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| # | Entry Title | Author | Creation Date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9. | SkyCar and Object-Oriented Hardware and Software Component Thoughts | Cordell Swannack | 08/29/2000 19:44 | My thoughts are that the SkyOS communicates to all of the hardware components through an object-oriented messaging and framework. For example the software package built-into each engine on the Skycar would "announce" to the SkyOS that "I'm here" and "Here are the 'methods' used to talk to this engine if you want to receive or send information to this component." This framework allows innovation and companies to build components for the Skycar without having to make sure that the SkyOS Command and Control software has a "driver" for talking to the component. The "engine" when installed and brought on-line performs a "system" conversation with the SkyOS. This conversation performs the following safety checks: The SkyOS through its "ground/maintenance" connection checks a database to see if the company's new "engine" and operations/control software is registered. If it is then it checks the digital certificate of the registered software to see if the engine that was just installed has the same digital certificate so that everything checks out. Then the SkyOS retrieves the new operating and performance characteristics from the engine and loads them into's its own framework. As long as the company has created the engine, digital certificates for software security and supplied the minimum attributes for the SkyOS to talk to the engine then the Skycar should be ready to go. This provides a moderate amount of control and security to the overall development of the Skycar without impacting innovation. Example of the methods would be: 1) Request Service Life (Engine operating history since last service point) 2) Request Max Life (Abbreviated operating history since initialization) 3) Request service interval (Do I need to let the SkyCar owner know that component service is required?) 4) Request RPM Value 5) Request Performance Values (High) 6) Request Performance Values (Low) 7) Request Performance Curve 8) Request Performance Load (Current) 9) Request System Diagnostic 10) Request Deep System Diagnostic 11) Request Service Diagnostic 12) Request Digital Certificate of Hardware and Software 13) Request "Hover" Speed 1) Write Service Time (absolute) 2) Write Last Service (absolute) 3) Write RPM 4) Write Shutdown 5) Write Start-Up 6) Write Performance Curve (This would be statistical plot of the engine performance curve since towards the end of a service period the might require more fuel as components begin to wear down.) 7) Write Diagnostic Values 8) Write Emergency Speed 9) Write Cruising Speed 10) Write "Hover" Speed There would also be software attributes of an engine that the methods would use. They would be things like: 1) Absolute Operating (Running) Time 2) Last Service Time 3) Current Running Time 4) Emergency RPM 5) Cruising RPM 6) "Hover" RPM 7) RPM 8) Performance Curve 9) Serial Number of Engine 10) Software Version and Revision 11) Hardware Name, Version and Revision 12) Engine Number (which engine of the 8 in the M400) 13) Diagnostic Data (What should the parameters of a "normal" engine.) 14) Last Diagnostic (What were the results of the last diagnostic test.) 15) Digital Certificate of Hardware and Software |
| 7. | Definition of SkyOS and SkyCar Ground Services | Cordell Swannack | 08/29/2000 18:54 | The goal is to provide enough framework and structure for the Skycar to be used as a common form of transportation while minimizing flight errors and problems that currently plague our current traffic control system. I realize that the following is rather simplistic synopsis of current air travel in the U.S. but we need to look at things as they could be not as they are. The Skycar offers us a unique opportunity to regard it as an "inflection" point in travel and transportation. The current traffic control system tries to control "everything" all the things that could go wrong and adjust accordingly. While there are certain boundaries that an airplane is forced to operate within the addition of more flights and airplanes adds an "n" number of complexity to the overall problem of flight management. In the month of June 200 alone there were 44,000+ flight delays in the U.S. Primarily due to weather issues on the east coast. If we insist in using the current methods of "command" and "control" flight management that are used in the airline industry, there isn't a set of computers big enough to manage 20-50 million Skycars that could be flying around in a 100 years or so. The design of Skycar software should not try to anticipate everything that can go wrong but describe what is "normal" operating procedure and everything that is outside of that boundary is up for "inspection" and could or could not result in a decision point. |
| 6. | Ground Services for SkyCar | Cordell Swannack | 08/29/2000 18:44 | Here are the consumer and flight management services that would be necessary to support the use of Skycars. 1) Ground "Diagnostics" 2) Vehicle/Parts Inventory 3) Repair Maintenance Logs 4) Testing & Physical Component Design 5) "Official" Hardware/Software Parts Catalog (Registration) 6) Flight Planning 7) Flight Overview (Traffic Review and Oversight) 8) Flight Scheduling 9) Flight Scenario Simulations 10) "Disaster" Recovery, Debriefing and Analysis 11) Communications 12) Emergency Navigation 13) Testing & Computer Component Design 14) Software Design & Management 15) Customer Website Planning & Flight History 16) Historical Data 17) Software Updates and Management |
| 5. | Major Subsystems of a Skycar Operating System (SkyOS) | Cordell Swannack | 08/29/2000 18:37 | These are what I would define as the "root" systems of the OS for the Skycar. I realize that they are rather broad and general but you have to start somewhere in this discussion. 0) Command and Control 1) Power Engineering (Propulsion) 2) Navigation 3) Security 4) Environmental 5) Communication 6) Diagnostic 7) Component Management |
| 4. | Skycar Software Simulation | Cordell Swannack | 08/18/2000 13:01 | A generalized computer model of the Skycar could be created eventually with the understanding that the instrumentation a couple of Skycars would allow you to collect enough flight performance and handling data, that can be used in verification and refining of the computer model. I am sure that Dr. Moller and the rest of the design team could also give insight and understanding as the computer model is built, tested and refined. One advantage that we have is that there are several excellent software programs out on the market that allow people to perform data acquisition and measurement over the internet. National Instruments has a program called "Lab View" (www.ni.com). It in essence is a program that you use to create software modules to build measurement, test and data acquisition tools. Because these tools reside on a PC you can reuse these tools over and over or include them in new "virtual" instrumentation systems. Many years ago I remember building these systems from scratch every time you needed to perform new type of testing and measurement for an experiment, now with this software and a PC you have your own testing system without all of the hassles of building physical systems. The latest version of Labview software allows you to use the software over the internet in a web browser. My thought is that as people write software enhancements for the Skycar they could then test the modules of code (over the internet) against the simulation program and the instrumentation program. This should reduce the number of syntactical and the "stupid" logic errors before their code would be integrated into a program "build" for further testing. The development of a Skycar computer model could be used in support of performance simulations and the testing of software upgrades and version enhancements. In the latest issue of Inc. magazine, it was reported that there is about 29,000 lines of code for the Skycar. I realize I am speaking as an uninformed observer here, but I theorize that the current software that is used in controlling the Skycar is essentially a real-time system that is used in support of piloting the vehicle and other rudimentary flight control properties. A tremendous amount of software enhancements and functionality will need to be added in order for the Skycar to be considered a prevalent mode of transportation in the minds of the general public. If anything the design and evolution of software on the PC has shown how slow or fast things can happen particularly when you are trying to have a product that the "mainstream" would use. I believe that using the internet in the same manner that Linus Torvald uses to coordinate the creation of Linux serves as an excellent model for us to follow. My thought is that as long as you have a solid back-end software versioning/library/build system you could enlist the help of all sorts of people all over the world to create functionality that could be used in speeding along the acceptance of the Skycar into everyday use and life of people. |
| 3. | How Bees Land | Cordell Swannack | 07/26/2000 16:10 | An article about how Bee's land on things. Some good reminders as we get closer to starting System Development on Autopilot, Navigation, Control Systems software for the Skycar. They automatically slow down as they land, making their speed close to zero at touchdown. http://www.newscientist.com/nlc/0729/landing.html |
| 2. | Horizontal Flight | Skycar Guest International | 05/28/2000 19:19 | Why hasn't Moller beefed up the landing gear and produced a M400 model which can take off and land like a regular airplane? If the vehicle will perform according to specs it will fly faster then most light aircraft on the market today. It does not seem that it would be much work to adapt the existing gear to a usable version and get this thing in the air the usual way. At 350MPH ground speed on regular fuel I know plenty of pilots who would purchase on now with runway take-off and landing capabilities. At least they'd be selling them which would quiet critics AND raise money at the same time. |
| 1. | Outline of System Development Issues | Henry Lahore | 04/07/2000 16:43 | Posted March 2000 RTF format Please either edit the file 1)Reserve, 2)Download, 3)Edit, 4)Upload/Overwrite, 5)Release or add discussion items |