N112-127 TITLE: Backup Shipboard Landing System for Vertical Takeoff and Landing Unmanned Air Vehicles

TECHNOLOGY AREAS: Air Platform

ACQUISITION PROGRAM: PMA-266, Navy & Marine Corps Tactical Multi-Mission UAS

OBJECTIVE: Develop a backup shipboard landing system for unmanned air vehicles that does not require specialized ship-mounted components.

DESCRIPTION: The Fire Scout Vertical Takeoff and Landing Tactical Unmanned Air Vehicle (VTUAV) is currently dependent on a single ship-mounted, radar-based landing system that is susceptible to component failures. Such a failure would require the air vehicle to divert from the intended host platform to another radar-landing-system-equipped ship or land-based facility. If an acceptably equipped alternate ship or land facility is out of range or unavailable, a multimillion dollar asset would have to be ditched at sea.

A backup landing capability would permit safe landing of the air vehicle on board the ship despite a failure of the VTUAV�s primary landing system. The backup landing system must be radio independent as a key issue is lack of antenna/radio frequency spectrum. Proposals should assume that although regular ultrahigh frequency (UHF) communication between the ship and VTUAV is functioning, the global positioning system (GPS) is down. From the preplanned Marshall holding pattern and without the use of the radio frequency spectrum, the backup landing system must enable the Fire Scout to fly a final approach and land itself on the helicopter flight deck on a moving ship. This means that the backup system will have to be able to locate the landing pad, orient itself properly, and descend onto the deck using its own sensors and controls.

PHASE I: Develop a design for a backup landing system for landing unmanned air vehicles safely on the helicopter flight deck of moving ships. Provide a concept plan for demonstrating simulated VTUAV landing performance via a shore-based flight test of the integrated system and any unique/special test equipment needs.

PHASE II: Develop and demonstrate a prototype of the innovations developed in Phase I in a relevant environment.

PHASE III: Transition the system developed in Phase II to the Fire Scout and develop commercial applications.

PRIVATE SECTOR COMMERCIAL POTENTIAL/DUAL-USE APPLICATIONS: The backup landing system developed could readily be transitioned to any emergency landing system or assisted landing system for a commercial, piloted helicopter. It could also be used as a guidance system for any autonomous vehicle.

REFERENCES:
1. Fire Scout MQ-8B cutaway. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.flightglobal.com/airspace/media/militaryaviation1946-2006cutaways/images/14365/northrop-grumman-mq-8b-firescout-cutaway.jpg.

2. Dunigan, T. (Program Manager). (2010, August). MQ-8B Fire Scout system description briefing. Presented at the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI) conference, Denver, CO.

3. DI Test Team. (1998). Dynamic interface test manual. Patuxent River, MD: Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division.

4. Flight Test and Engineering Group. (1994). Carrier suitability testing manual. Patuxent River, MD: Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division.

KEYWORDS: autonomous landing system; vertical takeoff and landing; helicopters; Fire Scout; unmanned aerial system; shipboard landing; precision relative navigation

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