Automatic Take-off and Landing
Simona Teodorovic
July, 2018
A very
simple search reveals various systems that have the capability of automatic take-off
and landing. For decades, pilots of manned aircraft have been utilizing the
autopilot, which later on has developed into the autoland. Debates and
discussions are nowadays held, arguing what is the role of the pilot in the
cockpit? How much, during the actual flight is he operating at the commands, as
opposed to just overviewing them and managing input and output data? However,
as far as technology in aviation has evolved, a completely automatic take-off of
a manned aircraft has not yet been achieved (Can a Plane Land Automatically,
n.d.).
Any flight that is completely
autonomous requires skillful precision in aircraft positioning. For landings
and take-offs, this is of even greater importance (Wenzel, Masselli, &
Zell, 2011). From the same source, we can see the authors developing a system
that has the capability of automatic landing on a moving platform. Due to the
size of the Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV), the on-board space is very limited
for implementing navigational aids and additional equipment.
In contrast to the mentioned system,
a fixed wing, blended wide body (BWB) has proven to be successful in automated phases
of flight. This type aircraft has improved flight characteristics and advanced
payload capabilities. Even though this vehicle cannot compete with those of the
military, it demonstrates increased endurance, which for the purpose of this
analysis allows for an illustration of its level of automation.
According to Huh and Shim (2010),
this type of aircraft can land automatically, by controlling this phase through
“vision algorithms and relatively simple landing aids” (p. 218). This way,
there would be no need for costly sensors and additional equipment. The overall
system consists out of “an inflated dome as a visual marker, a vision
processing unit, and a flight controller using a visual servoing algorithm” (p.
219). This technology offers a simply solution to automatic landing. Additionally,
due to its simplicity, in the event of a malfunction, the system will be able
to be transferred and operated by a pilot. Depending on the level of sophistication
of the additional equipment, the aircraft has the ability to fly from an
initial position to a final one, based on a partially recognized environment
(Saripalli, Montgomery, & Sukhatme, 2002).
This type of system has many
advantages. Low cost and maintenance, simplicity and GPS based navigation,
allows for an easy transition between automated and manual flight. At this
level of automation, a suggestion would be to further develop it. The structure
of a BWB allows for greater payload, stability and an overall, positive
performance.
Many systems currently have the
capability of automatic operations (Scan Eagle, Global Hawk, etc.). However, as
much as it might reduce human factor issues, it arises new concerns. There are
terrible consequences of landings that are not executed correctly and that fail.
In other words, it would be preferable and beneficial if the operator could
recognize and terminate a disastrous landing beforehand.
Can a Plane Land Automatically. Retrieved on July 7th,
2018, from https://www.flightdeckfriend.com/can-a-plane-land-automatically
Huh, S., & Shim, D. H. (2010). A vision-based automatic
landing method for fixed-wing UAVs. Journal
of Intelligent and Robotic Systems, 57, 217-231. doi:10.1007/s10846-009-9382-2
Saripalli, S., Montgomery, J. F., & Sukhatme, G. S.
(2002). Vision-based autonomous landing of an unmanned aerial vehicle. In Proceedings of IEEE International
Conference on Robotics and Automation, 2779-2804. Washington, D.C., USA.
Wenzel, K. E., Masselli, A., & Zell, Andreas (2011).
Automatic take-off, tracking and landing of a miniature UAV on a moving carrier
vehicle. Journal of Intelligent and
Robotic Systems, 61, 221-238. doi:10.1007/s10846-010-9473-0
No comments:
Post a Comment