesin different systemssuchasVOR/DME

237
 and Localizer/GlidesloPe.
Freeze- Not allowing updating of a weather radar
picture.
f.s.d. - Full scaledeflection.
Garbling - Receivedsignalsoverlappingin time.
Gate - A circuit, the output of which dependson
certaininput conditionsbeingmet; for example
AND, OR, NAND, NOR gates.A switching
waveform. The regionof an f.e.t. which controls
the output current.
Gimbal - A frame in which a gyro is mounted so as
to allow freedomof movementabout an axis
perpendicularto the gyro spin axis.
Glidepath/glideslope- The vertical plane approach
path to a landingsite. That part of ILS which
providesverticalguidance.
GPWS- Ground Proximity WarningSystem.
Gray code - A one bit changecode.
Grey region- A condition of uncertainty.
Ground - A point of zeropotential;alsoearth.
Ground plane - A surfacewhich completelyreflects
e.m. wavesand which, at the frequencyof interest,
behavesasif it extendsto infinity in all directions.
Ground speed- The speedof an aircraft projectedon
to the earth'ssurface.
Ground wave - A radio wave which follows the
earth'ssurface.
Gunn diode - A solid statedeviceutilizing the
bunchingof current carriersand finding '
applicationasan oscillatorin microwavesystems.
Gyroscope,gyro - A spinningmassfree to rotate
about one or both of two axesperpendicularto
one anotherand the axis of spin. In the absenieof
externalforcesthe spin axis direction is fixed in
space.
Handshake- Electricalverificationthat a data
transferhastaken place.
-
Hard data Data which remains memoryin with
power removed.
Hardware-- The sum total of componcnts of a system
which havea physicalexistence.
Hard uV - Hard micro volts: the voltageacrossan
open circuit load.
Headup display- Equipmentwhich allows
information to be visuallypresentedto the pilot
while looking through the windscreen.
- tail to nosedirection of the aircraft Inhibit - A signalwhich prevents,aparticularcircuit
Heading The
longitudinalaxismeasured in degrees clockwise
from eithermagneticor true North.
-
Height ring The ground return from a vertical
sidelobein a WeatherRadar gives a bright height
ring on the p.p.i. centredon the origin.
238
Hexadecimalnumber system - A counted system
using l6 asits baseand employingthe symbols
o , 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 , 9A ,, B , C , D , E , F .
High levellanguage- A vocabulary,togetherwith
grammaticalrules,in which eachstatement
correspondsto severalmachinecode instructions
so making the task of programmingleSstedious;
examplesare BASIC, FORTRAN, ATLAS,
PASCAL. etc.
Hot mic. -'A microphonewhich is permanentlylive
irrespectiveof crew operatedswitch positions;
live output is fed to the CVR.
HSI ' Horizontal Situation Indicator: an instrument
displayinginformation from the compassand v.h.f.
navigationaids,the latter being in the form of
deviationsignalswhich, in the caseof VOR, relate
to a courseselectedon the sameinstrument.
Hyperbolicnavigation- A meansof navigationusing
a co-ordinatesystemof hyperboliclines definedby
ground basedradio transmitters.
i.c. - Integratedcircuit: a devicecontaining
electroniccircuitsinseparablyfabricatedas an
integralpart of the deviceitself; often referredto
as a chip.
i.f.- Intermediatefrequency:the fixed frequencyat
which most of the amplificationand selection
takesplacein a superhetrodynereceiver.
IFF - Identification Friend or Foe: military version
of SSR.
IFR - Instrument Flight Rules: apply when VFR are
excludedby virtue of flying in controlled airspace
or lack of visibility.
IIS - InstrumentLandingSystem:the current
standardICAO approachaid.
Impatt diode - Impact avalanchetransit time diode:
a silicon p-n junction reversebiasedto its
avalanchethreshold;can be arrangedto act as a
negativeresistance in microwavecircuits,henceits
use in oscillators.
Impedance- The total oppositionto the flow of
current;in generalimpedance varieswith
frequency.
in.Hg - Inchesol mercury: a unit of pressure
measurement;the height of a column of mercury
supportedby the pressure beingmeasured;
29.92 in.Hg= 1013.25mbar= I standard
atmosphere,i.e. the pressureat meansealevel.
from performingits function.
INS - Inertial NavigationSystem:a non radio
navigationaid which computesthe aircraft'sposi
tion by deadreckoningusingthe measuredaccele'
ration of an airbornegyro stabilizedplatform.
trctmction - Coded rnformation which causesa
computer to perform an operationusuallyon data
availableat an addresswhich forms part of the
instruction.
lnstruction set - The sum total of instructions which Leading edge- The edgeof a pulse which occurs first
can be executedby a particularcomputer.
lntegrator - A device,the output of which is
proportional to the sum of past inputs.
Intensity Modulation - Variation of the velotity of
the electronbeamin a c.r.t. so asto causea
correspondingvaliation in intensity of the
brightnessof the display.
Interface- The point at which two parts of a system Linear array - A one-dimensionalarray of antennas
or two systemsmeet.
lntprferometer- An antennaarray, togetherwith
phasediscriminators,capableof measuringthe
directionof arrivalof an e.m.wave.
-
lnterlace Time multiplexing of modesof
interrogation in a secondary radar in
system;
particularmodesA and C may be interlacedin
SSR.
Interrogator- The independentpart of3 secondary Localizer- That part of ILS givingazimuth guidance.
radarsystem.
lntemrpt - The suspensionof the executionof a
currentroutinewhile a computercarriesout an
alternativeroutine; the signalwhich triggerssuch
anactron.
I/O - lnput-Output.
IRS - Inertial ReferenceS)'stem:the heart of INS'
Isodop - The line joining thosepoints on the earth's
surface from which reflected e.m.waves.
originatingfrom an airbornetransmitter,suffer the
sameDopplershift.
-
Jitter Random variation of frequency; employed in
DME and MADGE in orderthat wantedreplies
may be recognized.
Key - To turn on a radiotransmitter.
Keyboard- A devicewhich allowsan operatorto
input-informationinto a computer;the keysor
switchesmay representalphanumeric or LSA diode - Limited Space- chargeAccumulation
characters
dedicatedfunctions.
Klystron - A thermionic deviceemployingvelocity.
nrodulationof an electronbeamand capableof
oscillatingor amplifying continuouslyat
microwavefrequencies.
Knot -- The unit of speedusedin air and marine
navigation:I knot = I nauticalm.p.h.
Laggingedge- The edgeof a pulsewhich occurslast Lubber line - A referenceline againstwhich a movlng
in time, i.e.the right-handedgeif the pulseis
viewedon an oscilloscope or drawnagainsta time
scaleincreasing to the right.
Lenc - A region bounded by lines of equal phasein
the Deccaor Omeganavigationsystems.
latch - A circuit that may be locked into one of two
particularstableconditions.
in time; cf. laggingedge.
leakage - Unwantedcouplingbetweentransmit and
receiveantennas.
LED - Light Emitting Diode:'a semiconductordiode
which emits light when forward biased.
Limiter - A circuit which limits the voltageexcursior
of a waveform.
arrangedto producea beam which is narrow in
one plane,for example,a slotted waveguide.
l.o. - Local oscillator:the circuit usedto provide an
output which is mixed with an incomingr.f in
order to producethe i.f. in a superhetrodyne
receiver.
Load - A devicewhich drawscurrent; to connect
sucha device.
Logic circuit - A circuit which processes binary
signalsin accordancewith the rulesof Boolean
algebra;extensively usedin digitalsystems.
L,ook-uptable - A circuit, the output of which is the
function valuecorrespondingto the input which
represents the argument;usually a ROM which, for
example,might storethe sine(function values)or a
largenumberof differentangles(arguments).
Loop antenna-' An antenltaconsistingof a coil of
wire, usuallywound on a ferritecore,which,
ideally, reactsonly to the changingmagneticfield
in an e.m.wave;an ADF or an Omegaloop antenna
has two mutuallyperpendicular coils.
l . o . p .- L i n e o f p o s i t i o n .
l.oran - Long rangeaid to navigation:a pulsed
hyperbolicpositionfixing system;LoranA -
obsolete,LoranC - current,Loran D - short
rangeversionof Loran C (Loran B - never
operational).
diode:similarto Gunn diode.
l.s.b.- Leastsignificantbit in a binaryword- Lower
sideband:the sidebandof an a.m.transmission
which is of lower frequencythan the carrier.
ISI - LargeScaleIntegration:a largenumber of
circuits(usually1000or more)on a singlei.c.,
similarlySSI(small),MSI (medium)and VLSI
(very large).
scaleis measured.
239
Machinelanguage- The basicinstructions,in binary
code,executedby a computer;maybe written
down in hexadecimal or octal code.
MADGE - MicrowaveAircraft Digital Guidance
Equipment: a secondaryradarsystemwith civil
applicationasan approachaid to offshore
platforms.
Magnetron- A thermionic deviceemployingvelocity MOSFET- Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor
modulation of an electronbeamin a magneticfield
and capableof oscillatingat microwavefrequencies
with very high power output for short periods.
Magslip- A four wire synchroresolvercommonly
usedto resolvea timebasewaveforminto sine and MP mode - Multipulsemode: a transmissionsequence
cosinecomponentswith respectto the azimuth
angularposition of a radarscanner.
Main bang - The transmissionfrom a pulsedradar.
Main lobe - The predominantcigar-shaped
directionalantennapolar diagram.
Marker beacon- A radio aid transmittinga vertical
directionalbeam so allowinga pilot to fix his
position on an app.roach path or airway.
mbar - Millibar:a unit of pressure measurement;
1013.25mbar = I standardatmosphere
pressure at meansealevel.
Memory - A devicervhich storesinformation for
future use.
Microcomputer- A contpletedigital computing
systemthe hardwareof which comprises
microprocessor and other LSI circuitssuchas
memoryand input/outputports;a singlechip with
circuitscapableol' providingcontrol.arithmetic/
logicoperations. nlentoryand input/output.
Microphone,mic. - A transducer which converts
soundwavesto electricalsignals.
- A chip which providesthe control
Microprocessor
and arithmetic/logic operationsrequiredby a
digitalconrputer;a chip caprbleof processing
informationin digitaltbrrn in accordance
codedand storedsetof instructionsin order to
c o n t r o lt h e o p e r a t i o no l ' o t h e rc i r c u i t r yo r
equlpment.
Microstrip - Transntissionlinesand p3i\ive
componentsformedbv depositingmetalsrripsot'
suitableshapesand dinrensidns on one sideof a
dielectricsubstrate. the other sideof which is
completelycoatedwith metalactingas a ground
plane.
Microwaves- A.vagueterm usedto describeradio
frequenciesabove1000 MHz.
MLS - MicrowaveLandingSystem:replacementfor
ILS.
m.o. - I\'lasteroscillator:the circuit which provides
the frequencyreferencein a radio transmitter.
Modulation - Variation of one or more
240
characteristicsof a carrierwave in order to impress
informationon it.
Monostable- A deviceor circuit with one stable
condition to which it will return, after a specified
delay,when disturbed.
Morsecode - Combinationsof dots and dashes
assigned to lettersof the alphabetand to numerals.
FET: an
f.e.t.wherethe gateconnectionis insulatedfrom
the drain to sourcechannelby an oxide of silicon.
m.p.e.l.- Maximumpermissible exposurelevel:in
relation to microwaveradiation.
which allowslane ambiguitiesto be resolvedin a
DeccaNavigationSystem.
m.s.b.- Most significantbit in a binary word.
part of a m.s.l.- Meansealevel.
MTL - Minimum TriggeringLevel; the signal
amplituderequiredto initiatean action;of
significancein secondaryradarsystems.
Multiplexing - Transmittingmore than one signal
over a singlelink; signalsmay be separatedin time
i.e.the or frequency.
Multivibrator - A circuit which can be rn one of two
states,neither,one or both of which may be stable,
henceastable.monostableand bistable
multivibrators.
a
NAND gate - A logic circuit which givesan output of
0 if, and only if, a.llits inputs are l.
NDB - Non-DirectionalBeacon:a radio transmitter
at a known geographicalsite for useby ADF.
Negative logic - Representationof the bit I by a low-
voltageand the bit 0 by a high voltage.
n.m. - Nauticalmile: the lengthof a minute of arc ot
longitudeon the equator;approximately6076 ft
o r 1 8 5 2m .
Noisefigure - The s.n.r.at the input of a receiver
with a
dividedby the s.n.r.at the'output:a measureof
receivey,'noisiness'.
Nor\-retumto zero - A binary signalwhich makesa
transitiononly when the bit I needsto be
represented.
Non-volatilemembry - A memory that holds data
afterpowerhasbeendisconnected.
NOR gate - A logic circuit which givesan cutput of I
if, and only if, all its inputsare0.
Null - A no error signalcondition in servosystems.
OBI - Omni-Bearing Indicator.
OBS- Omni-Bearing Selector:the controlwith
which the pilot selectsthe desiredVOR radial.
Octal number system- A counting systemusing8 as
its baseandemplo.,ingthe symbols0, I , 2, 3, 4, 5 ,.
6.7.
Omega- A c.w. hyperbolic navigationsystemgiving
worldwide cover.
Omnidirectionalantenna- An antennawhich radiates
in or receivesfrom all directionsequally; impossible
to achievein three dimensions.
Omni-station- A VOR ground transmitter.
One bit drange coile : A binary code in which only
one bit in the word changeswith each count, for
example,Gray code.
One shot - A monostablemultivibrator.
On-line- Refersto equipment in direct interactive
communicationwith a computer. Refersto the
installationand commissioningof a systemor the
stateof a systemwhen operational.
ONS - OmegaNavigationSystem.
OBencentre- A p.p.i. display in which the radial
timebaseline has its origin on an arc of non zero
radius,the arc representingzero n.m. range.
OR gate- A logic circuit which givesan output of 0
if, and only if, all its inputs are 0.
Orrgn - A point with zero co-ordinates;the
illuminatedspot on the screenof a c.r.t. at the
start of the timebase.
Orthogonal- At right angles(.in two or three
dimensionalspaces).
PA - Passenger Addresssystem. Power amplifier.
Page- A number of words treated as a group; within
memory typically 4096 consecutivebytes; for
displaypurposesa portion of memory which can
convenientlybe displayedon a VDU.
Pairedfrequencies- seeFrequencypairing.
Parallaxeror - The readingerror resultingfrom
viewingan instrument or display from other than
headon.
Paralleloperation - Used by a digital systemin
which one line or circuit dealswith only one bit
in a word.
Parity - A bit or bits addedto a group of bits such as
to make the sum of all bits odd or even,hence'odd
or evenparity which can be checkedfor error
detectionor correction.
p.e.p.- Peakenvelopepower: a measureof power in
s.s.b.systems;sincecarrierpower cannotbe quoted
the r.f. power dissipatedat the peakof the
modulatingwaveform is given in specifications.
Performanceindex - A global measureof the quality
of a WeatherRadar system;relatedto maximum
range.
Peripherals- Units or devicesthat operatein
conjunctionwith a computerbut arenot part of it;
more generally,units or systemsconnectedto a
systemunderconsideration but not part of the
system.
Phantombeacon- A waypoint, in an RNAV system
basedon VOR/DME, at which no actualradio
beaconexists,its positionbeingdefinedin terms
of bearingand distancefrom the nearestin-range
beacon.
Photosensitive- A devicewhich changesits electrical
characteristicswhen exposedto light; for exarnple
photocell,photodiode,phototransistor.
PIN diode - P-type/lnsulator/N-type diode:may.be
usedas a higtr power switch at high frequencies.
Pitot pressure- The dynamicair pressure on an
aircraftcausedby its movementrelativeto the air
masssurroundingit; dependenton both air speed
and staticpressure.
Planararray - A two-dimensionalarray of antennas
arrangedto producea beam which is narrow in
two planes,for examplea flat plateslottedarrayas
usedin WeatherRadarsYstems.
p.l.l. - Phaselock loop: a circuit which, by usinga
phasediscriminatorto generate an error signal,
controlsan oscillatorso as to makeits output
equal in phaseand hencefrequencyto an input or
demandsignal.
Polardiagram- A plot of points of equal field
strengthwhich givesa diagrammaticrepresentation
of the directionalpropertiesof an antenna.
Polarization- The planeof the e-fieldin an e.m.
wave.
Polling- lnterrogationof circuits,units or systemsto
determinetheir stateof readinessto receiveor
transmitinformation;scanninginterruptlinesto
determinewhich, if any, requireservicingby a
computer.
Port - A circuit providingelectricalaccess(in or out)
to a system,usually a computer system.
Positionfeedback- A signalrepresentingthe position
of the output of a positioncontrol servosystem
which may be comparedwith an input or demand
signalso as to producean error signal.
Positionfixing - Finding the position of a vehiclein
relationto a groundfeaturesuchasa radio beacon.
Positivelogic - Representationof the bit I by a high
voltageand the bit 0 by a low voltage.
Potentiometer- A three'terminalvariableresistor;
the resistance betweenthe wiper terminaland
eitherof the end terminalsvarieswith adjustment;
the resistancebetweenthe end terminalsis fixed'
p.p.i. - Planpositionindicator:a radardisplaywhich
showsthe relativepositionof targetsin a plane;
targetson the samebearingwill be superimposed
on the display if they havethe sameslant range.
p.p.m.- Pulsepositionmodulation:transmission of
information by varying tEe position (in time) of
pulseswithin a grouP'
241
 p.r.f. - Pulserepetition frequency: the number of
pulsesper second;may be usedto quantify pulse
groupsper second.
Primary radar - A radar (radio detecting and ranging)
systemwhich detectsthe reflectionsof its own
transmissions from an uncooperativetardet.
Programpins - A group of connectorpins Jomeof
which may be groundedto selectparticular modes
of operationof a systemfrom severaloptions
available.
hogrammable - The capability of accepting data
which altersthe electricalstateof internal circuitry
so as to be able to perform one of severalpossible
tasks.
hogramme counter - A CPU registerwhich holds the
addressof the next instruction to be fetched from
memory; automaticallyincrementedafter a fetch
cycle.
hogramme, progrtrn - A set of instructions.
arrangedin an orderedsequence, which determine
the operationscarriedout by a computer.
PROM - ProgrammableROM; programmedafter
manufactureaccordingto the user'ssilecifications;
generallynot reprogrammable.
p.r.p. - Pulserepetition period: the reciprocalof
p.r.f.
p.t.t. - Pressto transmit or pressto talk.
Pr.rlsecompression- A techniqueusedin radar
systemswhich allowsa relativelywide pulse to be
transmittedand a narrowpulseto be processed in
the videocircuits.
Q+ode - A code usedin R/T operationsto identify
the nature of commonly usedmessages, for
example:QFE - atmosphericpressureat airfield
level;QTE- true bearingfrom groundstation;
QNH - atmosphericpressureat local sealevel.
QE - QuadrantalError: the errorintroducedin ADF RMI - Radio MagneticIndicator: an aircraft
due to re-radiationfrom the airframe.
Qfactor - A measureof the selectivityof a tuned
circuit.
Quadrature- At right angles:a 90o phasedifference
betweensignals.
Quarter-waveantenna- One of the conductorsof a
half wavedipole mounted on a ground planewhich
servesto 'reflect' the quarter-waveconductor so as
to produce,effectively,a dipole.
Radarmile - The time taken for an e.m. warc io
travel I n.m. and back,approximately12.36 ps.
Radial - One of a set of straighthalf linesterminating
at a fixed point; a line of radio bearingfrom a
'VOR station.
Radio, radaraltimeter - seeAltimeter.
242
Radome- A detachableaircraft nosecone'madeof
dielectricmaterial;more generallyany dielectric
panel or antennacover.
RAM - Random AccessMemory: a memory which
affords immediateaccessto any location whereby
information may be written in or read out.
Raster- The pattern tracedby the electron beamin
a c.r.t.
RBI - RelativeBearingIndicator: displaysthe
relativebearingof an NDB.
Read- To senseinformation containedin some
devicesuch as memory or an input port.
Real time - Computation relatingto a processduring
the time that the processoccurs;the resultsof
such computation may be usedto control the
relatedprocess.
Refreshing- The processof restoring the chargeof
capacitorswhich store the contentsof dynamic
RAM: at intervalsof, for example,slightiy lessthan
I ps cellsare automaticallyread, the resultsthen
being written into the samecells.
Register- A memory devicewith minimal access
time usedfor the temporary storageof binary
coded information; usually a collection of flip
flops,onefor eachbit which can be stored.
Resolver- A devicewhich can give signals
representingthe sine and cosineofan angle.
r.f. - Radio frequency.
Rho-Rho-Rho- A position fixing systemwhich
relieson measurementof distanceto fixed points:
rho-rhosystemsgiveambiguousfixes.
Rho-theta- A position fixing systemwhich relieson
measurementof distanceand bearingof a fixed
point.
Rising runway - A runway symbol on a flight
director driven laterally by localizersignalsand
verticallyby radio altimetersignals.
instrumentwhich indicatesrelativeand magnetic
bearingsderivedfrom VOR and ADF.
RNAV - Area navigation:navigationwhich doesnot
necessarilyconfine the aircraft to a fixed airways
system.
ROM - ReadOnlyMemory: containspermanently
storedinformation written in during manufacture;
random accessis availableto all stored
information.
Routine - A list of correctly sequencedcomputer
instructions;the terms routine and programare
often interchangeable but the former is usually
appliedto a commonly usedset of instructions
which may be calledby other programs.
R/T - Radio telephony: speechcommunicationby
modulatedradio waves.
Scanconversion- In position: the conversionof when squitter is received;known also as automatic
co-ordinatesfronr rho-theta(angleand distance)to standby. ,ar(
X-Y (orthogonalgrid). In time: the conversion Skin effect - The tendencyof a.c. at h.f. and above
betweenrate of receipt of data and (usually faster) to avoid the centreof a conductor so reducingthe
rateof display. useful crosssectionalareaand henceincreasing
Scanning- The processof causinga directionalbeam resistanceto'current flow.
of e.m.radiationto sweepthrougha sectorof Skywave-- A radio wave refractedback to earth by
space.The processof polling interrupt lines or the ionosphere.
devices. Skywavecontamination- Receptionof a skywave
Scott-T transformer - Used in synchro systemsfor and groundor spacewavesimultaneously;an
three-wireto four-wire conversionor vice versa. exampleof multipathpropagation.
Scratchpad- Memory, often on the CPU chip, in Slant range- The actual rangeof a targetin a plane
which data neededfor subsequentoperationsmay which is not necessarily horizontal.
be temporarily stored. Display on which data may SLS - Side Lobe Suppression:a techniqueusedin
be checkedbeforebeingenteredinto the main SSRto preventinterrogationby sidelobes.
memory. s.m.o.- StabilizedMasterOscillator.
Search- The processleadingto acquisition. s.n.r.- Signalto noisepower ratio.
-
Secondtrace echo An echo or return of a radar Soft data - Data which is lost when power is removed.
transmissionwhich givesa falserangereadingsince Software - Programs,languages and proceduresof a
it arrives at the receiver after a transmission computer system: no part of softwarehasa
subsequentto the one givingrise to the echo. ' physicalexistenceother than as written down on
Secondaryradar - A radar systemwhi,chrequiresa paperor storedin codeasrepresented by the state
cooperative target;a radiolink is established by an of a signalor device.
interrogator,the return or reply being suppliedby Spacewave - A radio wavewhich travelsin a straight
a transponder on receiptof the interrogation. line being neither refractednor reflected.
Selcal- Selectivecalling:automaticalertingsystem Spectrum- The sum total offrequency compon€nts
usinga v.h.f.or h.f. groundto air link to a of a signal.
particular aircraft or group of aircraft. SPI - SpecialPositionIndicator: an additionalpulse
Sequentialaccess- Readingdata from a particular of r.f. which may be radiatedby an SSR
addressin memory havinggone through preceding transponderfor identificationpurposes.
storageareain order to find that address;for Squitter - Random transmissionof pairs of pulsesof
example.storageon magnetictape. r.f. from a DME beaconas requiredfor the
'
Serialoperation - Used by a digital system in which operationof signalcontrolledsearch.
one line or circuit dealswith all the bits in a word s.s.b.- Singlesideband:the transmissionof one
sequentially. sidebandof an amplitudemodulatedwave.
Servoloop - A systemin which a signalrepresenting SSR- SecondarySurveillance Radar:a secondary
the output is fed back for comparison with an radar system employing an airbornetransponder
input reference, the amplifieddifference,or error which transmitsinformationrelatingto identity
signal,beingusedto control the output. and/or altitude;rangeandbearingis availableby
Seven-segment -
indicator Sevensmall bar-shaped measuring elapsedtime and usinga directional
light sourcesarrangedin a figure of eight pattern, interrogation.
suclithat activatingparticularcombinationsof the Stable- A mechanicalor electricalstatewhich is
sevensourcescausesa characterto be displayed' automaticallyrestoredaftera disturbance.
-
Shadowmaskc.r.t. A type of c.r.t. commonly used Static memory- Memorywhich storesinformation
for colourdisplays. in sucha way that it doe'snot needrefreshing.
Shift register- A registerwhich is accessed serially Static pressure- The air pressuredue to still air;
both in and out; variationscan giveparallelto serial decreases with height.
o r s e r i atlo p a r a l l ecl o n v e r s i o n . s.t.c.- Sensitivitytime control:variationof receiver
Sidebands- Thosebandsof frequencies.either side gainwith time so asto makethe output amplitude
of the carrierfrequency,producedby modulatioit. independentof the rangeof the receivedsignal
Sidelobe- Thosepartsof a directionalantennapolar source.
diagrameithersideof the main lobe. Subroutine- A smallprogramor routinewhich may
Signalcontrolled search- Allowing DME to be calledby a largerprogramor routine to perform
commence searching and hence transmitting only a specificoperation.

243
Super flag - A high level warning signal providing
sufficient current at 28 V d.c. to energizea relay so
indicatingvalid or no-warningstatus.
Superhetrodynereceiver,superhet- A radio receiver
in which the receivedsignalis mixed (hetrodyned)
with a tuneablelocally generatedsignalin order to
produce a constanti.f.
Sweptgain - An alternativeterm to s.t.c.
s.w.r. - Standingwaveratio: seev.s.w.r.
Synchro devices- A type of transducerwhich
convertsangularposition to an electricalsignalor
vice versa;all synchrosare transformerswith both
rotatableand stationarycoils. Three wire devices
establisha unique relationshipbetweenthe rotor
angleand the voltagedistribution in the three coil
stator; four wire devicesestablishvoltageswhich
dependon the sine and cosineof the rotor angle
and are thus termed synchroresolvers.
Designationsare STRX or TR: synchro torque
receiver;STTXor TX: synchrotorque transmitter;
DTTX or TDX or CDX: differential synchro torque
transmitter;CT: control transformer;RS: synchro
resolver.
Synchronization - Changesrelated in frequency, time
or position.
TACAN - Tactical Air Navigation:a military sysrem Tunnel diode - A type
which givesrho-thetanavigation;therangingpart
has the samecharacteristics as DME.
Tape,magnetic- Storagederriceusingsequential
access.
Telephone,tel. - A transducerwhich converts
electricalsignalsto soundwaves.
Time base- A waveformwhich changeslinearly with
time; the term is normally appliedto the waveform
which causesregulardeflectionof the electron
beamin a c.r.t. so as to trace a line representinga USART - UniversalSynchronous/Asynch
time axis, the line alsobeing referredto as a
timebase.
Time constant- A measureof the degreeof
resistanceto change:if a systemis subjectto an
externalinfluencewhich causesit to changefrom
one stateto anotherand it wereto executethat
at
' change a rate equal to the initial rate it would
completethe changein a time equal to the time
constant.
To/From - Refersto selectedVOR radialsor
omni-bearings; if the pilot complieswith VOR
derivedsteeringcommandshe will be flying
towardsthe beaconif a 'to' flag is in view and
away from the beaconif a 'from' flag is in view.
Topple - The effect of allowingthe angularvelocity
of a VRG to fall below that at which it exhibits
the propertiesof a gyro.
24
Track - The actual direction of movementof an
aircraft projectedonto the earth and measuredin
degreesclockwisefrom magrreticNsrth.
Track angleetror - The angulardifferencebetween
track and desiredtrack.
Transducer- A devicewhich convertsinput energy
ofone kind into output energyof anotherkind
which bearsa known relationto the input.
Transponder- The triggeredpart of a secondary
radarsystem.
t.r.f. - Tuned radio frequency: a basicradio receiver
in which selectionand amplification of the
modulatedsignalis carriedout in the r.f. stages,
there being no i.f.
Trigger- A signal,usually a pulse,which initiatesa
circuit action.
Tri-statebuffer - A buffer which can assumeone oi
three states:0 or I when requiredto feed a load,
high impedanceotherwise;the high impedance
stateexistsin the absenceof an enablesignal.
TRSB - Time ReferencedScanningBeam: adopted
by the ICAO as the techniqueto be employedby
MLS.
TTL - Transistor-Transistor Logic: logic circuits
employing bipolar transistorsfabricatedon i.c.s.
giving fast operation and good.fan-inand out.
of semiconductordevice
which can be made to exhibit a negativeresistance
characteristic undercertainconditions.
TVOR - Terminal VOR: a low power VOR station
situatedat an airfield.
Two.from five code - A code commonly usedfor
frequencyselection;any two from five wiresmay
be groundedgiving ten possiblecombinations,ohe
for eachof the digits 0-9.
ronous
Receiver/Transmitter:a devicewhich interfaces
two digital circuits the timing of which may or
may not be related;similarlyUART and USRT.
u.s.b.- Upper sideband: the sidebandof an a.m.
transmissionwhich is of higher frequencythan the
carrier.
WEROM - Ultra-violetEraseable ROM: an EPROM.
Varacterdiode - A voltagecontrolled variable
capacitance;the capacitancevarieswith reverse
bias.
v.c.o.- Voltagecontrolledoscillator.
Velocity feedback- A signalwhich is proportional to
the rate of changeof positionof the output of a
servosystem;in position control systemssuch
feedbackis usedto limit hunting, i.e. an excessive
number of overshoots.
 VFR - Visual Flight Rules: apply in uncontrolled
Wavelength- The distandebetween points of
airspacewhen visibility allows;limitations on pilot
identicalphaseangle;wavelengrh), = c/f.
qualificationsand equipmentfitted are minimal
Waypoint- A significantpoint on a route.
under VFR.
Wheatstonebridge - An electricalmeasuringcircuit
Video signal- The post detector signalin a radar
consistingof four impedance.rrn, .onn.-.tedin a
receiver.
closedchain;with an excitationsupply,connected
Volatile memory - A memory that losesstoreddata
to two oppositeterminalsin the chainthe currenr
when power is disconnected.
drawn from the other two terminalsis determined
VOR - VHF Omni-Range:a systemgivingthe bearing
by the ratio of the impedances.
to a fixed groundradio beacon.
Whip antenna- A quarter-wave antennamadefrom a
VORTAC - VOR and TACAN beaconson the same
t h i n r n e t a rl o d .
geographical site,i.e. co-located, are termed Word - A groupof bits treatedasan entity; it may
c o l l e c t i v e lay V O R T A Cb e a c o n .
representan instruction,address or quantitv.
VRG VerticalReference Gyro: a gyro to which Write - To recordinformation in somedevicesuchas
gravltycontrolledfbrcesareappliedby an erection
a memory or output port.
systemsuchas to maintainthe spin axisin lhe
verticalplane;usedto givesignafs proportionalto X-Y display- A p.p.i.displayon which rarget
pitch and roll.
positionis determinedin termsof horizontal(X)
v.s.w.r.- Voltagestandingwave ratio: the ratio of the
randvertical(Y) diSplacement from a datum point:
maximum to minimum voltageof the standing
it may be referredto as t.v. display.
waveset up on a mismatchedline;
v.s.w..r. = (l + (pr/pr)o.ty(l _ prlpr)o.s)
> I 7*nner diode - A diode operatedwith reversebias so
equalityindicatinga perf'ectmatch,p, and p1
that breakdownoccurs,the breakdownvoltage
beingthe reverse(or reflecteci) power and forward remainingconstantfor a wide rangeof ,.urrri
(or incident)powerrespectiveli.
currents.
Zone - A regionboundedby hyperboliclines
Waveguide - A hollow, round or rectangular,
metal separatedby a distanceequal to half a wavelength
tube which is usedto transmite.m.energyat of the fundamentalfrequencyof a Deccachain.
microwavefrequencies.

245
 Exercises

2. Draw a block diagramof an f'm' transmitter'

The following exercisesare givento test the reader's
this 3. Draw a block diagramof a superhetreceiver'
knowledgeaid understandingof the cont€nt of
4. Describefour differentways in which binary
volumeiihis aim will be best achievedif the questions in electroniccircuits'
digitsmay be represented
arenot readuntil one is ready to attempt them' commonly usedfor airborne
5.- Desiribe fwo codes
Havingworked through eachchapterthe exercises
radio frequencY selection.
associitedwith that chaptershouldbe attempted'
papers are givenwhich should be attempted 6. Compareanalogueand digital representationof
Six test
only aftir ihe whole book hasbeen read' It is data.
recommendedthat one hour be devoted to each test 7. Discussbriefly the following:I'C'A.O', ARINC'
oapertthe answersare not givenbut are to be
found ATA 100, national aviationauthorities'
*iittin ttte relevantchapters' Ideally the t€st papers
reader
Joufd be markedindependently,however'the
strouldbe able to givean assessment, albeit subjective'
Ghapter2
of his attempt at the written answer-typepapers'
An accurateassessment can be achievedfrom test io
oaper6 by givingone mark for eachcorrectly l. Describetypicalantennatunitrgarrangements
a generalaviation20 channel h'f' comms system'
utt.rnpt.a qu.ttion, deductinghalf a mark for each
' incorrectly attemptedquestion,leavingthe-score t: List and statethe functionof typicalaudio
systemson a largepassenger aircraft'
unchangedfor eachquestionnot attempted,then when a crew member
i. Describe *hui hupptnt
multiplying the resultby 10/6 to givea Percentage'
Someof the questionscan be usedto Senerate transmitson v'h.f. comms'
with drawing 4. Draw the block diagramof a CVR showing
others,for example,thoseconcerned
the sourcesof the inPuts'
block diagrams, ramp tests,listingcontrols,etc' could clearly
5. Discuss typicalv.h.f' commsantennas'
apply to any of the systemsdescribedherein' Even a howl;
it is e:. itr- to mii' feeduackin an AIS leadsto
*iittun extlnded set of questions,assuggested, isolatethe fault?
how would You
unlikely that the syllabusfor any coursewill be
completelycovered. For example, prospective
aircraft radio maintenanceengineerswill be required
to satisfyexaminingbodiesand/or employersin the
Chapter3
following areas:
basicelectricaland electronicprinciples ADF
l. List the soulcesof errorsaffecting
. legislation operation'
how it
ramp,hangarand workshoppractices 2'. Describequidrantalerror and explain
readingwiring and schematicdiagrams maYbe ctlrrected.
swingts
fault findingskiils,etc. 3. Describehow an ADF groundloop
out.
In addition they must show evidenceof havinghad - carried RMI
experience to assume the of
responsibilities 4. Draw a situattondiagramand a dual pointer
sufficient on a heading ol 200"(M)
an engineer. piesentationfor an aircrait
anotherat
*lth un NDB due north of the aircraftand
to which numbers I and 2 ADFs are
:OO; ,.tutiu.
Chapter1 tunedresPecttvelY'
basicprinciplesof ADF'
of bandwidthin an 5' Exp[ainthe
1 . C o m m e n ot n the significance
6. Draw an ADF block installationdiagram'
information link.

246
 Chapter4
a DME ihterrogator (assumeswitched on and any
warm up time expired).
l. Describethe differencesbetweenthe radiated
signalsfrom Doppler and conventionalVOR stations ?. Explain how echo protection can be achievedin
DME.
and explain why airborneequipmentoperation Why might a DME interrogatorreceivelessthan
is not ?l^
affected. IOO%replies'!
?. Explain the terms automaticand manualVOR. 4. Describethe arrangements for colocated
3. Draw a situation diagramfor an aircraft on beacons.
a
headingof 090'(M) with i selectedradial of 2g0; 5. Describe,in generalterms,how you would
and carry
with a fly right demand and from flag showing out a ramp test of DME.
on the
flight director. 6. Draw a simplifiedDME block schematicdiagram.
4. Draw a dual VOR block installationdiasram.
5. Describehow information derivedfrom"a VOR
receiveris presentedto the crew.
6. DiscusstypicalVOR antennas. Chapter8

l, Explain the needfor and the implementationof

Chapter 5 SLS in SSR.
2. Explain the terms fruit and garblingas appliedto
l. Explain why a marker sensitivityswitch is SSR.
required. 3. What is successive detectionand whv is it
2. Describethe needfor and a typical implementa_ necessaryin an ATC transponder?
tion of loadingcompensation 4. Draw a block schematicdiagramand explain the
fo, an ILS installation.
Draw a block diagramof a glideslope actionof a decoderin an ATC transponder.
1 receiver.
Describethe outputsfrom iLS to the aircraft,s 5. Describehow barometricaltituie may be
t. encodedinto a form suitablefor selectingthe reply to
instrumentationand to other systems.
5. Describe I L S a n dm a r k e ri h a n n e l l i n g a mode C interrogation.
arrangements statinghow selectionis made. 6. Draw a typicalATC transponder controller.
6. Describe,in generalterms,how you would statingthe purposeof eachcontrol.
carry
out a ramp test of an ILS.

Chapter9
Chapter 6
l. Compareplatformand line of sightstabilization.
l. Explainhow, in distancerelatedphasemeasuring 2. Describe,briefly, video signalprocessingin a
navigationsystems, errorsdue to changes in clock digitalweatherradar.
offset can be minimized 3. Describehow a p.p.i.displaycan be usedto
2. List the factorsaffectingpropagationof Omega presentinformationrelatingto weatheraheadof the
signalsstatingfor each,how, if atill, compensation aircraft,
is
made. 4. How doesa weatherradarflat plateantenna
3. Describebriefly the generalprocedurefor skin achievea narrowdirectionalbeam?
mapplngprior to decidingthe positionof an Omesa 5. Describethe safetyprecautions to be observed
antenna. when operatingweatheriadar, statingthe possible
4. Describehow Deccachainsaredesignated. consequences ofnot doingso.
5. Explainhow laneambiguities in De"cca 6. Describe how you would checka waveguide run
may be
resolvedby usingthe Mp mode. for condition
6 Describethe characteristics 7. Discusscontour,STC and AGC in a weather
of the radiatedsignals
fromaLoranCchain. radar.
8. Describehow rangeand bearingresolutionmay
.
be improvedin a weatherradarstatinethe
Chapter7 d i s a d v a n t a goefst a k i n gs u c hm e a s u r e i t og i v e
rmprovement.
9 Explainthe basicprinciplesof operationof a
l. Describethefour possiblemodesof operation
of Ryan Stormscope.

247
Chapter10 the airlinerof the 1980sand beyond,payingparticular
attentionto the presentationof informationfrom
radio sensors.
l. Describethe Doppler effect asutilized in an
2. Explainthe basicprinciplesof how an automatic
airborneDoPPlerradar.
datalink usingh.f. and/orv.h.f. commscould be set
2. Explain how a moving antennaDoppler radar
up.
measuresdrift angle'
3. CompareADSEL/DABSwith currentSSR.
3. Discussfactorsleadingto a choiceof f'm'c'w' could be
4. Explainone way in which satellites
for Doppler radars.
usedfor navigationPurposes.
4. Explain the needfor a land/seaswitch'
5. Describe,briefly, a TRSBMLS'
5. Driw a simplifiedblock diagramof a Doppler
6. Explain how a collision risk measuremay be
navigationsYstem.
arrivedat.
6. Describe,in generalterms,how you would carry
7. CompareDITS with currentmethodsof
out a ramp test of a Doppler navigator.
informationtranst'er.
8. Explainthe principlesof interferometry.
Chapter11

l. Distinguishbetweenbarometricand radio Test Paper1

altitude commentingon the usefulnessof both.
2. Explainthe basicprinciplesof an f.m.c.w.
altimeter.
3. Why doesDoppler shift havea negligibleeffect
on a radio altimeter?
4. List the sourcesof error in radio altimeter
systems.
5. Explain the main advantages of using constant
differencefrequencyaltimetersoverconventional
f.m.c.w.altimeters.
6. Draw a block schematicdiagramof a pulsedradio
altimeter.
7. Which systemsrequiresignalsfronl a radio
altimeter? What are the signalsinvolved?
l. Compare,briefly, the differenttypesof antenna
which may be found on aircraft.
2. Draw a simplifiedblock diagramof a computer
and statebriefly the functionof eachblock.
3. Draw and explaina simpleanti'crosstalk
network.
4. With the aid of a block diagramexplainthe
actionof an h.f. ATU.
5. Describehow informationfrom an ADF is
presented to the pilot.
6. Explainhow displayednoiseis reducedin a
digitalweatherradar.

Chapter12
l. Draw the block diagramof a generalarea
navigationsystem.
2. Explainthe basicprinciplesof RNAV basedon
VOR/DME beacons.
3. Draw and labeltypical RNAV, deviationand
slantrangetriangles.
4. Describethe functionsperformedby a typical
digitalnavigationcomputerbeingpart of a VOR/DN{E
basedRNAV system.
5. Explainthe actionof a typicaldataentry/record
unit.
6. Describe.in generalterms,how you would carry
out a ranlp testof a VOR/DNIEbesedRNAV system.
Test Paper2
l. Describetwo waysof modulatinga c.w. carrier'
2. Discussnavigationusingradioaidsunder the
headings,deadreckoning,rho'theta,rho'rho-rho,
theta-thetaand hYPerbolic.
3. Draw a simplifiedblock diagranrand explainthe
actionof a frequencysynthesizer payingparticular
attentionto se,lection.
4. Draw a block diagramof a VOR receiver'
5. Definethe termsjitter and squitter.
6. Describe,in generalterms,how you would carry
out a ramp testof a line of sightscanner
stabilizationsYStem'

Test Paper 3
Chapter 13
l. Describethe modesof propagationusedwith
l. Describein generaltertns,the instrumentationof airbclrneradioequiPment.

244
2. Define the terms hardwareand software.
3. Describe,with the aid of a sketch,a typical h.f.
wire antennainstallationpaying particular attention
to safetyfeatures.
4 Sketcha typical error curve for ADF statingeE,
loop and field alignmenterrorsfor your curve.
5. Draw and explain a simplified ATC transponder
block diagram.
6. Draw a typical weatherradar control panel
statingpurposeofeach control.
Test Paper4
l. Describehow a capacitive type antenna operates; 6, A constantamplitudemodulatingfrequencyof
list systemswhich might usesuch an antenna.
2. Explain how an interrupt signalmight be usedto and 8801.5MHz, the modulationindex is h\ ll3.
achievea data transferfrom a radio sensorto a
navigationcomputer.
3. Describebriefly the basicprinciplesof ILS.
4. List the facilitiesprovided by a typical general
aviationAIS.
5. Draw a simpleinterlock arrangementfor a dual
h.f. installation.
6. Describehow the possibility of lnterference is
minimizedin a multiple radio altimeter installation.
Test Paper5
l. Describe,briefly, the fetch-decode-increment.
executecycle of a computer.
2. List sourcesof interferenceto aircraft radio
systemsand statemethodsusedto minim2e the
effectsof suchsources.
3. Discussthe term squelch.
4. Explain the principlesof lane ambiguity
resolutionin ONS.
5. Describe,in generalterms,how you would carry
out a ramp test of a VOR.
6. At a point in a 180 n.m.leg of a flight the
following situation exists:
heading 090"(M)
drift 10"port
distanceto go 80 n.m.
desiredtrack 085"(M)
Draw the situation diagramand calculatethe across
distancereadingif the wind and headinghave
remainedunchangedfor the leg so far. (Assume
= 17. Typical radiatedpower from an airline
0.017 radians/degree and that sin 0 0 if 0 < 0.2
radians).
Test Paper6
l. An e-m. waveof frequency30 MHz will havea
wavelength of (a) l0m, (b) lOcm,(c) l0 ft.
2. A loop antennais usedf or (a) VOR and ADF,
(b) ADF and Omega,(c) Omegaand VOR.
3. Above30 MHz propagationis by (a) space
wave,(b) sky wave,(c) ground wave.
4. Fadingat l.f. and m.f. may be due to (a) poor
receiversensitivity,(b) atmosphericattenuation,
(c) simultaneousreceptionof sky and ground wave.
5. A carrierof amplitude5 V is amplitude
modulatedby a signalof amplitude3 V, the percentage
modulationis (a) 157o,(b)tbJ%,(c) 60Io.
500 kHz causes a carrierto vary between8798.5MHz
(b) 3, (c) 6.
7. Which of the following is not equivalentto
2 3 ' s ? ( a ) l 0 l I 1 2 ,( b ) 2 7 s , ( c ) 1 5 , u .
8. The b.c.d.equivalentof 3C16is (a) 0l l0 0000,
(b) I I I 100,(c) 001I I 100.
9. Which of the following, wherethe l.s.b.is an
odd parity bit, represents 68,e? (a) 10001001,
( b ) I 1 0 0 0 1 0 0(,c ) 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 .
10. An addressbus usuallyconsistsof (a) l6
bi-directionallines,(b) l6 unidirectional lines,
(c) both bi- and uni-directional lines.
I l. Rho-thetanavigationis the basisof
(a) VOR/DME, (b) Omega,(c) ADF.
12. To avoid earth loops in audio systemscable
screensshould be (a) earthed at both ends,
(b) not earthedat eitherend,(c) earthedat one end
only.
13. An aircraft v.h.f. communicationstransceiver
will provide(a) 720 channelsat 50 kHz spacing,
(b) 360 channelsat25 kHz spacing,(c)720 channels
at 25 kHz spacing.
14. An aircraft at flight level l0O will be able to
communicatewith a v.h.f.groundstationat 100 ft
abovem.s.l. at an approximatemaximum rangeof
(a) 123 n.m.,(b) 12.3n.m.,(c) 135 n.m.
15. The minimum 1000Hz, 30%modulatedsignal
levelto achievean output s.n.r.of 6 dB from an
airline standardv.h.f. receiveris (a) I pV, (b) 3 gW,
( c ) 0 . 1 8x l 0 - r 2 W .
16. A typical a.f. responseof a v.h.f. transceiveris
(a) 500 to 2000 Hz, (b) 300 to 25OOHz,
(c) 300 to 4000 Hz.
standard v.h.f. commstransmitterwould be
( a ) . 1 0W , ( b ) 3 0 w , ( c ) 5 0 w .
18. In an airline standardh.f. installationthe ATU
would reducethe v.s.w.r.of the antennaand ATU
249
combinedto betterthan (a) l.l: l, (b) 1.3:I, 37. TACANbeacons transmitin the range(a)962
( c ) 1 . 5 :l . to l2l3 MHz,(b) 1030to 1090MHz,(c) 978 to
19. An ARINC standardh.f. commssystemhas a l2l3 MHz.
typical power output of (a) 400 W p.e.p.,(b) 700 W 38. DME gives(a) range,(b) slant range,(c) ground
p.e.p., (c) 1000W p.e.p. speed.
20. A Selcaltransmission is codedby (a) the 39. If a DME is in track subsequentlossof signal
numberof r.f. bursts,(b) thepulsespacing, will causethe equipmentto (a) search,
(c) the modulatingtonesused.' (b) automaticallystandby,(c) go into memory.
ii. An anti-crosstalknetwork (a) reduces radiated 40. Mode A and C pulsespacingare, respectively
interference, (b) reduces conducted interference, (a) 8 and 2l gs, (b) 12 and 36 ps, (c) 8 and l7 ps.
(c) preventstransmissionon both h.f. systems 41 . Selectionof 5237 on an ATC transponderwill
simultaneously. givethe following pulses,in order of transmission
2 2 . A i r l i n e s t a n d a r d A D F s w i l l , a f t e r Q E c o r r e c t i o(na, ) F l A l A 4 B . 2 C l C 2 D l D 2 D 4 F 2 ,
havean error bound of (a) 3', (b) 5", (c) 8". (b) Fl cl Al c2 A4Dl B2D2D4 F2,
23. The averageof the absolutevaluesof the peaks (c) Fl Cl C2 Al A4B2Dl D2D4 F2.
of an ADF error curvegive(a) field alignmenterror, 42. The output of an encodingaltimeter for an
(b) loop alignmenterror, (c) QE correction. altitude of 7362 ft would give the code
)4. Itthe varlable phase leads the reference phasc (a) Al A2 A4 Bl B2 C2C4D2,(b) Al A2 A4B/.,
by 30" the magneticbearingto the VOR station will (c) A2 ,44 Cl C2.
Ue1a):O', (b) 210",(c) 150b. 43. The -3dB bandwidth of an ATC transponder
25. With a selectedomni-bearing of 090' and the receiver is (a) 6 MHz, (b) 3 MHz, (c) 12 MHz.
variable phase lagging the referenci phase by 280'. 4. An ATC transpondershould not reply if
the flighi director will show (a) fly right; from, (a) Pl > Y2.+ 9 dBs,(b) Pl > P2 + 4.5 dBs'
(b) fly right;to, (c) fly left; to. (c) Pl ( P2.
26. The frequencyrange of a VOR receiver is 45. An X-band weather radar will operate at
( a ) 1 0 8t o I 1 7 . 9 5M H z ,( b ) 1 0 8t o 11 1 . 9 5M H z , (a\9375 MHz, (b) 5400 MHz, (c) 8800 MHz.
( c ) I l 8 t o 1 3 5 . 9 5M H z . 6. Secondtraceechoesare avoidedby
27. The VOR audio identificationtone is at (a) choosing a p.r.f. greaterthan someminimum,
(a) 1350Hz, (b) 1000 Hz, (c) 1020 Hz. (b) choosing a p.r.p.greaterthan someminimum,
)6. Which of the following is a localizerfrequency? (c) increasingeither or both of the receiver
(a) I10.20 MHz, (b) 109.15MHz, (c) I12.10 MHz. sensitivityand transmitterpower.
)9. In which oi tire following bands does glideslop e 47 . The pilot reportspronouncedground returnstc
operate? (a) h.f., (b) v.h.f., (c) u.h.f. one sideof the display,the most likely causeis
3b. If the 90 Hz tone predominatesin a localizer (a) systempermanehtlyin the mappingmode,
receiverthe deviatiorrindicatorwill show (a) on (b) scannertilt faulty, (c) gyro toppled.
course, (b) fly left, (c) fly right. 48. Broken radial lines are observedon the weather
31. The v.j.w.r. of a localizerantennashouldbe no radarindicator, the most likely causeis (a) a.f.c.
more than (a) 5: I , (b) 3: I , (c) I .5:I . circuit sweeping,(b) dirt in the magslip,
32. An ONS, usingsoftwarecorrection for (c) interferencefrom anotherradar'
predictableerrors,will giveaircraft position to an 49. A weatherradarwith a p.r.f. of 200 and a duty
u..uru.y (r.m.s.)of (a) l-2 nm, (b) 0-l nm, cycle of l0 x 10-3 would havea bandwidth of
(c) 2_inm. approximately(a) I MHz, (b)_500kHz, (c) 3 MHz.
3t. Omega gives worldwide navigation facilities 50. A typicalmemory sizefor a digital weather
using (a) five stations transmitting on 10.2, I 1.33 and radaremployingan X-Y displayis (a) 4 kbit'
13.6 kHz, (b) eight stationstransmittingon.10.2, (b) 8 kbit, (c) 32 kbit.
11.33and 13.6kHz,(c) strategically placedstations 51. If Pand R aretheVRG pitch and rollsignals
transmittingfrequencymultiplexed signals. respectivelyand 0 is the azimuth anglethen the
34. A Deccachain usually consists of (a) a mastet demandsignalfor a line of sight stabilization
and three slaves,(b) a master-slave pat, (c) independentsystemis (a) Psin0+ Rcos0,(b) Pcos0+ Rsin0,
statlons. (c) Pcos0x Rsin0.
35. The usablenight rangeof Deccais about 52. An X-bandDoppler radarshowsa ground
(a) 120 nm, (b) 240 nm, (c) 360 nm. speed of 400 knots, a reasonableestimateof the
36. Loran C radiates (a) pulsed r.f' at 100 kHz, Doppler shift would be (a) 5 kHz, (b) 500 Hz,
(b) pulsedr.f. at 14 kHz, (c) c.w. at 100 kHz. ,c) 12 kHz.

250
53. An f.m.c.w. Doppler radar operating at a
frequencyof 8800 MHz, modulatedat 500 kHz with
a depressionangle of 60' will have altitude holes at
multiplesof approximately(a) 500 ft, (b) 2000 ft,
(c) 8000 ft.
54. Wobbulationin a Doppler radar is usedto
overcomethe effects of (a) reflections from the
dielectricpanel,(b) overwatercalibrationshift errors,
(c) altitude holes.
55. A radio altimeterwould not be connectedto
(a) MADGE, (b) a flight director, (c) an ATC
transponder.
56. The DH lamp comeson when the aircraft is
(a) over the outer marker, (b) below a pilot set
barometricaltitude, (c) below a pilot set radio
altitude.
57. It is found that the most suitable positions for a
radio altimetertransmitter-receiver and antennas
:!,
leadsto a minimum total feeder length of 9 ft and an
antenna€round-antenna path length of 8 ft; what
would be a suitableAID setting? (a) 20 ft, (b) 40 ft.
(c) 57 ft.
58. A phantom beaconis (a) a co-located
VOR/DME beaconwith no identity transmission,
(b) a TACAN beacon,(c) relatedto a VOR/DME
beaconby pilot set distanceand bearing.
59. An aircraft is 20 n.m.'and045'(M) from a
VOR/DME beacon;the rangeof the current waypoint,
which is due eastof the beacon.is shownas 20 nm;
approximatelyhow far is the waypoint from the
beacon?(a) 20 nm, (b) 30 nm, (c) 40 nm.
60. MADGE mode Cl deriveselevationinformation
by using(a) radio altitude and slant range,
(b) interferometry,(c) a directionalbeamnarrow in
elevation.
251
Index

Acquisition,108 Bendix
ADSEL,22I BX-2000,206
Aircraft installationdelay, l9l, 197 cN-2011,2l
Airwaysmarker,72 NP-2041A,206
Altitude hales.178 RDR lE,164,166
Angleof cut, 8l R D R 1 1 0 0 ,r 4 8
Antennaeffect,5 I RDR 1200,146
Antennatuning unit, 33 Boeing
Antennas.3 7 4 7 ,t 4 , 3 7
Area navigation 767,217
display and control, 207 British Aerospaceadvancedflight deck, 219
generalized system,202
RNAV computer,206 Cabininterphone,37, 4O
standardization, 2I 3 Centilane,80
VOR/DME-based principles,204 Clock offset, 82
ARINC, 19,230 Coastalrefraction,50
Associated identity, I l1 Cockpitvoicerecorder,38,42
ATC 600A (rFR), 120,136 Coding,8
ATC transponder Codingdelay, l0l
block diagramoperation,128 Collins
characteristics,I 35 Alt 50, 200
coding,123 E F I S - 7 0 02, 1 7
controlsand operation,127 wxR700,216
encodingaltimeter,132 Collision avoidance,229
falsetargets,125 Colocatedbeacons,ll0
installation, 126 Conductivitymap,85
interrogation, l2l Conto.ur,143, 154
principles, 121 Cosec'beam, 160
ramp testing,135 Cossor555, 67, 78
rcply,122 Coursedeviationindicator,63
sLS,125,128,133 nrosstalk,r.3,33
Attitude director indicator,'l4, 217
Audio integrating system,37 i ,bi,221
Audio selectionpanel,38 Datalink, 219
Auto standby,106 D e c c aA t \ C 8 1 , 1 0 2
Autoland,198 DeccaDoppler 70 serie.,183
Automaticdata input/output, 210 Deccanavigator
Automaticdirectionfinder a m b i g u i t i e9s7, , 9 9
block diagramoperation,47 antenna, 99
calibrationand testing,55 chain,95, 96
characteristics,55 installation,99
' controlsand operation,54 Mk 1S/Danac,99-
installation.52 Mk 19,99
principles,45 positionfixing,96
systemerrors,49 signals,96
Automaticoverloadcontrot. t28 Decisionheight.69, 196
Azinruthmarks,154 Decometer,95,96
Deviationindicator,70
Balancinghalf cycle,15I Directview storagetube, 144
Balun,63 DITS,230
Baseline, 8 l. 95 Diurnaleffect, 85
Basicrate,l0l DME
Bearingresolution,143 analogue, I 14
Beatfrequencyoscillator,48 ' block diagramoperation,ll2

252
 channel arrangements, I l0 Horizontalsituationindicator,63, 217
characteristics. I I 7 Hyperbolicnavigationprinciples,80
controls and operation, I l2
digital, I l4 ldentification,friend or foc, l2 I
g r o u n d s p e e d ,1 0 9 IFR
i d e n t i f i c a t i o n , 10 6 ATC 600A, 120, 136
i n s t a l l a t i o n ,I I I NAV 40IL, 67
interrogation, 109 NAV 4O2AP,78
principles, 105
R D 3 0 0 ,1 6 7
ramp testing, 119 ILs
reply,109 a n t e n n a s ,7 6
time to station, 109
block diagram operation, 72
Doppler navigation system
categories,69
antenna mechanization. I 74 characteristics, 77
beam geometry, I 75 controls and operation, 76
characteristics, I 85 coverage,70,72
controls and operation, 184 difference in depth of modulation, 70
Doppler effect, 173 fiequency pairing,7l
Doppler shift, 173, 187, 190 'glideslope,
70
Doppler spectrum, 175 identification, 70
f i x e d a n t e n n a s y s t e m ,1 8 1
installation, 74
installation,182
loading compensation, 75
movlng antennasystem,179
I o c a l i z e r ,6 9
navlgation calculations, I 79
matker,72
o v e r w a t e re r r o r s , 1 7 8
principles, 69
testing,185
r a m p t e s t i n g .7 8
t r a n s m i s s i o n ,1 7 6
I n d e x i n g , 1 0 2 ,1 0 4
Drift angle,174
Instrument flight rules, 202
Drift indication (weathcr radar). 160
Intensity modulation, 140
Interference, I 3
Echo protection, 108, 125 lnterferometer , 223, 226
Electromagnetic propagation, 4 I n t e r r o g a t o r , 1 0 5 , 1 2 1, 2 2 7
E l e c t r o m a g n e t i cr a d i a t i o n , 2 Isodop, I 75
Electromagnetic spectrum, 4
Encoding altimeter, 132, 210 Janus configuration, 175, 187
Jitter,106
Fan marker, 72
Field alignment error, 52 Khg
Flat plate antenna, 145 K C U s 6 5 A ,2 1 0
Flight interphone, 37, 38 K D E 5 6 6 ,2 1 0
F r a m e p u l s e s ,1 2 2 Kr 20416,'ts
F r e e z e ,1 4 8 KMA20,75
F r e q u e n c yp a i r i n g , 7 1 , I l 0 K N 7 2 .7 3 ,7 5
Fruiting,125 KN 74,205
K N 7 5 ,7 5
K N R6 6 5 , 2 l l
Carbling, 125
K N S8 0 , 1 2 ,l l l
Geomagnetic field, 85
K P I5 3 3 ,l l l
Ground conductivity, 85
K P r 5 5 2 ,6 4
G r o u n d c r e w c a l l s y s t e m ,3 8 , 4 2
KX 1758,75
Group count down, 128
KY 196,2r,23

H e a d u p d i s p l a y( H U D ) . 2 1 9 Laneambiguities,86, 97
Hc4}rt ring, 145 Lanecount, 80
ILF- ;cmms Laneslip,80
rn:enna, 30 Lanewidth, 80
t{c<i diagram operation, 32 Laning,80
*r:rlieristics, 34 Line of position,79
ccqu=:lr and operation, 3l Litton LTN 211,87
-m[ls'a. l! Loadingcompensation (lLS), 75
re-'-.=- -:i Lobeswitching.179
irr- :*- f9 Loop alignmenterror,52
-:- 35
Loopantenna,3,45'
tt- : Loop swing,55 rli
[IO,rl l*.uil*: ::Cr:). 148 LoranC
-5lI{
llcltd f series. 193 block diagramoperation,I 03

253

"&t
LoranC Gont'd) Pulsecompression, 14l
chain,101 Pulsecrowding,215
installation,102 Pulsewidth limiter, 129
principles,102
signals,101 Quadrantalerror, 5 I
Quadrantalerror correctioncuwe,57
MADGE Quadrantalerror corrector,5 2
block diagram opention, 227
controls and instrumentation, 227 Radarrangeequation,169
parameters, 229 Radarsystemstester,165
principles,225 Radio
Mapping,150 categorization,4, I I
Marconi historical develoPment,I
A D 5 6 0 ,1 7 9 principles,2
A D 6 5 0 , 1 8 2 ,1 8 5 receiversand transmitters,7
Master,80 Radio altimeter
Maximum permissibleexposivelevel, 164 block diagramoperation, 192
Microcomputer,9, 26, 94, 208 characteristics, 200
Microwavelanding system'224 factors affecting performance,19I
Middlemarker,?2 indicator,196
Modal interference,85 installation,196
Modeinterlace,122 installationdelay,l9l, 197
Modulation,5 interface,198
Mountain effect, 50 monitoring and self test, 195
MP mode,97 multiple installation,199
Multiplexing, T principleq,189
ramp testing,200
N A V 4 0 1 Lo F R ) , 6 7 sinusoidalfrequencymodulation, 201
NAV 402AP(tFR),78 Radiomagneticindicator,53
Night etfect,50 Radome,147
Noisefigure,170 Rangemarks,151,154, 157
Nonspheroidal effect,85 Rangeresolution,l4l
Notching,99 Rate aiding, 86
RCA
Omega AVQ 85,114
broadcastpattem, 84 DataNavlI, 162
characteristics,95 Primus20. 154
controls and oPeration,90 P r i m u s3 0 , 1 5 5 ,1 6 l
hardware,93 Primus40, 151
installation, 87 Primus50, 16l
interface.89 Primus200, 146,163
position fixing, E6 WeatherScoutI, 147
ramptesting,95 RD 300 (IFR), 167
signalpropagation,84 Reciprocalsearch,108
skin mapping,8T Residualaltitude, 190, 19l, l9E
software,90 P$o2,Rho3navigation,79, 8l
stations,83 Rho-thetanavigation, 58, 105
'14,199
Omni-bearingselector,63 Risingrunway,
Opencentre,15l RyanStormscope, 139,158
Outboundsearch,108
Outer marker,72 Satcom/satnav, 223
Overwatercalibration shift error, l?8 Scannerstabilization, 143, L57
Scott-T-transformer,.93
Passenger address,38, 40 Seabias,178
Passenger entertainment,38, 4l Search,107
Percentage reply, 108 Secondtraceechoes,142
Performance index, 171 Secondarysurveillanceradar, l2l
Phantombeacon,58, 203 Selcal,35
Phaseoffset,82 Senseantenna,45
Pictorialnavigationindicator,63, I I I Sensitivitytime control, 143,194
Ptanposition indicator, 140 -sia;i;fibe
Serviceinterphone,38, 40
Planararray, 145 ;;tression,'I 25,r28,Bt
Polar cap disturbance,86 Signalactivatedsearch,105
Polardiagram,3 Skin mapping,87
Precipitationstatic,l3 Slantrange,105,206
Programdiscretepins, 89 Slave,80

2g
Solareffects,85 Visual flight rutes,69, 202
SperryFMCS,217 VLF comms,87
Spikeeliminator,129 voR
Spoking,149 automatic,manual,61, 65
Squelch,22, 23 block diagramoperation,55
Squitter,106 characteristics,65
Staticinterference,50 controlsand operation,65
Staticmemory,108 conventional,58
Stationinterference,50 doppler,6l
Stationrate.101 identification,59
Stormscope, 139, 168 installation,63
Suppression, L-band,ll1, 126 o u t p u t s , 6 36, 6
Sweptgain, 143 principles,58
ramp testing,5T
TACAN, IO5 VSWR check,weatherndat,167
TerminalVOR.58
TIC Weatherradar
T24A, ttg analogue,l50
T268, T288, T298,78 beaconmode, 160
T278,67 characteristics, 162
T 3 0 B ,6 7 , 7 8 conditionand assembly,164
T 3 3 8 ,T 4 3 B ,1 3 7 controlsand operation,147
T50A, 120 digital,rho-theta,15I
Time referencedscanningbeam,224 digital,t.v. (X-Y), 156
Track,107 installation.146
Transponder, 105,12l, 160 multifunctiondisplay,161
TRT radio altimeters,191 other applications,160
principles,140
Velocity memory,108 ramp test, 165
Vertical effect, 5 I safety precautions,154
VHF comms scanner,145
block diagramoperation,23 scannerstabilization, 143, l5'l
characteristics, 28 Wobbulation,f 78, l9l
controlsand operation,22
installation.20
principles,20 Z-matker,72
ramp testing,29 Zone,Decca,96

255