Uncrewed Systems Technology 046

94 through, where we initialise and execute our missions; it logs the starts and stops. As much as we supply parts to – and perform flight tests for – the Vantis network, Thales is very much the systems integrator that brings it all together, so the end-users will be getting just a single comprehensive solution out of all of this.” On GCS specifics, Clark and Matus comment that Thales equips uAvionix’s UAS operators with a human-machine interface (HMI), which is integrated with Appareo’s ‘electronic flight bag’ app, Stratus Insight. The HMI is run on a Thales-supplied GCS tablet, which displays a map of the area of operation around uAvionix’s test UAV, illustrating the merged feed from the ground radars as well as the UAV’s ADS-B receivers. It also supports the team before and during flight by arranging and optimising the intended operational volumes, routes and trajectories for safety. And it provides dynamic assistance functions for airspace management, airspace restrictions and UAS operator mission needs. The HMI also accounts for operational impacts, including other known operations, aircraft performance, weather forecasts, ground and airspace constraints, and ground or air risks. These include moving targets of any other aircraft and displaying alert rings to mark ‘Do Not Cross’ lines that the team must maintain between their UAV and any encroaching aircraft. Lastly, it includes a function to plan and obtain approval for UAS operations in accordance with all the local and national regulations. Kronenburg adds, “Also among the equipment taken to the launch site is another console with our SkyLine system installed. It’s a software interface showing a map of all the radios with a DO-377 compliant C2 link capability to our flight team. That gives useful ranges on where the UAV needs to be to be able to transmit live health and status data, as well as receive commands if necessary, so Andrew and his team know where to adjust the flight path if needed.” The flights are also live-streamed over a teleconferencing link to ensure that Vantis and Thales can monitor the progress and details of the test in real time, and that key uAvionix personnel can follow and participate in the operation remotely. Different kinds of flight missions are performed for gauging how Vantis’ roll-out (and Thales’ and uAvionix’s contributions to it) are going. If the aim of the mission is to test C2 network coverage, the UAV will be flown at a number of different radials, altitudes and distances relative to the target ground radio stations. “We’ll fly at 400, 600 or 900 ft, or even up to 1200 ft depending on the authorisations we’ve been given,” Clark explains. “The ranges are usually within 3 to 5 miles of the ground towers, although sometimes we’ll fly in circles of differing radii around a given tower as a means of range testing. In fact, we’ve managed to maintain connectivity up to 86 miles out, which is impressive for such a tiny ISM radio.” During these flight patterns, a script written by one of uAvionix’s engineers is run on the HMI, which will send inert messages to the UAV and time how long it takes to get a reply corresponding to each message. “That means we don’t have to tell the aircraft to throttle up or down or anything like that – the inert message travels the full length of the network and October/November 2022 | Uncrewed Systems Technology After receiving the flight test cards from Thales, setting up of the Rapace takes 5-10 minutes (Courtesy of uAvionix) Thales equips uAvionix’s operators with a human-machine interface, which runs on a Thales GCS tablet and is critical to flight planning and monitoring (Courtesy of Thales)