Automatic Terminal Information Service (ATIS)

High Quality Voice Broadcasting

AWI's FlexIDS ATIS allows for flexible configuration of a real human voice through the introduction of TruVoice technology.

Recorded Voice

Most ATIS voice products in today's market use a computer synthesized voice for broadcast, making it difficult to understand some of the words and phrases when listening over a radio. This is particularly problematic when a required word falls outside of standard English terms or is derived from a foreign language. AWI's TruVoice solution uses a recorded human voice to provide clear enunciation and proper pronunciation.

New sound recordings can be added to the voice library at any time, through the ATIS phrase builder. These recordings can be made for any language supported by the system and will automatically be equalized to a consistent volume to ensure quality of the broadcast. AWI also offers professional voice services as a part of ATIS support. This allows a new voice file to be exported to AWI for professional voice processing, guaranteeing a clear and accurate broadcast.

Multi-Language Support

Using a recorded voice also allows for support of multiple languages without loss of quality. With the ability to apply inflection, the nuances of a human voice make broadcasts easy to understand. For additional customization, alternate pronounciations are available and pacing can be adjusted.

English is the default language for ATIS broadcast. Additional languages can be handled in two ways...

• Alternating broadcasts on a single channel
• Multiple channels, each broadcasting a different language

AWI’s ATIS interface allows the use of phrasing templates to build ATIS messages. These templates are used to ensure completeness of each ATIS message. An administrator can set the system to use a pre-defined template, or define a new one. The template builder allows the administrator to add, remove, and reorder pre-defined words and phrases in addition to building new phrases.

Vocabulary Manager

The ATIS Voice vocabulary manager offers three exciting new features:

• Import new vocabulary packages
• Add, remove, or group custom vocabulary within the system
• Export customer-defined vocabulary to AWI for creation of custom voice packages.

After saving, any newly created words or phrases are immediately available to all users in the system. A fail-safe exists which blocks the deletion of any words or phrases currently in use to ensure that existing messages are not fragmented.

ATIS Interfaces Tailored by Functional Use

The FlexIDS ATIS software now offers three different interfaces

• ATIS Approach
• ATIS Departure
• Combined ATIS Approach/Departure

Whether your facility uses one combined approach/departure broadcast, or independent broadcasts on unique frequencies, AWI’s ATIS solution is a perfect fit. Applicable interfaces are determined based on site configuration. These interfaces can be assigned by role so that only the appropriate interface is available to each user.

With the ability to manage both independent and combined broadcasts, Flex ATIS is designed to grow with your airport. Customizable configurations give you a flexible infrastructure that provides the right tool at the right time, while saving time and money when changes are needed.

Navigation and management of ATIS is accomplished through an easy-to-use graphical user interface. From this interface, a user can perform nearly any operational function (depending on user permissions) such as,

• Select an approach configuration
• Select an active runway configuration
• Select the next ATIS code from the configured set of codes
• Override weather data when it is unavailable
• Add new words and phrases
• Create new messages for publication

Simple Navigation

FlexIDS ATIS displays when the last ATIS recording occurred and when the next is due. Visual indicators alert the user when the pre-determined broadcast time is approaching but a new message has not been approved. When a new ATIS message is required, FlexIDS alerts the user, requiring them to change the ATIS code, and allowing the update of non-control information such as approach and active runway. The system then allows the user to preview the message, and submit the ATIS for broadcast. Previewing the message before broadcast can be set as a required function through the ATIS Admin configuration utility.

Custom Configurations

The options for fields such as Approach and Active Runway are pre-defined in the ATIS configuration so that only relevant options are available in the ATIS pop-up screen.

The ATIS configuration also determines a subset of alphabetic characters that are used to generate sequential ATIS codes. A user can modify the ATIS code using the character subset so long as the new code letter is not the same as the previous ATIS message broadcast.

Terminal Information

The Terminal Information section of the AITS pop-up contains any information that has been configured as part of the minimum ATIS verbiage. This includes but is not limited to the ATIS information code letter and weather report. Any information configured to be part of the minimum ATIS verbiage cannot be modified or deleted by the user.

Within the Terminal Information area, permitted users can add vocabulary and phrases to the ATIS message. These elements can be added, removed, and reordered using mouse clicks or a drag-and-drop technique. As messages are built, phrasing templates ensure completeness of the message and prevent incomplete messages from being broadcase.

AWOS/ASOS to ATIS Switch

Sometimes referred to as an AAIU (AWOS/ATIS Interface Unit), an ATIS switch controls the voice broadcast so that it can provide an ATIS message while the airport is manned and a weather message (AWOS/ASOS/AWSS) while the airport is unmanned. This switching has traditionally been handled by an additional hardware component but AWI’s ATIS solution eliminates the need for this additional, costly equipment by this function to be managed electronically. The ATIS switch feature is available only to select users on the network.

A Complete Air Traffic Management Solution

AWI's ATIS solution offers complete integration with other airport systems such as weather, surveillance, and information. Powered by FlexIDS, our ATIS system seamlessly interfaces with other subsystems such as EFS, AWOS, FDIO, SWIM, and many more. Any data source that has a definable interface can be integrated into the AWI FlexIDS dispaly system, making it easy to combine data from a number of crucial sources.

Modular and Scalable

FlexIDS ATIS is scalable from the smallest tower environment to the largest flight region. As you might expect, FlexIDS ATIS runs well in a dedicated environment at a large facility, but huge gains in cost efficiencies with FlexIDS allow ATIS to be affordable for even the smallest tower. This is because FlexIDS allows all of your critical ATC data, be it charts, flow, flight data, ATIS, EFS, or Met data, all to share the same screen. Not only is the data on the same screen, it can also be shared among subsystems, making each one more effective. For example, the EFS system can utilize integrated ATIS. Both ATIS and EFS are able to get runway information from our Runway Selection Component, which in turn gets its weather data from the AWOS and RVR systems on the airfield. All FlexIDS components are designed to work together like building blocks and expand as quickly or as slowly as required. The hardware design and software architecture allow a system to deploy in virtually any configuration, and then scale up or down as needed.

Hardware

FlexIDS components such as ATIS, can operate as a stand-alone workstation on a single computer, or on multiple computers in a LAN or LAN/WAN environment. Once FlexIDS has been implemented at your facility, additional workstations can be installed and configured at any time.

The FlexIDS supports multiple opperating platforms and all hardware is commercially available off-the-shelf (COTS)

Software

ATIS is just one valuable tool made available through FlexIDS. Additional interfaces allow ATIS to integrate and interact with other data at each controller position. Once FlexIDS EFS is operational at your facility, additional modules can be purchased and configured at any time, allowing your airport to grow with technology.

FlexIDS is designed to opperate on nearly any platform, including Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, Unix, Linux, Citrix XenServer, Microsoft Hyper-V, Thin Clients, and Tablets.