WILJAM FLIGHT TRAINING

Chapter 8.9
ECAM
Introduction
The Electronic Centralised Aircraft Monitoring (ECAM) System is part of the electronic
instrument system (EIS) consisting of six screens, and provides the flight crew with assistance
in system management in both normal / abnormal conditions. This operational assistance is
given by the EFIS system plus two centre mounted CRT's identified as the:

Engine / Warning Display (E/W).

System / Status Display (S/S).

The physical layout of both CRT displays is dependent upon the flight deck layout. The layouts
on the A320 and MD11 are respectively shown below.

Engine / Warning (E/W) CRT Display

The E/W Display as shown on the next page shows the:

Engine parameters.
Fuel on board.
Slats and flap position.
Warning and caution messages.
Memos when no failures exist.

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The System / Status (S/S) CRT Display

The S/S Display as shown above shows the:

System synoptic diagrams.

Status messages.

ECAM System Architecture

A typical ECAM system is shown below.

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In this system information is derived from the various aeroplane systems, and after processing
in the following units, is displayed on the ECAM Display Units.
Flight Warning Computers (FWCs). These units generate all of the alert messages,
aural alerts, and vocal messages (Radio Height), which are derived:

Directly from aircraft sensors or systems to generate red warnings.

Through the system data acquisition concentrators (SDACs) to generate

amber cautions.

Display Management Computers (DMCs). These units are common to EFIS/ECAM

and generate the images displayed on the PFD, ND, E/W and S/S display units. They
thus provide a similar function to that of the symbol generators in an EFIS system.
System Data Acquisition Concentrators (SDACs). These units acquire data,
process and then distribute it to the:

DMCs, for the display of engine parameters and system page data.

FWCs, for the generation of alert and procedure messages.

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ECAM Control Panel (ECP)
The ECP shown below allows the system pages or the status (STS) page to be selected prior to
them being displayed on the S/S Display.

The ECP has the following functions:System Page Push Switches. If these switches are depressed the S/S display
changes to the corresponding system page, and also illuminates following a manual
selection, or when an advisory is detected.
STS Push Switch. If this switch is depressed the status page will be displayed on the
S/S display, but if there is no status message present, NORMAL will be displayed on
the CRT for 5 seconds.
CLR Push Switch. This switch will illuminate if a warning/caution message on the
ECAM display unit requires flight crew action or acknowledgement. Whilst the CLR
switch is illuminated, pressing it will change the ECAM display until all actions required
by the ECAM system have been carried out.
ALL Push Switch. If this switch is depressed, all of the system pages will be
successively displayed at one second intervals. This switch will also allow the system
pages to be successively presented in the case of ECAM control failure, and will allow
the flight crew to stop at the desired page.
EMERG Cancel Push Switch. If this switch is depressed any present:Aural Warning (including GPWS) will be cancelled for as long as the failure
condition is present.
Caution (CRT message + master caution + single chime) will be cancelled for
the remainder of the flight. The status page will then be automatically displayed
and the CANCELLED CAUTION message displayed, together with the title of
the failure, which was inhibited.
TO CONFIG Switch. If this switch is depressed a take-off power application will be
simulated, and a warning will be triggered if the aeroplane is not correctly configured for
take-off.
OFF / BRT Knobs. These knobs are used to control the on/off and brightness of each
ECAM display unit.

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Attention Getters
In abnormal operation, the ECAM system will direct the flight crews attention by visual and
audio attention getters. The visual attention getters are the:Master Warning Light (red). This gives an indication of any system faults, which
require immediate crew awareness and immediate corrective action.
Master Caution Light (amber). This gives an indication of any system faults, which
require immediate crew awareness, but not immediate corrective action.
Display Colour Coding
The displays are colour coded as follows:
Red
Amber
Green
White
Blue

Warnings
Cautions
Normal long term operation
For functions not in normal operation (switch in off position)
For action to be carried out

ECAM System Failure

If a system failure occurs, the flight crew can manually switch the display functions to other units
within the electronic instrument system, and still maintain full operational capability as follows.

Failure Categorisation
The following categories of failure can occur on an aeroplane:Independent Failure. This type of failure only affects an isolated item of equipment or
a system, and will not affect any other systems in the aeroplane.
Primary Failure. This type of failure will affect an item of equipment or a system, and
will result in the loss of other systems in the aeroplane.
Secondary Failure. This type of failure will result due to the primary failure of an item,
or system.

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System Operation
The ECAM system provides warnings and cautions whenever the aeroplane flies out of its flight
envelope, or the failures affect the aeroplanes integrity. These warnings and caution messages
are written in plain English, and:

Provide improved failure analysis.

Provide guidance for any corrective action required.
Minimise the need for the flight crew to refer to paper checklists.
Improve the understanding of the aeroplane and system configuration after failure

In normal operation the ECAM system eases the flight crew workload by eliminating the need
for frequent scanning of the various aeroplane system panels. For example, if the SEAT
BELT or NO SMOKING signs are on, or the APU is running, they will be displayed on the
E/W display unit as a memo message. Checklists will be additionally displayed on the memo
page during the take-off and approach phases of flight. Synoptic diagrams are routinely
presented on the S/S display unit, and are automatically adapted to the current flight phase, or
can be manually called up by the flight crew, using the ECP push buttons. The synoptic pages
are used to amplify system failures and switch selections that have been made in conjunction
with warnings displayed on the E/W display. Some system parameters are also continually
monitored throughout the whole flight, and are automatically displayed on the relevant system
page when their values drift out of the normal range, but well before the warning level is
reached.
In the case of a failure being detected by the ECAM system the following actions will occur:

The E/W display will present the warning and caution messages. The warning
message will include a failure title and any associated procedures, as well as the
title of the systems affected by the failure.
The master warning or master caution lights will illuminate.
An audio alert will be triggered.
The S/S display will present the affected system page.
The CLR push switch will illuminate on the ECP.
When all of the messages and synoptic diagrams associated with the failure have
been actioned by the flight crew, the CLR push button must be depressed until the
normal configuration returns, and the CLR push button is extinguished.

The sequence of events, which occur during a typical failure are detailed on pages 8.9.7
8.9.13 inclusive.

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Step 1

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Step 2

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Step 3

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Step 4

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Step 5

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Step 6

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