ASCI 637, Assignment 9.4, The Future of the UAS

I believe that the biggest advancement in UAS technology in the near future will be in sense-and-avoid systems.  The primary motivation for the effort to develop these systems will be to refine them to the satisfaction of the FAA.  When the FAA's confidence has been gained, a broader range of operations will commence in the National Airspace System (NAS).  As safe UAS operations become more commonplace, the public's trust in the technology will allow the field to truly flourish.

Insinna (2014) writes that military UAS operators have thus far been able to operate relatively freely due to the lack of air traffic in restricted airspace above war zones.  The FAA has been working to establish sense-and-avoid regulations that future domestic, commercial UAS operators will be required to comply with.  Sense-and-avoid algorithms based on ADS-B are being researched by NASA.  A test system has been mounted to a Cirrus SR-22 test platform.  Researchers have been deliberately attempting to input "blunder maneuvers" to test the algorithms (Vanderhoof & Flight, 2016).

A critical component in the future of UAS operations in the NAS is the FAA’s timeline and the contents of the regulations the agency will adopt for sense-and-avoid systems.  The longer the FAA delays the process, the more opportunities will be lost.  Investors providing capital, commercial ventures, and people seeking entry into this market will not be able to wait indefinitely for an uncertain publishing date.  These regulations will essentially decide whether a venture will progress or halt and disband.  The regulations will also essentially determine if sense-and-avoid system developed to date will be sufficient to meet these thresholds.  If not, there will be more delays incurred as the technology is refined to meet the standards.

References:

Insinna, V.  (2014, May).  Military, Industry Racing to Create Sense-and-Avoid Systems.  National Defense.  Retrieved from http://www.nationaldefensemagazine.org/archive/2014/may/pages/military,industryracingtocreatesense-and-avoidsystems.aspx

Vanderhoof, D. & Flight, M.  (2016, June 3).  Sens and Avoid and Package Delivery at NASA Langley.  The UAV Digest.  Retrieved from http://theuavdigest.com/tag/sense-and-avoid/ 

ASCI 637, Assignment 5.3, UAS Use

Source Article:

sUAS News Staff.  (2016, February 23).  UAV Challenge Medical Express 2016.  sUAS News.  Retrieved from http://www.suasnews.com/2015/02/uav-challenge-medical-express-2016/

From 2007 to 2014, an annual competition known as the UAV Outback Challenge was organized by the Australian Research Centre for Aerospace Automation (ARCAA).  The competition was staged out of Kingaroy Airport in Queensland, Australia.  The UAV Outback Challenge’s goal was for teams operating unmanned aerial systems (UAS) to conduct a search and rescue (SAR) mission into the Australian Outback and drop a water bottle within a designated zone.  Teams were awarded points based on mission time, accuracy of task performance, and technical merit of the team’s aircraft (Roberts et al., 2015, p. 2-3).

            The main task of the competition centers on “Outback Joe”.  “Outback Joe” is a colorfully attired dummy placed in a remote location in the Queensland Outback.  The competitors’ tasks are to operate a UAS to locate the dummy and then perform a specific task.  From 2007 to 2014, the task was to drop a water bottle within a 100 meter radius from “Outback Joe”.  In 2014, four teams successfully completed the objectives of the competition (Roberts et al, 2015, p. 2,4).  In 2015, ARCAA announced a successor competition named the UAV Challenge Medical Express to be held in Dalby, Queensland.  The objectives of the contest will be for competitors to operate up to two UAS simultaneously to locate “Outback Joe”, land near the dummy, allow a contest official to load a simulated blood sample onto the aircraft, and return the UAS and payload safely to the point of origin (sUAS News Staff, 2016).  The search area will be larger than the previous contest and the complexity of the contest has increased.  The terrain that “Outback Joe” will be set will also require UAS to be capable of vertical take-off and landing (UAV Challenge Staff, 2016).

            The contests held by ARCAA demonstrate the utility of unmanned aircraft in SAR roles.  The tasks are realistic, challenging, and inspire innovation by the competitors.  The lessons learned and usefulness demonstrated by the competing teams may motivate civic, state/provincial, and national government agencies to form or allow UAS to be used more widely in these missions.  Unmanned aircraft can augment manned SAR assets to provide a wider range of coverage and venture into situations that may be too hazardous and constricting for manned aircraft.  One example is Texas EquuSearch, a privately operated group that conducts search and rescue operations for missing persons.  UAS have been deployed on previous operations, which have brought the group in conflict with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).  Both Texas EquuSearch and the FAA have cited safety as the primary motivation for their actions (AP Staff, 2014).  Competitions such as those held by ARCAA may assist in gaining more support and acceptance of UAS in SAR operations.

References:

Associated Press (AP) Staff.  (2014, July 18).  Texas Search Group to Resume Using Drones Despite FAA Admonition.  The Dallas Morning News.  Retrieved from http://www.dallasnews.com/news/state/headlines/20140718-texas-search-group-to-resume-using-drones-despite-faa-admonition.ece

Roberts, J., Frousheger, D., Williams, B., Campbell, D., & Walker, R.  (2015, December 18).  How the UAV Outback Challenge Was Finally Won.  IEEE Robotics & Automation Magazine.  Retrieved from https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B5JgqjkRDqw8RG1Ibjg5RkRxbjA/view

UAV Challenge Staff.  (2016).  Medical Express FAQ [Fact Sheet].  Retrieved from https://uavchallenge.org/medical-express/medical-express-faq/

ASCI 637, Assignment 2.3, FAA Airworthiness Certification for UAS

Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Airworthiness Certification for UAS    

     The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) requires airworthiness certification to ensure appropriate safety standards in an aircraft’s design.  An FAA type design approval indicates that a safety evaluation of an aircraft’s design and its system has been conducted in accordance with applicable airworthiness regulations.  This certification process is more rigorous than simply determining that an aircraft is airworthy (FAA, 2013, p. 25).  FAA certification is vital to the future integration of UAS operations in the National Airspace System (NAS).

     The FAA airworthiness certification covers all safety aspects of an aircraft’s design.  The development of a sense-and-avoid (SAA) system for UAS to help maintain safe separation from other air traffic has received a significant amount of media attention.  However, SAA is only one aspect of the overall safety features of an unmanned aircraft.  Programs such as the FAA’s NextGen, command, control, and communication (C3) links, and C3 frequency management will all be significant factors in the future of these aircraft in the NAS.  A UAS will most likely have met all the criteria to safely operate in the NAS and demonstrated systems, such as SAA and Automated Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) compliance, to attain FAA airworthiness certification (Warwick, 2014).

     U.S. Congress initially set September 2015 as a goal for integration of UAS into NAS operations.  In 2014, the FAA outlined a plan for phased implementation approach to achieve this goal over the course of five years.  Disputes over the definition of UAS integration between the FAA and Department of Transportation inspectors added administrative delays to the process.  A significant point of contention was safe versus full integration (Warwick, 2014).  To date, the FAA has set regulations for recreational flight, exceptions for commercial use, and plans for UAS pilot certification (FAA, 2016).

     Potential commercial UAS operators have been waiting for the FAA to finalize unmanned aircraft regulations to initiate their aerial operations.  Future operators agree that safety and security of flight operation is vital for UAS integration into NAS operations.  SAA systems to de-conflict with other air traffic and secure C3 links to prevent unauthorized control inputs are some of the technological challenges that must be met (Business Aviation Insider Staff, 2016).  The development of these technologies will be as important as the FAA finalizing UAS regulations.  Completion of these steps will guide criteria for FAA airworthiness certifications.

References:

Business Aviation Insider Staff.  (2016, February 1).  Integrating UAS Into Business Aviation Operations.  National Business Aviation Association.  Retrieved from https://www.nbaa.org/ops/uas/20160201-integrating-uas-into-business-aviation-operations.php

Federal Aviation Administration.  (2016).  Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Frequently Asked Questions/Help [Fact Sheet].  Retrieved from https://www.faa.gov/uas/faqs/#krp

Federal Aviation Administration.  (2013).  Integration of Civil Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) in the National Airspace System (NAS) Roadmap (FAA 2012-AJG-502).  Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office.

Warwick, G.  (2014, July 3).  FAA Preparing Phased Integration Of UAS Over Five Years.  Aviation Week.  Retrieved from http://aviationweek.com/commercial-aviation/faa-preparing-phased-integration-uas-over-five-years