ATSB Engineering Internship Projects 01 Boeing 787 data file converter The Boeing 787 is fitted with a recording system that is different to previous aircraft. Rather than conforming to an ARINC 717 standard, it uses the new ARINC 767 standard. The data is also recorded and packaged into an RDF format which contains the data and audio. Understand the ARINC 767 data format and use that knowledge to build on previously developed tool which extracts the individual components of the 787 RDF file into useable data and audio. The audio quality of the current tool is below that of a download using the manufacturer s equipment. Software Estimated Duration 3 weeks 02 3 Path builder in Google earth There are documented procedures to conduct approaches at difference airport. It is often useful to compare the actual vertical profile with the defined profile. Research the availability of a data base of approach profiles from Airservices Australia. Develop a utility that allows the user to generate the actual approach profile from flight data, and compare it against the expected profile. A component of the student s task will be to determine the investigator s requirements regarding possible inputs and desired outputs from the utility. Estimated Duration 3 Weeks
03 X-Plane flight recorder interface X-Plane is an open source flight simulator. The software gives the capability to input flight recorder data to control the aircraft. Gain familiarity with the full capability of X-Plane. Review other investigation board (AAIB UK and NTSB) solutions using X-Plane. Develop an efficient procedure to generate an animation in X-Plane. This could include acquisition of aircraft models, determining the minimum data parameter requirements for creating an animation, creating a utility to auto-format data into the appropriate format, Sufficient documentation to allow the average investigator to create an animation. Estimated Duration 2-3 Weeks 04 Animation tool It is often useful to display complex accident scenarios or failure sequence via graphical means. Determine the feasibility of using Unreal Engine and/or Blendr as an Animation tool for the ATSB. Including flight recorder data animations and mechanical failure animations as well as integrating site images taken by the ATSB RPAS. Estimated Duration 3 Week 05 Utility to provide elevations based on recorded position Position information captured from GPS devices give an altitude relative to the absolute earth model. In order to accurately place an aircraft at a height above the ground, the elevation of the terrain at that point must be known. This information can be collected from various databases available on the web. Develop a utility that enables investigators to easily collect elevation data for any number of recorded positions. Software Estimated Duration 5 Weeks
06 Video file study (GoPro, Garmin Virb, ) On-board videos are getting more and more prevalent in accident investigations. A challenge faced by the Technical Analysis team is the format of the data and reconstructing incomplete files. Often the final milliseconds of any data stream can be vital to an investigation. The task would be to understand the different formats and codecs as well as determine if the available software is sufficient to recover the maximum amount of data. Estimated Duration 2 Weeks 07 Video / image analysis With the increase in the number of video and images from inside transport vehicles it is important that the ATSB Technical Analysis develop tools to recover as much data as possible from the recorded images. Develop a dynamic tool, possibly in Matlab, to convert screen captures of the cockpit instruments into a data listing. Estimated Duration 4-6 Weeks 08 Furuno VDR radar image recovery The Furuno VDR records radar images, audio and NMEA data into a single file. As yet the ATSB have extracted the audio and NMEA. Develop a tool to export the radar image from the Furuno VDR data. Requires determining the format of the image data from the VDR file/s, and exporting to standard image format. Estimated Duration 4 Weeks
Position Description Title: Engineering Intern Level: APS 1 Reports to: Manager Transport Safety Location: Canberra Overview: The ATSB's function is to improve safety and public confidence in the aviation, marine and rail modes of transport through excellence in: independent investigation of transport accidents and other safety occurrences safety data recording, analysis and research fostering safety awareness, knowledge and action. Job description As an Engineering Intern your main role will be supporting the operations of the ATSB, specifically the Vehicle Recorders specialist group. This group manages the download and analysis of recorded data from accidents and incidents. You will be assigned projects and tasks that increase the group s capability and efficiency for analysing data. Required competencies The Engineering Intern will be required to have the following competencies: technical skills appropriate to the list of projects attached high-level verbal and written communication skills demonstrated organisational skills, and timeliness ability to work autonomously and in teams. Application process Submit your resume and a page answering the following questions (maximum 500 words): 1. How do you approach and resolve problems or disagreements when working in a group? 2. How do you manage workloads and competing priorities? 3. Please describe how your technical skills would support the project work required.