Aircraft black box (flight recorder, recorder) is a device that is used in railway, water transport and aviation to record information onboard systems, crew communications, etc. If any incident happened to the transport, then this data used to find out why.
History
The first operational flight recorder appeared in 1939. The French Bodun and Hussenot designed a light-beam oscilloscope that records every flight parameter (speed, altitude, etc.). This was done by deflecting the corresponding mirror, which reflected a beam of light onto the film. According to one version, this is how the name “aircraft black box” appeared (see photo below), because its body was painted in this color in order to protect the film from flare. In 1947, enterprising inventors organized the French Society for Measuring Instruments. Over time, this company became a fairly large equipment manufacturer and merged into the Safran concern.
New modification
In 1953, the Australian scientist David Warren, who took part in the investigation of the Havilland liner disaster, put forward the idea that having records of crew conversations would be very helpful in such a case. The mechanism he proposed combined voice and parametric recorders, and also used magnetic tape for recording. Warren's recorder had an asbestos wrap and was packaged in a steel case. Probably, from here we have a different definition of the concept of an "aircraft black box" - an object with an unknown or unprincipled internal structure that performs certain functions.
David introduced the prototype device in 1956. He also came up with the bright color of the black box in the plane. Four years later, the Australian government ordered the installation of recorders on all existing aircraft. Other countries soon followed suit.
What's inside?
The black box of the aircraft, the photo of which you can see in the article, does not belong to the category of complex devices. This is a regular array of controller and flash memory chips. It is not much different from a standard laptop SSD. However, flash memory is used in registrars relatively recently. Now most aircraft are equipped with older models, where the recording is done on magnetic tape or wire.
Types of recorders
There are two types of registrars: operational and emergency. The first one is not protected andused for daily vehicle monitoring. The staff of railway, water and air transport reads information from the system's drives after each flight. Then the received data is analyzed for the presence of unacceptable actions by the crew during operation. For example:
- whether the maximum pitch or roll allowed by the manufacturer was exceeded;
- whether the G-load was exceeded during takeoff/landing;
- did you exceed the operating time in takeoff or afterburner modes, etc.
Also, this information allows you to track the depletion of the aircraft resource and perform timely maintenance work to reduce the frequency of failures of transport equipment and improve flight safety.
The emergency recorder features very reliable protection. In accordance with the requirements of the modern TSO-C124 standard, it ensures the safety of data for half an hour of continuous burning, with shock overloads of 3400 g, staying at a depth of 6 km for 30 days, as well as static overloads of 2 tons lasting up to 5 minutes. For comparison: recorders of the previous generation with magnetic tapes withstood a shock overload of only 1000 g and a burning time of up to 15 minutes. To facilitate searches, emergency recorders are equipped with sonar pingers and radio beacons.
What is it made of?
We will discuss the color of the black box in the plane below, but for now let's talk about the materials from which it is made. Recorders are made fromalloyed iron or titanium alloys. In any case, it is a heat-resistant and high-strength material. Although, for the most part, the safety of the recorders ensures their location in the body of the aircraft.
What color is the plane's black box?
The flight recorder is usually red or orange. Now you know what color the plane's black box is, and it is quite clear that its name has nothing to do with the actual color. The bright coloration was made to make it easier to find.
What parameters are registered?
Recorders are constantly being improved. The first black boxes read only 5 parameters: speed, time, vertical acceleration, altitude and heading. They were fixed with a stylus on a disposable metal foil. The last phase of the evolution of recorders dates back to the 90s, when solid-state media were put into operation. Modern recorders are capable of recording up to 256 parameters. Here are some of them:
- Remaining fuel.
- Instant fuel consumption.
- Pitch speed.
- Air pressure.
- Bank angle.
- Network voltage.
- Motor handle position.
- Side overload.
- Aileron introceptor deflection.
- Flap deflection.
- Helm deflection.
- Stabilizer deflection.
- Aileron deflection.
- Pitch, heading and roll control traverse.
- Steering wheel.
- Engine RPM.
- The number of revolutions of the engines.
- Vertical and lateral overloads.
- True height.
- Barometric altitude.
- Airspeed, etc.
Where is it?
The aircraft's black box is located in the tail section of the aircraft. There are several recorders on board. Backup models are needed in case of severe damage or inability to detect the main ones.
Earlier, speech and parametric recorders were separated: the first was installed in the cockpit, and the second - in the tail of the aircraft. However, due to the fact that the cockpit was destroyed more than the tail section in the crash, both recorders were mounted in the tail of the aircraft.
Airplane Black Box: Transcript
This is as mythical as the color of the recorder in its name. Remember: deciphering the black boxes of crashed planes is simply impossible. You will ask why? Yes, because the recorded data is not encrypted, and the word "transcript" itself is used in the same context as for journalists processing interview recordings. They write the text while listening to the recording of the dictaphone. The commission of experts does the same, fixing the data in a form convenient for perception and analysis. There is no encryption here: data protection from strangers is not provided, the information is available for reading at any airport. There is also no data protection from modification, because the recorder is designed to identify the causes of air crashes and reduce their number in the future. After all, forsuppression or distortion of the true causes of accidents for political or some other reasons, you can make a statement about serious damage to the registrars and the inability to read the information.
True, even with severe damage (about 30% of accidents), the black box of a crashed plane can still be reconstructed. Fragments of the tape are glued together and processed with a special mixture, and the surviving microcircuits are soldered and connected to the reader. These are rather complicated procedures carried out in special laboratories and take a lot of time.
Are there alternatives?
Now you know what an airplane black box is. Until now, this device is not considered 100% reliable. Are there any alternatives?
At the moment they simply do not exist, but engineers are constantly working to improve existing models. In the near future, they plan to transmit data from black boxes in real time either to air bases or to a satellite.
Boeing 777 captain Steve Abdu believes sending real-time data will require expensive satellite communications. But if you send at 4-5 minute intervals, this will significantly reduce the cost of the technology and increase the profitability of its application. Since the number of satellites on the planet is increasing every year, saving flight data on a remote device is the most likely alternative to long searches and time-consuming data decryption.
Also plans to installfired floating registrars. The collision of the aircraft with an obstacle will be recorded by special sensors, which will subsequently launch the ejection of the recorder with a parachute. A similar principle is already used in automotive airbags.
