Novel Surveillance Technologies for Airport Ramp Area Operations, Phase II

The proposed technology has an immediate application to NASA's Air-Traffic Management research. It is expected to help the Safe and Efficient Surface Operations research group at NASA identify the following ramp area operational information: (i) identify pushback characteristics of different aircraft types from different gates, (ii) identify sequence and time taken for events such fueling and catering, (iii) identify paths from different gates to the ramp spots, and (iv) estimate transit-time statistics for an aircraft to move from the gate to the ramp spot. In a real-time mode it can enable ramp operational planners by detecting the following events: (i) arrival of an aircraft at the gate, (ii) fueling, catering, & baggage loading, (iii) pushback from gate, and (iv) time at which the aircraft starts taxiing after pushback. The algorithms associated with this technology can also update in real-time the expected time-of-arrival and sequence of arrival at different ramp spots. The primary commercial application of proposed technology is in low cost surveillance systems for airports. CVAROS is being developed to enable surveillance systems for airports, especially, ramp areas. The FAA has solicited proposals for a low cost ground based surveillance system suitable for smaller airports that cannot afford ASDE-X. The proposed technology is an ideal fit for this category. Ramp areas in US airports are typically controlled by airlines. Industry experts estimate the airlines' cost resulting from ramp area accidents at $4 billion to $5 billion internationally each year. The surveillance technology developed under the current research can be used to enable safety monitoring systems that would mitigate the above costs to the airlines. More »