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On best approximation by truncated series

Author:
Published in:
J. Approx. Theory, Vol. 32, May 1981, pp. 82-84.

Summary

Let T, be the Chebyshev polynomial of the first kind of degree k.
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Summary

Let T, be the Chebyshev polynomial of the first kind of degree k.

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An improved technique for altitude tracking of aircraft

Author:
Published in:
MIT Lincoln Laboratory Report ATC-105

Summary

When simple linear recursive tracking techniques are applied to quantized altitude reports, certain errors in estimation of altitude and altitude rate can be attributed to the response of the tracker to transitions between quantization levels. These errors can be reduced by use of an estimation technique which explicitly recognizes the quantized nature of the inputs. Smoothing of the level occupancy time (i.e., the time spent at each quantization level) can be used to control the response to redundant samples taken at the same quantization level. Further improvement is achieved by consistency tests which use particular properties of quantized data to detect changes in rate. This document presents a theoretical analysis of tracker repsonse to quantized inputs. A tracking algorithm is synthesized using these techniques and simulation results using various altitude profiles are presented.
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Summary

When simple linear recursive tracking techniques are applied to quantized altitude reports, certain errors in estimation of altitude and altitude rate can be attributed to the response of the tracker to transitions between quantization levels. These errors can be reduced by use of an estimation technique which explicitly recognizes the...

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Radar Beacon Transponder (RBX) installation and siting criteria

Published in:
MIT Lincoln Laboratory Report ATC-106

Summary

The Radar BEacon Transponder (RBX) is a ground-based facility used in conjunction with other elements of the Active Beacon Collision Avoidance System (BCAS) to control the threat detection sensitivity level of BCAS aircraft and to convey displayed Resolution Advisories from the BCAS aircraft to the local ATC terminal facility. This paper describes the mechanisms of specular multipath reflection and signal shadowing and discussed their impact on the RBX link power budget. Criteria for choice of RBX antenna height and location are presented.
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Summary

The Radar BEacon Transponder (RBX) is a ground-based facility used in conjunction with other elements of the Active Beacon Collision Avoidance System (BCAS) to control the threat detection sensitivity level of BCAS aircraft and to convey displayed Resolution Advisories from the BCAS aircraft to the local ATC terminal facility. This...

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The effects of microphones and facemasks on LPC vocoder performance

Author:
Published in:
Proc. of IEEE Int. Conf. on Acoustics, Speech & Signal Processing, 30 March - 1 April 1981.

Summary

The effects of oxygen facemasks and noise cancelling microphones on LPC vocoder performance were analyzed and evaluated. Likely sources of potential vocoder performance degradation included the non-ideal frequency response characteristics of the microphone and the possible presence of additional resonances in the speech waveform due to the addition of the facemask cavity. Examination of vowel spectra revealed that spurious resonances do not occur in the vocoder frequency band for speech generated using the facemask and microphone. Also observed was a vowel-dependent reduction in the bandwidths of the upper formants, a result which can be predicted from acoustic theory. Finally, it is shown that the low frequency emphasis associated with small enclosures is not relevant when using a pressure gradient (noise cancelling) microphone. Diagnostic Rhyme Tests involving three subjects indicated that the presence of the oxygen facemask and noise cancelling microphone did not result in a significant increase in the LPC vocoder processing loss.
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Summary

The effects of oxygen facemasks and noise cancelling microphones on LPC vocoder performance were analyzed and evaluated. Likely sources of potential vocoder performance degradation included the non-ideal frequency response characteristics of the microphone and the possible presence of additional resonances in the speech waveform due to the addition of the...

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Radar Beacon Transponder (RBX) functional description

Published in:
MIT Lincoln Laboratory Report ATC-104

Summary

The Radar Beacon Transponder (RBX) is a ground-based transponder used to control the threat-detection sensitivity level of BCAS aircraft operating in high density terminal airspace. THe RBX is also used to deliver displayed resolution advisories from BCAS to the ATC facility. The normal DABS interrogation waveforms and message formats are used for communication between the RBX and BCAS aircraft. The appropriate BCAS sensitivity level is selected by comparing the BCAS aircraft position with an internally stored sensitivity level map of the surrounding airspace volume. This document provides a functional description of the RBX and shows that reliable performance is achievable in the presence of interference from ATCRBS and BCAS air-to-air interrogations.
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Summary

The Radar Beacon Transponder (RBX) is a ground-based transponder used to control the threat-detection sensitivity level of BCAS aircraft operating in high density terminal airspace. THe RBX is also used to deliver displayed resolution advisories from BCAS to the ATC facility. The normal DABS interrogation waveforms and message formats are...

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Electronic flight rules: an alternative separation assurance concept

Published in:
MIT Lincoln Laboratory Report ATC-93

Summary

This report presents results of a study of alternative concepts for tactically separating aircraft in low altitude en route airspace. It describes a concept designated Electronic Flight Rules (EFR) which allows aircraft to fly under instrument meteorological conditions in a manner that retains most of the freedom and flexibility of VFR flight. Feasibility considerations, potential benefits, applicable technologies, and alternative system configurations are evaluated.
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Summary

This report presents results of a study of alternative concepts for tactically separating aircraft in low altitude en route airspace. It describes a concept designated Electronic Flight Rules (EFR) which allows aircraft to fly under instrument meteorological conditions in a manner that retains most of the freedom and flexibility of...

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Active Beacon Collision Avoidance System (BCAS) functional overview

Published in:
MIT Lincoln Laboratory Report ATC-102

Summary

The Active Beacon Collision Avoidance System (BCAS) is a beacon-based airborne collision avoidance system that provides for cooperative threat resolution between BCAS and conflicting aircraft and coordination with the ground ATC control function through the DABS data link. All beacon-equipped aircraft in the vicinity of the BCAS are detected. ATCRBS-equipped aircraft are interrogated using a special Mode C interrogation. DABS aircraft are initially detected passively. Those aircraft that represent a possible threat are discretely interrogated to maintain a range/altitude track. This document provides a functional overview of BCAS including operational features, a description of the avionics package, and examples of surveillance data obtained with experimental BCAS equipment. The results show that reliable surveillance performance is achieved in low and medium density airspace.
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Summary

The Active Beacon Collision Avoidance System (BCAS) is a beacon-based airborne collision avoidance system that provides for cooperative threat resolution between BCAS and conflicting aircraft and coordination with the ground ATC control function through the DABS data link. All beacon-equipped aircraft in the vicinity of the BCAS are detected. ATCRBS-equipped...

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Active BCAS: design and validation of the surveillance subsystem

Published in:
MIT Lincoln Laboratory Report ATC-103

Summary

Lincoln Laboratory, under FAA sponsorship, is developing an Active Beacon Collision Avoidance System (BCAS), concentrating primarily on the air-to-air surveillance subsystem. The surveillance functions required are to detect the presence of nearby aircraft (whether they are equipped with ATCRBS transponders or DABS transponders), and then generate a surveillance track on each aircraft, issuing range and altitude reports once per second. The development effort consisted of airborne measurements complemented by simulation studies and analyses. The basic effects of ground-bounce multipath, interference, and power fading were assessed by air-to-air measurements. In other measurements, the BCAS interrogation and reply signal formats were transmitted between aircraft, and the results recorded for later playback and computer processing using the BCAS surveillance algorithms. This is a flexible means of experimentation which allows many of the design parameters to be changed as the effects are noted. In the most recent phase of the program, Lincoln designed and built realtime BCAS Experimental Units (BE Us), flight tested them, and then delivered them to the FAA for more extensive flight testing. In one of these flight tests, a BEU-equipped Boeing 727 flew to New York, Atlanta, and other major terminal areas in the eastern U.S. An analysis of BEU performance during this "Eastern Tour" is given in this report.
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Summary

Lincoln Laboratory, under FAA sponsorship, is developing an Active Beacon Collision Avoidance System (BCAS), concentrating primarily on the air-to-air surveillance subsystem. The surveillance functions required are to detect the presence of nearby aircraft (whether they are equipped with ATCRBS transponders or DABS transponders), and then generate a surveillance track on...

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Registration errors in a netted air surveillance system

Published in:
MIT Lincoln Laboratory Report TN-1980-40

Summary

Today's tactical military air surveillance radars generally operate in a stand-alone configuration. The many performance improvements that result when data from multiple radars of this type are merged have made such netted operations an attractive goal for many years. A major obstacle to achieving this goal has traditionally been the difficulty associated with the registration of multisensor data, the expression of the data in a common coordinate system free from errors due to site uncertainty, antenna orientation, and improper alignment. This report presents the results of a modest effort to develop a self-registration procedure by which multiple radar sensors operating in consort each calculate the errors In their data by comparing it with data from the remainder of the system and then uses the information to upgrade performance. The technique has been tested with experimental data and appears quite capable of improving system performance, measured in terms of residual inter-site bias errors, by almost a factor of one hundred.
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Summary

Today's tactical military air surveillance radars generally operate in a stand-alone configuration. The many performance improvements that result when data from multiple radars of this type are merged have made such netted operations an attractive goal for many years. A major obstacle to achieving this goal has traditionally been the...

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Voice communication in integrated digital voice and data networks

Published in:
IEEE Trans. Commun., Vol. COM-28, No. 9, September 1980, pp. 1478-90.

Summary

Voice communication networks have traditionally been designed to provide either analog signal paths or fixed-rate synchronous digital connections between individual subscribers. These designs were aimed at accommodating the "streamlike" character of speech, which has traditionally been considered to flow from source to destination at a more or less constant rate. By way of contrast, interactive and computer-to-computer data transactions tend to be "bursty" in nature, and this has given rise to the development of packet-switching methods for data communications. The dichotomous nature of these two major traffic classes and the apparent conflict between the types of network services they require has resulted in the deployment of separate military communications facilities for voice and data. A challenge in the design of future systems is to achieve overall economy and flexibility in the allocation of resources via the efficient integration of both traffic types in common network facilities. This paper summarizes a number of advanced concepts for switching and flow control of combined voice and data traffic in integrated environments. Performance characteristics are described based on analysis results and computer simulation studies for both multilink terrestrial and broadcast satellite network topologies.
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Summary

Voice communication networks have traditionally been designed to provide either analog signal paths or fixed-rate synchronous digital connections between individual subscribers. These designs were aimed at accommodating the "streamlike" character of speech, which has traditionally been considered to flow from source to destination at a more or less constant rate...

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