SHORT DESCRIPTION OF THE NAE AIRBORNE SIMULATOR FEEL SYSTEM.

A brief description is given of a flight control feel (sensory feedback) system for an airborne simulator. The initial installation was a single channel (roll) wheel system using standard analogue techniques in conjunction with an electro-hydraulic servo actuator. It was found that the overall system errors could be reduced to very low levels by standard servo system techniques, but the subjective impression did not always correlate with analytical accuracy. In short it did not ″feel right″ in all cases. The present three-axis centre stick system was evolved over a two year period. By revising the electronics for the modelling portion of each channel and careful attention to mechanical design details, both the analytic and subjective performance of the Feel System appear to be excellent. At present two complete systems are in operation. Both the Bell 47G and the Bell 205A1 airborne simulators are equipped with almost identical three-channel feel systems.