Applications Finder

Pilot Input Force is the physical force that is exerted by a pilot when operating flight controls. For purposes of flight data recording and subject to FAA and JAR regulations, it is necessary for the magnitude of pilot input forces to be measured and recorded in the Flight Data Recorder (FDR or "black box") for all passenger carrying aircraft with 20 or more seats.

The measurement of pilot input force is easily accomplished using strain gauge based load cells. The choice of internal load cell design depends upon the intended installation, but typical applications use a combination of tension/compression (push-pull) sensors and pure compression types.

The output from the load cell can be in its native mV/V form, in which case it will need to be amplified and conditioned elsewhere before delivery to the FDR, or it can be amplified by internal electronics and delivered as a higher level voltage signal to the FDR directly. Any such internal amplification must be flight qualified in conjunction with the sensor itself.

Alternatively, and subject to qualification of the firmware, the measurement output could be delivered in digital format, for example over the ARINC-429 avionics data bus.