Since beginning many people like Mary Schiavo (Former IG, US DoTr), Dr. Vandana Singh, some domestic & foreign pilots, enthusiasts like me, etc have considered S/w glitch with certain functions of FMC/EEC, we should see how confusion can occur with electro-mechanical man-machine interfaces.
All switches, buttons, knobs in the A/c are some kind of
electronic relays, so the electrical signals are converted by ADC (Analog to Digital Convertor) mechanism & sent to FMC & then formatted & sent to FDR.
View attachment 43500
Some of the switches, buttons, levers, knobs can be controlled back in motion by the computer/auto-pilot,
For example -
- thrust levers in auto-thrust mode.
- engine start knobs from START to NORM.
- stabilizer trim wheel (787 doesn't have).
- speed brake lever.
...except the ones guarded by notches, brackets, covers, etc. But the computer/auto-pilot can still SOFT operate the functions.
For example-
- load-relief function for flaps, but flaps lever won't move. There'll be messages, perhaps LED & aural alarm then pilot has to adjust flap lever.
- EEC's TCMA shutting down engine(fuel valves) if RPM red line crossed, overspeed occurs, ground idle RPM issues, etc.
But fuel switch won't move. In case of mid-flight shutdown the pilots need to manually cutoff & run both switches for engine restart.
- RAT auto-deploy.
- Electrical load shedding causing less priority things to shut down temporarily or indefinitely as per situation & power available, like shut down of some of the fuel pumps, hydraulic pumps, IFES (In Flight Entertainment System), Cabin Utility, etc.
As jets become more S/w oriented with glass cockpit & automatic adjustments, that means the
computers have option to relay a signal further or not triggered by a hard switch, unless the proper conditions are met. Such safety mechanisms, S/w driven locks are already there.
So now there are
many layers-
- physical, mechanical layer on top.
- electronic layer of transistor circuit.
- wiring layer of connectors, plugs, copper wires, fiber optic wires.
- S/w layer, the ultimate judge, jury, executioner.
Some Avionics logic could be hard-wired where too much S/w thinking is not needed.
Each of these layer have their standards w.r.t. manufacturing, maintenance, shelf life, etc,
but also gltches associated.
But we've not reached the zenith of any technology, just the beginning actually.
1 glitch at any layer may or may not be corrected at H/w or S/w aspect of other layer, depends on design efficiency, maintenance, flight conditions, operation, etc.
By "swiss cheese model", if some glitch gets through all layers then problems can arise.
A glitch at electronic, wiring, S/w layers may or may not show hard movement of switch/knob/lever/button, especially in those guarded by notches, bracket, covers, etc,
Some kind of messages on MFD with LED & aural alarm may or may not occur, hence
in very short life-threatening emergency situation there can be confusion/misunderstanding, especially if pilots don't get along well.