[{"command":"openDialog","selector":"#drupal-modal","settings":null,"data":"\u003Cdiv id=\u0022republish_modal_form\u0022\u003E\u003Cform class=\u0022modal-form-example-modal-form ecl-form\u0022 data-drupal-selector=\u0022modal-form-example-modal-form\u0022 action=\u0022\/en\/article\/modal\/7145\u0022 method=\u0022post\u0022 id=\u0022modal-form-example-modal-form\u0022 accept-charset=\u0022UTF-8\u0022\u003E\u003Cp\u003EHorizon articles can be republished for free under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) licence.\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cp\u003EYou must give appropriate credit. We ask you to do this by:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n 1) Using the original journalist\u0027s byline\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n 2) Linking back to our original story\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n 3) Using the following text in the footer: This article was originally published in \u003Ca href=\u0027#\u0027\u003EHorizon, the EU Research and Innovation magazine\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cp\u003ESee our full republication guidelines \u003Ca href=\u0027\/horizon-magazine\/republish-our-stories\u0027\u003Ehere\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cp\u003EHTML for this article, including the attribution and page view counter, is below:\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cdiv class=\u0022js-form-item form-item js-form-type-textarea form-item-body-content js-form-item-body-content ecl-form-group ecl-form-group--text-area form-no-label ecl-u-mv-m\u0022\u003E\n \n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n \u003Ctextarea data-drupal-selector=\u0022edit-body-content\u0022 aria-describedby=\u0022edit-body-content--description\u0022 id=\u0022edit-body-content\u0022 name=\u0022body_content\u0022 rows=\u00225\u0022 cols=\u002260\u0022 class=\u0022form-textarea ecl-text-area\u0022\u003E\u003Ch2\u003EFew aeroplanes land automatically but new systems could make this the norm\u003C\/h2\u003E\u003Cp\u003EBy some estimates about \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.flightdeckfriend.com\/can-a-plane-land-automatically\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022 rel=\u0022noopener noreferrer\u0022\u003E1% \u003C\/a\u003Eof all commercial flights use autoland, using an Instrument Landing System (ILS). Using ILS requires crosswinds of less than 46km per hour, comparable to a strong breeze, and becomes harder in adverse visibility conditions such as fog.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EModern autoland systems have other limitations. They require significant ground infrastructure in order to support fully automated landings. The runway must be equipped with radio beacons, which send signals to the aircraft to allow it to obtain accurate and reliable position information. Such systems are expensive, with few airports supporting them, while nearby obstacles like mountains make them unusable. What if there was another way?\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EAutomatic\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EHeikki Deschacht from avionics manufacturer ScioTeq in Belgium is the coordinator for \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/cordis.europa.eu\/project\/rcn\/213819\/en\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022 rel=\u0022noopener noreferrer\u0022\u003EIMBALS\u003C\/a\u003E, a project that\u2019s developing what\u2019s called the Vision Landing System (VLS). The goal of this system is to enable large passenger planes to land automatically with less need for ground-based radio beacons.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u2018The end goal of the IMBALS project is to realise and validate and verify a vision-based landing system for large passenger aircraft,\u2019 said Deschacht. This system will consist of an onboard camera system that captures images in front of the aircraft and an imaging processing platform which extracts position information to help the autopilot steer the plane to the runway, he explains.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EWith current ILS systems, the pilot must take control of the aircraft on the final approach. However, Deschacht says the VLS \u2013 which is switched on when the plane is lined up in front of the runway \u2013 would allow for the entire landing to be automated. Powered by algorithms that calculate the correct angle of approach, it would allow for true automated landings.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u2018Only 60% of the airports being served with Airbus aircraft are equipped with ILS (ground infrastructure),\u2019 said Deschacht. \u2018And not all of those are sufficient to do autolanding. So there\u2019s a big gap in the airports (where) autolanding is simply not possible. And that\u2019s the gap we wanted to fill with a vision-based landing system, because we don\u2019t rely on anything on the ground. The only thing we need are visibility conditions (that make) the runway visible for the camera sensors.\u2019\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EIMBALS is currently using cameras that operate in visible light, but they are also planning to develop image processing algorithms that use infrared to enable night landings, and landings where visibility is reduced due to fog or other factors.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EWhile the project is due to finish in 2022, Deschacht hopes the VLS could be in operation by the later 2020s. Beyond 2030, aircraft could be designed with these systems incorporated, which would not only be more capable than existing autolanding systems, but significantly cheaper as no ground-based infrastructure is required.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EInfrared\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ESensors of different wavelengths that can detect obstacles and avoid collisions can make automated landings safer, as well as taxi, take-off \u2013 which has not yet been done for commercial planes \u2013 and cruise. Developing such sensors to use in a variety of weather conditions is the focus of another project called \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/cordis.europa.eu\/project\/rcn\/213800\/factsheet\/en\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022 rel=\u0022noopener noreferrer\u0022\u003ESENSORIANCE\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u2018We are building a system that will detect obstacles, especially in harsh environmental conditions,\u2019 said Antonio Soler from engineering company MLabs Optronics in M\u00e1laga, Spain, the project coordinator. \u2018We\u2019re trying to improve what the pilot can see.\u2019\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe idea is to not only use infrared but sensors in other wavelengths to give the most information possible. The team looked at the sensors that were already used in the industry and worked on a way to design and develop a \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/sensoriance.com\/technology\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022 rel=\u0022noopener noreferrer\u0022\u003Echeaper and more effective system\u003C\/a\u003E to improve safety.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe sensors and a camera are located on the front of the aircraft and relay the information to the pilot. Image processing software relays what the cameras and sensors are seeing, allowing pilots to spot and avoid obstacles such as other aircraft and airport infrastructure, even in poor visibility conditions.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThey expect to have a prototype ready in the next decade. \u2018The objective is that every commercial plane should have some kind of enhanced vision system,\u2019 said Soler. And combined with other systems like that of IMBALS, which would enable more widely performed automated landings, it could allow for fully automated flight in the near future.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cblockquote class=\u0022tw-text-center tw-text-blue tw-font-bold tw-text-2xl lg:tw-w-1\/2 tw-border-2 tw-border-blue tw-p-12 tw-my-8 lg:tw-m-12 lg:tw--ml-16 tw-float-left\u0022\u003E\n \u003Cspan class=\u0022tw-text-5xl tw-rotate-180\u0022\u003E\u201c\u003C\/span\u003E\n \u003Cp class=\u0022tw-font-serif tw-italic\u0022\u003E\u0026#039;We\u2019re trying to improve what the pilot can see.\u0026#039;\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cfooter\u003E\n \u003Ccite class=\u0022tw-not-italic tw-font-normal tw-text-sm tw-text-black\u0022\u003EAntonio Soler, MLabs Optronics, M\u00e1laga, Spain\u003C\/cite\u003E\n \u003C\/footer\u003E\n\u003C\/blockquote\u003E\n\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ESafety\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAccording to a study by Boeing in 2017, \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.boeing.com\/resources\/boeingdotcom\/company\/about_bca\/pdf\/statsum.pdf\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022 rel=\u0022noopener noreferrer\u0022\u003E49% of fatal \u003C\/a\u003Eplane accidents between 2008 and 2017 occurred during final approach and landing. By removing possibilities for human error through automation, the risk of accidents can be reduced to make these phases safer. \u2018If we look to the recent root causes analysis of aircraft accidents, many of them have a large contribution from human error,\u2019 said Deschacht.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EHe also notes that the image processing technology like VLS could eventually be used in other phases of flight too, such as take-off and taxi. \u2018It\u2019s quite a challenging job for the pilot if it\u2019s quite a large aircraft and it\u2019s a small (or busy) airport and there\u2019s low visibility,\u2019 he said. \u2018It\u2019s not a vehicle you can easily turn back if you have mistaken your exit somewhere from the taxiway or runway.\u2019\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EOf course, there are also safety concerns around automation. Boeing\u2019s automated system lies at the heart of the investigations into two crashes killing everyone on board.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ELong before automated landing systems like IMBALS are even implemented there needs to be a lot of testing to ensure high safety standards, says \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/faculty.erau.edu\/Stephen.Rice2\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022 rel=\u0022noopener noreferrer\u0022\u003EStephen Rice\u003C\/a\u003E, professor of Human Factors at the Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Florida, US. Testing must be done in a transparent fashion with the company, government and potential consumers.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u2018If the public senses that corners are being cut, they will not fly on these aircraft,\u2019 he said. \u2018My recommendation has always been to try this out on non-passenger aircraft (e.g. cargo) and spend 5-7 years addressing potential issues before moving to passenger flights.\u2019\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EOverall, the general trend in aviation is towards automation, and increasingly having the pilots oversee the aircraft and its systems. It will be important to find the right balance between automation and a well-trained human pilot, says Deschacht. To mitigate human error through automation, then systems \u2018must be very, very reliable,\u2019 he said.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cem\u003EThe research in this article was funded by the EU\u0027s Clean Sky 2 initiative. 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