IEMID: A mobile multi-information display for surveillance data

This paper describes the mobile application that has been developed at the Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (ERAU) Next-Generation ERAU Applied Research (NEAR) Laboratory. ERAU Multi Information Display (EMID) displays surveillance information based on Automatic dependency Surveillance Broadcast (ADS-B) standards used in FAA Next-Generation Air-Traffic Management (ATM). The initial version of the EMID was developed at the request of the ERAU flight department, for the purpose of monitoring the university fleet of over 75 ADS-B equipped aircraft. The later version of the EMID had incorporated additional functionalities to provide a platform for test and evaluation of new concepts in ATM and National Airspace (NAS) Usage. One of the advantages of the EMID is the use of SWIM (System Wide Information Management) like architecture, which allows the display of ADS-B and TIS-B aircraft position data received from SWIM-like surveillance services. ADS-B and TIS-B aircraft are represented by symbols that have optional data blocks capable of displaying altitude, speed, heading, and latitude/longitude information. EMID uses a different color coding scheme to distinguish between the commercial (blue) and general aviation (green) traffic. This color coding scheme has proven to make the product more user friendly, and reduce the overall workload of the user in identifying potential en-route conflicts. A mobile device version of the EMID called iEMID, has been developed using iOS [1] which can be deployed on iPhone and iPad devices. iEMID is a mobile Geographical Information System (GIS) based application capable of displaying geospatial referenced data. It supports pan and zoom and allows the user the capability to turn on/off different data layers. iEMID is capable of displaying high fidelity ESRI shape files of airspace volumes and airport layouts for precise tracking of aircraft while taxiing on the airport surface. This paper will concentrate on the overall functionality of the EMID and iEMID, and discuss some of the advantages and disadvantages of the product. We will also discuss the supporting infrastructure that is needed to allow system functionality. For example, the ADS-B surveillance service hosted at the NEAR lab that manages several ground receivers.