From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Electronic Flight Information Systems are systems where primary flight and navigational data in an aircraft is displayed on an electronic system, normally a liquid-crystal display. EFIS are designed to present all information necessary for the current phase of flight in a compact display. EFIS normally consist of a primary flight display (PFD), multi-function display (MFD) and engine indications and crew alerting system (EICAS) display. EFIS are the central part of glass cockpits.

Contents 1 EFIS Design 1.1 PFD 1.2 MFD 1.3 EICAS 2 Advances in EFIS 3 External links

The PFD displays all information critical to flight, including airspeed, altitude, heading, attitude, vertical speed and yaw. The PFD is designed to improve a pilot's situational awareness by integrating this information into a single display instead of six different analog instruments, reducing the amount of time necessary to monitor the instruments. PFDs also increase situational awareness by alerting the aircrew to unusual or potentially hazardous conditions (e.g., low airspeed, high rate of descent) by changing the color or shape of the display or by providing audio alerts.

In addition to replacing traditional instruments, EFIS allows for the integration of data from multiple sources onto a single display. One example of this is synthetic vision, a technique whereby terrain, other aircraft and the desired course are rendered on the PFD to mimic the outside view and superimpose that image on the PFD. The image of terrain is generated from a database of terrain heights and the aircraft's position, as determined by a GPS receiver connected to the EFIS.

Synthetic vision improves situational awareness by reducing the impact of limited visibility; if the pilot cannot see the terrain out the window, they can see a 3-dimensional depiction of terrain generated on th PFD. In this sense, the combination of the PFD and synthetic vision is similar to a Heads-Up Display (HUD).

The MFD displays navigational and weather information from multiple systems. MFDs are most frequently designed as "chart-centric", where the aircrew can overlay different information over a map or chart. Examples of MFD overlay information include the aircraft's current route plan, weather information from either onboard radar or lightning detection sensors or ground-based sensors (e.g., NEXRAD), restricted airspace and aircraft traffic. The MFD can also be used to view other non-overlay type of data (e.g., current route plan) and calculated overlay-type data (e.g., the glide radius of the aircraft, given current location over terrain, winds, and aircraft speed and altitude).

MFDs can also display information about aircraft systems, such as fuel and electrical systems (see ECIAS, below). As with the PFD, the MFD can change the color or shape of the data to alert the aircrew to hazardous situations.

EICAS displays information about the aircraft's systems, including its fuel, electrical and propulsion systems (i.e., engines). EICAS displays are often designed to mimic traditional round gauges while also supplying digital readouts of the parameters.

EICAS improve situational awareness by allowing the aircrew to view complex information in a graphical format and also by alerting the crew to unusual or hazardous situations. For example, if an engine begins to lose oil pressure, the EICAS might sound an alert, switch the display to the page with the oil system information and outline the low oil pressure data with a red box. Unlike traditional round gauges, many levels of warnings and alarms can be set. Proper care must be taken when designing EICAS to ensure that the aircrew are always provided with the most important information and not overloaded with warnings or alarms.

In the late 1980s, EFIS became standard equipment on most Boeing and Airbus airliners, and many business aircraft adopted EFIS in the 1990s.

Recent advances in computing power and reductions in the cost of liquid-crystal displays and navigational sensors (such as GPS and Attitude and Heading Reference Systems) have finally brought EFIS to general aviation aircraft. Notable examples are the Garmin G1000 and Chelton Flight Systems EFIS-SV.

Several EFIS manufacturers have focused on the experimental aircraft market, producing EFIS and EICAS systems for as little as $1,700. The low cost is possible for several reasons, including steep drops in sensor prices and a lack of requirements to receive FAA certification. This latter point restricts their use to experimental aircraft only.

• Sagem Avionics, Inc. Integrated Cockpit Display Systems
• Garmin G1000 EFIS
• Chelton Flight Systems
• Dynon Avionics (EFIS and EICAS for experimental aircraft)