Unmanned Systems Technology 008 | Alti Transition UAS | Ground control systems | Xponential 2016 report | Insitu Orbital N20 | UAVs | Solar power | Oceanology International 2016 report

51 AUVSI’s Xponential | Show report who makes the final decisions about landings, mission aborts and so on. Greg Koskowich announced “a new world record” for Alta Devices in reaching an efficiency level of 31.6% with its latest dual-junction cell solar panels. “We currently hold the world record of 28.8% for our single-junction solar cells,” he said, adding that the dual-junction option will be available for customers in 2017. The same weight single-junction option will still be available for customers requiring a more affordable solution, while Koskowich admitted that triple- junction devices are “down the road”. Click Bond offered a sneak preview of its new lightweight screw at the show, which it says offers significant weight savings for aircraft and other weight- sensitive applications. The new stainless steel screw is up to 50% lighter than common steel alternatives and as much as 17% lighter than those made of titanium. The screw is hollow, and this is accomplished through a proprietary deep-drawn manufacture process for good strength-to-weight ratio, while a captive washer design reduces parts count and foreign object debris. It is initially available in 10-32 thread in 15 lengths from 0.250-2.00 in with a variety of coatings, with other inch and metric sizes to follow. The latest product from KVH is the Geo-Fog 3D inertial navigation system (INS), reported Sean McCormack. ‘Fog’ stands for the Fiber Optic Gyro incorporated into this INS, designed for navigation and control applications. McCormack explained that the system is built on KVH’s Fog-based 1750 inertial measurement unit (IMU), which contains three DSP-1750 gyros integrated with three low-noise MEMS accelerometers. In the Geo-Fog 3D, this unit is integrated with a pressure sensor, a three-axis magnetometer and a single- or dual- antenna RTK Trimble GNSS receiver. McCormack remarked that the unit has performance monitoring and instability protection to ensure the robustness of the data it generates. “Using an innovative sensor fusion algorithm, its high-performance filter is more intelligent than the Kalman filter typically used in inertial solutions,” he noted. “The Geo-Fog is capable of extracting far more information from the 1750 IMU core processor by using a cutting-edge AI algorithm.” He also highlighted the unit’s north-seeking algorithm, which runs continuously while it is operating and is unaffected by velocity or angular motion. “This gyro compass means the Geo- Fog provides highly accurate heading in environments where magnetometers and GPS heading cannot be used,” he pointed out. Lockheed Martin used the show to unveil an upgraded variant of its 5 lb quadcopter in the form of the Indago 2, with extended hover and faster forward flight capabilities, thanks to a new autopilot and a new 30x optical zoom camera for stand-off inspections. Developed by Procerus Technologies, now a wholly owned subsidiary of Lockheed Martin, Indago was aimed at a gap in the small end of the market for an industrial, public safety and military-grade quadcopter that was quick to deploy, featured hot-swappable payloads and a sub-minute restart after a battery change. Carried in a small backpack, it folds down to dimensions of 12 x 9 x 7 in and can go from case to flight in three minutes, including all the pre-flight checks, and offers 40-50 minutes’ endurance, depending on the payload. Despite its low weight, it can tolerate sustained wind speeds of up to 25 mph and gusts of up to 35 mph. The beyond-visual-range capability is 2 km, which can be extended to 4 km, and the Indago 2 can fly at up to 500 ft above ground level and 18,000 ft above mean sea level in temperatures ranging from -30 to +120 F (-34 to 49 C). The digital data link works on S-band and military frequencies and uses AES 256 encryption. The system comes with a touchscreen hand controller and a separate charging case. The hot-swap capability enables the operator to change payloads without powering the vehicle down, explained Christopher Mundt of GeoShack, an industrial services company and Lockheed Martin Unmanned Integrated Systems’ North American distribution partner. He demonstrated the quick disconnect with a simple quarter-turn and the same to attach the new payload, securing it to the underside of the UAV and making all the power and data connections. Ken Young of Lockheed Martin Unmanned Integrated Systems, Unmanned Systems Technology | June/July 2016 Click Bond says its new screws are 50% lighter than common alternatives