I’m not sure how big the difference is on auto-pilot between marinecrafts and aircrafts, so apologies for including both in the question.
It sounds like it makes the ship/plane run itself, without any need for a person to control it, but how could that be the case? These machinaries sound like they should be steered and watched at all times. It sounds dangerous to leave them on an “auto” mode.
Is there an in-depth explaination behind what auto-pilot does? What are its limits? Is it possible to go wrong in some way, and if so, does it have some kind of alarm?
In: Technology
“Autopilot” is a vague term, so it might mean something different in different types of vehicles.
Computers small enough to be useful in airplanes have probably existed since the 70s. (I’m not sure about details, I’m not an expert, but I don’t think it matters, this is ELI5.) Altitude meters and compasses are based on technology that’s hundreds of years old. You could hook a computer up to those and the plane’s guidance systems and give it commands like “if the plan drops below 10,000 feet, make it go up. If it rises above 12,000 feet, make it go down. If it varies more than 10 degrees north or south of its current direction, make it go the other way.” That’s a basic autopilot. Can it land the plane safely or deal with a complex situation like a storm? No, but it’ll keep the plane going straight long enough for the copilot to take over if the pilot had a heart attack or something like that. A modern autopilot might be able to land a plane if necessary but it’s still just an emergency backup, not the main plan.
Autopilots designed to work without a human around at all have to be very advanced and are only really used when there’s no other option, like a Mars rover.
Latest Answers