what is a device which controls the direction or course of a craft

How does an automatic direction finder work?

An automatic direction finder (ADF) operates off of a ground signal transmitted from a NDB. Early radio direction finders (RDF) used the same principle. A vertically polarized antenna was used to transmit LF frequency radio waves in the 190 kHz to 535 kHz range. A receiver on the aircraft was tuned to the transmission frequency of the NDB.

What controls the yaw of a plane?

The rudder controls yaw. Yoke – The aircraft control devices used by pilot for changes in attitude, as well as pitch and roll movement. Zulu Time – A term synonymous with UTC (Universal Coordinated Time), which is the same as Greenwich Mean Time.

How does a navigator determine the direction of a ship?

A navigator determines the bearing (the compass direction from the craft's current position) of the next waypoint. Because water currents or wind can cause a craft to drift off course, a navigator sets a course to steer that compensates for drift.

What controls the rudder on a plane?

rudder pedals, or the earlier, pre-1919 "rudder bar", to control yaw, which move the rudder; left foot forward will move the rudder left for instance. throttle controls to control engine speed or thrust for powered aircraft. The control yokes also vary greatly amongst aircraft.

How does mechanical flight control work?

With purely mechanical flight control systems, the aerodynamic forces on the control surfaces are transmitted through the mechanisms and are felt directly by the pilot, allowing tactile feedback of airspeed. With hydromechanical flight control systems, however, the load on the surfaces cannot be felt and there is a risk of overstressing the aircraft through excessive control surface movement. To overcome this problem, artificial feel systems can be used. For example, for the controls of the RAF 's Avro Vulcan jet bomber and the RCAF 's Avro Canada CF-105 Arrow supersonic interceptor (both 1950s-era designs), the required force feedback was achieved by a spring device. The fulcrum of this device was moved in proportion to the square of the air speed (for the elevators) to give increased resistance at higher speeds. For the controls of the American Vought F-8 Crusader and the LTV A-7 Corsair II warplanes, a 'bob-weight' was used in the pitch axis of the control stick, giving force feedback that was proportional to the airplane's normal acceleration.

What is the primary control of an aircraft?

Generally, the primary cockpit flight controls are arranged as follows: a control yoke (also known as a control column), centre stick or side-stick (the latter two also colloquially known as a control or joystick ), governs the aircraft's roll and pitch by moving the ailerons (or activating wing warping on some very early aircraft designs) ...

What are the parts of a flight control system?

A hydro-mechanical flight control system has two parts: 1 The mechanical circuit, which links the cockpit controls with the hydraulic circuits. Like the mechanical flight control system, it consists of rods, cables, pulleys, and sometimes chains. 2 The hydraulic circuit, which has hydraulic pumps, reservoirs, filters, pipes, valves and actuators. The actuators are powered by the hydraulic pressure generated by the pumps in the hydraulic circuit. The actuators convert hydraulic pressure into control surface movements. The electro-hydraulic servo valves control the movement of the actuators.

How does the F-35 fly by wire work?

In power-by-wire systems, the power is carried to the actuators by electrical cables. These are lighter than hydraulic pipes, easier to install and maintain, and more reliable. Elements of the F-35 flight control system are power-by-wire. The actuators in such an electro-hydrostatic actuation (EHA) system are self-contained hydraulic devices, small closed-circuit hydraulic systems. The overall aim is towards more- or all-electric aircraft and an early example of the approach was the Avro Vulcan. Serious consideration was given to using the approach on the Airbus A380.

What is the mechanical circuit?

The mechanical circuit, which links the cockpit controls with the hydraulic circuits. Like the mechanical flight control system, it consists of rods, cables, pulleys, and sometimes chains. The hydraulic circuit, which has hydraulic pumps, reservoirs, filters, pipes, valves and actuators.

What is a fly by wire?

A fly-by-wire (FBW) system replaces manual flight control of an aircraft with an electronic interface. The movements of flight controls are converted to electronic signals transmitted by wires (hence the term fly-by-wire ), and flight control computers determine how to move the actuators at each control surface to provide the expected response. Commands from the computers are also input without the pilot's knowledge to stabilize the aircraft and perform other tasks. Electronics for aircraft flight control systems are part of the field known as avionics .

What is a stick shaker?

A stick shaker is a device that is attached to the control column in some hydraulic aircraft. It shakes the control column when the aircraft is approaching stall conditions. Some aircraft such as the McDonnell Douglas DC-10 are equipped with a back-up electrical power supply that can be activated to enable the stick shaker in case of hydraulic failure.

What is the motion of a ship?

In maneuvering, a ship experiences yaw (rotation about a vertical axis) and sway (sideways motion). More generally, motions are possible in all six degrees of freedom, the other four being roll (rotation about a longitudinal axis), pitch (rotation about a transverse axis), heave (vertical motion), and surge ...

How to determine directional stability?

In a rough sense, directional stability or instability can be determined by examination of the ship’s underwater profile.

What is directionally unstable?

A ship is said to be directionally stable if a deviation from a set course increases only while an external force or moment is acting to cause the deviation. On the other hand, it is said to be unstable if a course deviation begins or continues even in the absence of an external cause. A directionally unstable ship is easy to maneuver, ...

What happens when a ship encounters head seas?

When the period of encounter with head seas is close to the natural pitching period of the hull, slamming of the bow and cascading of waves upon the forward decks are possible consequences. The most common response to such a hazard is slowing the ship to avoid the resonance.

Why do ships have bilge keels?

Many ships are fitted with “ bilge keels ” in an attempt to dampen roll. These are long, narrow fins projecting from the hull in the area where the bottom of the hull meets the side. Bilge keels are effective in reducing roll, but they are much less effective than other measures.

What is an approach in aviation?

Approach – The phase of flight when the pilot intends to land on the runway. There are different types of approaches, depending on whether the pilot is flying VFR or IFR. Apron – The paved area at an airport where aircraft park, fuel, load, and unload.

What is an upwind leg?

Upwind Leg – The flight path in an airport pattern that runs parallel to the runway landing direction, along the same direction the aircraft will be landing. Useful Load – The weight of the items that can be taken out of the aircraft, including fuel, passengers, cargo, pilots, etc.

What is an airfoil?

Airfoil – The cross-sectional shape of a wing, blade, turbine, or rotor that produces lift. Airline – A company or organization that offers regularly scheduled flights and routes. Airspace Classes – The different types of airspace defined by ICAO and adopted around the world.

What is the difference between sideslip and skid?

Sideslip – An aircraft movement that typically aligns with the lateral force of the wind and results in a sideways flow. Skid – The sliding and outward pivoting movement of the aircraft that occurs as a result of a shallow turn.

What is a flap in an airplane?

Flaps – Flaps are a kind of high-lift device used to increase the lift of an aircraft wing at a given airspeed. Flat devices, typically located on the edges of a an aircraft wing, that control lift at specific speeds. Flare – A maneuver that typically occurs during the landing stage of an aircraft.

What is cargo in aviation?

Cargo – Goods carried on an aircraft. Ceiling – The height of the lowest cloud layer or obscuring phenomena that is reported as “broken”, “overcast”, or “obscuration”, and not classified as “thin” or “partial”. Center of Gravity (CG) – The longitudinal and lateral point over which the aircraft would balance.

What does DA mean in physics?

DA – Density Altitude – Density altitude is the air density given as a height above mean sea level. The density altitude is considered to be the pressure altitude adjusted for a non-standard temperature.

What is the name of the instrument that shows the altitude of an airplane?

Altimeter. One of the simplest instruments to understand, the Altimeter displays your aircraft’s current altitude. The large hand indicates hundreds of feet, whilst the small hand indicates thousands of feet. Also on this instrument is your pressure setting, which should be adjusted as directed by air traffic control to ...

What does the horizon instrument show?

The instrument shows a basic view of your aircraft and wings, and the horizon .

What happens when an aircraft is descending?

If the aircraft is descending, the aircraft will move below the horizon, and if climbing it will be above the horizon. The markings around the edge of the attitude indicator show the angle of bank as an additional reference when turning the aircraft in non-visual conditions.

What is a glass cockpit?

Of course, every aircraft cockpit is different and many modern types now have what is known as a glass cockpit, where screens display all of the relevant information to the pilot. However, all aircraft have six basic “flight instruments” that are available to the pilot and are used in every flight.

What is an airspeed indicator?

The Airspeed Indicator, or ASI, displays the aircraft’s indicated air speed, or how fast it is travelling through the air. The ASI in most aircraft displays the speed in Knots, but yours may be different and show Miles Per Hour.

How does an automatic direction finder work?

A vertically polarized antenna was used to transmit LF frequency radio waves in the 190 kHz to 535 kHz range . A receiver on the aircraft was tuned to the transmission frequency of the NDB. Using a loop antenna, the direction to (or from) the antenna could be determined by monitoring the strength of the signal received. This was possible because a radio wave striking a loop antenna broadside induces a null signal. When striking it in the plane of the loop, a much stronger signal is induced. The NDB signals were modulated with unique Morse code pulses that enabled the pilot to identify the beacon to which he or she was navigating.

What is the pointer on an ADF antenna?

The pointer then points to the magnetic bearing the ADF broadcast antenna. In modern ADF systems, an additional antenna is used to remove the ambiguity concerning whether the aircraft is heading to or from the transmitter. It is called a sense antenna. The reception field of the sense antenna is omnidirectional.

What does 0° mean on an ADF?

0° is fixed at the top of the instrument and the pointer always indicates the relative bearing to the ADF transmission antenna. To fly to the station, the pilot turns the aircraft until the ADF pointer indicates 0°.

Is ADF antenna directional?

Technicians should note that the installation of the ADF antenna is critical to a correct indication since it is a directional device. Calibration with the longitudinal axis of the fuselage or nose of the aircraft is important. A single null reception area must exist in the correct direction.

Which stick controls the yaw?

The left stick lets you control the yaw and throttle of your drone, allowing you to control the height at which you fly and letting you rotate the drone clockwise or counterclockwise in flight.

What is a flight controller?

A flight controller is a circuit board that manages the drone’s flight. Put simply, the flight controller’s job is to control the power, or RPM (Revolutions Per Minute), for each individual motor on the drone in response to the information received from the drone controller.

How to turn a drone to the right?

Just turning your drone to the right requires the radio signal to be sent from the drone controller, received by the receiver, turned into action by the flight controller, and then sent through the ESCs to the drone’s motors , where the turn can then be executed.

How does a drone work?

With a drone, each motor has its own ESC , which connects directly to the flight controller. Affer the flight controller computes the exact inputs needed to make a certain maneuver it directs the amount of power needed through the ESCs to the drone’s motors.

What is a drone receiver?

Drone Receiver. The receiver on a drone is an electronic device that uses built-in antennas to receive radio signals from the drone controller. But the receiver doesn’t just receive signals from the drone controller. It also interprets the signals and converts them into alternating current pulses.

How to move a drone with a remote controller?

Drone Remote Controller Terminology. There are four primary ways to move a drone using your controller: Roll. Moves your drone left or right in the air, literally “rolling” your drone. Pitch. Tilts your drone forward or backward. Yaw.

What is a drone radio transmitter?

Radio signals are sent from the radio transmitter in the drone controller and received by the drone’s receiver. This is why the drone controller is sometimes simply called the drone radio transmitter or the drone radio controller.

Overview

A conventional fixed-wing aircraft flight control system consists of flight control surfaces, the respective cockpit controls, connecting linkages, and the necessary operating mechanisms to control an aircraft's direction in flight. Aircraft engine controls are also considered as flight controls as they change speed.
The fundamentals of aircraft controls are explained in flight dynamics. This article centers on th…

Cockpit controls

Flight control systems

Research

See also

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