Advanced human-machine interfaces now making their debut on business jets are finding their way into helicopter cockpits. With a design philosophy similar to that of the Honeywell Primus Epic avionics suite, implemented on the Dassault Falcon and Gulfstream business jets under the EASy and PlaneView concepts, the Thales interactive flight management and map system (IFMS) brings a joystick under the rotorcraft pilot’s hand, making navigation and flight management functions available in what the French avionics maker claims will be a simpler way.
The IFMS combines navigation data and a digital map on the same display with a more intuitive human-machine interface. Thales sees the new system as providing better situational awareness and significantly reducing pilot workload because the digital map control device, a joystick, allows quick interaction. For example, the pilot can activate complex FMS functions in a straightforward manner using the joystick.