Augmented Reality Runway Overlay System

View of AR System after landing and during taxi process
View of AR System at a greater distance from runway
View of AR System when closely approaching runway
Presentation Board

Inspiration

We were inspired by the tragic events that can occur due to limited visibility and inclement weather. We wanted to reduce the risk associated with these events and reduce the amount of fatal accidents that can occur on the runway.

What It Does

This system would work in tandem with the ASDE and SMGCS systems already installed in over 60 major airports across the country. Receiving the signals already being sent by those markers from the ATC, planes would be convert those inputs to visual cues projected on the dashboard, allowing pilots to see important features when visibility may be extremely limited.

How It Works

We used two radios and programmed them to communicate with each other as a transmitter and receiver. Showing that we can receive inputs and then we would be able to convert these inputs to augmented reality overlays based on positions in space. We also coded an augmented reality applet that shows exactly how it would work and what it would look like. In addition to these two, we also created a video of a simulated landing, pausing at certain points and showing what the display on the windshield approximately would look like.

Challenges We Faced

Programming the communication of the two radios proved to be a tad difficult. Even before that, however, our major problem was deciding with stream challenge to tackle. Once we figured out what we were doing and we had a solid idea for it, we were off and running.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

We are extremely proud that we were able to produce a project using what we have learned in classes and in internships. We have all grown in various skills and have produced a very solid solution to a very real issue. We all worked as a team and accomplished our final goal. Finally, we take extreme pride in our level of professionalism and how well put together the project looks as a whole.

What we learned

All of us have grown in some capacity or another. Some of us learned how to better use Inventor and some of us improved our coding abilities. We found learning about how weather affected flight and just how impactful it can be was something that was extremely interesting to all of us. We loved the feeling that we could actually do something to help people and make the aviation world that much safer.

What's next for Augmented Reality Runway Landing System

Future installments of our augmented reality system could include features for in-flight displays. Currently, we are specifically focusing on information during takeoff and landing. During flight, we could overlay the flight path that the aircraft has to take, the distance and ETA to the destination, as well as possibly a visual diagnostics for critical engine failures. There are many ways that AR can be applied to flight in order to make it safer, more intuitive, and overall a better process for both the pilots and passengers.