A self-separation algorithm for width-limited high density air corridor*

Abstract

Algorithms for self-separation of aircraft operating in a one-way high density air corridor are discussed. In the air corridor, which is considered as a tube or band-shaped piece of airspace that connects high-demand areas, only aircraft capable of self-separation may operate. It is required that all the aircraft fly in the same direction while maintaining safety without instructions of air traffic controllers. To realize high traffic throughput without losing safety, aircraft should be self-separated in an appropriate manner. Additionally, aircraft must operate inside of the assigned airspace for the air corridor operations. In this paper, an algorithm for self-separation of aircraft in a width-limited band-shaped piece of airspace has been developed. The algorithm determines maneuvers for conflict avoidance using information of surrounding aircraft. It is demonstrated that all the aircraft are able to self-separate without conflict in the width-limited air corridor. It is also demonstrated that self-separation using current state information results in a deadlock in the narrow air corridor. As the corridor width increases, aircraft are able to maintain the separation through the use of heading changes while maintaining their optimum speed. Additionally, it is indicated that the installation of sub-route and utilization of optimum speed information prevent a deadlock even though the corridor width is narrow.

A Framework for the Assessment of Distributed Self-Separation Procedures for Air Traffic in Flow Corridors

“…The completely speed-independent mode is a variant of the speed-independent with passing mode that permits aircraft to remain permanently on the passing lane [19], [23], [24]. In this procedure, all lanes are treated as the nominal lanes for each aircraft, as shown in Figure 3.…”

Assessment of Small Unmanned Aerial Systems Operations in the National Airspace System

“…Necessary airborne equipment includes Airborne Separation Assistance System (ASAS) software, complemented by the Traffic Alert and Collision Avoidance System, and Automatic Dependent Surveillance Broadcast (ADS-B). The principle of operation assumes that all aircraft will periodically broadcast information such as position and velocity vector; all aircraft are thus able to selfseparate based on the information (Nakamura & Takeichi, 2016). Specifically, the ASAS software provides the appropriate guidance to ensure separation from other aircraft and from other restricted airspace.…”