ANALYSIS AND SIMULATION OF COLLISION AVOIDANCE TCAS ANTENNAS MOUNTED ON AIRCRAFT

Abstract

Traffic-alert and Collision Avoidance systems (TCAS) are being developed by order of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to assist aircraft pilots in mid-air collision avoidance. This paper discusses computer models developed to simulate the radiation patterns of TCAS arrays mounted on the fuselage of any aircraft. Computer models are also used to calculate and evaluate the errors in estimating the bearing of aircraft in the vicinity of a TCAS-equipped airplane. The performance of two TCAS systems mounted on a Boeing 737 aircraft are studied and compared. [Vol. 6, No. 1, pp. 112-139 (1991), Special Issue on Applications of High Frequency Methods and Computer Techniques in Electromagnetics]