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nuckolls.bob(at)aeroelect
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 Posted: Tue Jun 08, 2010 9:50 am Post subject: Ammeter, voltmeter and other diagnostics |
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At 11:42 PM 6/7/2010, you wrote:
Bob,
I'll attempt to explain myself in the fewest words.
I meant no offense to you. Your concepts are excellent and your contribution to aviation and aviation safety is renowned. We all owe you - some of us in treasury and others for our lives.
No offense taken. 1800 other folks have an opportunity
to read this exchange and I'm only attempting to
maximize the benefits for taking the time to do
it . . .
1. I say, yes, DEPEND on electrical information while airborne. I do DEPEND on cockpit information while airborne - whether it is electrical information, or something else, such as airspeed indication. I analyze presented information (electrical or otherwise) to determine if the system is properly functioning. If my airspeed indication appears to be erroneous, I have several backup plans. If my electrical indications are non-normal, I have several backup plans. The backup plans are not crisis management in the cockpit nor are they devised "on the fly."
But you're speaking of data important to
the OPERATION of the airplane where missing or
bad data increases risk. One does have a
dependence on the quality of such data.
2. I concur that investigation, deduction, design and planning are best done on the ground. Crisis management should not be done in the cockpit. Management of a crisis is pre-planned - detailed thought in advance is vital. Having a detailed plan of action for all of the situations you can expect allows you to adjust when an unplanned situation presents itself. That has happened to me several times - once when a never-happened-before malfunction occurred and forced me to eject. Ground preparation is critical to success in a non-normal situation and cockpit information is critical to assessing the situation and making the correct decision.
Here is where we may have a disconnect. I'm suggesting
that there is NO situation where the artfully crafted
and maintained electrical system offers ANY risk
for an 'unplanned' situation.
3. I can guarantee you that my desire for cockpit information is not due to "a lack of confidence in understanding the system." I, and I suspect all pilots, study our aircraft systems in detail and have a plan of attack in the event of systems failures. Implementation of your electrical concepts, say Z-11, should not preclude having electrical information in the cockpit. Furthermore, that information can help the pilot analyze the malfunction - which will lead to a better decision.
Which goes to my question as to what single failure
in Z-13/8 where informing the pilot of any voltage
or current ANYWHERE in the system would aid in-flight
analysis of the situation and encourage an action
DIFFERENT than a prearranged Plan-B?
4. I'll bet a dollar that if the membership of this list were polled, the consensus perception would be as James described - that is, your electrical plan B is intended to make airborne decisions simpler - or put another way, more "idiot-proof." So, if I have misinterpreted your offerings, others likely have, too. You profess that fuses and/or circuit breakers should not be reachable by the pilot. You profess that pilots do not need electrical data in the cockpit for fear they may try to analyze that data instead of defaulting to plan B. Your concepts are well thought out, but the result (or perception) is that the pilot is removed from the decision process in the event of an electrical non-normal. Thus, the airplane is made more "idiot-proof."
I prefer to call it free of distraction and
attendant risks for being distracted. I.e.,
no problems that are not comfortably handled
by Plan-B. Simplicity is part and parcel of
that goal.
I have the highest regard for the depth of your electrical knowledge. My decades of flying knowledge have proven to me that having information in the cockpit is important. As you have stated, analysis is best done on the ground - I call that preparation. But, application must be done in the air. Information in the cockpit is important in any non-normal situation - even electrical.
Reliable OPERATIONAL information is not a component
of this discussion. DIAGNOSTIC information cannot
be utilized in flight without causing the observer
to be something other than a pilot. Do you not agree
that the elegant design offers a high probability for
comfortable termination of flight without taxing
the pilot with a decision making study based on
diagnostic data?
If this IS a noble and just cause, then what potential
failures does an architecture like Z-13/8 have that
would render any Plan-B ineffective and force the
pilot into a diagnostic mode? If any such failure
is identified, what voltage or current data points would
you add to the panel displays to isolate the failure?
What words would you add to emergency procedures in the
POH to assist in gathering, evaluating, and making a
useful decision based on available data?
To my way of thinking, the emergency procedures page
for the elegant electrical system is perhaps one
simple paragraph that requires NO analysis of data.
This has always been a design goal of the Z-figures
and the thrust of recipes for success offered in
Chapter 17.
As soon as we add data to the panel displays, there's
an implication of value. If that data has value
for reducing risk, then there is a presumption
that the pilot already knows how to use the
data. Alternatively you write more paragraphs into the
emergency procedures section.
This isn't about anyone's personal preferences to
put LOTS of numbers on the panel. It's about
the simple-idea that the numbers MEAN something.
If that meaning has anything to do with OPERATION
of the airplane, then it's part of the transition
training into the aircraft. If it's part of the
DIAGNOSTICS, then how do we confirm that the pilot
knows the significance of the numbers AND will
make good decisions therefrom?
I've had dozens of conversations with builders
over the counter at OSH where we considered his/
her decision to spend $killo$ on really nice
glass that puts LOTS of numbers on the panel.
My questions of that builder were always the same.
What numbers? What do they mean in terms of
operation or diagnostics? How do you plan to
use those numbers in flight? Are you going to
write and practice procedures for making
the correct decisions and taking the correct
actions? Most didn't have answers. This suggests
that the value of lots-of-numbers was not
known. This makes it almost a certainty that
during non-normal operations, availability
of lots of numbers will add to risk.
Of course, those are the extreme examples.
The question that started this thread was
an inquiry into what electrical system voltages
and/or currents are of greatest value to a pilot.
My question of ANYONE on the List remains: "Where
do we find value in knowing the numbers for more
voltages and currents and how would they
be used?"
Bob . . . [quote][b]
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flyboybob1(at)gmail.com
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| Posted: Tue Jun 08, 2010 3:01 pm Post subject: Ammeter, voltmeter and other diagnostics |
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Bob, wrote:
<< Reliable OPERATIONAL information is not a component of this discussion. DIAGNOSTIC information cannot be utilized in flight without causing the observer to be something other than a pilot. Do you not agree that the elegant design offers a high probability for comfortable termination of flight without taxing the pilot with a decision making study based on diagnostic data? >>
I have a friend that has an EIS and GPS system in his homebuilt. Each time he takes a flight the EIS and GPS are connected to his laptop to gather data every couple of seconds for every parameter monitored by these instruments. When there is a problem he focuses on flying the airplane. Afther he has landed safely, the data is in his laptop to go back and look at what happened. There is a time for flying and a time for figuring out root cause of problems. As I hear Bob, these are both important duties but only flying is important while airborne. With all the digital equipment we are putting in our airplanes, it is not a big step to connect it up to your laptop and log all kinds of information to be used if and when we need it later to solve a problem. If we look at this thread as finding ways to "log" all the data we can during a flight rather than "displaying" all the information we can during the flight, we will be the safest we can be; Design goal #1 for everybody
Regards,
Bob Lee
[quote][b]
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