Information

FlightViz is an interactive visualization environment, which instantly creates real-time, interactive, high fidelity graphical depictions of flight and simulator data.

Several different methods of data visualization are available ranging from graphs, spreadsheets, and navigational charts to synchronized video and detailed three-dimensional graphic animations of the flight.

FlightViz is a commercial, off-the-shelf, windows-based, software system that enables quick and easy creation of fully interactive, high fidelity, 3D graphical representations of data from aircraft, simulators, and other data sources.

FlightViz is the most effective tool available today to analyze complex aircraft data and then quickly communicate the training and safety implications of that data to pilots, management and other non-technical audiences. The speed and effectiveness of this kind of communication can directly affect the efficiency and effectiveness of operations, the proficiency of pilots and the safety of passengers.

Versions of FlightViz - Authoring and Player
Customers can choose between two versions of FlightViz, depending on their specific needs and the amount of flexibility they desire.

FlightViz Authoring allows the customer to use the full capabilities of FlightViz to configure and/or reconfigure the way data is displayed. This gives users maximum flexibility to choose how they will animate their data and which display options they will use to communicate that information.
FlightViz Player is a wizard-based product that allows the user to specify the input data and play back configurations that have been created as templates in a FlightViz Authoring system. This system gives the user the same degree of interactivity found in FlightViz Authoring. This product is generally used for simulator debrief applications.

Feature-rich System
FlightViz is a feature-rich visualization system. We offer the most extensive list of optional display modules, allowing our customers more flexibility to display data in the way that best suits their needs. For example, our customers can display navigational charts or plan/profile views of the aircraft. They can generate airport runways and surrounding terrain using digital databases.

Data Driven
FlightViz is unique in that it has a data-driven architecture. This means that FlightViz has the capability to automatically configure and reconfigure displays dynamically, at run time, based on the flight data being read. For example, if an aircraft flies from Dallas to San Francisco, FlightViz can track the ICAO values in the data set and automatically load the relevant databases and display the correct navigation charts, airport runways, terrain, plan and profile views, etc., for the appropriate airport.

Real-time System, Interactive
The interactivity of FlightViz allows users to examine data and communicate findings in the way that best suits them.

Preserves the actual pace of a flight
View the flight from any angle, even inside the cockpit
Select and review specific segments of the flight
Move backwards and forwards in time without losing synchronization
View data visualization synchronized with actual cockpit video and audio recordings
Supported Platform
FlightViz runs on a PC-based, Windows 2000 platform (Service pack 2).

Architecture Based on Standards
FlightViz is designed with an architecture that makes maximum use of existing systems and graphical assets (aircraft models, instruments, airport databases). FlightViz software is compatible with:

Most common commercially available ground readout station (GDRAS) software, including
Honeywell's ADRAS
Spirent's GRAF
Teledyne's FLIDRAS III
Austin Digital's FDV
Avionica's AVSCAN
L3's ROC/ROSE
British Airways' FDT/BASIS
Smiths Industries

Scene/object modeling tools
MultiGen
Designer's Workbench
GEO

SimAuthor's business approach is to work with any software or hardware vendor with the common interest of providing integrated, end-to-end, seamless solutions to the airline industry for flight/simulator data analysis and visualization.

Scalable, Modular
Only SimAuthor offers a scaleable solution that enables customers to select a level of performance depending on the user 's performance requirements and budget.

Products are broken into modules to enable customers to purchase only the needed capability, but upgrade later if desired. In addition, the product can be easily extended, and it can be modified to show custom airline livery or military paint schemes. There is a long life cycle due to the modular design.

Articulated Aircraft Model Library
FlightViz has an available library of dimensionally precise, fully articulated aircraft models. Customers can use generic aircraft models from SimAuthor's library or SimAuthor can create aircraft models to meet the customer's specific needs, including their own livery.

Examples:

777

F-18

High Fidelity Instrument Library
There are a variety of generic and aircraft-specific instruments and panels currently in SimAuthor's library. SimAuthor can easily modify existing instruments or panels to meet the customer's specific needs. In addition, SimAuthor can create a completely new instrument display panel, based on a customer's specific configuration.

MD88 instrument panel

Visual Database Re-use
In some cases, SimAuthor can convert existing, dimensionally precise, visually correct, highly valuable training simulator visual databases to a format suitable for use in FlightViz on desktop workstations, thereby saving time and money, as well as preserving consistency between training simulators and desktop PCs.

Affordable Entry and Deployment
SimAuthor offers a cost-effective entry price point to facilitate investment in FlightViz technology by virtually any organization, as well as providing large airlines, training companies, and military organizations affordable options for mass deployment of this technology within their companies. Our entry platform can be easily upgraded to the higher performance system.

Industry Involvement
We are committed to ensuring that there is an ongoing, interactive dialog between our user base and our FlightViz development team to ensure that products meet the needs of the industry.

Satisfies Safety, Training, Maintenance and Engineering Requirements
SimAuthor products have been designed from the onset to satisfy multiple organizational requirements, including safety, training, maintenance, and engineering. Our products are cost-effective for cross-organizational use, saving additional expense by sharing and reusing assets and data. Cross-department use of FlightViz facilitates communication among the different groups.

Graphical, WYSIWYG User Interface
FlightViz is easy to learn and use, requiring minimal training, with a low cost of ownership. Analysts trained to use FlightViz can produce animations within minutes of receiving data.

FlightViz Applications:

Training
Flight & simulator briefing/debriefing
Classroom training
Instructor standardization
Maneuver & SOP reinforcement
Situation awareness
Data analysis

Safety
Flight Operations Quality Assurance
(FOQA and M-FOQA)
Accident/incident investigation

Operational Support
Mission planning and rehearsal
After-action review
Flight test/range control

Airport Familiarization
Approached
departures
Cockpit-ATC communication
Airport information