Earlier this summer, AirMap participated in the FAA’s UTM Pilot Program (UPP) under Virginia Tech’s Mid-Atlantic Aviation Partnership (MAAP), which was designated as one of three UAS Test Sites for the UPP in January.
Designed to advance the findings made during NASA Technical Capability Level (TCL) drone trials and transition them to the FAA for future implementation and rulemaking, the UPP is one of the pilot programs that U.S. government agencies have been conducting over the years to demonstrate beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) flights and other advanced operations under real-world conditions.
Technology
Technology
London Drugs, partners complete Canada's first BVLOS UAS flight carrying pharmaceuticals
London Drugs, Canada Post and InDro Robotics recently collaborated to successfully complete Canada’s first ever beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) flight carrying pharmaceuticals using a UAS.
During the flight, which was conducted on Aug 19., the UAS carried pharmaceuticals from a London Drugs pharmacy to remote Salt Spring Island in British Columbia.
“We are proud to have been selected to participate in the first trial of a Drone delivery of this kind in Canada,” says Chris Chiew, general manager of Pharmacy, London Drugs.
General Dynamics Land Systems joins Persistent Systems' Wave Relay Ecosystem
Persistent Systems has announced that General Dynamics Land Systems (GD) has joined Persistent's Wave Relay Ecosystem, which is an alliance of industry-leading companies that have integrated Wave Relay MANET radios onto their products.
According to Persistent, GD will equip its unmanned, controllerless small-unit robotic follower, the Multi-Utility Tactical Transport (MUTT) vehicle, with Persistent’s Wave Relay mobile ad hoc network (MANET) technology.
The Wave Relay MANET technology is integrated via the MPU5 smart radio, and serves as the data link for command and control, payload control, and HD video streaming.
uAvionix offering free pingRX UAS ADS-B receivers to organizations helping with Hurricane Dorian recovery efforts
With Hurricane Dorian posing a significant threat to Florida and the Southeast of the U.S., uAvionix has announced that it will offer free pingRX UAS ADS-B receivers to first responders and UAS service organizations taking part in the rescue and recovery efforts associated with the massive storm.
MIT says that its autonomous boats are now capable of shapeshifting
MIT has announced that its fleet of robotic boats has been updated so that it can now “shapeshift” by autonomously disconnecting and reassembling into various configurations to form floating structures in Amsterdam’s many canals.
Described as “rectangular hulls equipped with sensors, thrusters, microcontrollers, GPS modules, cameras, and other hardware,” the autonomous boats are being developed by MIT and the Amsterdam Institute for Advanced Metropolitan Solutions (AMS Institute), as part of an ongoing project known as “Roboat.”
HiDRON stratospheric glider successfully reaches altitude of 30 kilometers
UAVOS and Stratodynamics have announced that their HiDRON stratospheric glider successfully reached and flew from an altitude of 30 kilometers (98,450 feet), which broke their previous record of 25 kilometers in the process.
During the flight, a new mini-EUSO (Extreme Universe Science Observation) AMON Airglow detector from the Slovak Academy of Sciences Institute of Experimental Physics was tested. UAVOS and Stratodynamics also used this flight as an opportunity to test and advance several aspects of the HiDRON design including stratospheric flight dynamics, data links, and UAVOS’ Autopilot.
Designated Driver's teleoperation technology being added to Texas A&M's autonomous shuttles
Texas A&M University will add Designated Driver’s teleoperation technology to its autonomous shuttles.
A developer of teleoperation technologies for autonomous vehicles, Designated Driver says that this is the first time that a teleoperation system is being deployed commercially on public roads. The company says that its system will provide remote guidance and way points to the shuttles operating in downtown Bryan, Texas.
“We are enabling Texas A&M to get the safety driver out of the driver’s seat by deploying a reliable teleoperation solution,” says Manuela Papadopol, CEO, Designated Driver.
GA-ASI receives COA to conduct BVLOS flights using Ground-based Sense and Avoid system
The FAA has granted General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc.
Bell's Autonomous Pod Transport 70 successfully completes first autonomous flight
Bell Textron Inc. has announced that its Autonomous Pod Transport (APT) 70 has successfully completed its first autonomous flight at the company’s testing site near Fort Worth, Texas.
Throughout the rest of 2019, Bell plans to continue testing the vehicle under an experimental type certificate.
“We are excited to reach this milestone, and look forward to continuing to advance this technology for our customers,” says Scott Drennan, vice president, Innovation.