16 Dr Donough Wilson Dr Wilson is innovation lead at aviation, defence, and homeland security innovation consultants, VIVID/ futureVision. His defence innovations include the cockpit vision system that protects military aircrew from asymmetric high-energy laser attack. He was first to propose the automatic tracking and satellite download of airliner black box and cockpit voice recorder data in the event of an airliner’s unplanned excursion from its assigned flight level or track. For his ‘outstanding and practical contribution to the safer operation of aircraft’ he was awarded The Sir James Martin Award 2018/19, by the Honourable Company of Air Pilots. Paul Weighell Paul has been involved with electronics, computer design and programming since 1966. He has worked in the realtime and failsafe data acquisition and automation industry using mainframes, minis, micros and cloud-based hardware on applications as diverse as defence, Siberian gas pipeline control, UK nuclear power, robotics, the Thames Barrier, Formula One and automated financial trading systems. Ian Williams-Wynn Ian has been involved with uncrewed and autonomous systems for more than 20 years. He started his career in the military, working with early prototype uncrewed systems and exploiting imagery from a range of systems from global suppliers. He has also been involved in ground-breaking research including novel power and propulsion systems, sensor technologies, communications, avionics and physical platforms. His experience covers a broad spectrum of domains from space, air, maritime and ground, and in both defence and civil applications including, more recently, connected autonomous cars. Professor James Scanlan Professor Scanlan is the director of the Strategic Research Centre in Autonomous Systems at the University of Southampton, in the UK. He also co-directs the Rolls-Royce University Technical Centre in design at Southampton. He has an interest in design research, and in particular how complex systems (especially aerospace systems) can be optimised. More recently, he established a group at Southampton that undertakes research into uncrewed aircraft systems. He produced the world’s first ‘printed aircraft’, the SULSA, which was flown by the Royal Navy in the Antarctic in 2016. He also led the team that developed the ULTRA platform, the largest UK commercial UAV, which has flown BVLOS extensively in the UK. He is a qualified full-size aircraft pilot and also has UAV flight qualifications. Dr David Barrett Dr David Barrett’s career includes senior positions with companies such as iRobot and Walt Disney Imagineering. He has also held posts with research institutions including the Charles Stark Draper Laboratory, MIT and Olin College, where he is now Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Robotics, and Principal Investigator for the Olin Intelligent Vehicle Laboratory. He also serves in an advisory capacity on the boards of several robotics companies. Uncrewed Systems Technology’s consultants Researchers in the US have developed a heat-shield material to protect reusable autonomous spacecraft returning from orbit, writes Nick Flaherty. The thermal protection system (TPS) is based on silicon carbide. Developed at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Sierra Space, the TPS is composed of a tile face made from advanced materials and an insulative tile backing, which, when installed on a space vehicle, will be able to withstand multiple launches and the high temperatures of atmospheric re-entries over short periods of time. The high temperature and corrosion stability properties of silicon carbide are merged with the high-strength, high-temperature consistency of carbon fibre. The two materials are combined into a low-density, low-profile, composite thermal barrier that is critical for providing insulative protection and stable flight dynamics. This will help maintain the aerodynamic surface over multiple flights by resisting changes to size and shape. “Keeping a consistent outer mould line is important for reusability,” said ORNL principal investigator Greg Larsen, referring to the need for a smooth exterior surface. “It keeps the aerodynamics the same to allow the vehicle to fly as designed. “The key to achieving a flight cadence driven by fast landing-to-launch turnaround times is reusability of the TPS. The materials we are exploring will push the boundaries of reusability that translate directly to commercial viability for space access providers.” ORNL and Sierra Space have completed the first material-development phase of the project, and they have jointly applied to patent it. The second phase will focus on developing a manufacturing process for the insulative tile backing. Sierra Space plans to use the TPS on the DC-100 Dream Chaser, a winged commercial spaceplane, designed to carry crew and cargo into low-Earth orbit. Materials Shielding spacecraft from heat in re-entry December/January 2025 | Uncrewed Systems Technology A new silicon carbide material for heat shields (Image courtesy of Sierra Space)
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