The upright invention from downunder

[mickjoebill]

Intriguing idea, tactile cuing pads on seat harness to indicate aircraft direction of flight..Technology tested by Army seeks to make flying safer by helping pilots stay level in the cockpit - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

Mjb

[rjtjrt]

The gent who came up with the idea and did the inventing is an American, Angus Rupert, as reported in the ABC article.
He gave a very interesting presentation about this a few months ago at a medical meeting.

[oldpax]

I did see in an RAF Comet in the c..kpit a nut hanging on a bit of string.Was told this was an emergency attitude indicator!!

[John Eacott]

Originally Posted by rjtjrt

The gent who came up with the idea and did the inventing is an American, Angus Rupert, as reported in the ABC article.
He gave a very interesting presentation about this a few months ago at a medical meeting.

According to the ABC article, the idea is a joint project between Angus Rupert and Braden McGrath, an Australian.

Mr McGrath is an Australian who has studied at the prestigious Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and wound up at the US Naval Aerospace Medical Research Lab where he met Mr Rupert.The pair have been developing tactile-cueing technology since the mid-1990s.

Mr McGrath said he believed, based on the test's results, Defence would move to the next phase. That would mean more test flights with more pilots.
The system's developers hope adoption of the technology will be faster in Australia than in the US.
"It moves rather slowly [there]," Mr Rupert said, of testing in the American military.

Parochial as it may be, it seems that there is some merit in the headline and its claims.

[casper64]

Originally Posted by oldpax

I did see in an RAF Comet in the c..kpit a nut hanging on a bit of string.Was told this was an emergency attitude indicator!!

Doesn't work if you fly nicely coordinated, string will stay pointing down even when flying upside down! A guy named Hoover proved this with a glass of water in an airliner performing a barrel roll...:-)

[Fareastdriver]

SLFs don't know that.

[John Eacott]

Originally Posted by casper64

Doesn't work if you fly nicely coordinated, string will stay pointing down even when flying upside down! A guy named Hoover proved this with a glass of water in an airliner performing a barrel roll...:-)

With a ball on a string below the glass

[Ascend Charlie]

Mirage fighters used the Cat-and-Brick instruments.

A cat always knows which way is up, so just match the cat's posture. For an instrument letdown, toss the brick out the window and formate on it.