Eagles Use AI to Improve Aviation Safety

An Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University researcher is using artificial intelligence to help model and predict in-flight loss-of-control incidents, which could help reduce a main cause of fatalities in commercial aviation.

“Many accidents happen due to Pilot-Induced Oscillations (PIO),” said Dr. Hever Moncayo, professor and graduate program coordinator in the Department of Aerospace Engineering and co-director of the Advanced Dynamics and Control Lab. PIOs are generally defined by human error — when a pilot takes control of an aircraft but overcorrects or takes actions that worsen a situation.

“The pilot is often not able to recover once the aircraft goes into PIO,” Moncayo added.

These events are usually due to fatigue, disorientation, aircraft failure or other conditions, he explained.

“This project looks at how we can monitor pilot behavior before getting into those conditions, and, if there is a mechanism that can monitor pilot behavior, then we can predict what the pilot should do to avoid PIOs,” said Moncayo.

He and his team of student researchers — which include doctorate student Rocío Jado Puente, and master’s students Gabriela Gavilánez Gallardo and Stephen Brutch — are collecting data from flight simulator trials, which will then use AI algorithms to predict and model pilot behavior to develop ways to mitigate accidents. Aerospace Engineering Ph.D. student Nathan Schaff and Aerospace Engineering undergraduate student Malena Nealon are pilots supporting the flight tests.

The research is one of five safety-related projects benefitting from a $20,000 seed grant awarded by the Boeing Center for Aviation and Aerospace Safety at Embry-Riddle and Embry-Riddle Daytona Beach College of Engineering. The grants, which were awarded for the first time earlier this year, totaled $100,000, with the College of Engineering contributing $80,000 and the Boeing Center funding $20,000.

“Safety is so complex in aviation and aerospace that it takes these multi-disciplinary efforts,” said Dr. Kristy Kiernan, associate director of the Boeing Center for Aviation and Aerospace Safety.

The collaborative effort highlights how different areas can work together at the university to solve aerospace and aviation problems, she said.

"Our intent with this program is to incentivize, support and catalyze groundbreaking work that will 'move the needle' and have a direct, positive impact on aviation safety,” said Dr. Jim Gregory, dean of the College of Engineering at the Daytona Beach Campus. “Our expectation is that these funded projects will lead to follow-on proposals for extramural funding."

Moncayo said the seed funding is helping him get preliminary research results for the project, which he plans to submit for additional funding to agencies like NASA and the National Science Foundation.

It is also providing valuable experience for Embry-Riddle students like Gavilánez Gallardo, whose research is focused on how AI models can be applied for Earth and space applications.

“In research, you are trying to contribute something novel to the field,” said Gavilánez Gallardo. “You also find out what you like, so you can find your passion and follow it.”

Other Funded Projects

Other projects that have received seed grants from the Boeing Center for Aviation & Aerospace Safety at Embry-Riddle and Embry-Riddle Daytona Beach College of Engineering are listed as follows:

• “Open-Source Validation and Verification Framework for AI-Controlled Aerial Vehicles,” with principal investigator Dr. M. Ilhan Akbas, associate professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Dept.
• “3D Printing of Continuous Carbon Fiber Composites With Programmable Thermal Behaviors: A Proactive Safety Design for Advanced Thermal Management,” with investigators Dr. Yizhou Jiang, assistant professor of Aerospace Engineering; Dr. Leitao Chen, assistant professor of Mechanical Engineering; and Dr. Yanbing Chen, assistant professor of Applied Aviation Sciences.
• “Robust Automatic Speech Recognition for Aviation Applications” with Dr. Jianhua Liu, associate professor and graduate program coordinator for the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, and Andrew Schneider, adjunct faculty member and Aviation English coordinator.
• “Fabrication of Copper Lithium-Ion Battery Case With Integrated Cooling Channels Using Binder Jetting Additive Manufacturing,” with Dr. Yue Zhou, assistant professor of Aerospace Engineering and Dr. Sirish Namilae, professor and Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering program coordinator.

Posted In: Aviation | Computers and Technology | Research