ETTC'2003 - SEE

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Merging Military Aircraft and Commercial Aircraft
Flight Test Architecture and Technologies
Abstract
Commercial aircraft are in the process of
defining new standards with the
introduction of the Airbus 380, involving
the latest digital information techniques,
such-as the AFDX onboard real-time
network. Military aircraft are also in the
process of using COTS hardware and
software elements with the European
Fighter being the latest example.
CES is involved in the two fields and is
presenting a test system with the latest
methods used for the A380 matched with
the technology used for military aircraft.
Commercial aircraft:
Although the technology used in the
design of the A380 and its test systems is
completely new, the architecture of its test
system evolved from a continuous
modeling effort over the last 10 years. The
resulting IENA model has a scalable
structure incorporating modular function
units, based on enhanced hardware and
software COTS elements, and a precise
global datation system for all elements in
the chassis. This architecture has been
validated with the then existing aircraft
interfaces, ARINC 429 and PCM.
The AFDX standard, a major innovation in
aircraft technology first used in the A380,
introduces telecom Ethernet-based
technology as well as switch connection
topology rather than point-to-point links or
buses.
Philippe RICCO
Martin WEYMANN
François-Henri WORM
Creative Electronic Systems
Email: ces@ces.ch
Airbus and CES partnered to develop a
building block, which allows the
simulation, test or connection of any
AFDX equipped element, covering all of
the ground test, simulation, and flight test
equipment requirements, thus the name
AFDX general purpose test platform.
It has been introduced in the IENA
concept, which has been adapted to the
AFDX topology. Another element has
been the choice of Ethernet links and
switches as the data extraction channels
with the addition of redundancy and time
control of the data transmission.
Finally a very advanced source
synchronized datation system has been
introduced so that all data is correctly time
aligned directly at their entry in the flight
test computer.
Military aircraft:
Different programs have allowed CES to
develop the most common military aircraft
interfaces, such as MIL 1553B, EFABUS
and its extensions, private CCDLs, highspeed
imaging interfaces and ATM or IPbased
data deployment interfaces.
These function units share the same
hardware and software elements as the
commercial aircraft function units (i.e.
VME, CompactPCI and PMC real-time
PowerPC processors, multiple PCI buses,
RTOS (VxWorks® and LynxOS®)).