New Technologies for Pattern
04-22-2015 | 10:29 AM
#1
Thread Starter
New Technologies for Pattern
Howdy all,
Having witnessed the development and implementation of Peter Vogel's electronic scoring system, My old creaky brain came up with a couple more possible ideas for new technology to move pattern forward into the future.
1. Judging remains one of the biggest problem areas in pattern. Impression judging, lack of knowledge or education, personal bias (nah, that does not happen) and other human factors that result in lack of uniformity and fairness in judging are among the issues.
So how about a standardized sensor package that utilizes GPS, inertial feedback or what ever wizardry that some clever persons may come up with, that would transfer from aircraft to aircraft during a contest. Imaging going up to the flight line, flying your flight, then having the results transmitted real time to (Peter Vogel's) scoring system. No long sessions sitting in the judging chair craning your neck and getting sunburned. Fair and unbiased. No more pissing contests or harboring a grudge from that disputed score.
2. A sort of TCAS (Traffic Collision Avoidance System) similar to the one used by full size aircraft. Bye Bye mid-airs between big-buck pattern airplanes. Three flight lines? No worries.
Or- maybe both systems integrated into one. We went to the freakin' moon, this could be done as well. Someone has to dream it up.
Robert
Having witnessed the development and implementation of Peter Vogel's electronic scoring system, My old creaky brain came up with a couple more possible ideas for new technology to move pattern forward into the future.
1. Judging remains one of the biggest problem areas in pattern. Impression judging, lack of knowledge or education, personal bias (nah, that does not happen) and other human factors that result in lack of uniformity and fairness in judging are among the issues.
So how about a standardized sensor package that utilizes GPS, inertial feedback or what ever wizardry that some clever persons may come up with, that would transfer from aircraft to aircraft during a contest. Imaging going up to the flight line, flying your flight, then having the results transmitted real time to (Peter Vogel's) scoring system. No long sessions sitting in the judging chair craning your neck and getting sunburned. Fair and unbiased. No more pissing contests or harboring a grudge from that disputed score.
2. A sort of TCAS (Traffic Collision Avoidance System) similar to the one used by full size aircraft. Bye Bye mid-airs between big-buck pattern airplanes. Three flight lines? No worries.
Or- maybe both systems integrated into one. We went to the freakin' moon, this could be done as well. Someone has to dream it up.
Robert
04-23-2015 | 03:51 PM
#2
A pure sensor package in the plane won't work, the pattern is to be flown not as the plane sees it (as in IAC) but as seen from the ground.
That said, The SoloShot2 camera controller is capable of tracking my pattern plane very effectively (as long as I keep my up/downlines at a reasonable speed) using a beacon that weighs less than an ounce which I mount on top of my battery directly above the wing tube (i.e. very close to the CG). It's clear from watching a video shot with this that the device is actually tracking the exact geometry that the plane flew. Add the third dimension (which is there because it controls the zoom of the camera to keep the plane the same size in the frame the whole time (within the limits of the zoom)) and you have a pretty good sense of the plane's location in space, track, etc. for the purposes of judging.
It would be a lot of data to interpret though, and you'd have to know when one maneuver ends and another begins to score each maneuver appropriately.
Some day, when I'm rich & retired, I'll play with it, if someone hasn't beaten me to it! :-)
Peter+
That said, The SoloShot2 camera controller is capable of tracking my pattern plane very effectively (as long as I keep my up/downlines at a reasonable speed) using a beacon that weighs less than an ounce which I mount on top of my battery directly above the wing tube (i.e. very close to the CG). It's clear from watching a video shot with this that the device is actually tracking the exact geometry that the plane flew. Add the third dimension (which is there because it controls the zoom of the camera to keep the plane the same size in the frame the whole time (within the limits of the zoom)) and you have a pretty good sense of the plane's location in space, track, etc. for the purposes of judging.
It would be a lot of data to interpret though, and you'd have to know when one maneuver ends and another begins to score each maneuver appropriately.
Some day, when I'm rich & retired, I'll play with it, if someone hasn't beaten me to it! :-)
Peter+
04-23-2015 | 07:35 PM
#3
Thread Starter
A pure sensor package in the plane won't work, the pattern is to be flown not as the plane sees it (as in IAC) but as seen from the ground.
That said, The SoloShot2 camera controller is capable of tracking my pattern plane very effectively (as long as I keep my up/downlines at a reasonable speed) using a beacon that weighs less than an ounce which I mount on top of my battery directly above the wing tube (i.e. very close to the CG). It's clear from watching a video shot with this that the device is actually tracking the exact geometry that the plane flew. Add the third dimension (which is there because it controls the zoom of the camera to keep the plane the same size in the frame the whole time (within the limits of the zoom)) and you have a pretty good sense of the plane's location in space, track, etc. for the purposes of judging.
It would be a lot of data to interpret though, and you'd have to know when one maneuver ends and another begins to score each maneuver appropriately.
Some day, when I'm rich & retired, I'll play with it, if someone hasn't beaten me to it! :-)
Peter+
That said, The SoloShot2 camera controller is capable of tracking my pattern plane very effectively (as long as I keep my up/downlines at a reasonable speed) using a beacon that weighs less than an ounce which I mount on top of my battery directly above the wing tube (i.e. very close to the CG). It's clear from watching a video shot with this that the device is actually tracking the exact geometry that the plane flew. Add the third dimension (which is there because it controls the zoom of the camera to keep the plane the same size in the frame the whole time (within the limits of the zoom)) and you have a pretty good sense of the plane's location in space, track, etc. for the purposes of judging.
It would be a lot of data to interpret though, and you'd have to know when one maneuver ends and another begins to score each maneuver appropriately.
Some day, when I'm rich & retired, I'll play with it, if someone hasn't beaten me to it! :-)
Peter+
Robert
05-12-2015 | 05:20 PM
#4
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Nah I don't like the sound of that. Making pattern more expensive and complicated than it already is isn't a step in the right direction, and the human element of judging is important for setting trends that we all kind of abide to (how fast we fly, how close, how our airplanes look, etc.)
