Ncw Suav Presentation

Network-Centric Defence Conference 2005A Challenge for the Hellenic Armed Forces

in the 21st century

Small Unmanned Aerial Vehicles: The Way Forward

By: M.E. McCauley, PhDNaval Postgraduate School

P. Matsagas, M.Sc.Hellenic Navy General Staff

Small Unmanned Aerial Vehicles: The way forward

Small Unmanned Aerial VehiclesThe Way Forward

This work is based on: McCauley, M.E. & Matsagas, P. (2004) –

Human Systems Integration and Automation Issues in Small Unmanned Aerial Vehicles. Technical Report NPS-OR-04-008, Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey, CA.

The research was funded by: Army/ NASA RotorCraft Division,

Aeroflightdynamics Directorate, NASA Ames Research Center, Moffet Field, CA 94305


UAV Categories

Micro-UAVs– spanning six to nine inches

Mini UAVs– TACMAV

Small UAV (SUAV)– TERN, Silver Fox, Swift,

Pointer, Raven Tactical UAV (TUAV)

– Hunter, Shadow

Medium Altitude and Endurance (MAE)

High-Altitude Long-Endurance (HALE)

– Global Hawk, Predator


DoD SUAV inventory

Lamartin, G. F. (2005). Testimony given before the United States House Committee on Armed Services Subcommittee on Tactical Air and Land Forces, March 9, 2005.Assecced on October 16, 2005, at http://www.house.gov/hasc/testimony/109thcongress/TacAir%20Land/3-9-05LamartinOSD.pdf


Mission

Frame of UAV missions– Intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance

(ISR) – Intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition and

reconnaissance (ISTAR)– Battle Damage Assessment (BDA)

1. Lamartin, G. F. (2005). Testimony given before the United States House Committee on Armed Services Subcommittee on Tactical Air and Land Forces, March 9, 2005.Assecced on October 16, 2005, at http://www.house.gov/hasc/testimony/109thcongress/TacAir%20Land/3-9-05LamartinOSD.pdf

2. House of Commons Defence Committee (2004). Lessons of Iraq: Government Response to the Committee’s Third Report of Session 2003-04. First Special Report of Session 2003-04, HC 635, London: The Stationery Office, June 8, 2005. Assessed on October 16, 2005, at www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200304/cmselect/cmdfence/635/635.pdf

3. Defence Science Board (2004). Unmanned Aerial Vehicles and Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicles. Washington DC: Office of the Under Secretary of Defence, for Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics. Assessed at www.acq.osd.mil/dsb/reports/uav.pdf on October 16, 2005.


Why UAVs?

Eliminate risk to ground troops and aircrew,

Enhance aerodynamic performance over manned flight due to lighter weight and freedom from human G-tolerance constraints

Reduced cost


Are UAVs Useful?

Lessons from Kosovo, and the demand for UAV services in Iraq and Afghanistan indicates that:

– UAVs can provide vastly improved acquisition and more rapid dissemination of ISR data

– commanders in the field place a high value on the tactical data provided by UAVs

1. Lamartin, G. F. (2005). Testimony given before the United States House Committee on Armed Services Subcommittee on Tactical Air and Land Forces, March 9, 2005.Assecced on October 16, 2005, at http://www.house.gov/hasc/testimony/109thcongress/TacAir%20Land/3-9-05LamartinOSD.pdf

2. House of Commons Defence Committee (2004). Lessons of Iraq: Government Response to the Committee’s Third Report of Session 2003-04. First Special Report of Session 2003-04, HC 635, London: The Stationery Office, June 8, 2005. Assessed on October 16, 2005, at www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200304/cmselect/cmdfence/635/635.pdf

3. Defence Science Board (2004). Unmanned Aerial Vehicles and Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicles. Washington DC: Office of the Under Secretary of Defence, for Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics. Assessed at www.acq.osd.mil/dsb/reports/uav.pdf on October 16, 2005.


System description


System example - POINTER

Wingspan: 108”Length: 72”Gross weight: 10 poundsAirspeed: 22-50 ktsPatrol radius: 3-5 milesEndurance: 90 minutesMissions: ISRSystem: 3 UAV per 3-man teamGCS: Back-packedCapability

•Daylight CCD camera•GPS receiver•Infrared camera (optional)•Assembly: <5 minutes. No tools.


Definition of “Small UAV”1

UAVs designed to be employed

– by themselves; transportable by foot– from larger aircraft (manned or

unmanned)

1 DoD UAV Roadmap 2002


Problem definition

Current SUAVs: – Are manpower intensive; – Have a large “footprint”; – Need to improve visual data display and search

effectiveness; and – Have a high loss rate.


UAV Loss Rate

Mishap Rate is the number of accidents occurring per 100,000 flight hours.

Mean Time Between Failure (MTBF) is the ratio of hours flown to the number of maintenance-related cancellations encountered.

Availability is the number of times a given aircraft type is able to perform its missions compared to the number of times it is tasked to do so, expressed as a percentage.

Reliability is 100 minus the percentage of times a launched mission is either canceled before takeoff or aborted during flight due to maintenance issues, expressed as a percentage

DoD Roadmap (2002)

Camp Roberts SUAV fieldtests (2004)

One mishap per 16-24 flight hoursEstimate that average airframe life duration is approximately 20 flight hours.

DoD Defence Science Board Study (2004)

UAV Mishaps Aircraft Mishaps

Predator – 32 F-16 – 3

Pioneer – 334 General Aviation – 1

Hunter – 55 Regional Commuter – 0.1

Large Airliners – 0.01

Class A mishaps per 100.000 hrs.

System Mishap Rate

MTBF (hrs.)

Availability Reliability

Predator 32 44 67% 82%

Pionner 334 14 76% 86%

Hunter 55 11 98% 82%

Class A mishaps per 100.000 hrs.


UAV Mishaps

DoD HSIAC UAV sources (2004)

H.S.I. 69%

Mechanical 31%

48 mishaps, of A and B type, in 10 years


HSI issues

Human Roles, Responsibilities and Level of Automation

Command and Control; Concept of Operations

Manning, Selection, Training, and Fatigue Difficult Operational Environments Procedures and Job Performance Aids Moving Control Platforms


Near-term improvements I.Human Roles, Responsibilities, Automation Level

Human role– Operate a remotely piloted vehicle or teleoperated

system

Automation of basic functions– Altitude control, waypoint following etc– Reduce operator workload

Mission management system


Near-term improvements II.Command and Control, and Operations

SUAV operators need to know where the sensor is pointing

System response times ISR search pattern analysis and codification

in a “search template” tool Operations analysis


Near-term improvements III.Manning, Selection, Training, and Fatigue

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles are NOT unmanned systems

Manning criteria Strong training programs Watch schedules based on:

– Fatigue, sleep, and circadian rhythms


Near-term improvements IV.Difficult Operational Environments

UAV systems’ attributes must be capable of supporting EFFECTIVELY operations in all environments– Interfaces– Training– Procedures


Near-term improvementsMoving Control Platforms

Major challenges of moving control platforms:– motion sickness– disorientation– biodynamic interference with manual control– head-mounted display (HMD) bounce


Longer-term PerspectiveAutomation

Goal– Shift away from the human-in-the-loop control– Human controls multiple UAVs

But– Mode confusion– Automation surprise– Distrust– Complacency– “Out-of-the-loop” operator


Longer-term PerspectiveAllocation of System Functions

Top-LevelHuman Tasks

Mid-LevelShared Tasks

Lower-LevelAutomated Tasks

1. Define Mission Objectives 1. Airspace Deconfliction; “See and Avoid”

1. Vehicle Control (autopilot functions)

2. Specify/Assign Team and Assets 2. Terrain Avoidance 2. Counter Environmental Disturbances

3. Specify Location 3. Implement Tactics 3. Maintain Sensor Lock-on

4. Specify Time Period 4. Navigate 4. Collision Avoidance Processing

5. Determine Tactics 5. Avoid or Investigate Possible Threats 5. Store or Transmit Data

6. Determine Contingency Plans 6. Teamwork Dynamics

7. Initiate Operation 7. Sensor/Payload Control

8. Modify Mission Objectives and Tactics 8. Takeoff and Landing

9. Launch Weapons

10. Terminate/Recall Mission


Conclusions

SUAV systems may– Increase our operational efficiency and

performance,– Reduce risk, and– Change the way we operate

Several technological developments are needed to achieve efficient operational systems


Questions?


Supplemental


Swarming Concept


Visual Detection


Tactical Mini UAV (TACMAV)

Wingspan: 53 cmLength: 50 cmCruise speed: 80 kphEndurance: 30-50 minutesMissions: ISRGCU: Back-packedCapability

•2 color CCD cameras•Video transmitter


System example - HUNTER


Automation level of currentUAV designs

UV comparison to ten levels of automation

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Ncw Suav Presentation