Mark Contarino, Ph.D. 30 April 2015

Small Unmanned Systems Business Expo 2015 Silicon Valley

Tools for the Safe Integration of UAS into the NAS

What you need to fly Beyond Line of Sight (BLOS) for SUAS

1. Permission: COA/333 Exemption, UAS with N#, Rules and Regulations

2. Ability: Commercial Pilot License with 3rd Class Medical Certificate

3. Communication: FAA-certified mode S transponder, NOTAMs

4. See and Avoid Requirement: A manned chase plane following UAS

Our Focus is on the aircraft agnostic technology needed for safe and routine flight operations

Apollo UAT Cooperative System. Automatic Dependent Surveillance -Broadcast 978 MHz in/out, Universal Access Transceiver (UAT) with Mode S transponder, on board processor

Zeus Radar Non-Cooperative Collision Avoidance System

Hermes Link Secure BLOS data link

Permission

Ability

Communica-tions

Detect and Avoid

Zeus Coherent Radar

Operates at X-band and is both fully solid state and coherent

Detects a single-engine aircraft at ranges exceeding 6 nautical miles (11 km)

Supports air and surface target detection as well as field weather detection

Apollo ADS-B Transceiver (Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast)

Small, light weight, low power, and low cost Built-in self-separation and collision-

avoidance algorithms 1090 MHz in & 978 MHz in/out dual

frequency operation Capable of autonomous collision-avoidance

operation under loss of link

Hermes Tracking PTU (Pan and Tilt Unit)

Tracking antenna system seamlessly interfaces with unmanned aircraft telemetry, FAA NextGen ADS-B transceivers and the ground radar system

Tracking antenna and camera increase mid-air situational awareness of unmanned aircraft operator

Test-bed tool for UAS integration• Improved MITRE software

programmable UAT radio design• Tri-band functionality

978/1030/1090 MHz• On board processor• Removable memory slot• Autopilot interface• Additional sensor inputs• Voice out

1st Generation prototype used for first ever autonomous collision avoidance demonstration between UAS. Design successfully commercialized.

2st Generation micro-prototype is currently funded under a NAVY SBIR. 3.5 oz FAA certified product for 2016. 3rd gen target <1 oz.

Apollo UAT: NextGEN Open Architecture Device

Cost < $2.5 K (target $50)Weighs < 1 pound (3.5 oz for 2nd gen)Open Architecture Any algorithm, autopilot, display or sensorReceives ADS-B radio transmissions on both frequencies Receives FAA re-transmitted information for traffic, weather, etc.Receives ported non-cooperative sensor inputs: radar, EO/IR, acoustic, etc. Transmits self ADS-B position on 978 MHz (2nd gen sends 1030MHz if no 1090 MHz present) Stores available database information (e.g. - terrain, obstacles, and no-fly zones)Analyzes, processes and smartly communicates real time assured separation or collision avoidance guidance to GCS or auto-pilot. Operates under lost link conditions.

Apollo Highlights

Autonomous collision avoidance maneuver performed between two Tiger Shark UAS.

Zeus Radar – Lowest Cost, High

Performance System

(Left) Concept installation on Tiger Shark and (Right) Garmin GWX-70 with 10 inch antenna

• All Solid state, programmable, coherent

radar system

• Capable of Moving Target, Doppler,

Synthetic Aperture, Inverse Synthetic

Aperture and Weather detection

• Well suited to Tiger Shark, Shadow and

Integrator UAS (30% or less of the

payload)

• Smaller, silent, electric vehicles or small

manned aircraft are also potential

platforms.

(Left)

Conc

ept in

stalla

tion o

n Tige

r Sha

rk an

d (Rig

ht)

Garm

in GW

X-7

0 with

10 in

ch an

tenn

a

Under contract to test UAS nosecone radar with Zeus for Airforce ABSAA effort.

Zeus suitable for installation on Tiger Shark UAS.

Zeus Radar Highlights

Vertical radar scan (top) and camera (bottom) views of hot air balloons 1 mile from equipped Saratoga over rough terrain.

Balloon

Terrain

• 10” 12” and 16” models• Under 10 lbs• Under 40 watts• Over 200 mile range (FAA

certified for weather) • Under $300K • All modes supported, processed

in real time• Ground station or onboard

capability• Data ported into Apollo UAT

system for non-cooperative avoidance component

Hermes Link : A low-cost, robust and secure data link• Robust Data Link for Command and

Control of UAS• Uses ownship ADS-B signals from

Apollo to track and point the data link, radar, etc

• Can use hard to detect ADS-B pulses instead of a continuous and unsecure open channel for communication

• Easier to recover lost link due to omni-directional ADS-B signal

• Optionally mounted video camera adds additional layer of situational awareness

Hermes Tracking PTU (Pan and Tilt Unit)

Tracking antenna system seamlessly interfaces with unmanned aircraft telemetry, FAA NextGen ADS-B transceivers and the ground radar system

Tracking antenna and camera increase mid-air situational awareness of unmanned aircraft operator

Hermes Link is a pan and tilt unit (PTU) that seamlessly integrates FAA NextGen technology and secures the data link component for BLOS UAS operations.

Guardian Eye: A Range-Ready BLOS safety management system

• Complete package used for routine BLOS UAS operations in Canada with Transport Canada approval

• Cooperative/Non-cooperative self separation and collision avoidance technologies

• Flip mounted avionics minimize set-up time, remain secured inside during hauling/storage

Thank you for your time!