Inside Unmanned Systems

APR-MAY 2016

Inside Unmanned Systems provides actionable business intelligence to decision-makers and influencers operating within the global UAS community. Features include analysis of key technologies, policy/regulatory developments and new product design.

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51 unmanned systems inside April/May 2016 ENGINEERING. PRACTICE. POLICY. "It's a ver y demanding f ield in terms of reliability and precision. You can't just re- boot your robot if it doesn't work properly because it's already broken by the time it needs a reboot," he said. "And the market is very quickly developing. While the consumer drone market is pretty mature, it's still being shaped. Business models are changing and the players are changing. You have to be able to adapt." The Future As the technology evolves, UAS will continue to get smaller and more maneuverable, Floreano said. Drones that can move more like insects will be able to fly faster and more safely—a ca- pability the Gimball has already achieved. With the Gimball, operators don't have to worry about making mistakes, Thévoz said. If the drone runs into something it won't break or crash to the ground; its f ly-inspired pro- tective outer cage will enable it to keep f ly- ing to its destination. This also expands the type of applications it can perform. The cage separates the drone from the rest of the world, making it possible to bring it closer to people without worrying about injuries, as well as to deploy it inside buildings for a variety of dan- gerous inspections. And the technology these researchers are working to develop isn't just for small UAS, Humbert said. Mimicking how insects f ly, whether you're talking about a wasp, a moth or a f ly, can benefit larger UAS as well. "The main advantage of insects is they're fast, lightweight and low power," Humbert said. "That's applicable to everything, even large commercial aircraft." LEARNING FLIGHTS Researchers are looking at wasps to see how their complex learning fl ights, which tell them how to get back to their nest after a day of foraging, might be able to help drones as well. Check out the article and videos of the wasps performing their complex learning fl ight at insideunmannedsystems.com. Delivering unmanned and autonomous solutions for over a decade Expert system design www.navtechgps.com 800-628-0885 +1-703-256-8900 The OxTS xNAV and xOEM INS Family Tactical grade IMU – 0.05° roll/pitch Dual GNSS receivers for superior heading Small, compact, lightweight (xOEM from 120g; xNAV from 365g) 2 cm real-time position accuracy 4 GB of storage for automatic data logging Post-processing software included with all OxTS systems No export restrictions Development kit available Ask us about the xNAV550 Boxed GNSS-Aided INS (red box) or xOEM550 board-set xOEM and xNAV Inertial Navigation Systems OxTS products do not use magnetometers, so there are no efects from ferrous metals or electrical interference from outside sources! NavtechGPS brings you … Visit NavtechGPS at Booth 1337 at AUVSI/Xponential 2016 in New Orleans!

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