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Posted on 10/22/2007 1:17:54 PM PDT by clippedwing
Can an unmanned aerial vehicle be made smart enough to autonomously rendezvous with a tanker aircraft and refuel? Based on recently concluded flight tests by the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory and Phantom Works, it can.
"By adding an automated aerial refueling capability to UAVs, we can significantly increase their combat radius and mission times while reducing their forward staging needs and response times," said David Riley, Phantom Works program manager for the Automated Aerial Refueling program.
The goal of the government–industry AAR program is to develop and demonstrate systems that will enable UAVs to safely approach and maneuver around tanker aircraft so they can successfully perform boom and receptacle refueling operations. The systems -- including a flight control computer and control laws developed by Phantom Works -- are demonstrated using a Calspan Learjet specially equipped to fly autonomously as a UAV.
During flight testing on Sept. 12, the AAR system autonomously guided the autonomous Learjet up to a Boeing KC-135R tanker and successfully maneuvered it among seven air refueling positions behind the tanker -- contact, pre-contact, left and right inboard observation, left and right outboard observation, and break away. The system controlled the Learjet for more than 1 hour and 40 minutes and held the aircraft in the critical contact position for more than 19 minutes.
A pilot flies the Learjet to and from the vicinity of the tanker and stands by to take over if necessary, but does not otherwise control the aircraft during the refueling maneuvering portion of the experiment.
"These tests show that we are making great advancements in system integrity, continuity and availability through improved relative navigation algorithms, control laws and hardware," Riley said. "They also show we are making great strides toward transitioning AAR technology into production."
Plans call for a follow-on Phase II program that will include autonomous multiship operations and delivery of fuel to the surrogate UAV.
The AAR team is made up of a diverse set of government and contractor organizations. The U.S. government team includes:
The Air Vehicles, Sensors, Human Effectiveness and Information Directorates at the Air Force Research Laboratory The Air Force Flight Test Center and Air Force Test Pilot School at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) The 107th Air Refueling Wing, 827th Aircraft Sustainment Group, at Tinker Air Force Base, Okla. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency Information Exploitation Office The Aeronautical Systems Center Air Mobility Command. The AAR industry team includes:
Boeing Phantom Works, which built the AAR flight control computer and developed the AAR control laws Calspan, which operates the Learjet Rockwell Collins, which supports KC-135 operations and builds the Tactical Targeting Network Technologies data link L3 Communications, SySense and the Illinois Institute of Technology, which work with NAVAIR to develop the precision Global Positioning System-based relative navigation system Northrop Grumman, which built the GPS receivers and developed an Electro-optical/Infrared position sensing system General Dynamics Advanced Information Systems, which provides systems engineering and flight test management assistance Syngenics, which coordinates the AAR trade studies Bihrle Applied Research, which integrates simulation environments The Institute for Scientific Research, which develops image processing algorithms Coherent Solutions, which develops Required Navigation Performance.
Good things these pilot jobs aren’t unionized or this would never be possible.
Another good reason to get new tankers!
I wondered when this would come up. BMFLR.
As I have always said Pilots are just buse drivers.
(Okay, call me paranoid.)
I saw a picture of this UAV. I will add it to my profile page along with my other UAV pics.
Please, could you give a link to the article?
I’d like to see the source, even though I did
find a similar article at this URL:
http://www.technologynewsdaily.com/node/5330
ping; I see NAVAIR listed in the involved groups.
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