Cockpit vision: enhanced communications with aircraft pilots via satellite

The term cockpit vision is meant to imply a threefold meaning: the introduction of visual displays, the resulting enhanced pilot vision of the aircraft environment, and the visionary application of technology to flight deck communications. The paper provides a conceptual outline of the application of emerging desktop computer video image capture, image compression, and compact high-resolution color display in the cockpit for the effective and efficient presentation of weather, air traffic control and other data to the pilot or flight crew. The contemporary improvement in satellite communications to aircraft, and deployment of improved weather collection and dissemination systems, coupled with a visual output display, makes a significant advance in operational communications possible. It shows through examples how visual output of graphics, including maps and imagery, could be used to advantage in the cockpit, not only to replace text, but to provide an improved systems interface to sensors providing real-time information