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FLYHT Aerospace Solutions Ltd. (FLYHT) has announced the receipt of a patent from the United States Patent and Trademark Office for FLYHT’s emergency data streaming technology, which has been initially enabled in a commercial software product called FLYHTStream.
“During the extended search for AF447 it became clear to FLYHT that there was a problem to solve,” said Kent Jacobs, FLYHT’s first employee who jointly filed the patent application back in 2010. “Could real-time communications be used to send data to locate and get valuable information from the aircraft, possibly to even prevent a future accident? We extended the capabilities of our system and this patent was filed. Having this patent granted marks an important milestone for our company as we continue to protect our intellectual property and expand our exclusive offerings to our customers in the aviation industry.”
FLYHTStream is used during an emergency or abnormal situation onboard an aircraft. It sends flight data recorder information to the airline immediately, through a real-time communications network, so airlines and investigators know the status and the location of the aircraft.
The data streaming is initiated either automatically during an unsafe condition, by the pilots through an event button in the cockpit or by the operations team on the ground through the server, UpTime. Key airline personnel are notified immediately and essential data is streamed from the aircraft.
FLYHT has already been granted this patent in China and has the patent pending in other regions. The United States patent comes at business-relevant time because the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) has passed a performance-based requirement for new aircraft type designs to make the flight recorder data available in a timely manner by 2021, a short time away in the aviation timeline.
The intent of the Timely Access to Flight Recorder Information is to resolve problems recently encountered when aircraft and their black boxes cannot immediately be accessed. r.
FLYHTStream is commercially available today and is a solution which augments the on-board flight data recorders and flight voice recorders. FLYHTStream is a software service that is enabled by the automated flight information reporting system (AFIRSTM), which hosts services that save aircraft operators money, streamline their operations and proactively enhance safety, which prevents accidents and can save lives.
The patent title is Aircraft Flight Data Delivery and Management System with Emergency Mode, U.S. 9,602,187 B2 and is dated March 21, 2017.
