LASER CENTERLINE LOCALIZER FOR CV AND CVN FLIGHT OPERATIONS

THE LASER CENTERLINE LOCALIZER TECHNIQUE (LCL) USES A SERIES OF LOW POWER, BUT HIGHLY VISIBLE LASER BEAMS TO ILLUMINATE APPROACH CORRIDORS FOR CV AND CVN FLIGHT OPERATIONS. BY TAKING ADVANTAGE OF THE ABILITY TO PRECISELY SHAPE AND DIRECT VISIBLE LASER BEAMS, AND BY ENCODING THE ILLUMINATED PATHS USING COLOR AND TEMPORAL FREQUENCY, IT IS POSSIBLE TO PROVIDE DIRECT VISUAL SIGNALS TO THE PILOT THAT INDICATE DEVIATIONS FROM THE CENTERLINE APPROACH. THIS SYSTEM PROVIDES A POSITIVE ON COURSE SIGNAL AND WELL AS THE DEGREE OF DEVIATION FROM THE PROPER APPROACH. BY USING THIS SYSTEM, THE PILOT WILL HAVE SIGNIFICANTLY IMPROVED VISUAL CUES, PARTICULARLY AT NIGHT AND IN MARGINAL WEATHER, TO AID IN THE SAFE RECOVERY OF THE AIRCRAFT. THIS RESEARCH PROGRAM IS DIRECTED AT PROVING THE VIABILITY OF THE LCL CONCEPT AND PROVIDING VISIBILITY DATA FOR THE OPTIMIZATION OF AN LCL SYSTEM DESIGN.