Unmanned Systems Technology 004 | Delair-Tech DT18 | Autopilots | Rotron RT600 | Unmanned surface vehicles | AMRC | Motion control | Batteries

64 Dossier | AMRC strategy is created, this package will free up the designer to think creatively about other things rather than continuously putting inputs into a piece of software,” he says. Potential applications The AMRC’s UAV doesn’t have a specific function, as it was developed as a research project, but Colton says it could work well for biological or nuclear monitoring. “It would be an ideal replacement for a foam UAV in these applications because you can put a radiation monitor on one of these, fly it, map an entire fall-out cloud, land it and, assuming the entire body is FDM-built ABS, it can be decontaminated, crushed and recycled. That would remove the need for a large decontamination chamber, and all the electronics could be handled in the same way as they are now,” he explains. Standardisation is key to this project as the concept behind it offers scope for any application for the UAV. The idea is that in the near future a designer could produce a bespoke unmanned vehicle concept around a set of standard motors and control systems, with the body of the craft optimised for a specific payload and application. Colton says, “The key with AM components is the customisation capability. Say in five years’ time you are using UAVs in a humanitarian situation, you could have an AM machine on site that could make parts for UAVs that they need there and then. Whether it is aerial photography or delivering aid packages, for example, you can keep costs down by continuing to fly the UAVs you already have by repairing or modifying them on site and/or building new ones.” Future developments In due course the AMRC’s UAV could feature full onboard data logging of flight parameters, autonomous operation by GPS, and control by surface morphing technology. One idea is to incorporate sensors into the surface of the wings to monitor airflow so that the craft could read airflow separation over the wing and compensate for situations more quickly and more accurately than is possible with current control electronics. According to Colton, printable electronics are becoming more accessible, meaning that in the near future all the electronics could be stacked on top of each other in the UAV’s skin. There is also research into AM circuit boards made from a conductive material, and embedding semiconductors in the material so that the electronics could be used as a structural member. The DPG also plans to print full antenna arrays on one wing of the UAV and a receiver on the other for long-range communications. Autumn 2015 | Unmanned Systems Technology The Advanced Manufacturing and Research Centre is part of the University of Sheffield, and is also a member of a research group called the Catapult centres, which act as links between UK academic research and UK industry. It helps to transfer technologies being developed in academia to a Technology Readiness Level (TRL) at which it is viable for an industry to adopt it. TRLs are a method of estimating the maturity of a technology during the acquisition stage by an industry, and are based on a scale of 1 to 9, with 9 being the most mature. The AMRC develops technologies up to a TRL of 7, at which point it will hand them to companies to carry out testing before their full adoption. The AMRC works with UK aerospace, automotive and other high-value manufacturing industries, and its partners cooperate to share the risk of developing technologies with the potential to have a positive impact on UK industry. Research and development engineer at the centre’s Design and Prototyping Group (DPG) Keith Colton says, “We are here because it is difficult for the likes of the aerospace industry to take their production facilities offline or take resources from their day- to-day design to revisit or reinvent their production or manufacturing processes, so they hand it over to us. It also means the aerospace industry can see what the automotive industry is doing and if there are processes in automotive that might be more efficient and could be transferred across.” The DPG was established in 2013 and is an extension of the advanced manufacturing side of the AMRC. It takes a process or product concept at the design stage and develops it to focus on a manufacturing technique or process for a particular industry. It also develops technologies for AMRC partner companies, and produces what are called Blue Sky projects, which are carried out by AMRC researchers in-house. The AMRC The UAV could work well for biological or nuclear monitoring. It could be decontaminated afterwards and then recycled