What do pilot inputs actually mean to fly by wire aircraft?

Question

Is stick input considered “desired turn rate” “desired angle of attack” or something else?

In: 8

Answer 1

There is actually a code of federal regulations that dictate how the control surfaces should feel and react;

[https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/14/25.143](https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/14/25.143)

So, it is really bank angle and pitch angle the computer is interpreting based on the position of the stick in approximation of how the plane would handle if it was actuated directly by cabled or hydraulics.

Many of us have drive by wire cars, my brakes are drive by wire, so the resistance is totally arbitrary to the computer. Fortunately, modeling things like steering, braking, and throttle resistance is fairly simple.