IP Library Granted Patent US 12,643,674
Granted Patent B2
US 12,643,674 · App. 18/615,325 · Granted Jun 2, 2026

Flight recorder system and method

Inventors: Brian L. Douthitt (Holland, MI); Christopher Robert Eckert (East Grand Rapids, MI)
Assignee: GE Aviation Systems LLC
B64D45/00H04L12/40B64D2045/0065H04L2012/4028
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 12,643,674
App. No.
18/615,325
Granted
Jun 2, 2026
Kind
B2
Abstract

A flight recorder system of an aircraft includes a resource controller module (RCM) communicatively coupled, via a switch fabric, to a set of flight recorder system modules (FRM). Each FRM comprises a respective control module, a respective local memory, and a respective set of input and output (I/O) ports communicatively coupled to the switch fabric. The RCM is configured to detect a respective FRM coupled to the switch fabric, and based on the detection, configure an operation of the FRM, and wherein the respective local memory of the FRM is readable by the RCM, and shareable with the other FRMs via the switch fabric.

Claims (16)

1 . A method of operating a flight recorder system of an aircraft, the flight recorder system including a first flight recorder module (FRM) having a first local memory and a first set of memory-mapped I/O ports and a second FRM having a second local memory and a second set of memory-mapped I/O ports, comprising:

communicatively coupling a resource control module (RCM) to a switch fabric;

communicatively coupling the first FRM and second FRM to the switch fabric;

detecting, by the RCM, the first FRM;

reading, by the RCM, at least one of the first local memory and the first set of memory-mapped I/O ports of the first FRM;

configuring, by the RCM, an operation of the first FRM;

providing data to the first FRM;

saving a first portion of the data to the local memory of the first FRM;

configuring, by the RCM, the switch fabric to enable the control module of the second FRM to access the local memory of the first FRM; and

retrieving, by the second FRM, a second portion of the data from the first local memory of the first FRM;

wherein the first and second FRM respectively comprise one of a cockpit voice recorder (CVR), a flight data recorder (FDR), or a crash-survivable recorder (CSR).

2 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising instructing, by the RCM, the FRM to load software from a local memory.

3 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising configuring the switch fabric to enable the first FRM to access the local memory of the second FRM.

4 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the configuring, by the RCM, an operation of the first FRM is during a flight of the aircraft.

5 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the detecting by the RCM, of the first FRM includes at least one of a determination of a first FRM type and a number of I/O ports of the first FRM.

6 . The method of claim 5 , further comprising configuring, by the RCM, an operation of the switch fabric based on the determined FRM type.

Assignments (1)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Mar 27, 2024
From: DOUTHITT, BRIAN L.; ECKERT, CHRISTOPHER ROBERT
To: GE AVIATION SYSTEMS LLC
Reel/Frame 066918/0354 →
Continuity (2)
Continuation 17338847 · Jun 4, 2021
Related Publication 20240270407A1 · Aug 15, 2024
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