UNIT – I

INTRODUCTION TO UAV
PART A (2 Marks)
1. What is a UAV? (Nov/Dec 2018)
Ans: An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) is a type of aircraft that operates without a human pilot onboard and
controlled by a computer system and a radio-link. UAVs are differ from Drones since they have autonomous
flight capabilities.
2) What was the necessity that led to the invention of UAV? (Nov/Dec 2018)
Ans: The necessity that led to the invention of UAV was mainly to gain military advantage. In the early
development stages UAVs were used to carry out the Dangerous Roles. Dangerous Roles includes the
reconnaissance of heavily defended areas. The use of UAV was better than a manned aircraft due to its smaller
size and greater stealth.
3) Write down the application of UAV systems? (April/May 2018)
Ans: Due to the smaller size and greater stealth of UAV, the UAV have many applications in Military and Civilian
roles.
Civilian uses includes Aerial photography, Crop monitoring and spraying, Search and rescue operations, coastline
and sea-lane monitoring, Pollution and land monitoring, Surveillance for illegal imports, Power line inspection,
Fire detection etc.
Military uses includes Reconnaissance, Surveillance of enemy activity, Monitoring of nuclear or chemical (NBC)
contamination, Target designation and monitoring, Decoying missiles by the emission of artificial signatures,
Radar system jamming and destruction etc
4) Classify UAV systems (April/May 2018)
Ans: UAV systems are classified on the capability or size of the air vehicle that is required to carry out the
mission. They are classified as
1. HALE – High altitude long endurance UAV
2. MALE – Medium altitude long endurance UAV.
3. TUAV – Tactical UAV.
4. Close-Range UAV
5. MUAV or Mini UAV
6. Micro UAV or MAV
7. NAV
5) Comment on MALE and HALE (Nov/Dec 2018)
Ans: HALE – High altitude long endurance UAVs are the UAVs which can fly over 15000 meter altitude and
24+ hour endurance. They can carry out extremely long-range (trans-global) reconnaissance and surveillance and
increasingly are being armed also. They are usually operated by Air Forces from fixed bases.
MALE – Medium altitude long endurance UAVs are UAVs which can have an altitude up to 5000–15000 m and
24 hour endurance. Their roles are similar to the HALE systems but generally operate at shorter ranges of more
than 500 km. They are also operated from fixed bases.
6) Comment on TUAV
TUAVs are Medium Range or Tactical UAV with range of order between 100 and 300 km. These air vehicles are
smaller and operated within simpler systems than are HALE or MALE and are operated by both land and naval
forces.
7) Differentiate MAV and NAV (Nov/Dec 2018)
Ans:
MAV NAV
Mav is the acronym for Micro UAV NAV is the acronym for Nano Air Vehicles.
UAV having a wing-span no greater than 150 mm These are proposed to be of the size of 30-50 cm and
used in swarms for purposes such as radar confusion
or conceivably
It is used to operate in urban environments, NAV is used for ultra-short range surveillance.
particularly within buildings.
It has the ability to fly slowly, and to hover and to Since the camera, propulsion and control sub-systems
‘perch’ – i.e. to be able to stop and to sit on a wall or are very small, they have very high stealth.
post
8) Classify UAV systems based on size?
Ans: The classification of UAV according to size are the following:
1. Very small UAVs
o Micro or Nano UAVs
2. Small UAVs
3. Mini UAVs
4. Medium UAVs
5. Large UAVs
9) What are the roles carried out by UAV?
UAV carry out the dull, dirty or dangerous (DDD) tasks.
Dull Roles - Dull roles are Military and civilian applications such as extended surveillance can be a dulling
experience for aircrew, with many hours spent on watch without relief, and can lead to a loss of concentration
and therefore loss of mission effectiveness.
Dirty Roles- Dirty Roles are monitoring the environment for nuclear or chemical contamination which may put
aircrew unnecessarily at risk. Subsequent detoxification of the aircraft is easier in the case of the UAV. Crop-
spraying with toxic chemicals is another dirty role which now is conducted very successfully by UAV.
Dangerous Roles- These are the reconnaissance of heavily defended areas is necessary. In these areas, the attrition
rate of a manned aircraft is likely to exceed that of a UAV. Due to its smaller size and greater stealth, the UAV is
more difficult for an enemy air defense system to detect and more difficult to strike with anti-aircraft fire or
missiles.

10) Mention the main four modules of UAV (Nov/Dec 2018)

Ans: The main four modules of UAV are
1. The UAV
2. The ground station
3. The sensors and the data acquisition (DA) module
4. The data fusion (DF) modul
 PART B
1. Write a detailed chronological report on the developments of military UAV (Nov/Dec 2018)
An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) is a type of aircraft that operates without a human pilot onboard and controlled
by a computer system and a radio-link. UAVs are differ from Drones since they have autonomous flight
capabilities. In the early development stages, UAVs were used to carry out the Dangerous Roles, which includes
the reconnaissance of heavily defended areas.
a) Early development during World War I and World War II
UAVs were not recognized until WW-I.
 “Kettering Bug” in 1918
In 1918, Charls Kettering developed a biplane UAV for Army Signal Corps and it took 3 yrs to develop Kettering
Aerial Torpedo, also known as the “Kettering Bug” or just plain “Bug.” The Bug could fly nearly 40 mi at 55
mi/h and carry 80 Kilogram of high explosives. The air vehicle was guided to the target by using a small onboard
gyroscope and a mechanical system to calculate distance covered. It had detachable wings that were released
when over the target allowing the fuselage to plunge to the ground as a bomb. Also in 1917, Lawrence Sperry
developed a UAV, similar to Kettering’s, for the Navy called the Sperry-Curtis Aerial Torpedo. It was a successful
one but not used in war.
 First radio controlled flight in 1924
First In 1924, Archibald Montgomery Low made the world’s first successful radio controlled flight. This
increased the success rate of missions and helped further developments in UAV design. Professor Low is known
as the “Father of Radio Guidance Systems”.
 Remote controlled Fairey Queen biplanes by Britain in 1933
In 1933, the British flew three refurbished Fairey Queen Biplanes by remote control from a ship. Two crashed,
but the third flew successfully making Great Britain the first country to fully successfully operated UAVs.

 Radioplane Company
In 1937 another Englishman, Reginald Leigh Denny, and two Americans, Walter Righter and Kenneth Case,
developed a series of UAVs called RP-1, RP-2, RP-3, and RP-4. They formed a company in 1939 called the
Radioplane Company. This American aviation company produced drone aircraft primarily for use as gunnery
targets. During World War II, they produced over 9,400 of their Radioplane OQ-3 model, a propeller-powered
monoplane, making it the most-used target aircraft in the US.
The Germans also used lethal UAVs (V-1’s and V-2’s) during the later years of the war, but it was not until the
Vietnam-War era that UAVs were successfully used for reconnaissance.
b) THE VIETNAM WAR
In the Vietnam War of 1955-75, the US air force used UAVs were used extensively in reconnaissance missions.
The air vehicles were usually air launched from C-130’s and recovered by parachute. The air vehicles were called
deep penetrators and were developed from existing target drones.
A total of 3,435 UAVs were flown on the Vietnam War, and nearly 84% of them (2873) were recovered.
By the end of the Vietnam War in 1972, air vehicles were experiencing 90% success rates.
c) RESURGENCE OF UAV
Even though there was a very good success rate, UAVs were only used of reconnaissance missions till the
Vietnam War. The UAVs were often considered as unreliable and expensive toys. This attitude changed
dramatically with the Israeli Air Force’s victory over the Syrian Air Force in 1982. Israel’s coordinated use of
UAVs alongside manned aircraft allowed the state to quickly destroy dozens of Syrian aircraft with minimal
losses. Israeli drones were used as electronic decoys, electronic jammers as well as for real time video
reconnaissance. This was a resurgence in the UAV developments and applications.
This proved the worth of UAVs in battlefield. Later the United States began to work again on UAVs in
1974, the Army’s Materiel Command established an RPV weapons system management office and a “Systems
Technology Demonstration” contract was awarded to Lockheed Aircraft Company, with the air vehicle
subcontracted to Developmental Sciences Incorporated. The demonstration was highly successful, proving the
concept to be feasible. The system was flown by Army personnel and accumulated more than 300 flight hours
In 1978, the Target Acquisition/Designation and Aerial Reconnaissance System (TADARS) was approved, and
in 1979, another contract was awarded to Lockheed Aircraft Company. The system was given the name “Aquila”.
And the Lockheed MQM-105 Aquila (Eagle) was the first small battlefield drone developed in the United States.
Aquila made its first flight on 1983
d) JOINT OPERATIONS-1985
The US Navy and Marine Corps entered the UAV arena in 1985 by purchasing the Mazlat/Israeli Aircraft
Industries (IAI) and AAI Pioneer system (USA). The joint project between Israel and USA formed so that
commonality and inter-operability among the services would be maximized. They developed the AAI RQ-2
Pioneer, an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) that had been utilized by the United States Navy, Marine Corps, and
Army, which can be deployed at sea and on land. The AAI RQ-2 Pioneer was used from 1986 until 2007.
e) DESERT STROM- 1990
The Kuwait/Iraq war allowed military planners an opportunity to use UAVs in combat conditions. They found
them to be a highly desirable asset even though the performance of the systems then available was less than
satisfactory in many ways. Five UAV systems were used in the operation:
(1) The Pioneer by US forces
(2) The Ex-Drone by US forces
(3) The “Mini Avion de Reconnaissance Telepilot” (MART) by French forces, and
(5) The CL 89, a helicopter UAV, by British forces.
They did not play any key role during this war. But during the desert storm helped to learn that the UAVs
were potentially a key weapon system during battlefields, which boosted its further development.

f) NATO UAV operation in Bosnia- 1995

The NATO UAV operation in Bosnia was one of surveillance and reconnaissance. Bomb damage
assessment was successfully accomplished after NATO’s 1995 air attacks on Bosnian-Serb military facilities
using aerial photography. Night reconnaissance was also developed by this time. The Predator was the primary
UAV used in Bosnia, flying from an airbase in Hungary.
g) AFGHANISTAN AND IRAQ WAR
The war in Iraq has transformed the status of UAVs from a potential key weapons system searching for proponents
and missions to their rightful place as key weapon systems performing many roles that are central to the operations
of all four services. The Global Hawk was effectively used during the early stages of Afghanistan War. The
Pioneer, the Shadow, the Hunter were the other UAVs used by the US air force.
They flew hundreds of missions using Pioneers during the battle of Iraq to locate and mark targets and keep track
of insurgent forces. They were especially effective at night and could be considered one of the decisive weapons
in that battle. The armed version of the Predator, mini-UAVs such as the Dragon Eye, and a wide range of other
UAV systems have been used on the battlefields of Afghanistan and Iraq and have proven the military value of
UAVs.
2. Explain the Applications of UAV (Nov/Dec 2018)
Unmanned aerial vehicles are used across the world for civilian, commercial, as well as military applications.
The various Applications includes the following
(1) Aerospace
Airlines and maintenance, repair, and operations contractors use UAVs for aircraft maintenance. A helicopter
UAV has been proposed to accompany a future NASA Mars rover mission. Investigators believe a solar-powered
craft would be able to fly for a few minutes at a time despite the thin atmosphere of the planet, and help the rover
scout out interesting destinations
(2) Military
UAVs are used by a broad range of military forces around the world. UAVs were used to carry out the Dangerous
Roles, which includes
a. Reconnaissance
In military operations, reconnaissance is the exploration of an outside area occupied other forces to gain
information about natural features and other activities in the area. Aerial reconnaissance is reconnaissance for a
military or strategic purpose that is conducted using reconnaissance aircraft or UAV. The role of reconnaissance
can fulfil a variety of requirements including artillery spotting, the collection of imagery intelligence, and the
observation of enemy maneuvers. Using UAVs, aerial reconnaissance can be done by the hands of soldiers on the
ground itself. The soldier on the ground can both control the UAV and see its output, yielding great benefit over
a disconnected approach.
b. Attack
An unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV), also known as a combat drone or simply a drone, is an unmanned
aerial vehicle (UAV) that usually carries aircraft ordnance such as missiles and is used for drone strikes. These
drones are usually under real-time human control. Aircraft of this type have no onboard human pilot. As the
operator runs the vehicle from a remote terminal, equipment necessary for a human pilot are not needed, resulting
in a lower weight and a smaller size than a manned aircraft
 c. Defense against UAVs
An Anti-UAV Defense System (AUDS) is a system for defense against military unmanned aerial vehicles. A
variety of designs have been developed, using lasers, net-guns and air-to-air netting, signal jamming, and hi-
jacking by means of in-flight hacking etc.
d. Targets for military training
A target drone is an unmanned aerial vehicle, generally remote controlled, usually used in the training of anti-
aircraft crews. In their simplest form, target drones often resemble radio-controlled model aircraft. More modern
drones may use countermeasures, radar, and similar systems to mimic manned aircraft

(3) Demining
Demining or mine clearance is the process of removing land mines from an area. In military operations, the object
is to rapidly clear a path through a minefield, and this is often done with devices such as mine plows and blast
wave. Drones equipped with cameras have been used to map these areas during non-technical survey, to monitor
changes in land use resulting from demining, to identify patterns of mine placement and predict new locations,
and to plan access routes to minefields. The use of such systems for demining has grown rapidly.
(4) Civil
Civil uses of UAVs includes aerial crop surveys, aerial photography, search and rescue, inspection of power lines
and pipelines, counting wildlife, delivering medical supplies to otherwise inaccessible regions, and detection of
illegal hunting, reconnaissance operations, cooperative environment monitoring, border patrol missions, convoy
protection, forest fire detection and monitoring, surveillance, coordinating humanitarian aid, plume tracking, land
surveying, fire and large-accident investigation, landslide measurement, illegal landfill detection, the construction
industry, smuggling, and crowd monitoring
o Archaeology
Archaeologists used UAVs to speed up survey work and protect sites from squatters, builders and miners. Small
UAVs helped researchers produce three-dimensional models of sites instead of the usual flat maps in days and
weeks instead of months and years.
o Cargo transport
UAVs can transport medicines and medical specimens into and out of inaccessible regions.
o Conservation
Conservation Drones used by NGOs, research organizations, and governments to collect environmental data
through drone usage. UAV usage in conservation is able to alleviate many of the challenges facing
conservationists on foot, such as "the large size of species’ geographic ranges, low population densities,
inaccessible habitat, elusive behavior and sensitivity to disturbance etc.
o Healthcare
UAVs are also used in Healthcare industry for better performance. There are three identified roles for UAVs in
healthcare industry. (1) Prehospital emergency care, (2) Speeding up laboratory testing, (3) Surveillance.
o Filmmaking
Use of UAVs for filmmaking is generally easier on large private lots or in rural and exurban areas with fewer
space constraints. Moreover the low-cost UAVs could be used for shots that would otherwise require a helicopter
or a manned aircraft, which can save money and reducing risk for pilot and crew.
o Hobby and recreational use
o Journalism
Journalists are interested in using UAVs for newsgatherings especially in harsh conditions and disasters such as
typhoons etc.
o Law enforcement
UAVs have been used for domestic police work in various countries. UAVs have been also used by other
departments like Customs and Border Protection
o Scientific research
UAVs are especially useful in accessing areas that are too dangerous for manned aircraft, like to conduct
researches inside Hurricanes etc.
o Search and rescue
UAVs were used in search and rescue basically for identifying the locations of affected persons.
o Surveillance
A surveillance UAV is a UAV used for surveillance—collecting information over time. They are operated by
military forces and other government agencies in roles such as intelligence gathering, battlefield surveillance,
airspace surveillance, observation (e.g. artillery spotting), border patrol and fishery protection etc. Aerial
surveillance of large areas can be cost effective by the use of low-cost UAS. Surveillance applications also include
livestock monitoring, wildfire mapping, pipeline security, home security, road patrol and antipiracy etc.
o Surveying
UAS technologies are used worldwide as aerial photogrammetry and LiDAR platforms. Photogrammetry is the
art, science and technology of obtaining reliable information about physical objects and the environment through
the process of recording, measuring and interpreting photographic images and patterns of electromagnetic radiant
imagery and other phenomena. And Lidar is a surveying method that measures distance to a target by illuminating
the target with laser light and measuring the reflected light with a sensor.
 Pollution monitoring
UAVs equipped with air quality monitors provide real time air analysis at various elevations
 Oil, gas and mineral exploration and production
UAVs can be used to perform geophysical surveys, in particular geomagnetic surveys, where
measurements of the Earth's varying magnetic field strength are used to calculate the nature of the
underlying magnetic rock structure. A knowledge of the underlying rock structure helps to predict the
location of mineral deposits. Oil and gas production entails the monitoring of the integrity of oil and gas
pipelines and related installations. For above-ground pipelines, this monitoring activity can be performed
using digital cameras mounted on UAVs.
 Disaster relief
UAVs can help in disaster relief by providing intelligence across an affected area.
o Agriculture
An agricultural drone is an unmanned aerial vehicle applied to farming in order to help increase crop production
and monitor crop growth. Sensors and digital imaging capabilities can give farmers a richer picture of their fields.
This information may prove useful in improving crop yields and farm efficiency.
Agricultural drones let farmers see their fields from the sky. This bird's-eye view can reveal many issues such as
irrigation problems, soil variation, and pest and fungal infestations. Multispectral images show a near-infrared
view as well as a visual spectrum view. The combination shows the farmer the differences between healthy and
unhealthy plants, a difference not always clearly visible to the naked eye. Thus, these views can assist in assessing
crop growth and production.
o Construction
In construction, drones can be used to survey building sites to help monitor and report progress, spot errors early
on and avoid rework and show off finished projects in marketing materials. Drones may fly over a building site
to monitor progress made during the day etc.
o Passenger transport
UAV taxi service and passenger transport is another application of UAVs. This type of passenger transport service
provides affordability and convenience to the customers than manned aircrafts.
o Light show
UAVs equipped with LED's can be used to give a nighttime aerial display for entertainment and to add effects to
shows.
3. Explain various classifications of UAV (Nov/Dec 2016)
There is no standard classification of UAS or UAV. The Defense agencies have their own standard, and civilians
have another categories for UAV. The classifications of UAVs are done on three different parameters, size, range
and endurance. In addition to that, there is a tier system that is employed by the military.
Classification according to size have the following sub-classes:
1. Very small UAVs
 Micro or Nano UAVs
2. Small UAVs
 Mini UAVs
3. Medium UAVs
4. Large UAVs
UAVs also can be classified according to the ranges they can travel and their endurance in the air using the
following sub-classes developed by the US military:
1. Very low cost close-range UAVs
2. Close-range UAVs
3. Short-range UAVs
4. Mid-range UAVs
5. Endurance UAVs
a) Classification According to Size
 1) Very small UAVs
The very small UAV class applies to UAVs with dimensions ranging from the size of a large insect to 30-50 cm
long. The insect-like UAVs, with flapping or rotary wings, are a popular micro design. They are extremely small
in size, are very light weight, and can be used for spying and biological warfare. Larger ones utilize conventional
aircraft configuration. The choice between flapping or rotary wings is a matter of desired maneuverability.
Flapping wing-based designs allow perching and landing on small surfaces.
Example: Israel’s Malat Mosquito, the US Skate, and the Australian CyberQuad Maxi.

Examples of very small UAVs

2) Small UAVs
The Small UAV class (which also called sometimes mini-UAV) applies to UAVs that have at least one dimension
greater than 50 cm and no larger than 2 meters. Many of the designs in this category are based on the fixed-wing
model, and most are hand-launched by throwing them in the air.
Examples for small UAV class are:
 Raven, by US, The Turkish Bayraktar
Some of the UASs of this class are based on a rotary-wing design.

Examples of small UAVs

3) Medium UAVs
The medium UAV class applies to UAVs that are too heavy to be carried by one person but are still smaller than
a light aircraft. They usually have a wingspan of about 5-10 m and can carry payloads of 100 to 200 kg.
Example: The Israeli-US Hunter and the UK Watchkeeper.
 Examples of medium UAVs
4) Large UAVs
The large UAV class applies to the large UAVs used mainly for combat operations by the military. Examples of
these large UAVs are the US General Atomics Predator A and B and the US Northrop Grumman Global Hawk

Examples of large UAVs

b) Classification According to Range and Endurance
1. Very low-cost, close range UAVs
This class includes UAVs that have a range of 5 km, endurance time of 20 to 45 minutes. Examples of
UAVs in this class are the Raven and Dragon Eye. UAVs in this class are very close to model airplanes.
2. Close range UAVs
This class includes UAVs that have a range of 50 km and endurance time of 1 to 6 hours. They are usually
used for reconnaissance and surveillance tasks.
3. Short range UAVs
This class includes UAVs that have a range of 150 km or longer and endurance times of 8 to 12 hours.
Like the close range UAV, they are mainly utilized for reconnaissance and surveillance purposes.
4. Mid-range UAVs
The mid-range class includes UAVs that have super high speed and a working radius of 650 km. They
are also used for reconnaissance and surveillance purposes in addition to gathering meteorological data.
5. Endurance UAVs
The endurance class includes UAVs that have an endurance of 36 hours and a working radius of 300 km.
This class of UAVs can operate at altitudes of 30,000 feet. They are also used for reconnaissance and
surveillance purposes.
4. Explain in detail about various models, prototypes and system composition of UAV (April/May 2018)
Introduction
Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems usually called as UAV, are an emerging technology presenting a huge potential
for innovative research in territory management. These systems will revolutionize most of the environmental
studies (e.g. population ecology, vegetation dynamics, ecosystem processes, etc.) that are improved by remote
sensing data, overcoming satellite-based data that provide not easy repeatable information and only at
regional/global scale (from about 50-100 km up to 10.000 km).
 UAVs are three types of Models:
Aerial targets: Used for weapon system evaluation and gunnery practice.
Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicle (UCAV): Carries weapon systems.
Surveillance/Reconnaissance UAVs: For data collection and patrolling/spying.
 Prototypes: A prototype is an early model of the UAV, built to test the requirements. The prototypes must
satisfy the design and mission requirements successfully to be consider for mass production.
 SYSTEM COMPOSITION
The innovative architecture of the prototype system herein presented fully integrates an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle
(UAV) equipped with scientific payload, Ground Control Stations (GCSs) that are able to provide both flight
management, payload control and Mission planning, including a survey in cooperation also with other semi-
autonomous systems.

UAV SYSTEM
 Control Station (CS)
Usually based on the ground (GCS), or aboard ship (SCS), though possibly airborne in a ‘parent’ aircraft
(ACS), the control station is the control center of the operation and the man–machine interface.
It is the center in which the UAV mission is pre-planned, in which case it may be known as the mission planning
and control station (MPCS). Less usually, the mission may be planned from a central command center and the
mission data is sent to the CS for its execution. From the CS, the operators ‘speak’ to the aircraft via the
communications system up-link in order to direct its flight profile and to operate the various types of mission
‘payload’ that it carries.
Similarly, via the communications down-link, the aircraft returns information and images to the operators. The
information may include data from the payloads, status information on the aircraft’s sub-systems (housekeeping
data), and position information. The launching and recovery of the aircraft may be controlled from the main CS
or from a satellite (subsidiary) CS.
` The CS will usually also house the systems for communication with other external systems. These may
include means of acquiring weather data, transfer of information from and to other systems in the network, tasking
from higher authority and the reporting of information back to that or other authorities.

 The Payload
The type and performance of the payloads is driven by the needs of the operational task. These can range from:
(a) Relatively simple sub-systems consisting of an unstabilised video camera with a fixed lens having a
mass as little as 200 g, through
 (b) A video system with a greater range capability, employing a longer focal length lens with zoom
facility, gyro-stabilised and with pan and tilt function with a mass of probably 3–4 kg, to
(c) A high-power radar having a mass, with its power supplies, of possibly up to 1000 kg.
Some, more sophisticated, UAV carry a combination of different types of sensors, within a payload module or
within a series of modules. The data from these several sensors may be processed and integrated to provide
enhanced information, or information which could not be obtained using a single type of sensor.
 The Air Vehicle
The type and performance of the air vehicle/aircraft is principally determined by the needs of the operational
mission. The task of the aircraft is primarily to carry the mission payload to its point of application, but it also has
to carry the subsystems necessary for it to operate. These sub-systems include the communications link,
stabilisation and control equipment, power plant and fuel, electrical power supplies; and basic airframe structure
and mechanisms needed for the aircraft to be launched, to carry out its mission, and to be recovered.
Other significant determinants in the design of the aircraft configuration are the operational range, airspeed and
endurance demanded of it by the mission requirement. The endurance and range requirement will determine the
fuel load to be carried. Achievement of a small fuel load and maximized performance will require an efficient
propulsion system and optimum airframe aerodynamics.
The speed requirement will determine more fundamentally whether a lighter-than-air aircraft, or a heavier-than-
air fixed-wing, rotary-wing, or convertible aircraft configuration, is used. A long endurance and long range
mission for military surveillance will predominately require a high-aspect ratio fixed-wing aircraft operating at
high altitude. It will be necessary for it to take off from a long paved runway to achieve the high lift-off speed
demanded by the high wing-loading required for low aerodynamic drag.
UCAVs (Unmanned Combat Air Vehicles) may be required to operate at high speed. They are likely to have low
aspect ratio wings and either take off from a long runway or be air-launched.
Compounded helicopter configurations add wings and/or a propulsive system to a basic helicopter in order to
reduce the thrust required from the rotor and enable the aircraft to achieve higher speeds. The addition of a wing
can give a helicopter a speed of over 200 kt. A fully compounded helicopter (with a wing and propulsive system)
has reached a speed in excess of 300 kt (550 km/hr), but at considerable cost in reduction of payload and
endurance.
‘Convertible’ aircraft configurations attempt to achieve a viable compromise between the requirement to take off
and land vertically and have a long endurance. This is achieved by lifting off with the rotor(s) horizontal, but
tilting them into a vertical plane to become propellers for cruise flight with the weight of the aircraft being borne
upon wings. These configurations suffer a payload weight penalty compared with either a helicopter or fixed-
wing aircraft.
Another rotary-wing configuration of interest is the auto gyro, which attempts to dispense with the transmission
system of the helicopter in the interest of reducing complexity, but it suffers in that it cannot hover. However, it
is able to fly considerably more slowly than can fixed-wing aircraft.
 Navigation Systems
It is necessary for the operators to know, on demand, where the aircraft is at any moment in time. It may also be
necessary for the aircraft to ‘know’ where it is if autonomous flight is required of it at any time during the flight.
This may be either as part or all of a pre-programmed mission or as an emergency ‘return to base’ capability after
system degradation. For fully autonomous operation, i.e. without any communication between the CS and the air
vehicle, sufficient navigation equipment must be carried in the aircraft.
In the past, this meant that the aircraft had to carry a sophisticated, complex, expensive and heavy inertial
navigation system (INS), or a less sophisticated INS at lower cost, etc., but which required a frequent positional
update from the CS via the communications link. This was achieved by radio tracking or by the recognition of
geographical features.
Nowadays, the availability of a global positioning system (GPS) which accesses positional information from a
system of earth-satellites, has eased this problem. The GPSs now available are extremely light in weight, compact
and quite cheap, and give continuous positional update so that only a very simple form of INS is now normally
needed. The accuracy is further improved by the use of differential GPS.
For non-autonomous operation, i.e. where communication between aircraft and CS is virtually continuous, or
where there is a risk of the GPS system being blocked, other means of navigation are possible fall - back options.
These methods include:
(a) Radar tracking. Here the aircraft is fitted with a transponder which responds to a radar scanner emitting
from the CS, so that the aircraft position is seen on the CS radar display in bearing and range.
 (b) Radio tracking. Here the radio signal carrying data from the aircraft to the CS is tracked in bearing
from the CS, whilst its range is determined from the time taken for a coded signal to travel between the aircraft
and the CS.
(c) Direct reckoning. Here, with the computer-integration of velocity vectors and time elapsed, the aircraft
position may be calculated. If the mission is over land and the aircraft carries a TV camera surveying the ground,
its position can be confirmed by relating visible geographical features with their known position on a map.
 Launch, Recovery and Retrieval Equipment
(a) Launch equipment. This will be required for those air vehicles which do not have a vertical flight capability,
nor have access to a runway of suitable surface and length. This usually takes the form of a ramp along which the
aircraft is accelerated on a trolley, propelled by a system of rubber bungees, by compressed air or by rocket, until
the aircraft has reached an airspeed at which it can sustain airborne flight.
(b) Recovery equipment. This also will usually be required for aircraft without a vertical flight capability, unless
they can be brought down onto terrain which will allow a wheeled or skid-borne run-on landing. It usually takes
the form of a parachute, installed within the aircraft, and which is deployed at a suitable altitude over the landing
zone. In addition, a means of absorbing the impact energy is needed, usually comprising airbags or replaceable
frangible material. An alternative form of recovery equipment, sometimes used, is a large net or, alternatively, a
carousel apparatus into which the aircraft is flown and caught.
(c) Retrieval equipment. Unless the aircraft is lightweight enough to be man-portable, a means is required of
transporting the aircraft back to its launcher.
 Communications
The principal, and probably the most demanding, requirement for the communications system is to provide the
data links (up and down) between the CS and the aircraft. The transmission medium is most usually at radio
frequency, but possible alternatives may be by light in the form of a laser beam or via optical fibres. The tasks of
the data links are usually as follows:
(a) Uplink (i.e. from the CS to the aircraft):
i) Transmit flight path tasking which is then stored in the aircraft automatic flight control system
(AFCS).
ii) Transmit real-time flight control commands to the AFCS when man-in-the-loop flight is
needed.
iii) Transmit control commands to the aircraft-mounted payloads and ancillaries.
iv) Transmit updated positional information to the aircraft INS/AFCS where relevant.
(b) Downlink (i.e. from the aircraft to the CS):
i) Transmit aircraft positional data to the CS where relevant.
ii) Transmit payload imagery and/or data to the CS.
iii) Transmit aircraft housekeeping data, e.g. fuel state, engine temperature, etc. to the CS.
The level of electrical power, complexity of the processing and the antennae design and therefore the complexity,
weight and cost of the radio communications will be determined by:
i) The range of operation of the air vehicle from the transmitting station;
ii) The sophistication demanded by transmission-down of the payload and housekeeping data;
iii) The need for security.
 Interfaces
All these elements, or sub-systems, work together to achieve the performance of the total system.
Although some of them may be able to operate as ‘stand-alone’ systems in other uses, within the type of system
described, as sub-systems they must be able to operate together, and so great attention must be paid to the correct
functioning of their interfaces.
It is likely that the UAV system may be operated by the services (both military and civilian) in different countries
which may require different radio frequencies or security coding. Therefore it should be made possible for
different front-end modules to be fitted into the same type of CS and air vehicle when the UAV system is acquired
by various different operators. This requires the definition of the common interfaces to be made.
 Interfacing with Other Systems
A UAV system exists in order to carry out a task. It is unlikely that the task may ‘stand alone’. That is, it may
require tasking from a source external to the system and report back to that or other external source.
A typical example is military surveillance where the UAV system may be operating at brigade level, but receive
a task directly, or indirectly from corps level to survey a specific area for specific information and to report back
to corps and/or other users through a military information network.
This network may include information coming from and/or being required by other elements of the military, such
as ground-, sea-, or air-based units and space-satellites, or indeed, other UAV systems.
The whole then becomes what is known as a ‘system of systems’ and is known as network centric operation.
A UAV system (UAS) operating alone is usually known as a ‘stove-pipe system’. A representative architecture
of a ‘system of systems’ which may include not only other UASs of similar or different types, but also include
other operational elements such as naval vessels, mobile ground units or manned aircraft that provide information
or mount attack missions.
Similarly, in civilian operations such as fire patrol, the operators in the CS may be tasked from
Fire Brigade Headquarters to move the air vehicle to new locations. It will be necessary therefore to provide,
probably within the CS, the equipment required to communicate with the external sources and record/display data
received and sent.
 Support Equipment
Support equipment is one area which can often be underestimated when a UAV system is specified. It ranges
from operating and maintenance manuals, through tools and spares to special test equipment and power supplies.
 Transportation
A UAV system is often required to be mobile. Therefore transport means must be provided for all the sub-systems
discussed above. This may vary from one vehicle required to contain and transport a
UAV system using a small, lightweight vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft which needs no launch,
recovery or retrieval equipment and is operated by say, two crew, to a system using a large and heavier ramp-
launched aircraft which needs all the sub-systems listed, may have to be dismantled and reassembled between
flights, and may require, say, ten crew and six large transport vehicles. Even UAV systems operating from fixed
bases may have specific transport requirements.
 System Environmental Capability
From the initiation of the concept of the system, it is important to recognize the impact that the environment in
which it is to operate will have on the design of all elements of the system, including the provision of an acceptable
working environment for the operating and support members of the crew. A system which has been designed with
only low-altitude, temperate conditions in mind, will fail in more extreme conditions of altitude, temperature,
solar radiation, precipitation and humidity.
It is also necessary to recognize the impact that the UAV system may have on the environment. This can be very
significant, though with different accent, in both civilian and military roles. It is therefore necessary to consider
all of these aspects carefully at the outset of the system design.
5. Sketch and explain various subsystems of UAV (Nov/Dec 2016)
(Refer question no 4)
 UNIT II
THE DESIGN OF UAV SYSTEMS
PART A (2 Marks)

1) Define Stealth UAV. (Nov/Dec 2016)

Ans: Stealth UAVs are UAVs which are designed to avoid detection using a variety of technologies that reduce
reflection/emission of radar, infrared, visible light, radio frequency (RF) spectrum, and audio, collectively known
as stealth technology. Since UAVs are lesser is size, Stealth design can be achieved very easily than the Manned
Aircraft.
2) What is the standard battery supply for UAV? (Nov/Dec 2016)
Ans: The lithium battery packs are used to power the UAVs. They are two types: Lithium polymer (LiPO) and
lithium polymer high voltage (LiHV). The primary difference between the two is that a LiPO cell has a fully
charged voltage of 4.2V compared to a LiHV cell which has a voltage of 4.35V at full charge. In regards to the
performance of the two packs, a LiHV battery will initially provide more power but abruptly drops in voltage
when discharged whereas a LiPO has a more linear discharge making it easier to qualitatively gauge the remaining
flight time.
3) What are the factors affecting in the selection of a UAV? (Nov/Dec 2018)
Ans: The factors affecting the selection of UAV are
I. Payload
II. Endurance
III. Radius of action
IV. Launch and Recovery
V. Overall System
VI. Environmental Conditions
VII. Maintenance
4) What are the phases in design of UAV?
Ans: The UAV design includes three main Phases which are
I. Conceptual Design
II. Preliminary Design
III. Detail Design
5) What are the flight control surfaces in UAV?
Ans: The primary flight control surfaces on a fixed-wing UAV include: ailerons, elevators, and the rudder. The
ailerons are attached to the trailing edge of both wings and when it moved, the UAV will rotate around the
longitudinal axis. The elevator is attached to the trailing edge of the horizontal stabilizer. When it is moved, it
alters aircraft pitch, which is the attitude about the lateral axis. The rudder is hinged to the trailing edge of the
vertical stabilizer. When the rudder changes position, the aircraft rotates about the vertical axis (yaw).
6) What is meant my UAV regulations? And what are the different types of Regulations?
Ans: The UAV rules are set of rules used for the use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) regulated by the national
aviation authority of the country. There are two different types of UAV regulations, Military and Civil.
 PART B
1. Enumerate and explain the parameters that influence the selection of a UAV system.
(Nov/Dec 2018)
An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) is a type of aircraft that operates without a human pilot onboard and
controlled by a computer system and a radio-link. UAVs are differ from Drones since they have autonomous
flight capabilities. The role requirements determines the shape, size, performance and cost of the air vehicle.
Some of the more important parameters involved in the selection of UAV system are the following,
a) Air Vehicle-Payload
b) Air Vehicle-Endurance
c) Air Vehicle-Radius of Action
d) Air Vehicle-Speed Range
e) Air Vehicle-Launch and Recovery
f) Ground Station

g) Environmental Conditions
h) Maintenance
a) Air Vehicle- Payload
The payload is the weight an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) can carry. It is usually counted outside of the
weight of the UAV itself and includes anything additional to the UAV, such as extra cameras, sensors, or
packages for delivery etc. The size and mass of the payload and its requirement for electrical power supplies is
often the premier determinant of the layout, size and all–up-mass (AUM) of the aircraft. The necessary position
of the payload may also be a significant factor in the configuration and layout of the airframe. The payload can
be broadly classified into two,
 Dispensable and
 Non-dispensable Payloads.
The dispensable payloads are the payloads which will be released on target or destination from the UAV like
rockets, missiles, agricultural crop spraying pesticide etc. The non-dispensable payloads are the payloads which
are fixed on the UAV for any particular mission like cameras, Radar imaging payloads etc.

b) Air Vehicle-Endurance
Endurance is the maximum length of time that a UAV can spend in cruising flight. The UAV’s endurance
demand can range from 1 hour for a close-range surveillance system to more than 24 hour for a long-range
surveillance or airborne early warning (AEW) system. The factors affecting the endurance of a UAV are, (1)
Volume and mass of the fuel load to be carried and (2) The efficiency of the aircraft and (3) Power plant. The
mass of the fuel to be carried may be as low as 10% of the Aircraft up Mass (AUM) for close-range UAV, but
rising to almost 50% for the long-endurance aircraft, and thus endurance being a significant driver in
determining the AUM of the aircraft.

c) Air Vehicle – Radius of Action

Radius of action of a UAV refers to the maximum distance a UAV can travel away from its base along a given
course with normal load and return without refueling, allowing for all safety and operating factors. The radius
of action of the aircraft may be limited by the amount of fuel that it can carry, the efficiency of engine, its speed
or the power, frequency and sophistication of its communication links. The radius of action will also have a
significant impact on the choice of navigation equipment affecting both aircraft and control station

d) Air Vehicle – Speed Range

The required speed range will be a dominant factor in determining the configuration and propulsive power of
the aircraft. The required speed may vary according to the type of role performed. The speed range is as
follows:
 0–100 knot for a close-range surveillance role
 0–150 knot plus for many off-board naval roles
 80–500 knot for long-range surveillance
 100 knot to Mach 1 plus for future interception / interdiction roles

The speed generally achieved at a cost in terms of fuel consumption and airframe complexity which may result
in reduced efficiency of payload and range for size, mass and cost.
e) Air Vehicle – Launch and Recovery
The method for air vehicle launch and recovery is also significant in determining the aircraft configuration, its
structural design and auxiliary equipments. The method of launching the aircraft may be considered within three
types, each with an appropriate means of recovery:
a) A horizontal take-off and landing (HTOL): In this case the launching is performed with the use of a
wheeled undercarriage. A prepared surface (runway or strip) must be available for this kind.
b) A catapulted or zero-length rocket-powered launch: A catapult is a device used to launch aircraft
from ships and UAVs as a form of assisted take off. It consists of a track built into the flight deck,
below which is a large piston or shuttle that is attached through the track to the nose gear of the aircraft,
or in some cases a wire rope, called a catapult bridle, is attached to the aircraft and the catapult shuttle.
Different means have been used to propel the catapult, such as weight and derrick, gunpowder,
flywheel, air pressure, hydraulic, and steam power.
c) A vertical take-off and landing (VTOL): VTOL (Vertical Take-Off and Landing) unmanned aircraft
have the ability to take off, fly and land vertically as well as hover in place. A typical VTOL UAV may
be based around a helicopter design or may feature a multirotor design that incorporates four or more
propellers. The propellers create both lift and propulsion for this kind of UAVs

f) Ground Control Station

The Ground Control Station is the operational control center of the entire UAV system. It controls the
launch, flight and recovery of the air vehicle, receives and process data from the payloads, controls the
operation of those payloads and provides the interface between the UAV system and the outside world.
The control station should
 Provide an open system architecture so that can support the future requirements.
 Be scalable so that it can be used in different planforms
 Be capable of executing maintenance software
 Be flexible so that as the user and mission requirements vary, the system attributes can
be easily changed
 Be easy deployed and transported

g) Environmental Conditions
UAV system design should allow operation, storage and transportation in user specified operational
environments. The environmental conditions typically include temperature, humidity, precipitation, wind speed,
dust, solar radiation and icing. Separate specifications are usually required for each system mode such as
operation, storage and transportation.
h) Maintenance
The frequency and length of time during which a UAV system is non operable due to its undergoing
maintenance are significant factors in the usefulness and costs of the deployment of the system. These are
factors which must be addressed during the initial design of the system, involve control of the system liability to
damage, system reliability, component lives, costs and supply, and the time taken for component replacement
and routine servicing.

2. Explain in detail about design and regulatory aspects of UAV (Nov/Dec 2016)

(a) Design aspects of UAV

The UAV design includes three main Phases which are
I. Conceptual Design
II. Preliminary Design
III. Detail Design
(i) Conceptual Design
 The UAV design originates from a set of requirements that will function as a guide during
the whole process.
 The first step is the Conceptual Design Phase, which goal is to select one, or very few,
workable concepts and optimize them as much as possible.
 During this phase a large number of concepts are generated and evaluated against each
other, in order to try to roughly define the main characteristics of the aircraft that better
meets the requirements.
  The level of detail is on average approximate and the number of people involved is still
limited.
 There can be quite a difference between the fidelity levels of the tools used in each
discipline.
 The focus is at this stage to explore as many different solutions as possible and to narrow
the number of feasible concepts to be taken into further analysis to one or very few
layouts.
 It is important to reduce the number of layouts to keep, in order not to waste precious
and expensive time and resources during the upcoming work.
 During this initial phase key decisions are to be made based on only limited information.
Nevertheless their importance is huge since it is at this time the key features of a new
aircraft are decided.

(ii) Preliminary Design Phase

 Following the conceptual phase is the Preliminary Design Phase where the selected
concepts are analyzed into more detail.
 The aim of this phase is to completely define the aircraft that is going to be manufactured
and to ‘freeze’ its design.
 At this point a much larger number of designers are involved and specialists start defining
the characteristics of the aircraft.
 Detailed analysis and simulations are carried out to finely tune the geometries, while all
sub-systems begin to be shaped.
 If the previous phase has been successful, only minor and very limited changes will be
made at this stage to the layout of the aircraft.
 A large amount of people are allocated in this phase. Specialists will carry out analysis
and simulations of their respective systems and even some testing can start taking place.
 Also manufacturing and production planning will be carried out, starting from larger sub-
assemblies.
(iii) Detail Design Phase
 The final step of the design process is the Detail Design Phase during which all
components and parts are defined in all their details.
 It during this phase that all manufacturing documentation is produced.
 The number of people involved in this phase can be extremely large and so are the
costs.
 Only aircraft that have been decided to be produced reach this phase.
 The tools adopted during the detail design phase may not be very different, but they are
of highest accuracy, in order to precisely define every single aspect of each system.
Therefore careful simulations are performed also at this stage.
 It is very hard to make important changes to the layout of the aircraft in this phase. If
any mistake was made during the conceptual or preliminary design phase, the aircraft
will have to either live with it or in the worst case force the project to be cancelled.
 UAV Design Block Diagram

(b) Regulatory aspects of UAV

Introduction
UAVs are unmanned aerial vehicles which are intended to operate without a pilot on board. Although UAVs
have their origins in military contexts, they have also become valuable for scientific and commercial
applications, particularly over the previous decade. Various stakeholders and actors, including governmental
authorities, commercial operators, scientific institutions and individuals, make use of UAVs as an affordable
data acquisition tool: they enable mapping at temporal and spatial scales that still remain unachievable for
traditional remote sensing platforms. The range of distinct applications spreads through various civil
applications, including high-resolution surface reconstruction in the geosciences, documentation of cultural
heritage and archaeological sites etc.

The recent technological improvements and increasing operational capabilities present certain challenges to
flight operators, end users and aviation authorities: especially concerns about privacy, data protection, and
public safety. To minimize the risks of UAV-triggered incidents or accidents, an increasing number of national
and international authorities have introduced legal provisions that mandate “Go,” “No go” or “How to go”
statements that either allow, prohibit or restrict flight operations. Such regulations significantly impact how,
where, and when data can be captured—and the diffusion of the technology within a national context.

The regulation is divided into two activities – that of military and that of civilian UAS. This is usually
accomplished by different organizations.

(i) Military Regulations

The regulation of military UAS is liberal than that of civil UAS. Military UAS are specified by the military
customers and their design and manufacture is contracted to the approved teams previously experienced in
manned military aircraft and their systems. The design for airworthiness, manufacture, testing and operation
will be carried out by methods specified in military documents. Systems’ testing is carried out in the dedicated
airspace of military test sites or ranges under the supervision of military controllers. The operation of military
systems is, apart from exercises, carried out in theatres of conflict. Operations are conducted to minimize the
risk of civilian injury particularly with respect to the prevention of ‘collateral damage victims’ in wartime. This
situation, along with the demand for superior weapons for defense, has enabled the numbers of military UAS to
multiply, especially in the recent decade.
 (ii) Civilian
The regulations for civilian application is rather different. By definition, civilian or commercial operations,
although potentially have wider application than the military, are likely to take place where failure of the UAS
could cause death or injury to public or uninvolved persons. Therefore their airworthiness and operational
control may be required to be, and to be seen to be, at higher standards than that of the military. Unfortunately
there has not been the same degree of funding available for sufficient commercial imperative to set up
appropriate monitoring organizations and to develop the technologies required to ensure the safe operation of
UAS within civilian airspace.
The certification and safe operation of civilian unmanned air vehicle systems is regulated by such
authorities, for example, as the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) in Europe, the Federal Aviation
Administration (FAA) in the USA and the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) of Australia. Other
countries will have their equivalent organizations. Collaborative meetings regularly take place between these
Authorities with the aim of agreeing common international standards for UAV regulation. The several Agencies
are agreed that: UAV operations must be as safe as manned aircraft in so far as they must not present or create a
hazard to persons or property in the air or on the ground greater than that attributable to the operations of
manned aircraft of equivalent class or category.
The function of the agencies/authorities may be considered in two complementary parts, i.e.
a) That part which issues approval of aeronautical design organizations, defines and ensures the
maintenance of design standards for airworthiness and for test standards, and issues design certificates for
systems or components which comply with those standards.
b) That part which overseas control of airspace to ensure safe operation of airborne systems.

In general, the heavier and/or faster that the aircrafts are imposed with the strict regulations approximately in
proportion to the ability of the aircraft to cause damage if it collides with persons or buildings, etc.

3. Explain in detail about design about design procedure for stealth operated UAV (Nov/ Dec 2017)

Introduction
Stealth aircraft are designed to avoid detection using a variety of technologies that reduce reflection/emission of
radar, infrared, visible light, radio frequency (RF) spectrum, and audio, collectively known as stealth technology.
Need for Stealth Design
There are three main reasons why it is desirable that a UAV system remains undetected in operation. They apply
principally to the air vehicle although other components of the system may be involved.
(a) It is desirable that the air vehicle remain undetected whilst on a reconnaissance/surveillance
mission in order not to alert the enemy (military) or criminals (policing) to the forthcoming operation.
(b) Principally in military use, it is necessary to protect the air vehicle from loss due to enemy
counter- measures.
(c) Mostly applicable to civilian operations, low-detectable signatures will result in minimizing
environmental disturbance.
Method of Achieving Stealth Design
The principal means of detecting an air vehicle are through its ‘signatures’, i.e. its acoustic or electromagnetic
emissions at the following wavelengths:

a) Noise (acoustic) [20–16000 Hz]

b) Optical (visible) [0.4–0.7 µm]
c) Infrared (thermal) [0.75 µm–1 mm]
d) Radar (radio) [3 mm–3 cm]

Hence to reduce the air vehicle detectability to an acceptable level, it is necessary to reduce the received emission
or reflection of the above frequencies below a threshold value which, itself, is often a function of the operation –
principally the operating height of the air vehicle.

(i) Acoustic Signature

The noise emanating from an aircraft may be the first warning of its presence. These are of two types,
Aerodynamic Noise and Power plant Noise.
  Aerodynamic noise from aircraft emanates predominantly from vortices, principally at the tips of wings,
rotors or propellers. This increases with wing or blade span loading and speed, so that low values of both
enhance acoustic stealth.
 Power-plant noise is of greater concern, and results from noise of combustion in piston engines and
compressor noise or wake noise in turbo-jets and to a lesser degree in turbo-shaft and turbo-fans. Electric
motors, of course, develop virtually no noise, but their use, with few exceptions, is largely limited to
short-endurance MAV.
Noise generally increases with power-plant power usage level, so that keeping the mass and aerodynamic
drag of the aircraft as low as possible is a good first step to achieving low noise generation. The greater
noise problem is posed by smaller aircraft using piston engines where no practical turbine engines
currently exist.
Combustion noise can be attenuated by blanketing appropriate areas of the engine in sound-absorptive
materials, though this comes at the price of extra weight. The possibility of surrounding the emitting areas
by the fuel tanks, ideally of absorptive materials, should be considered. Whilst there is fuel in the tanks,
this fuel will attenuate the sound, depending of course, on the thickness of the fuel ‘wall’.
The exhaust noise can be reduced by silencers (or mufflers) and, if possible, both air intake and exhaust
should be directed skyward. However, the level of sound that can be detected also depends upon the level
and character of the background noise, i.e. sound contrast. The background noise on a battlefield, for
example, may readily drown out the noise emanating from a ‘quiet’ UAV.
(ii) Visual Signature
The most common means of visibly detecting the aircraft is initially by the unaided eye. The human eye operates
within a small range of the electromagnetic spectrum, i.e. between about 0.4 and 0.7 µm, peaking at maximum
efficiency at about 0.55 µm wavelength.
Criteria which determine the ability of the eye to see an airborne object against an open sky or cloud background
include:
a) The size and shape of the object,
b) Its contrast against the background and the sharpness of the edges of that contrast,
c) The effect of the atmosphere,
d) Any movement of the object,
e) Exposure time,
f) The stability and diligence of the observer,
g) Glint.

(a) The Size and Shape of the Object

These combine to determine the threshold of detectability of the airborne object.
(b) Contrast
Contrast C is defined as the ratio of the difference in luminance between an object and its background to the. The
threshold of contrast has a 50% chance of detecting the object. However, in real operations, predicting the
background luminance and that of the object is problematic. The background luminance will depend upon the
atmospheric conditions at the time, and the position of the object relative to the position and height of the sun.
Although absolute prediction of visual detection of an object is not possible, some approximation is possible and
relative detectability can be determined for various aircraft from the size, shape and angular velocity of the object
as presented to a ground observer.
(c) Atmospheric Effects
The atmospheric water content or pollution, apart from affecting object visibility to a ground observer through
attenuation, may also increase the level of luminance of the object through reflecting the sun’s rays upwards.
Although subject to variation, a general conclusion from observation is that an object at 2500 m altitude will have
a contrast typically reduced to 40% of its contrast at 200 m due to increased luminance.
(d) Movement of the Object and Its Exposure Time
Field experiments have shown that movement of the object at angular speeds of about 40 mrad/s offer the greatest
stimulus to the eye to aid detection. The stimulus reduces rapidly at speeds lower than that, and speeds above that
steadily reduce the exposure time, thus reducing the probability of detection.
(e) Stability, Awareness and Diligence of the Observer
Under field conditions, the observer may not be aware of the impending presence of an aircraft. Even if he is, if
no aircraft appears, his attention may lessen. If he is mounted on a vehicle, for example, he may not have a stable
platform from which to observe.
All these factors can reduce, significantly, the probability of detection unless the observer is alerted by another
indicator, in particular, noise.
(f) Glint
Glint results from the sun being reflected from glossy surfaces, especially from glazed canopies. UAV have an
advantage in not requiring canopies for aircrew vision. However, attention should be paid to ensuring that camera
windows are as small as possible and that the aircraft exterior has a matt finish, preferably in light grey.
(iii) Thermal Signature
Infrared (IR) radiation is emitted from a heat source and propagates in much the same way as light. The
detectability of the radiant body is similarly determined by its contrast with the background and the radiating area.
Heat in an aircraft is generated principally as waste heat from the power-plant and to a lesser degree from
electronic components. Heat can be generated at the stagnation points at the leading edge of wings, propellers and
rotors. However, this is negligible until high-subsonic speeds and above are reached, and will always be of lower
order than heat energy emitted from power-plants, and so will be ignored in this volume.
Heat is radiated or conducted from the engine carcass and from the exhaust. Dealing with the former first, it is
necessary to prevent this being radiated from the aircraft to ground by containing it within the aircraft and emitting
it skywards – away from ground-based detectors. Materials of low emissivity such as silver or aluminum may be
used to prevent radiation in adverse directions.
The exhausts pose the greater problem as they will be particularly hot and will inevitably be made of high-
emissivity materials such as steel alloys. They should be screened as much as possible by other airframe
components.
(iv) Radio/Radar Signature
The radio signature relates to radio frequency emissions from the aircraft (and also from the control station) and
these must be minimized to prevent detection. The radar signature, like the visible spectrum signature is a reflected
frequency, in this case from radio frequency pulses generated by an enemy emitter which is scanning the sky,
from the ground, looking for return (reflected) pulses from a body entering its sector. Therefore the emitted
radiation will be approaching the aircraft from the lower hemisphere. Except for when the aircraft is close to
overhead the transmitter, the radiation will be arriving at the aircraft from a small angle beneath the horizontal.
The UAV designer’s aim is to prevent the pulses being reflected back to a detector. As with the visible spectrum,
the UAV usually offers the advantage, compared with a manned aircraft, of being smaller (less reflective area)
and not having its shape constrained by the necessity of accommodating aircrew.
There are basically three methods of minimizing the reflection of pulses back to a receptor:
 To manufacture appropriate areas of the UAV from radar-translucent material such as Kevlar or glass
composite. This method can seldom be effectively employed except in the case of very small MAV where
the wing ‘skins’ are very thin since these materials are translucent, and not transparent as is sometimes
mistakenly thought. In addition to that, other components as these will return, and even amplify the pulses
back through the translucent cover.
 To cover the external surfaces of the aircraft with RAM (radar absorptive material). This material absorbs
radio energy in much the same way as sound energy is absorbed in anechoic chambers, turning the energy
into heat. The material is usually comprised of foam sandwich, is rather bulky, somewhat fragile and can
add significant weight if used extensively. Another problem is that it is usually designed to absorb a
limited range of frequency. Any frequency outside that range is not absorbed but reflected. It is best used
in small amounts in critical areas.
 To shape the aircraft externally to reflect radar pulses in a direction away from the transmitter. This is
probably the most effective method of the three and is particularly suited to UAV where external shape
is not conditioned by aircrew needs but is reduced to obtaining the best compromise between aerodynamic
and radar signature requirements. It is desirable that little or no surface area of the aircraft will present at,
or approaching, a right- angles to the radiation. An approximate idea of the effectiveness of the shaping
can be obtained by mounting a polished model in a dark chamber and directing a beam of light onto it.
Any light which is reflected back to source will indicate the area of the model which may return radar
and will need to be modified.

4. With neat sketch, explain about aerodynamics and airframe configurations of UAV (April/May
2018)
Aerodynamics
In many ways, the aerodynamics of UAVs are similar to those for manned aircraft. However, certain classes of
UAVs operate quite differently from manned aircraft and present different aerodynamic design problems.
In most cases the particular demands on UAVs are reflected in changes in the relative importance of aerodynamic
performance parameters. Sometimes these differences can lead to novel UAV configurations. Some technologies
that have little payoff for commercial aircraft (e.g., lift augmentation in unsteady maneuvers) can be crucial for
certain UAVs.
Aerodynamic development for UAVs relies strongly on linearized aerodynamics, especially for aero elasticity
and control. The presence of mixed laminar and turbulent flows, the importance of transition, the appearance of
significant aero elastic effects, and in some cases the presence of vortex-dominated flow fields make it difficult
to conduct complete vehicle aerodynamic studies using available computational tools. The low Reynolds numbers
of many UAVs makes the use of wind tunnel models very attractive, and most UAV development involves the
creation of substantial experimental databases for performance and control studies.
(i) Induced Drag
UAVs which may be required to operate at speeds higher than those for maximum aerodynamic efficiency for
reasons of cost or mission effectiveness, the requirement for long endurance leads to lower speed operation, with
a subsequent increase in vortex drag. Low-speed, high-altitude operations could also require that dynamic
pressure be less than ideal. The standard approach to reducing induced drag is to increase wingspan. Large span,
high-aspect-ratio wings pose difficulties, ranging from storage and transport to aero elastic control, in addition to
the performance penalties associated with the high unit-weights of the wings. Vortex drag can also be reduced by
nonplanar lifting systems, including winglets, joined wings, C-wings, and other geometries. Although these
configurations reduce induced drag, their overall advantages over larger-span planar wings are small and mission
specific. More radical approaches to drag reduction, such as tip turbines, may be more practical for UAVs than
for commercial aircraft, but the potential for savings is uncertain at best.
(ii) Parasitic Drag
Other factors also create drag on an aircraft. These other origins of drag, which may be collectively grouped as
‘parasitic drag’, comprise skin friction drag, form drag, interference drag, momentum drag etc. To reduce the
induced drag, the aircraft must fly faster but, in doing so, the parasite drag increases. Thus there is an intermediate
airspeed, where the induced drag equals the parasitic drag and the total drag is a minimum. The power used by
the aircraft is equal to the product of total drag and the airspeed, so there is another airspeed at which the power
used is a minimum. There is yet another airspeed, usually faster than either of the former, at which the aircraft is
at its most economical in terms of fuel used per distance travelled. All these values are different at different
altitudes and they can be a significant determinant in the design of the aircraft, depending upon its operational
roles and conditions. Two basic criteria for flight at any given air speed are that the wing produces sufficient lift
to oppose the aircraft weight and that the thrust of the propulsion (propeller or jet) is equal to, or greater than, the
total drag of the aircraft. For a fixed-wing aircraft, if there is a speed below which either of these criteria is not
met, then the aircraft cannot sustain flight. This speed is the absolute minimum flight speed. However, it is not
practical for the aircraft to attempt flight at this absolute minimum speed since any air turbulence or aircraft
maneuvers can increase the drag and/or reduce the lift, thus causing the aircraft to stall. A margin of speed above
this is necessary to define a practical minimum flight speed Vmin. This important concept of a minimum flight
speed will also determine the speed required for the aircraft to take off or be launched.
(iii) Boundary-Layer Issues
Boundary-layer characteristics are among the most important issues for future UAV research and development.
These issues are related to low Reynolds number, predicting and modifying boundary-layer transition, boundary-
layer sensing and control, and airfoil section design.
Because UAVs which have high-aspect-ratio wings and fly in low-density conditions, often at low speeds, airflow
is characterized by low Reynolds numbers. Typical Reynolds numbers for the wings of High Altitude UAVs are
closer to those of sailplanes than commercial jets or fighters. This leads to challenges (e.g., attaining high lift
coefficient and avoiding laminar separation) as well as opportunities (e.g., extensive laminar flow) in a flow
domain. The behavior of laminar separation bubbles can be important, especially in off-design conditions, and
substantial work remains to be done to understand this phenomenon before it can be considered in design. In
addition to understanding and predicting boundary-layer phenomena, technologies for the design of efficient
wings in this flight regime are required.
 Maximum lift-to-drag ratio vs. Reynolds number
(iv) Aero elasticity and Controls
Wing flexibility resulting from the requirement for high aspect ratio and low structural weight fraction could
cause aero elastic instability for long endurance UAVs. These very flexible vehicles could use stability
augmentation systems to combat aero elastic instability. These aircraft may also feature unconventional
configurations, such as flying wings or low-observable designs, and often exhibit significant nonlinear
aerodynamic characteristics.

Airframe Configurations
The range of airframe configurations available for UAV is as diverse as those used for crewed aircraft, and more
since the commercial risk in trying unorthodox solutions is less for the UAV manufacturer. This is principally
because the UAV airframes are usually much smaller than crewed aircraft and operators are less likely to have a
bias against unorthodox solutions. It is convenient to group configurations into three types appropriate to their
method of take-off and landing.
a) HTOL or horizontal take-off and landing
b) VTOL or vertical take-off and landing
c) Hybrids which attempt to combine the attributes of both of these types
(a) HTOL Configurations:
They are two types of configuration in HTOL, ‘tailplane aft’, ‘tailplane forward’ or ‘tailless’ types.
(i) Main Wing Forward with Control Surfaces aft
This is accepted as the conventional arrangement and is by far the most ubiquitous. The aircraft
center of mass is forward of the wing center of lift and this is balanced by a down-load on the tail
plane, thus providing aerodynamic speed and attitude stability in the horizontal plane. A vertical fin
provides weathercock stability in yaw with wing dihedral giving stability in roll.
(ii) Canard Configuration
A canard configuration has the horizontal stabilizer, or fore plane, mounted forward of the wing. The
aircraft center of mass is also forward of the wing and the balance is achieved with the fore plane
generating positive lift. An advantage of the canard system is that as both planes are generating positive
lift, it is aerodynamically more efficient than the tail-aft configuration.
(iii) Flying Wing or “Tailless” Configurations
This includes delta-wing aircraft which, as with the above, have an effective ‘tail’. The wings have a
‘sweep-back’ and the tip aero foils have a greatly reduced incidence compared with the aero foils of the
inner wing. This ensures that, as the aircraft nose rises, the center of lift of the wing moves rearwards,
thus returning the aircraft to its original attitude. These aircraft suffer in similar manner to the canard in
having a reduced effective tail-arm in both pitch and yaw axes, though the rearwards sweep of the wing
does add to directional stability.

(b) VTOL or vertical take-off and landing

VTOL configurations includes, (i) Single Rotor, (ii) Co-axial rotor, (iii) Tandem Rotor, (iv) Quad Rotor
(i) Single Rotor
 In this design, the torque of the main rotor, which tends to turn the aircraft body in the opposite
rotational direction to the rotor, is counteracted by a smaller, side-thrusting, tail rotor which typically
adds about a further 10% onto the main rotor power demands. The disadvantages of this type of aircraft
is extremely asymmetric in all planes which adds to the complication of control and complexity of the
algorithms of the flight control system. The tail rotor is relatively fragile and vulnerable to striking
ground objects, especially in the smaller size of machine.
(ii) Co-Axial Rotor
Coaxial rotors or "coax rotors" are a pair of rotors mounted one above the other on concentric shafts, with
the same axis of rotation, but turning in opposite directions (contra-rotating). It is not more generally
popular due to its greater height compared with that of the other configurations. It can present
disadvantages in maintenance and in hangar age. For UAV application, with much lighter and smaller
aircraft, these are no longer disadvantages. The advantages of the configuration include an almost perfect
aerodynamic symmetry, compactness with no vulnerable tail-rotor, efficiency of power and the versatility
of providing alternative body designs for different uses, but each using the same power unit, transmission,
and control sub-systems. Hence the automatic flight control system (AFCS) algorithms are no more
complex than that a HTOL aircraft.
(iii) Tandem Rotor
Tandem rotor have two horizontal rotor assemblies mounted one in front of the other. Single rotor need
a mechanism to neutralize the yawing movement produced by the single large rotor. This is commonly
accomplished by a tail rotor or coaxial rotors. Tandem rotor, however, use counter-rotating rotors, with
each cancelling out the other's torque. Therefore, all of the power from the engines can be used for lift,
whereas a single rotor helicopter uses some of the engine power to counter the torque.
(iv) Quad Rotor
A quadcopter is a multirotor design that is lifted and propelled by four rotors. Quadcopters generally use
two pairs of identical fixed pitched propellers; two clockwise (CW) and two counterclockwise (CCW).
These use independent variation of the speed of each rotor to achieve control. By changing the speed of
each rotor it is possible to specifically generate a desired total thrust; to locate for the center of thrust both
laterally and longitudinally; and to create a desired total torque, or turning force
(c) Hybrids
Hybrids are aircraft which combines the capability of both VTOL and HTOL. Since for hover flight, the
VTOL has been shown to be the most efficient of the heavier-than-air aircraft. And for longer-range
missions it is necessary to have the HTOL cruise at higher speed in order to achieve an acceptable
response time to the target or area of patrol.
(a) Convertible Rotor Aircraft
It’s the one of the most successful method in Hybrid. A rotor will be mounted onto each tip of the
main wing of a HTOL aircraft. The rotors are horizontal in vertical flight, but tilt forward through
90◦, effectively becoming propellers for cruise flight.
(b) Tilt-wing-body Aircraft
A tilt wing aircraft features a wing that is horizontal for conventional forward flight and rotates up
for vertical takeoff and landing. It is similar to the tiltrotor design where only the propeller and engine
rotate. Tilt wing aircraft are typically fully capable of VTOL operations.
The tilt wing design offers certain advantages in vertical flight relative to a tiltrotor. Because the
slipstream from the rotor strikes the wing on its smallest dimension, the tilt wing is able to apply
more of its engine power to lifting the aircraft.

(c) Ducted Fan Aircraft

The ducted fan aircraft, as its name implies, encloses its ‘thruster’ within a duct. The thruster is called
a ‘fan’ as it will be of constrained diameter and will be of high ‘solidity’ – i.e. the ratio of blade area
to disc area. The fan is most likely to be composed of two contra-rotating elements in order to
minimize rotation of the body by a resultant torque. It is unlikely to have either collective pitch or
cyclic pitch control available on the blades so that changes in thrust will be obtained by changes in
fan rotational speed, and angular control of the body will be by tiltable vanes in the slipstream.
(d) Jet-life Aircraft
A further variant of hybrid aircraft is the jet-lift configuration, in which the aircraft is suspended in
hover flight on one or more high-velocity jets of air. Other, smaller jets, spaced out on wing tips and
front and aft fuselage, are needed for roll and pitch attitude control. To transit into forward flight, the
jet(s) are rotated backwards to provide an element of forward thrust, but retaining a vertical
 component until a fixed-wing progressively develops lift enough to sustain the aircraft. At this point
the jets are effectively horizontal and provide propulsive force only.
5. Discuss in detail about design standards and regulatory aspects followed for UAV in UK and USA
(April/May 2018)
Introduction
UAVs are unmanned aerial vehicles which are intended to operate without a pilot on board. Although UAVs have
their origins in military contexts, they have also become valuable for scientific and commercial applications,
particularly over the previous decade. Various stakeholders and actors, including governmental authorities,
commercial operators, scientific institutions and individuals, make use of UAVs as an affordable data acquisition
tool: they enable mapping at temporal and spatial scales that still remain unachievable for traditional remote
sensing platforms. The range of distinct applications spreads through various civil applications, including high-
resolution surface reconstruction in the geosciences, documentation of cultural heritage and archaeological sites
etc.

The recent technological improvements and increasing operational capabilities present certain challenges to flight
operators, end users and aviation authorities: especially concerns about privacy, data protection, and public safety.
To minimize the risks of UAV-triggered incidents or accidents, an increasing number of national and international
authorities have introduced legal provisions that mandate “Go,” “No go” or “How to go” statements that either
allow, prohibit or restrict flight operations. Such regulations significantly impact how, where, and when data can
be captured—and the diffusion of the technology within a national context.
(i) Design Standard and Regulatory aspects in UK
In the United Kingdom, there are two regulatory regimes – military and civil UAS must comply with the
regulations of one or the other as applicable
(a) Military Systems
It is required that the design and development of military systems for the UK Ministry Of Defense be carried out
by an Approved Organization – that is an organization assessed by the UK MOD to have sufficient staff with the
necessary knowledge and experience to carry out the work to a satisfactory level. This will require that the
organization has an adequate level of expertise in its management and appropriate design disciplines, e.g. aero
structures, aerodynamics, electronics, mechanisms and to have, or to have access to, the necessary approved
manufacturing and test facilities. The design staff will have access to and conform to the design requirements of
the appropriate Defense Standard documents as nominated in the MOD contractual documents which include the
System Specification. The System Specification is a document prepared by the customer (in this case the MOD)
which details the customer’s requirements for the performance and reliability of the system, any limitations to be
imposed on its size, mass, number of operators, support, etc. and the climatic and other conditions in which it will
operate. The System Specification will override, if necessary, any of the general requirements called up in the
Defence Standard documents. For the design and certification of military UAV systems in the United Kingdom,
the UK MOD has issued a document, Defence Standard 00-970 part 9, titled ‘Design and Airworthiness
Requirements for Unmanned Air Vehicles’.
General Requirements, Climatic Conditions, Flight Performance, Structural Strength Requirements, Airframe,
Power plant, Avionics, Flight Termination, Payload are provided in Defense Standard 00-970 - Part 9. The main
three classifications in standards are,
a) The requirements to be met for a specific system, sub-system or component,
b) The method or means of demonstrating the compliance with the requirement(s),
c) Guidance, indicating means of achieving that compliance.
Documentation
Particular documents which the contractor must prepare and keep updated as necessary are:
a) The ‘flight envelope’, showing the scope and limits of the maneuvers that the aircraft will be able to
perform. This will be required to derive the loads imposed upon the structure and components.
b) The ‘Build-Standard’ document which lists all the subsystems/assemblies from which the aircraft and
control station are constructed. This will refer to a documents/drawings numbering system, employed to relate
each component to its sub-system and system, etc.
c) The ‘Reliability Model’, discussed further in Chapter 16 on reliability, like the above documents, is
kept up-dated throughout the development and operational phases of the System’s life. It begins with the
prediction, in its design phase, of the reliability of the UAV system with the expected failure rate of each assembly
shown contributing to the failure rate of the total system. These values are updated following results of testing
and operational use.
 d) The ‘Type Record’. This registers the ‘pedigree’ of the UAV system and includes a summary of all
calculations made to determine its performance and structural integrity. It contains a summary of, and reference
to, the documents listed above.
e) The ‘Operating and Maintenance Manuals’ will begin life in the design phase and will be extended
during the Development Phase.
Certification
Provided that all the requirements and procedures listed above are satisfactorily carried out and supported
by successful test results in the development phase, a Design Certificate will be awarded to the system by the
appropriate authority. This certifies that the system meets the performance quoted and is a safe system to operate.

(b) Civil Systems

The EASA is responsible for the airworthiness, certification and regulation of all aeronautical products
manufactured, maintained or used by persons with in the European Countries. EASA Regulation (EC Regulation
216/2008) makes provision for implementing rules dealing with aircraft certification and continuing
airworthiness. These rules, however, do not apply to aircraft engaged in military, customs, police or ‘similar’
services. These aircraft are known as ‘State Aircraft’. The laws were implemented and maintained by CAA.
According to the Civil Aviation Authority laws, Airspace may be considered to be divided under four
classifications:
a) That which may be used by model aircraft which meet certain required rules and criteria,
b) Segregated airspace,
c) Uncontrolled airspace,
d) Controlled airspace.
Model aircraft and UAV are divided into four categories by the CAA for regulation. The categories are:
1. Model aircraft of less than 7 kg mass when unfueled.
2. Model aircraft of between 7 and 20 kg mass when unfueled.
3. Model aircraft and ‘light UAV’ of between 20 and 150 kg mass when ready for take-off.
4. Aircraft of mass greater than 150 kg. These are referred to as ‘UAV’.

General Rules for Flying a Drone in the United Kingdom

 Commercial drone operations in the U.K. require permission from the CAA.
 Insurance is required for all commercial UAV operations.
 It is the responsibility of the owner to fly in a safe manner
 The owner must not endanger anyone, or anything with your drone, including any articles that you drop
from it.
 All UAVs, regardless of mass, must not fly above 122 meters (400 feet) above the surface.
 If the UAV is fitted with a camera, there are also a number of additional limitations surrounding where
you can fly it, and how close you can fly it to other uninvolved people or objects. In order to be able to
fly within these areas, or closer than the minimum distances that are in the regulations, you must obtain
prior permission from the CAA to do so. Learn more about applying for permission here.
 UAVs may not fly within 150 meters (492 feet) of any congested area or organized open-air assembly of
more than 1,000 persons; or within 50 meters (164 feet) of any person, property, vessel, vehicle, or
structure which is not under the control of the person in charge of the aircraft; following additional codes
not to overfly 122 meters (400 feet) above the surface.
 Small unmanned aircraft closer than 5 kilometers (3 miles) from the boundary of a protected aerodrome
(called the “runway protection zone”) without first checking that you have permission to do so from air
traffic control, the flight information service unit, or the operator of the protected aerodrome.
(ii) United States of America

In the USA, the monitoring of civil UAS is through the jurisdiction of the Federal Aviation Administration. Until
recently, USA regulations were less prescriptive than those in Europe and are covered in a memorandum, ‘AFS-
400 UAS Policy 05-01.
According to the U.S. national aviation authority, the U.S. Federal Aviation Authority (FAA), flying a drone is
legal in the U.S.
Before operating an UAS, the would-be operator would apply for, and obtain, a Certificate of Waiver or
Authorization (COA) or FAA Form 7711-2. To obtain this, the operator must show to the satisfaction of the FAA
that the UAV has an acceptable level of airworthiness, that the Pilot-in-Command (PIC) has adequate aeronautical
knowledge and that the proposed operations‘ can be conducted at an acceptable level of safety’. With a COA,
UAS operators are not held to rigorous see and avoid requirements. However, with the proliferation of requests
for COAs, this has changed and the COA route is now available only to the government Departments of Defence
and Homeland Security. Another route for the operation of small civil UAS in the USA is as a model aircraft.
This is more limiting and is covered in an FAA advisory circular AC 91-57 ‘Model Aircraft Operating Standards’.
Reference should also be made to the US Academy of Model Aviation.
For the more general use of civil UAS the FAA are conducting studies with the intent of releasing a revised policy
document ‘AFS-400 UAS Policy 05-02’ in a 2013 to 2020 time-frame and is looking towards Europe and
especially the UK for inspiration. However, the FAA is under rising industry pressure to accelerate the regulatory
authorization of civil commercial UAS. This is especially so for small UAVs which are seen as being the most
likely to provide a commercially viable service. This will only become possible when some alternative means can
be found to enable the UAV to operate out of the direct sight of the operator. The availability of a light and
affordable
General Rules for Flying a UAV in the United States of America
Recreational / Hobbyist Rules—Flying for Fun
 You must fly for hobby or recreation ONLY (no side jobs or in-kind work allowed).
 You must register your UAV with the FAA on the FAADroneZone website.
 You must fly within visual line-of-sight.
 You must follow community-based safety guidelines and fly within the programming of a
nationwide community-based organization (CBO) like the AMA.
 You must fly a drone under 55 lbs. unless certified by a community-based organization.
 You must never fly near other aircraft.
 You must fly in Class G airspace. If you need to fly in Class B, C, D or E controlled airspace,
you need to apply for airspace authorization.
 You must never fly near emergency response efforts.
Commercial Rules—Flying for Work
 You must hold a Remote Pilot Certificate issued by the FAA to fly commercially.
 You must register your UAV with the FAA on the FAA Drone Zone website.
 Your UAV must weigh less than 55 pounds, including payload, at takeoff.
 You must fly in Class G airspace.*
 You must keep your UAV within visual line-of-sight.*
 You must fly at or below 400 feet.*
 You must fly during daylight or civil twilight.*
 You must fly at or under 100 mph.*
 You must yield right of way to manned aircraft.*
 You cannot fly directly over people.*
 You cannot fly from a moving vehicle, unless in a sparsely populated area.
Excluding the weight requirement and the requirement to fly in Class G airspace, the above
restrictions can be waived if you submit and receive a Part 107 waiver from the FAA.
Certification Requirements for Flying a Drone in the United States of America
To fly a drone for commercial purposes in the U.S. you must obtain a Remote Pilot Certificate from the
FAA. Here are the requirements for obtaining a certificate:
 You must be able to read, speak, write, and understand English (exceptions may be made if the
person is unable to meet one of these requirements for a medical reason, such as hearing
impairment).
 You must be in a physical and mental condition to safely operate a small UAS.
 You must be at least 16 years old.
 You must pass an Aeronautical Knowledge Test—also known as the Part 107 test—at an FAA
approved knowledge testing center.
 You must undergo Transportation Safety Administration (TSA) security screening.
 UNIT III
Avionics Hardware
PART A
1) What is Autopilot? (April/May 2018)
Ans: An autopilot is a system used to control the trajectory of an aircraft, UAV, marine craft or spacecraft without
constant 'hands-on' control by a human operator being required. Autopilots do not replace human operators, but
instead they assist them in controlling the vehicle. This allows the operator to focus on broader aspects of
operations such as monitoring the trajectory, weather and systems etc.
2) Name few pressure sensors used in UAV? (April/May 2018)
Ans: Since the GPS and other sensors cannot be always reliable, UAVs are equipped with pressure sensors for
Altitude and Air Speed Indication.
For Altitude measurement UAVs uses Digital Barometric Pressure sensor and for Air speed indication,
Pitot Static Tube is used.
3) Differentiate onboard video stabilization and mechanical gimbal stabilization. (Nov/Dec 2016)
Ans:
Onboard video stabilization Mechanical gimbal stabilization
Fixed cameras are provide to video stream an operator 3 axis Gyroscopes are used for stabilization
or observer for stabilization
Less weight and cost reduction Reduces payload weight and high cost
Lesser effective than gimbal stabilization Provides better stabilization in pitch, roll and yaw
axes

4) Explain the working principle of RC actuator (Nov/Dec 2016)

Ans: Servo actuators uses servo motor which works on the principle of PWM (Pulse Width Modulation), which
means its angle of rotation is controlled by the duration of pulse applied to its control PIN. Basically servo motor
is made up of DC motor which is controlled by a variable resistor (potentiometer) and some gears.
5) Write short note on Aerial Photography (Nov/Dec 2018)
Ans: Aerial photography (or airborne imagery) is the taking of photographs from an aircraft or other flying object
such as helicopters or unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV). The photographs so obtained have been found to be
indispensable tools in the topographical mapping and interpretation of the images of the objects etc.
6) Why AGL sensor is mandatory for UAV? (Nov/Dec 2018)
Ans: AGL sensor measures the height above ground level (AGL). It is a height measured with respect to the
underlying ground surface. Since drones are remotely operated or piloted, above ground level sensor is mandatory
to avoid crash in terrain variation. AGL provides warnings and notifications to avoid crash. It also helps the
operator to accomplish soft landing in a remote place.
7) What is Servo mechanism?
Ans: In control engineering a servomechanism, sometimes shortened to servo, is an automatic device that uses
error-sensing negative feedback to correct the action of a mechanism. It usually includes a built-in encoder or
other position feedback mechanism to ensure the output is achieving the desired effect.
8) Principle of Mechanical Gyroscope?
Ans: The basic effect upon which a gyroscope relies is that an isolated spinning mass tends to keep its angular
position with respect to an inertial reference frame, and, when a constant external torque (respectively, a constant
angular speed) is applied to the mass, its rotation axis undergoes a precession motion at a constant angular speed
(respectively, with a constant output torque), in a direction that is normal to the direction of the applied torque
(respectively, to the constant angular speed). External forces acting on the center of mass of the rotating part do
not affect the angular position of the rotation axis.
9) What are actuators and mention different types of actuators
Ans: An actuator is a kind of motor that controls or moves mechanisms or systems. It takes hydraulic fluid, electric
current or other sources of power and converts the energy to facilitate the motion. Actuators are extremely useful
devices and have a diverse range of uses in field of engineering. Most actuators produce either linear (straight
line), rotary (circular) or oscillatory motion. There are four main types of actuators: Hydraulic, Pneumatic,
Electric and Mechanical.
 PART B
I.
1. Explain the principle and Operation of Auto pilot system with neat sketch (Nov/Dec 2018)
Introduction
Automatic pilots, or autopilots, are devices for controlling spacecraft, aircraft, watercraft, missiles and vehicles
without constant human intervention. An autopilot can refer specifically to aircraft, UAVs, self-steering gear for
boats, or auto guidance of space craft and missiles.
Need of Autopilot in UAV
An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) is a type of aircraft that operates without a human pilot onboard and
controlled by a computer system and a radio-link. And hence the UAV must be equipped with self-control and
stability for better performance.
Autopilot components and Working
The main components in an Auto pilot system are
a. Sensor
b. Controller
c. Actuator
d. Airframe Control
e. Inner and Outer Loop
(a) Sensor
The sensor measure the air vehicle’s attitude (vertical/directional gyro), angular rate (rate gyros), air speed
(Pitot-static system), heading (compass), altitude (barometer or radar altimeter), and other functions as desired
or necessary. The measured attitudes, altitudes, rates, etc. are compared to the desired states and if they deviate
beyond a prescribed amount an error signal is generated, which is used to move a control surface such that the
deviation is eliminated. The comparison function is usually done in a controller.
(b) Controller
The controller contains the necessary electronics to generate the error signal described above, amplify it and
prepare it for the actuators. In addition, the modification and combining of signals from the different axes is
accomplished in the controller. The controller also usually contains the electronics for processing commands
and housekeeping outputs of the flight control system.
(c) Actuator
The actuators produce the force necessary to move the control surfaces when commanded as a result of signals
coming from the controller. Actuators used in large aircraft are usually hydraulic, but UAVs often use electric
actuators, thereby obviating the need for hydraulic pumps, regulators, tubing, and fluid, all of which are heavy
and often leak.
(d) Airframe Control
As the control surfaces move, they create forces that cause the air vehicle to respond. The sensors sense this
response, or air-vehicle motion, and when the attitude, speed, or position fall within the prescribed limits, their
error becomes zero and the actuators in turn cease to move the surfaces. The error signal is compensated so that
the desired position or attitude of the air vehicle is approached slowly and will not overshoot. The system
continuously searches for and adjusts to disturbances so that the air vehicle flies smoothly. The navigation
system operates in much the same manner but the sensors are compasses, inertial platforms, radar, and GPS
receivers.
(e) Inner and Outer Loops
Primary stabilization is accomplished in what is known as the inner loop, and basically maintains the air vehicle
in its prescribed attitude, altitude, and velocity state. In addition, there is an outer loop that performs the task of
maneuvering and navigating the air vehicle. The outer loop is also used to capture guidance beams for
electronically-assisted or automatic recovery.

Working
The method of control by using Autopilot system is universally applied for the UAVs. UAVs use an automatic,
electronic control system in the form of an autopilot. Electronic control systems employ a feature called
feedback or closed-loop operation. The actual state of the UAV flight path, attitude, altitude, airspeed, etc. are
measured and electrically feedback and compared to (subtracted from) the desired state. The difference, or error
signal, is amplified and then used to position the appropriate control surface, which, in turn, creates a force to
cause the air vehicle to return to the desired state, driving the error signal to zero.
In addition to maintaining the attitude and stabilizing the air vehicle, the automatic flight control system can
accept signals from onboard sources or from the ground (or satellite) to control the flight path, navigate, or
conduct specific flight maneuvers. Such an operation is accomplished through the outer loop. The provision of
these signals is called coupling, and their operation is called “mode of operation.” For instance, the “air-speed
mode” means that the air-vehicle speed is controlled or held constant automatically.

Flight-Control Classification
Automatic flight-control systems are classified on the basis of the number of axes they control. (All of these
systems also can incorporate throttle control to maintain a desired airspeed, as well as to control altitude.)
 Single axis: A single-axis system usually controls motion about the roll axis only. The control surfaces
forming part of this system are the ailerons, and such a system is often called a “wing leveler.” The
“pilot” in the ground control station can inject commands into the system enabling him to turn the air
vehicle and thereby navigate the vehicle. Sometimes signals from the magnetic compass or a radio
beam are used to maintain a magnetic course or heading automatically. This type of operation is part of
the outer loop, which will be discussed later.
 Two axis: Two-axis control systems usually control the air vehicle about the pitch and roll axes. The
control surfaces used are the elevator and the ailerons, although rudders alone are sometimes used as
“skid to turn” devices. With pitch control available, the altitude of the air vehicle can be maintained in
straight and level flight. Steep turns, which lead to a loss in altitude when using roll control only can be
made without that loss by controlling pitch attitude.
 Three axis: As the name implies, a three-axis system controls the air vehicle about all three axes and
incorporates the use of the rudder for yaw control. Some UAVs do not use a three-axis system. This
reduces cost without much reduction in capability because yaw control does not contribute significantly
to the overall system (only coordination of a turn with the rudder). If missiles and other ordnance are to
be used with the UAV, yaw control (a three-axis control system) becomes more essential.

2. What are the important sensors filled in avionics hardware of a UAV? Give details about them.
(Nov/Dec 2018)

Introduction

Sensors are known as the eyes of Autopilot. They translates our analog world to something that a computer can
deal with. There are two types of sensors (a) Analog and (b) Digital Sensor or Voltage (analog sensors) and
digital message (digital sensors) sensor. An analog sensor outputs a signal that is usually between 0 and 5V (or
3.3V), while the relative measured quantity is proportional to that interval. A digital sensor instead encodes the
measured quantity into a digital message which the computers can work, in the 0 and 1 base.

Types of Sensors in UAV

There are different types of sensors actually implemented on Autopilots, though the most important are:

a. Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU)

b. Position Sensor Unit (GPS)
c. Altitude Sensor (Barometer)
d. Distance Sensor (Sonar or Lidar)
e. Vision Sensor (Cameras)
a. IMU

IMU is an acronym for Inertial Measurement Unit. It measures "inertial quantities", such as accelerations
and angular velocities. Those quantities can be used directly for automatic feedback control loop and
process the data out and estimate the Attitude (roll, pitch, yaw etc).

Usually an IMU consists of the following sensors:

3-axis accelerometer: measures the accelerations along its axes

3-axis gyroscope: measures the rotational velocity around its axes

3-axis magnetometer: measures the local magnetic field components along its axes

This setup is made out of 9 sensors (3 sensors X 3 axes), so it is generally referenced as 9-DOF IMU.

 Accelerometers

Accelerometers sense all the accelerations applied to them, even those due to vibrations or to maneuvers.
Isolation of accelerometer is of primary importance as well as an accurate calibration for better
performance. The sensor converts the acceleration into a voltage, which is later translated into a binary
number that an autopilot can understand.

Working

An accelerator looks like a simple circuit for some larger electronic device. Despite its humble appearance,
the accelerometer consists of many different parts and works in many ways, two of which are the
piezoelectric effect and the capacitance sensor. The piezoelectric effect is the most common form of
accelerometer and uses microscopic crystal structures that become stressed due to accelerative forces. These
crystals create a voltage from the stress, and the accelerometer interprets the voltage to determine velocity
and orientation.

The capacitance accelerometer senses changes in capacitance between microstructures located next to the
device. If an accelerative force moves one of these structures, the capacitance will change and the
accelerometer will translate that capacitance to voltage for interpretation.

Accelerometers are made up of many different components, and can be purchased as a separate device.
Analog and digital displays are available, though for most technology devices, these components are
integrated into the main technology and accessed using the governing software or operating system.

Typical accelerometers are made up of multiple axes, two to determine most two-dimensional movement
with the option of a third for 3D positioning. Most smartphones typically make use of three-axis models,
whereas cars simply use only a two-axis to determine the moment of impact. The sensitivity of these
devices is quite high as they’re intended to measure even very minute shifts in acceleration. The more
sensitive the accelerometer, the more easily it can measure acceleration.

 Gyroscope

A gyroscope is a device designed to have a spinning disc or wheel mounted on a base such that its axis can
turn freely in one or more directions in order to maintain its orientation regardless of any movement of the
base.

(For more details refer Qtn No. 5)

 Magnetometers

Magnetometers are the only sensor that can give heading of UAV. A magnetometer measures the local
magnetic field components and compare those values with the World Magnetic Field Model in order to
estimate the attitude, and thus the heading respect to the local magnetic North. Since almost everything
affects the local magnetic field such as electric lines, Sun activities, the drone wiring itself, other sensors,
transmitters or even the CPU itself, the values of magnetometers are not accurate. To avoid it,
magnetometer are kept as far from any interference as possible.

b. Position Sensor Unit (GPS)

The American GPS (Global Positioning System) is the most famous Satellite Navigation system available
today. It is a network of about 30 satellites orbiting the Earth at an altitude of 20,000 km. GPS is not the
only one though: the Russian GLONASS, the Chinese BeiDou and the forthcoming European GALILEO
are other similar satellite-based navigation systems. Most of today's receivers are multi constellation,
meaning that they can get information from one or more satellite from afore mentioned systems, resulting in
higher accuracy and better coverage.

Working

The GPS concept is based on time and the known position of GPS specialized satellites. GPS works with
the basic principal of trilateration. The satellites carry very stable atomic clocks that are synchronized with
one another and with the ground clocks. Any drift from true time maintained on the ground is corrected
daily. In the same manner, the satellite locations are known with great precision. GPS receivers have clocks
as well, but they are less stable and less precise.

Each GPS satellite continually broadcasts a signal (carrier wave with modulation) that includes the current
time and data about its position. Precisely,

 A pseudorandom code (sequence of ones and zeros) that is known to the receiver. By time-aligning
a receiver-generated version and the receiver-measured version of the code, the time of arrival
(TOA) of a defined point in the code sequence, called an epoch, can be found in the receiver clock
time scale
 A message that includes the time of transmission (TOT) of the code epoch (in GPS time scale) and
the satellite position at that time

Since the speed of radio waves is constant and independent of the satellite speed, the time delay between
when the satellite transmits a signal and the receiver receives it is proportional to the distance from the
satellite to the receiver. A GPS receiver monitors multiple satellites and solves equations to determine the
precise position of the receiver and its deviation from true time. At a minimum, four satellites must be in
view of the receiver for it to compute four unknown quantities (three position coordinates and clock
deviation from satellite time). Conceptually, the receiver measures the TOAs (according to its own clock) of
four satellite signals. From the TOAs and the TOTs, the receiver forms four time of flight (TOF) values,
which are (given the speed of light) approximately equivalent to receiver-satellite ranges. The receiver then
computes its three-dimensional position and clock deviation from the four TOFs.

In practice the receiver position (in three dimensional Cartesian coordinates with origin at the Earth's
center) and the offset of the receiver clock relative to the GPS time are computed simultaneously, using the
navigation equations to process the TOFs.

The receiver's Earth-centered solution location is usually converted to latitude, longitude and height relative
to an ellipsoidal Earth model. The height may then be further converted to height relative to the geoid,
which is essentially mean sea level. These coordinates may be displayed, such as on a moving map display,
or recorded or used by some other system, such as a vehicle guidance system.

GPS sensors provide DOP in the form of:

 HDOP: Horizontal position DOP

 VDOP: Vertical position DOP
 TDOP: Time DOP
 PDOP: Position DOP
c. Altitude Sensor (Barometer): measures the barometric pressure and estimates the Above Means Sea
Level based on a standard atmospheric model
Working
 The atmosphere's pressure grows smaller the higher we fly, due to the less overlying air mass. The
variation is affected by several factors, as the temperature and local meteorological factors, hence
barometers usually refers to the so called International Standard Atmosphere Model (ISA). These
pressure sensors are usually made out of piezoelectric materials, and are usually very cheap and
miniaturized. They have the peculiar characteristics of deforming under an electric field or to generate
an electric field when deformed. Inside the instrument, the casing have aneroid wafers that are sealed
but still able to expand and contract. An outside static pressure change causes the wafers to expand
since the pressure inside of the sealed wafers is greater than on the outside. A higher static pressure
causes the wafers to compress. When the static pressure increases or decreases, mechanical connections
trigger the altimeter needle to show a corresponding altitude in feet.
d. Distance Sensor (Sonar or Lidar): measures the distance between any object within its working range,
and can be used for detecting obstacles rather than estimating the altitude respect to the ground. They
provide an accurate distance reading to the closest object on their way. This information can be used in
a basic reactive obstacle avoidance algorithm (if you see something: slow down and stop) or can be
used to create more amazing things, like Simultaneous Localization and Mapping (SLAM).
Distance sensors may be divided in multiple general categorizes:
i. Acoustic (SoNAR)
Ultrasonic sensors measure distance by sending out a sound wave at a specific frequency and
listening for that sound wave to bounce back. By recording the elapsed time between the sound
wave being generated and the sound wave bouncing back, it is possible to calculate the distance
between the sonar sensor and the object.
Advantages: cheap, easy to install and use, lightweight
Dis advantages: limited range, low bandwidth (sound travels at approximately 340 m/s at sea
level), inaccurate (the echo bounces everywhere).
ii. Laser (Laser Range Finder or LiDAR)
The basic setup is a Laser Range Finder (LRF), which emits laser beams at certain intervals.
Those beams bounce off distant objects and the rangefinder’s high-speed clock measures the
total time it took from when the beams left the unit until they returned. Since we know how fast
the beam was traveling (speed of light) the unit can simply use that time measurement to
calculate the distance it traveled, and then it displays the distance to the user.
LRF are very directional sensors and if you put one on a drone pointing downward, you can
implement a very accurate terrain following algorithm, or estimate the real ground altitude for a
precise landing.

A LiDAR (Light Detection And Ranging) can be obtained by making a LRF spin. LiDARs are
great for 3D reconstructions and situational awareness and they are very important for precise
aerial survey, 3D object reconstruction and Navigation application.
Advantages: accurate, high bandwidth, long range

Disadvantages: expensive, heavy, bulky, fragile, dangerous (unless they are classified as eye-
safe), affected by reflections
iii. Radio (RaDAR)
Radio Detection And Ranging (RaDAR) has been around for decades, mostly for finding and
tracking airborne or maritime objects. Their working principle is the same as in the case of
laser: a transmitter emits a particular signal and a receiver antenna detects its Eco. Dividing the
flight interval in two and dividing by the speed of light, you can get the position of the closest
 object. Furthermore, comparing the frequency shift between the emitted and received signal,
you can estimate the object speed and direction, thanks to the Doppler Effect. If you are not
familiar with the concept of Doppler, think about a moving car. While the car approaches, the
sound waves get compressed, so their wavelength reduces and the pitch increases. The opposite
happens when the car moves away. RaDARs have been miniaturized in such a way they can fit
a small UAV and work as main sensor for Detection and Avoidance, as they are capable of
spotting even small drones or electric wires.
Advantages: all weather, accurate, wide angle
Disadvantages: heavy (but getting lighter...), expensive
iv. Infra-red
Infrared proximity sensors are popular and inexpensive, and are widely used in indoor robotic
projects. Their working principle is simple: the infrared light emitted by an LED bounces off an
object and returns back to a receiver. This last measures the intensity of infrared light, obtaining
an estimation of how close is the nearest object (to be fair there are even more sophisticated IR
proximity sensors on the market). For their nature, Infrared sensors are not accurate and are
better used for implementing basic reactive obstacle avoidance.
Advantages: inexpensive, lightweight, small
Disadvantages: inaccurate, affected by any IR light source (better to be used indoor)
v. Time Of Flight cameras
Time Of Fligth (ToF) cameras natively capture the depth of the objects in their field of view.
They illuminate the scene with a train of pulses or continuous waves, and then observe the
reflected light. In case the emitter worked with pulsed light, by measuring the time it takes the
pulse to travel from the emitter to sensor, the camera can estimate the depth. Otherwise, if the
emitter transmits a continuous wavelength, the depth can be determined by analyzing the phase
shift of the reflected light.
ToF cameras are great as they can potentially estimate the depth of each pixel in the scene and
only need a structured light source and a camera, and can work even in no light.
Advantages: accurate, fairly cheap, high density point cloud
Disadvantages: multi-reflections, sunlight sensitive, no multi cameras, close range
vi. Mono/Stereo cameras
A camera produces a flat 2D image of a 3D scene. For this reason the depth (the distance to and
observed object) is unknown.
Images can be processed in order to detect features, which essentially are relevant group of
pixels. Computer vision algorithms estimate the camera pose by first matching the same
features in two different images. In case of a stereo camera setup, with two cameras set one by
another, the images that they capture are scanned in order to find corresponding features.
Knowing the camera setup leads to the estimation of the feature's position by simple
triangulation.
Even a monocular camera can be used for 3D reconstruction, as in aerial survey. By moving a
monocular camera I actually take pictures of the same features from different points. The
estimation process is a little more complex, as the camera pose is not known an it is part of the
output together with the 3D reconstruction of the scene. The process is also known as Structure
from Motion and today is solved pretty efficiently.
Cameras are getting popular in robotics applications, thanks to their low cost and high
definition, as well as a miniaturization of computational units, like FPGAs and GPUs.
Advantages: cheap, accurate, fast, high resolution
Disadvantages: demands high computational power, light sensitive

e. Vision Sensor (Cameras): views the world around and estimates a local map, the velocity and even the
presence of any obstacle, based on feature detection and tracking, optical flow etc.

3. Explain the following in detail (April/May 2018)

I. Servo and accelerometer in UAV
II. Gyros and Actuators
I. Servo
Introduction
A servo motor is a rotary actuator or a motor that allows for a precise control in terms of the angular position,
acceleration, and velocity. Basically it has certain capabilities that a regular motor does not have. Consequently
it makes use of a regular motor and pairs it with a sensor for position feedback. The servo motor is most
commonly used for high technology devices in the industrial applications like automation technology. It is a
self-contained electrical device that rotates parts of machine with high efficiency and great precision. Moreover
the output shaft of this motor can be moved to a particular angle. Servo motors are mainly used in home
electronics, toys, cars, airplanes and many more devices.
Types of servo motors:
Servo motors can be of different types on the basis of their applications. The most important amongst them are:
AC servo motor, DC servo motor, brushless DC servo motor, positional rotation servo motor, continuous
rotation servo motor, and linear servo motor.
A typical servo motor comprises of three wires namely- power, control, and ground. The shape and size of these
motors depends on their applications.
1. DC servo motor:
The basic operating principle of DC motor is the same as other electromagnetic motors. The design,
construction, and the modes of operation are different. The rotors of this kind of motor are designed with long
rotor length and smaller diameters. Their size is larger than that of conventional motors of same power ratings.
There are various types of dc servo motors which are:
1. Series motors:
The series motors have a high starting torque and draws large current. The speed regulation of this kind of
motor is poor.
2. Split series motor:
They are the motors with split-field rate with some fractional kilowatts. Split series motor has a typical torque-
speed curve. This curve denotes high stall torque and a rapid reduction in torque with high speed.
3. Shunt control motor:
It has two separate windings:
1. Field winding – on the stator.
2. Armature winding – on the rotor of the machine.
Both windings are connected to a dc supply source.

4. Permanent magnet shunt motor:

It is a fix excitation motor where the field is actually supply by a permanent magnet. Furthermore, the
performance is similar to armature controlled fixed field motor.
2. AC servo motor:
AC servomotors are AC motors in which incorporate encoders are use with controllers for providing feedback
and close-loop control. Hence, these motors can be positioned to high accuracy. Thus they can be controlled
exactly as per requirement for the application.

3. Brushless DC servomotor:
BLDC motors are also commonly known as electronically commutated motors or synchronous motors powered
by DC electricity via inverter or switching power supply. Hence this provides an AC electric current to drive
each phase of motor via a closed loop controller. The controller provides pulses of current to the motor
windings that control the speed and torque of the motor.

The construction of a brushless motor system is typically similar to a permanent magnet synchronous motor.
Finally the advantages of the brushless motor over brushed motors are high power to weight ratio, high speed,
and electronic control. The brushless motors find applications in such places as computer peripherals (disk
drives, printers), hand-held power tools, and vehicles ranging from model aircrafts to automobiles.
The classification of AC servomotors is done into two types. These are 2 phase and 3 phase AC servo motor.
Now most of the AC servomotors are of the two-phase squirrel cage induction motor type. They are used for
low power applications. Furthermore the three phase squirrel cage induction motor is now utilized for
applications where high power system are in use.
4. Positional rotation servo motor:
Positional rotation servo motor is the most important servo motor. Hence it is also the most common type of
servo motor. The shaft output rotates in about 180 degree. Additionally it includes physical stops located in gear
mechanism to stop turning outside these limits to guard the rotation sensor. These common servos involve in
radio controlled water, ratio controlled cars, aircraft, robots, toys and many other applications.

5. Continuous rotation servo motor:

Continuous rotation servo motor relates to the common positional rotation servo motor, but it can go in any
direction indefinitely. The control signal, rather than setting the static position of the servo, is understood as
speed and direction of rotation. The range of potential commands sources the servo to rotate clockwise or
anticlockwise as preferred, at changing on the command signal. Thus this type of motor is used in a radar dish if
you are riding, one on a robot or you can use one as a drive motor on a mobile robot.

6. Linear servo motor:

Linear servo motor is also similar to the positional rotation servo motor discussed above, but with extra gears to
alter the output from circular to back and forth. Although these servo motors are not likely to be found, but
sometimes you can find them at hobby stores where they are used as actuators in higher model airplanes.

Principle of working:
Servo motor works on the PWM (Pulse Width Modulation) principle, which means its angle of rotation is
controlled by the duration of pulse applied to its control PIN. Basically servo motor is made up of DC motor
which is controlled by a variable resistor (potentiometer) and some gears.

Mechanism of servomotor:
Basically a servo motor is a closed-loop servomechanism that uses position feedback to control its motion and
final position. Moreover the input to its control is a signal (either analogue or digital) representing the position
commanded for the output shaft.
The motor is incorporates some type of encoder to provide position and speed feedback. In the simplest case,
we measure only the position. Then the measured position of the output is compared with the command
position, the external input to controller. Now if the output position differs from that of the expected output, an
error signal generates. Which then causes the motor to rotate in either direction, as per need to bring the output
shaft to the appropriate position. As the position approaches, the error signal reduces to zero. Finally the motor
stops.
The very simple servomotors can position only sensing via a potentiometer and bang-bang control of their
motor. Further the motor always rotates at full speed. Though this type of servomotor doesn’t have many uses in
industrial motion control, however it forms the basis of simple and cheap servo used for radio control models.
Servomotors also find uses in optical rotary encoders to measure the speed of output shaft and a variable-speed
drive to control the motor speed. Now this, when combined with a PID control algorithm further allows the
servomotor to be in its command position more quickly and more precisely with less overshooting.
Actuators
An actuator is a kind of motor that controls or moves mechanisms or systems. It takes hydraulic fluid, electric
current or other sources of power and converts the energy to facilitate the motion. Actuators are extremely
useful devices and have a diverse range of uses in fields such as engineering, electronic engineering and can be
found in many kinds of machinery such as printers, cars or disk drives. Most actuators produce either linear
(straight line), rotary (circular) or oscillatory motion.
Actuators allow more load, force, control, ruggedness, speed and duty cycle to be supported. Speed is vital
especially in the case of motion control equipment. The process of converting sources of power into energy has
been a great innovation to machinery. The efficiency brought about by actuators make them a cost effective
alternative to human operation.
There are four main types of actuators:
 Hydraulic
 Pneumatic
 Electric and
 Mechanical.
I. Hydraulic actuators consist of a cylinder or fluid motor that utilizes hydraulic power to facilitate
mechanical process. The mechanical motion gives an output in terms of linear, rotary or oscillatory
motion. Since liquids are nearly incompressible, they take longer to gain speed and power and also slow
back down, but they can exert great force. The hydraulic actuator also allows for very precise control of
the movement produced. In linear hydraulic actuators, a typical set-up is made up of a hollow cylinder
that contains a liquid, usually oil, and a piston that is inserted in it. When pressure is applied onto the
piston, objects can be moved by the force produced. Hydraulic actuators can be operated manually,
such as a hydraulic car jack, or they can be operated through a hydraulic pump, which can be seen in
construction equipment such as cranes or excavators.
II. Pneumatic actuators work on the same concept as hydraulic actuators except compressed gas is used
instead of liquid. Energy, in the form of compressed gas, is converted into linear or rotary motion,
depending on the type of actuator. Pneumatic energy is more desirable for main engine controls because
it can quickly respond in starting and stopping as the power source does not need to be stored in reserve
for operation. Also, pneumatic actuators are preferred in places where cleanliness is important, since the
fluid in hydraulic actuators might leak and contaminate the surroundings. However, pneumatic
actuators are still likely to leak, making them less efficient compared to mechanical actuators. Another
downside is that they take up a lot of space, create a lot of noise and are difficult to transport once
installed in a place.
III. Electric actuators are devices powered by motors that convert electrical energy to mechanical torque.
The electrical energy is used to create motion in equipment that require multi-turn valves like gate or
globe valves. Since no oil is involved, electrical actuators are considered to be one of the cleanest and
readily available forms of actuators. Electric actuators are typically installed in engines, where they
open and close different valves. There are many designs of electric actuators and this depends on their
function in the engine that they are installed in.
IV. Mechanical actuators function through converting rotary motion to linear motion. when a rotary motion.
Devices such as gears, rails, pulley, chain and others are used to help convert the motion. Some of the
simple mechanisms used to convert motion are screws, where the rotation of the actuator's nut causes
the screw shaft to move in a straight line, the wheel and axle, where the rotating motion of a wheel
causes a belt or something similar to move in a linear motion.
(Accelerometer and gyros, refer Qtn. No.2,4)
4. Sketch and explain in detail about working principle of gyroscope (Nov/Dec 2016)
Introduction
The term “gyroscope”, conventionally referred to the mechanical class of gyroscopes. Gyroscopes are
devices mounted on a frame and able to sense an angular velocity if the frame is rotating. Many classes
of gyroscopes exist, depending on the operating physical principle and the involved technology.
Gyroscopes can be used alone or included in more complex systems, such as Gyrocompass, Inertial
Measurement Unit, Inertial Navigation System and Attitude Heading Reference System.
Gyroscopes are of different types
 Mechanical gyroscopes
 Optical gyroscopes
 Fiber Optic Gyroscopes (FOGs)
 Ring Laser Gyroscopes (RLG)
  Micro-electromechanical system (MEMS) gyroscopes
The different improvements have been considered by focusing attention on the operating principles and
different improvements in commercial architectures in terms of performance.
Mechanical Gyroscope
A mechanical gyroscope essentially consists of a spinning mass that rotates around its axis. In particular, when
the mass is rotating on its axis, it tends to remain parallel to itself and to oppose any attempt to change its
orientation. If a gyroscope is installed on gimbals that allow the mass to navigate freely in the three directions of
space, its spinning axis will remain oriented in the same direction, even if it changes direction.

Spin Plane: The plane in which the wheel is intended to rotate is called spin plane. In the above figure, spin axis
is along Y axis and hence spin plane is the X-Z plane.

Precession axis: The axis about which the spin axis itself is made to turn is called precession axis. In the above
figure, precession axis is along X axis and hence precession plane is the Y-Z plane.

Gyroscopic plane: Wheel gives an unintentional rotation when it is made to precess. This effect is called
gyroscopic effect. The axis about which this rotation occurs is called the gyroscopic axis and the plane in which
this effect is observed is called gyroscopic plane.

In the above figure, gyroscopic axis is along Z axis and hence gyroscopic plane is the X-Y plane.
Components and Working
A mechanical gyroscope consists of:
(1)A spinning wheel mounted on two gimbals: This allows it to undergo precession motions along two
perpendicular directions.
(2)A rigid frame with rotating bearings: The mechanical components in relative motion are subjected to
friction, which in turn leads to measurement drifts over time. The main goal in gyroscope design is to build a
frictionless and perfectly balanced device. To minimize friction, high-precision bearings and special lubricants
are used or, in many critical applications, magnetic suspensions or fluid-suspended configurations
(3)Sensing systems (pick-offs): These are capable of reading angular displacements between the two
adjacent gimbals and to transduce them into electric signals by means of potentiometers, resolvers or encoders,
thus constituting the input for a computing unit.

A mechanical gyroscope shows a number of physical phenomena, including precession and nutation. In the
following sections, the main operating principles of the mechanical gyroscopes are reported, with reference to
the Inertial Navigation Systems.
Principle of Mechanical Gyroscopes: Gyroscopic Effects
The basic effect upon which a gyroscope relies is that an isolated spinning mass tends to keep its angular
position with respect to an inertial reference frame, and, when a constant external torque (respectively, a
constant angular speed) is applied to the mass, its rotation axis undergoes a precession motion at a constant
angular speed (respectively, with a constant output torque), in a direction that is normal to the direction of the
applied torque (respectively, to the constant angular speed). External forces acting on the center of mass of the
rotating part do not affect the angular position of the rotation axis.
Mechanical Displacement Gyroscopes
The primary application of gyroscopic effects consists in the measurement of the angular position of a moving
vehicle. The spinning mass is mounted upon a gimbaled frame, allowing rotation along two perpendicular axes.
The gimbaled frame of the gyroscope is attached to the vehicle and it is free to rotate, while the rotation axis of
the spinning mass keeps its angular position during the motion of the vehicle. The variation of the absolute
angle of the vehicle can be simply associated to the relative variation of the angle between the rotation axis of
the mass and a fixed direction on the frame of the gyroscope.
Another useful application of this physical effect is that exploited in gyrocompasses: when external torques are
not applied to the frame, the gyrocompass keeps the angular position of a pointer to North direction,
independently of the path followed by the vehicle. The advantage of such a mechanical system is that it is
immune to magnetic fields that can cause deviations on the pointer angle.
Mechanical Rate Gyroscopes
Rate gyros measure the angular speed of a vehicle during rotary motion. When an angular speed is imposed to a
gimbal and the spinning mass, a proportional torque appears along a direction that is perpendicular to the
direction of imposed angular speed. If a spring system of known stiffness is opposing and balancing the output
torque, it is possible to compute the imposed angular speed through the measurement of the output angle
assumed by the inner gimbal frame over time.

5. Why are pressure sensors used in UAVs? Sketch and explain in detail about any one pressure
sensor (Nov/Dec 2016)

Main Sensor which is involved in estimating UAV's attitude and absolute position / velocity is GPS. But GPS is
not always reliable and besides the altitude estimated by GPS sensors is usually very inaccurate, resulting in a
slow varying oscillations of several meters.

Need of Pressure Sensor in UAV

An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) is a type of aircraft that operates without a human pilot onboard and
controlled by a computer system and a radio-link. And hence we need to have uninterrupted and accurate values
to control the UAV from a remote Ground Station. To meet this requirement UAVs are equipped with
additional pressure sensors so that to aid when GPS and other systems fails.

Moreover, Pressure sensors are usually made out of piezoelectric materials, and are usually very cheap and
miniaturized. They have the peculiar characteristics of deforming under an electric field or to generate an
electric field when deformed. And hence they can provide uninterrupted data with respect to the atmospheric
conditions.

Types of Pressure sensors use in UAV

 Barometric Altitude Indicator (refer Qtn 2)
 Airspeed Indicator
Airspeed Indicator
The airspeed indicator (ASI) or airspeed gauge is a flight instrument indicating the airspeed of an aircraft in miles
per hour (MPH), knots, or both. The ASI measures the pressure differential between static pressure from the static
port, and total pressure from the Pitot tube. This difference in pressure is registered with the ASI pointer on the
face of the instrument.
Working
The ASI is the only flight instrument that uses both the static system and the pitot system. Static pressure enters
the ASI case, while total pressure flexes the diaphragm, which is connected to the ASI pointer via mechanical
linkage. The pressures are equal when the aircraft is stationary on the ground, and hence shows a reading of
zero. When the aircraft is moving forward, air entering the Pitot tube is at a greater pressure than the static line,
which flexes the diaphragm, moving the pointer. The ASI is checked before takeoff for a zero reading, and
during takeoff that it is increasing appropriately.
The Pitot tube may become blocked, because of insects, dirt or failure to remove the pitot cover. Blockage will
prevent ram air from entering the system. If the pitot opening is blocked, but the drain hole is open, the system
pressure will drop to ambient pressure, and the ASI pointer will drop to a zero reading. If both the opening and
drain hole are blocked, the ASI will not indicate any change in airspeed. However, the ASI pointer will show
altitude changes, as the associated static pressure changes. If both the Pitot tube and the static system are
blocked, the ASI pointer will read zero. If the static ports are blocked but the Pitot tube remains open, the ASI
will operate, but inaccurately
 UNIT- IV
COMMUNICATION PAYLOADS AND CONTROLS
PART –A (2 marks)

1) Give few details about Telemetry? (Nov/Dec 2018)

Ans: Telemetry is the automated process for transmitting measurements wirelessly from a remote object to a
command station. Aeronautical telemetry is used in defense and civilian applications, such as flight testing, UAV,
space exploration and rocketry, to enable real-time monitoring of environmental conditions in flying objects,
which typically monitor data collected from on-board instrumentation over an RF link. Real-time data
transmission and analysis is often crucial for UAV tracking and thus requires a highly reliable, high throughput
link.
2) Write a note on payloads of UAV (April/May 2018)
Ans: Payloads are the equipment that is added to the UAV for the purpose of performing some operational
mission—in other words, the equipment for which the basic UAV provides a platform and transportation. This
excludes the flight avionics, data link, and fuel. It includes sensors, emitters, and stores which are used to perform
such missions.
Payloads can be classified into various kinds according to the type of mission performed as follows,
a) Reconnaissance
b) Electronic warfare
c) Weapon delivery
3) Write note on Aerial photography? April/May 2018)
Ans: Aerial photography (or airborne imagery) is the taking of photographs from an aircraft or other flying object
like UAV, helicopters etc. The Mounted cameras on the UAV may be triggered remotely or automatically and
the hand-held photographs may be taken by a photographer.
4) What is PID feedback?
Ans: The proportional-integral-derivative controller, or PID controller, is the most common type of controller
used for UAV stabilization and autonomous control. It is a type of control loop feedback controller that attempts
to drive some UAV flight parameter to a given desired value. This method can be applied to stabilize or control
almost all aspects of an UAV's flight such as flight speed, altitude and orientation, and for this reason it forms the
core method for popular autonomous control systems like the Autopilot.
5) What are the different memory systems used in UAV flight control system? (April/May 2018)
Ans: Generally, two types are used in UAV Navigation's onboard systems, including autopilots:
Flash Memory. Flash memory is a Non-Volatile Memory (NVM) and is generally used to store information.
Although data transfer rates are not as fast as RAM, it is safer for longer term storage as the data is preserved
when power is turned off.
Random Access Memory (RAM). RAM is generally used to manage any information which has been stored.
RAM can typically transfer data faster than flash, although it suffers from an important characteristic: it can only
hold onto that data when it has power; once the power is turned off, the data is lost - hence it must be stored for
the longer term in Flash memory.
6) What is meant by simulation?
Ans: Unmanned aircraft system simulation focuses on training pilots (or operators) to control an unmanned
aircraft or its payload from a control station. Flight simulation involves a device that artificially re-creates aircraft
flight and the environment in which it flies for pilot training, design, or other purposes. It includes replicating the
equations that govern how aircraft fly, how they react to applications of flight controls, the effects of other aircraft
systems, and how the aircraft reacts to external factors such as air density, turbulence, wind shear, cloud,
precipitation, etc.
7) Write short note on Ground Testing?
Ans: Ground testing of a UAV design or a UAV that has under gone significant structural modification, is a
prerequisite before any flight-test program can begin. In turn, ground testing follows and complements an
extensive structural modeling program, which encompasses flight loads, material fatigue, structural dynamics,
airborne and structure borne acoustics and more.
8) What is Troubleshooting?
Ans: In general, troubleshooting is the identification or diagnosis of "trouble" in the management flow of a system
caused by a failure of some kind. The problem is initially described as symptoms of malfunction, and
troubleshooting is the process of determining and remedying the causes of these symptoms.
 PART B

1) Classify the payloads in a UAV. Mention factors influence the payload to be carried off in a UAV
(Nov/Dec 2018)
Introduction
Payloads are the equipment that is added to the UAV for the purpose of performing some operational mission—
in other words, the equipment for which the basic UAV provides a platform and transportation. This excludes
the flight avionics, data link, and fuel. It includes sensors, emitters, and stores which are used to perform such
missions.
Payloads can be classified into various kinds according to
1. The type of mission performed
a) Reconnaissance
b) Electronic warfare
c) Weapon delivery
2. Type of payload carrying
a) Dispensable
b) Non Dispensable
1. The type of mission performed
a) Reconnaissance Payload
Reconnaissance payloads are the payloads used in the mission of a UAV is to gather some specialized
information, such as monitoring pollution, to locate specific “targets” on the ground for the purpose of
collecting data.
b) Electronic warfare Payloads
This type of payload involves the delivery of relatively small tactical weapons, mostly precision guided, that are
suitable for attacking vehicles or buildings, delivery of anti-submarine weapons etc.

2. Type of payload carrying

i) Non Dispensable Payload
The Non dispensable payloads includes the equipments which are fixed on the UAV for any particular mission.
The types of Non Dispensable payloads includes
a) Electro-optic Payload Systems
These payloads range from simple monochrome or colour single-frame cameras, low light-level television
(LLLTV), thermal imaging video systems to multi-spectral systems. The advances in miniaturisation have been
made in all of these possible in the past two decades and its development is continuing so fast.
Different types of Electro-optic Payload Systems includes
1. ‘Daylight’ Cameras
Optical, or ‘visible light’ cameras operate in the 0.4-0.7 µm wavelength range. The light is focused through
ground-glass lenses on to receptors(charged-coupled devices, CCD) from which the image is transformed into a
format which can be displayed onto a monitor or coded on to a radio carrier frequency for transmission to a
receiving station.
2. Low-light-level Cameras
Low Light Level cameras function in the same manner as standard optical cameras, but are fed an amplified
level of light, using fibre optics which accept light from a larger area and concentrate it onto the camera lens.
The remaining process is the same as ‘ordinary’ optical cameras, but LLLTV cameras can provide images at as
much as one-tenth of the light necessary for the operation of ordinary cameras.
3. Thermal Imagers
Thermal Imagers uses thermal imaging cameras. These cameras uses short-wave IR and long-wave IR
respectively having wavelengths between 3–5 µm and about 7–15 µm. Since because the absorption of infrared
emission by water molecules in the atmosphere is at a minimum at these wavelengths, which provide a
‘window’ through which heat can be transmitted most effectively.
In thermal imagers, heat emitted from the utilised for the operation. In these systems, the heat radiation is
focused onto special receptors in the camera which convert it into a format which is displayed on a monitor in
monochrome which is recognisable by the human eye. The objects emitting the greatest intensity of heat are
usually presented as the darkest (black) in the greyscale, i.e. known as ‘black-hot’.
b) Radar Imaging Payloads
Radar is an ‘active’ system which emits pulsed radio beams and interprets the returned reflections from those
objects. These can pass through certain types of obstacles like clouds. However, the emitted energy from these
systems can detectable and it is an operational disadvantage. The image resolution is not as good as that of the
electro-optical camera systems. The radar system used for ground target surveillance from UAV is known as
synthetic aperture radar (SAR). In these systems, the same antenna is used for emitting the outgoing signal and
receiving the signal.
c) Laser Target Designation
These kind of payloads are used in military operations. When there is a need to illuminate ground targets for
attack by laser-guided missiles, UAV with Laser Target Designation are used for marking the target for others
which release the weapons.
d) Pollution Monitoring
These are devices for detecting pollutants in the form of nuclear, biological or chemical (NBC) contaminants on
the ground or in the atmosphere. This is done using hand-held equipment which sucks in air samples and
analyses them before displaying the data. This is a dangerous occupation and time consuming. It is readily
possible to mount such a device in a UAV to carry out the task more expeditiously and without danger to
personnel.
e) Public Address System
A loudspeaker system and TV camera can be mounted in an integrated payload which, again could be achieved
from 5 kg mass depending upon the sound level required.
Radio Relay System mounted in a UAV positioned at an appropriate altitude, carrying a payload of radio
receiver, amplifier and transmitter can significantly increase the range of radio communication for both military
and civilian authorities operating in the field.
f) Electronic Intelligence
An undercover operation with a UAV carrying a radio receiver capable of frequency scanning can intercept
enemy radio transmissions for intelligence purposes.
g) Radar Confusion
A radar transmitter in a UAV is able not only to jam a radar receiver, but also confuse the enemy by make
believing that objects, forces, etc. are present when they are not.
f) Magnetic Anomaly Detection
Such systems are readily convertible for carriage by UAV and can be used for various purposes including
the location of, for example, sunken wrecks at sea.
ii) Dispensable Payloads
These payloads are of various kinds used in the civilian and military applications. In the civil field these may
include agricultural crop-spraying with pesticides, fungicides or possibly fertilisers and anti-frost measures.
Provided that the UAV has an adequate dispensable payload, water or other fire suppressant material may be
carried and dropped.
Other dispensable payloads may include flares, life-rafts and other materials. In all of these, care must be taken
in the design to ensure that material cannot be inadvertently dropped and is released cleanly, without upsetting
the balance of the aircraft, and without entering vulnerable parts of the aircraft.
In the military environment, the dispensable loads will usually be armament: bombs, rockets or missiles. These
will usually be under-wing-mounted on fixed-wing aircraft and side-mounted on rotary wing aircraft. Weapon-
aiming will be necessary and integrated with the electro-optic sensor(s).
The factors which influence the selection of payloads include
• The range, endurance and altitude required in the operation of the platform
• Mass and drag constraints imposed by a selected platform performance
• Installation and field-of-view constraints
• Type of target or surveillance modes
• Range and area of surveillance needed
• Resolution of the imagery
• Discrimination of the target from the background
• Need for tracking (track while scan, lock-on, etc.)
• Need for map data base correlation
• Need for recording
• Need for superimposed latitude/longitude, date, time data for admissible evidence
• Need for weapon-aiming interface.
 2) Explain the HTOL UAV control system with a neat sketch (Nov/Dec 2018)
Introduction
HTOL is the acronym for Horizontal Takeoff and Landing UAVs. These UAVs need a horizontal surface for
takeoff and landing. They are similar to the conventional aircraft design. The functions of the control and
stability of a UAV will depend in nature on the different aircraft configurations and the characteristics required
of them. ‘Control’ may be defined for our purposes as the means of directing the aircraft into the required
position, orientation and velocity, whilst ‘stability’ is the ability of the system to maintain the aircraft in those
states. Control and stability are inexorably linked within the system, but it is necessary to understand the
difference. The overall system may be considered for convenience in two parts:
i) The processing part of the system which accepts the commands from the operator (in short-term or
long-term), compares the orientation, etc. of the aircraft with what is commanded, and instructs the
other part of the system to make appropriate correction. This is often referred to as the automatic flight
control system (AFCS) or FCS logic, and contains the memory to store mission and localized flight
programs
ii) The ‘Actuator’ of the system which accept the instructions of (i) and apply input to the engine(s)
controls and / or aerodynamic control surfaces.
Another distinction which must be made is whether the aircraft orientation, etc. is to be maintained relative to
the air mass in which the aircraft is flying or relative to space coordinates.
For a HTOL aircraft the flight variables are basically:
a) direction,
b) horizontal speed,
c) altitude,
d) rate of climb
The direction of flight (or heading) will be controlled by a combination of deflection of the rudder(s) and
ailerons. The horizontal speed will be controlled by adjustment to the propulsor thrust and elevator deflection,
the rate of climb to a given altitude is achieved by the application of a combination of elevator deflection and
propulsor thrust. The arrangement of the aerodynamic control surfaces is shown in Figure. 1for a typical,
aerodynamically stable, HTOL aircraft configuration. Other HTOL configurations will utilizes specific
arrangements. For example, a ‘flying wing’ configuration will use ‘elevons’ which deflect in the same direction
for pitch control and differentially for roll control.
Itissomewhatsimplertomaintainorientationrelativetotheairmass,i.e.toconfiguretheaircrafttobe
‘aerodynamicallystable’.Thisgenerallyrequirestailplaneandverticalfinareastoprovide‘weathercock’ stability in
both pitch and yaw and requires wing dihedral in fixed-wing aircraft to provide coupling betweenside-
slipandrollmotiontogivestabilityintherollsense.Thedownsideofthisisthattheaircraft
willmovewiththeairmass,i.e.respondtogusts(airturbulence).Thismovementusuallyincludeslinear
translationsandangularrotationsrelativetotheearth.Thiswillmakeforgreaterdifficultyinmaintaining, for example, a
camera sight-line on a ground fixed target.
HTOL Aero-stable Configuration
A typical basic flight control system (FCS) is shown in block diagram form in Figure. Before flight the mission
program may be copied into the FCS computer memory. A very basic program may consist of a series of ‘way-
points’ which the aircraft is to over-fly before returning to base, and the transit speeds between those points. It
may be more complex in that a flight pattern about those points may be scheduled along with operation of the
payload. If the operators are in radio communication with the aircraft (directly or via a relay) the program
commands may be overridden, for example, to carry out a more detailed ‘manual’ surveillance of a target.
Provision also may be made to update the mission program during the aircraft flight. FCS enables the
commands of the controller to be accepted and executed and the aircraft to be stabilized onto that commanded
condition of speed, direction and altitude.
The Speed Channel
The aircraft airspeed command from the memory is compared with the actual airspeed as sensed and any error
between the two is obtained. A multiplier K is applied to the error signal which is passed to the throttle actuator
system with its feedback loop. This makes a throttle adjustment proportional to the instantaneous error until
equilibrium is achieved. Provided that the power unit response is progressive, and that the correction takes place
at an airspeed above the minimum power speed of the aircraft, the motion is stable and normally will need no
damping term.
The Heading Channel
The actual heading of the aircraft can be measured by a magnetometer monitored attitude gyro and compared
with the commanded heading. Any error is processed as before to operate the aircraft rudder via a yaw actuator.
In this case, however, damping may be required to prevent the aircraft oscillating in yaw and, in an extreme
case, diverging in that mode. The probability of oscillation occurring depends upon the actuation system and
aircraft aerodynamic damping characteristics. This phenomenon is covered fully in the specialist textbooks.
Should extra damping be required, it may be incorporated by the differentiation respect to time of the gyro
position signal or, possibly more readily, through the inclusion of a yaw-rate gyro.
The Height or Altitude Channel
The height of an aircraft is recognized as its vertical distance above ground as measured, for example, by a
radio ‘altimeter’ and is often referred to as ‘tape height’. Its altitude, also known as the ‘pressure height’ is its
height above mean sea level and this is obtained by measuring the ambient air pressure outside the aircraft and
comparing that with the ambient air pressure at mean sea level. Either can be used, depending upon the mission
needs. Pressure altitude is more appropriate for use when traversing long distances at greater altitudes but is
relatively inaccurate for low altitude operation. It cannot respond to the presence of hilly or mountainous
terrain. Operating using tape height measurement is more appropriate for low-altitude, shorter-range operations
when the aircraft will follow the contours of the landscape. It gives a far more accurate measure of height than
does a pressure altimeter. Both can be employed in a FCS with the most appropriate sensor being selected for a
given phase of the mission.
In addition to the above, control of the rate of climb will be necessary. The rate of climb (or descent) can be
obtained by differentiating the change in measured height with respect to time. A cap must be placed on the
allowed rate of climb (and descent) to prevent excessive or unavailable power being demanded from the
engine(s) and to prevent the aircraft exceeding its design speed limit in descent.

The several stability derivatives in the computation will be obtained from calculations and, depending upon the
degree of novelty of the aircraft configuration, may also be obtained from testing a model in a wind tunnel.
Many UAV are of a size that the model used may be of full scale which has the advantage of avoiding the
necessity to correct for scale-effect in accuracies which may obtain in manned aircraft testing.
3) Explain in detail about PID feedback and Radio frequency range of UAV systems (April/May
2018)
PID Feedback
Introduction
The proportional-integral-derivative controller, or PID controller, is the most common type of controller used
for UAV stabilization and autonomous control. It is a type of control loop feedback controller that attempts to
drive some UAV flight parameter to a given desired value. This method can be applied to stabilize or control
almost all aspects of an UAV's flight such as flight speed, altitude and orientation, and for this reason it forms
the core method for popular autonomous control systems like the Autopilot. The PID controller is popular
because it works in a very simple manner and does not require factoring in the physics of the dynamical system
into the equations.
Theory
This section provides a simple explanation of how a PID controller works. The equation for a PID controller is:

In this equation, {u} is the 'output signal'; the value we will apply to the control actuator in the UAV. For
example, if we want to control the forward flight speed of an airplane, {{u}} would be the throttle setting. The
variable {e} is called the error, and it is the difference between the desired value and the actual value. For
example, if we want the airplane to fly at 50 mph but it is currently flying at 70 mph the error would be -20. The
{{u}} value is simply a sum of three terms called the proportional, integral and differential terms. Each term
has a positive constant K that must be manually tweaked for the controller to work as desired, multiplied by
some function of the error.
Proportional Term
The proportional term adjusts the control signal based on the magnitude of the error at present time. This means
that the larger the error at any instant, the greater the control signal that is applied at that instant. In the airplane
speed example, if we are flying at 30 mph but our goal is 50 mph, the error would be 20, and the proportional
term would add 20*K_{p} to the output signal, effectively increasing the throttle. The slower we are flying
relative to the goal of 50 mph the higher the applied throttle, and the faster we are flying over 50 mph the lower
the applied throttle. Although this may seem to be enough to make the controller work, in the Tuning section it
will become apparent why the integral and proportional terms are often times necessary.
Integral Term
The integral term adjusts the control signal proportionally to the magnitude of accumulated error over past
times. The more error that has accumulated, the higher the control signal that is applied. Note that negative error
can cancel positive error. In the airplane speed example, if we have been flying at 30 mph for 12 seconds, while
the goal is 50 mph, the accumulated error would be (50-30)*12=240, and we would add 240*K_{{i}} to the
output signal, effectively increasing the throttle. The more time we spend below our goal, the more throttle will
be applied. While the proportional term adjusts the output based on the present error, the integral term adjust the
output based on past errors.
Differential Term
The differential term adjusts the control signal proportionally to the rate of change of the error with respect to
time, or how fast the error is changing. In the airplane speed example, if we are flying at 30 mph with a goal of
50 mph, our error is 20. If we are accelerating such that we are gaining 5 mph every second, the error is going
down 5 every second, and the differential of the error with respect to time is -5. The PID would add -5*K{{d}}
to the output signal, reducing the throttle. The faster we are approaching our goal of 50 mph, the lower the
throttle is going to be. This has the effect of slowing down our approach to the goal to avoid overshooting it.
While the proportional term adjusts the output based on the present error, and the integral term based on the past
error, the differential term adjusts the output based on a prediction of future error. Knowing how fast the error is
changing tells you something about what the error is going to be in a future instant.
Radio Frequency Range of UAV
Radio frequency (RF) is the oscillation rate of an alternating electric current or voltage or of a magnetic, electric
or electromagnetic field or mechanical system in the frequency range from around twenty thousand times per
second (20 kHz) to around three hundred billion times per second (300 GHz). This is roughly between the upper
limit of audio frequencies and the lower limit of infrared frequencies; these are the frequencies at which energy
from an oscillating current can radiate off a conductor into space as radio waves. The “UAV” is either driven or
piloted by a remote from the First Person perspective that is delivered via wireless technology onto the pilot’s
goggles or monitor. More complex versions of drones include a pan and tilt camera that is controlled by a
gyroscope sensor in the Pilot's goggles fitted with two onboard cameras that enable a 3D view.
Radio Frequencies for UAV:
2.4 GHz and 5.8 GHz are two of the most common frequencies when you are dealing with FPV UAV.
2.4 GHz is the common RF used by UAVs for connecting the ground transmitter to the air vehicle. The 2.4 GHz
is the same frequency that wireless computer networks work in. So as anticipatable it may seem there have been
several incidents reporting the loss of control over the Flying objects in dense housing areas where there are too
many wireless signals.
Another problem that is associated with 2.4 GHz is that they interfere with their onboard systems. This is
mainly because of the involvement of two transmitters – one for transferring the pilot signals to the vehicle and
the other for transferring the video signals back to the pilot.
A 5.8 GHz is another RF used in UAV technologies, to avoid the entangling of frequencies in the same band.
4) Explain in detail about simulation and ground test analysis of UAV (April/May 2018)
Simulation
Introduction
Unmanned aircraft system simulation focuses on training pilots (or operators) to control an unmanned aircraft
or its payload from a control station. Flight simulation involves a device that artificially re-creates aircraft flight
and the environment in which it flies for pilot training, design, or other purposes. It includes replicating the
equations that govern how aircraft fly, how they react to applications of flight controls, the effects of other
aircraft systems, and how the aircraft reacts to external factors such as air density, turbulence, wind shear,
cloud, precipitation, etc.
Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) Simulation Training
The use of unmanned systems by defense forces globally has grown substantially over the past decade, and is
only expected to continue to grow significantly. In addition, unmanned systems will be used increasingly for
commercial applications such as remote inspection of pipelines and hydroelectric installations, surveillance of
forest fires, observation of critical natural resources, assessing natural disasters and a range of other
applications. This increase in the use of UAS capabilities results in the need to have more highly skilled UAS
pilots, sensor operators, and mission commanders.
An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), commonly known as a drone and referred to as a Remotely Piloted Aircraft
(RPA) by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), is an aircraft without a human pilot aboard. Its
flight is controlled either autonomously by onboard computers or by the remote control of a pilot on the ground
or in another vehicle. The typical launch and recovery method of an unmanned aircraft is by the function of an
automatic system or an external operator on the ground. Historically, UAVs were simple remotely piloted
aircraft, but autonomous control is increasingly being employed. A UAS is composed of the UAV, itself, as
well as associated launch, recovery, and control hardware and software.
UAVs are usually deployed for military and special operation applications, but are also used in a small but
growing number of civil applications, such as policing and firefighting, and nonmilitary security work such as
surveillance of pipelines. UAVs are often preferred for missions that are too "dull, dirty or dangerous" for
manned aircraft.
UAS Simulation Training allows UAV operators to train in real-time to operate UAVs in a virtual environment
that is realistic and accurate, but without the risks and constraints of a real flight. UAS simulation includes:
 Simulated UAVS: The system allows training on both helicopter and fixed wing UAVs.
Training with the actual ground station: The system uses real data generated by the actual UAV autopilot to
provide an extremely realistic simulation.
 The virtual world in which the UAV flies is modeled in 3D with photo textures, and contains all the
necessary features to simulate a mission in operational conditions.
 Payload simulation: The system generates real-time video to simulate the payload output in both visible
and IR modes. This video is piped to the actual video station as in the real system.
 Simulation features: Multilingual interface, VCR type controls (replay forward / backward), Simulated
weather functions, display options (flight panel, UAV trajectory), display of telemetry data.
UAS Simulation Training combines an open architecture with commercial-off-the-shelf hardware and
simulation software that helps the use of proprietary designs to provide a comprehensive, platform-agnostic
training system. Customers benefit from greater flexibility for evolution, networking, distributed mission
training and combination within an integrated training environment. UAS is a solution that optimizes
operational readiness while minimizing the use of live assets to train and prepare the integrated mission team
for operations. The comprehensive solution also prepares the integrated mission team (pilot, payload specialist,
and commanding officer) in platform operating procedures, data interpretation and analysis, and team
interaction.

Ground Test Analysis

Ground testing of a UAV design or a UAV that has under gone significant structural modification, is a
prerequisite before any flight-test program can begin. In turn, ground testing follows and complements an
extensive structural modeling program, which encompasses flight loads, material fatigue, structural dynamics,
airborne and structure borne acoustics and more.
Quality ground testing is essential not only to reduce the risk of mishap, but also to ensure that the system is
technically ready for the flight testing to follow. The time and money expended on the ground is often repaid
many-fold by enabling success during the typically high-visibility flight testing phase. Unfortunately, this is not
always obvious when a project is successful, but a close look at failed flight tests and mishaps often indicates
that the underlying problems could have easily been discovered and fixed prior to flight.
The Ground Testing process include,
(1) UAV Component Testing
(2) UAV Sub-assembly and Sub-system Testing
(3) Testing Complete UAV
(4) Control Station Testing
(5) Catapult Launch System Tests
(6) Documentation
(1) UAV Component Testing
A component as one range from the very simple to the complex involving more than one part and bordering on
being an assembly. Component testing may be required to establish the ultimate strength, fatigue life or wear of
a mechanical component or the correct functioning within limits of an electrical component or circuit. In any
case, specimens will have to be manufactured or purchased and means of their testing prepared. Electrical or
electronic items will usually have been bought-in with appropriate certificates of conformity. The testing of
such components may involve their being subjected to specified temperature and acceleration cycles, but
otherwise measurement of their performance under such conditions will be made by standard instruments.
Critical mechanical components to be tested for ultimate strength, fatigue life or wear, for example, are joints
between composite and metallic materials where diffusion of stress into metallic transport joints is required.
These typically occur at wing and other aerodynamic surface roots. Other components might be undercarriage
flexures, mechanisms such as control bell-cranks or complete electromechanical actuators. For rotorcraft these
may include gears, transmission shafts, rotor hub components and blade root attachments.
(2) UAV Sub-assembly and Sub-system Testing
These elements of the system may range from the aircraft undercarriage, through the mechanical
and electronic flight control system, the payloads to the complete power-plant, the communication
system and the aircraft recovery system. For the control station (CS) they may comprise the
levelling/stabilizing system of the CS vehicle, the deployment of the radio antennae/mast(s), the air-
conditioning of the crew working space and operating equipment, the aircraft starting system, the
system check-out system, launch system, and communication system, etc.
 Undercarriages
All of the types will have to undergo the former testing which will usually take the form of
‘drop testing’. Here a rig will be constructed incorporating the undercarriage and its
mounting structure. At its simplest it will mount a platform above it.
 Flight Control System
The flight controls in both HTOL and VTOL aircraft are most likely to be electrically
powered, with electrical actuators directly operating the aerodynamic control surfaces. The
FCS logic component with its attitude, speed and other sensors coupled with the computing
core may be functioned independently from the actuators. Quantified inputs may first be
made to the computing core and the outputs recorded to check for correct
responses. .Subsequently the full FCS with attitude sensors, but without the actuators may
be mounted on a gimballed table to check the response of the system. Finally, the actuation
system may be added, complete with simulated aerodynamic surfaces, inertia and
resistance.
 Power-plants
The supplier should have been required to conduct tests to determine the engine
performance before delivery and to have run the engine for a minimum duration to
determine any change in performance over that period. The bare engine will be coupled to
the dynamo meter and this may require the provision of a mounting rig. Instrumentation to
measure the mean and oscillatory torque of the engine, its shaft speed and fuel consumption
at various throttle openings should be supplied with the dynamometer. Other measurements
to be made, such as engine temperatures, ambient temperature and pressure, and generated
noise will require specific test equipment. The test results will yield information which will
be normalised to represent values at standard temperature and pressure. The normalized
values will then be presented as a carpet graph showing engine power and fuel
consumption as a function of throttle opening and output shaft speed. Subsequently these
tests must be repeated with the engine built into an installation representative of the power-
plant in the aircraft in order to determine any effect that this may have on the engine
performance, operating temperatures, etc. and noise levels. If any adverse effects are found,
it may be necessary at that stage to consider remedial modification to the installation.
 Payloads
Whichever route is taken, it is desirable that the payload can be functioned as far as is
possible as a stand-alone subsystem, i.e. bench-tested, before being mounted into the
aircraft. There are, of course, a large range of potential payloads, all performing for
different purposes. It is therefore not possible to generalise in a discussion of their test
procedures. Power supplies will, in general be connected as will all the interfaces needed
between the sensor, the communications and control station. Functioning of camera
performance, direction of field of regard, lens control and stabilisation of electro-optical
systems should be possible. It may not be practical to completely test functionality in some
systems such as radars, magnetic anomaly detection (MAD), NBC etc systems until they
are airborne in the UAV.
(3) Testing Complete UAV
The Operating and Maintenance Manuals will provides tests which should be done on the ground.
The pre- and post-flight checks will be carried out including checks for wear, fluid leaks, signs of
overheating, security of connectors, etc. At some stage, communications testing must be carried out
on a prototype airframe to prove radio transmission and reception. This will include confirmation of
acceptable antennae positioning to achieve adequate gain at all aircraft to CS orientations. It may
therefore be necessary to mount the airframe on an elevated platform. It also becomes necessary to
ground-test a complete aircraft with subsystems operating.
(4) Control Station Testing
In parallel with the UAV testing, the control station will have been prepared. The several sub-
system equipments, such as the communications, controls, displays, recording equipment, power-
supplies etc. will have been separately checked out. Most of this equipment will have been out-
sourced and come with certificates of conformity. The CS vehicle or trailer will have been prepared
with the necessary accommodation for the crew and equipments and UAV(s) if relevant. Radio
antennae will have been installed and elevating means, if relevant, will have been functioned.
An on-board check-out of all sub-systems will be made to ensure their correct and continued
functioning in their positions in the CS. Checks will ensure that the ergonomic interfacing with the
operating crew is satisfactory, that there is satisfactory system integration and no adverse mutual
electromagnetic or physical interference and that the air-conditioning system(s) maintain
appropriate ventilation and temperatures for crew and equipment. Radio communications will be
functioned and checked for performance by transmitting data and control commands to a slave
radio receiver, preferably positioned at some distance away.
If all is satisfactory, the next step will have been the integration of the CS with the UAV on its
ground functioningrig.Thestart-upprocedurewillbecarriedoutandbuilt-in-test-equipment (BITE)
functioned. The BITE addresses the state of the UAV systems to ensure that it is ready for flight.
i.e. that the on-
boardpowersupplies,sensors,controlsystems,payload,fuelgauging,etc.arealloperatingwithinthe
correct limits and that housekeeping data and health and usage monitoring system (HUMS)
equipment (if fitted) are registering. During the ground testing of the UAV, the manipulation of
controls and measurements made by the on-board instrumentation may have been transmitted by
hard-wiring from and to a separate console for display and recording. This control must now be
transferred to the CS and communicated by radio (or
othercommunicationsystemused).Similarlytheresultsoftheinstrumentationshouldnowbetransmitted
to the CS for display and recording, either separately to or as part of the aircraft housekeeping data.
(5) Catapult Launch System Tests
Catapult systems are differ principally in the length of ‘throw’ and the degree of acceleration
required to launch the UAV. These factors, together with the mass of the UAV, will determine the
power characteristics required and therefore the power transmission means, i.e. bungee-powered or
hydro pneumatic-powered for the heavier, higher-wing-loaded aircraft. In the design of the catapult,
the effect of any propeller thrust on the acceleration will probably have been ignored, since the
propeller will usually be designed for efficiency in flight and will produce relatively little thrust
from static condition. The effectiveness of the catapult, the system to release the aircraft from the
trolley and the systems to arrest the mounting trolley itself, may therefore be tested using a ‘dummy
aircraft’, having the same mass and interface fitments as the real aircraft. Recordings will be made
of distance travelled versus time to ensure that the correct speed for launch is achieved.
(6) Documentation
It is important that all these tests are accurately called up and the results recorded in the Treq and
Trep documents so that they can be produced for subsequent certification of the UAV system. Any
short coming in performance, ease of operation or reliability will be reported for modification
action and subsequent re-testing. The System Hierarchy document will also be contained in one of
the control documents which will be held by the test engineers and subsequently by the operators. It
will allow the testers and operators to identify faulty components for replacement and also to
compile a record of failure rates for each sub-assembly. This information is used to determine
which elements should be improved or replaced to give the most cost-effective increase in
reliability. With the ground testing satisfactorily completed and the integration of the system
proven, the system should now be readied for the in-flight testing phase.
 5) Sketch and explain in detail about telemetry and tracking system (Nov/Dec 2016)

Telemetry
 The function of Telemetry sub system is to monitor various UAV parameters and to transmit the
measured values to the satellite control center.
 It refers to the overall operation of generating an electrical signal proportional to the quantity being
measured and encoding and transmitting this to a distant station, which for the UAV is one of the
Ground stations.
 The telemetry data are analyzed at the control centre is used for routine operation and failure diagnostic
purposes.
 The parameters most commonly monitored are:
1) Voltage, current and Temperatures of all major systems
2) Switch status of communications transponders.
3) Pressure of propulsion tanks
4) Output from attitude sensors
5) Reaction wheel speed
6) Environmental information such as the magnetic field intensity and direction
 Several sensors provide analog signals whereas some others provide digital signals.
Analog signals are digitally encoded and multiplexed with other signals, forming a continuous digital stream.
Typical telemetry data rates are in the range of 150 to 100 bps.
 The telemetry data are transmitted as FSK, PSK via telemetry antenna. The telemetry signal is
commonly used as a beacon by ground stations for tracking purpose
 Tracking

 In this the movement of UAV is tracked and correction signals are sending to UAV because various
disturbing forces are acting on the UAV.
 This system is located at the Ground station providing information on pitch, roll and yaw.
 Tracking is obviously important during whole mission to ensure the path is being followed or not.
 The command subsystem receives commands from the UAV flight control system, verifies this
reception and executes received commands.
 Telemetry and command may be thought of as complementary functions. The telemetry subsystem
transmits information about the UAV, while the command subsystem receives command signals from
the Ground station, often in response to telemetered information.
 It is clearly important to prevent unauthorized commands from being received and decoded, and for this
reason, the command signals are often encrypted.
 Unit – V
THE DEVELOPMENT OF UAV SYSTEMS
PART - A
1) Write the elements of preparation for in flight testing? (Nov/Dec 2018)
Ans: There are three main elements in the preparation for flight testing
 Off-Site preparation
 Test Crew training
 On-Site preparation

2) Write the advanced technologies to be incorporated in future UAVs? (Nov/Dec 2018)

Ans: In addition to the remote Ground station, researches are being done with the help of Artificial intelligence
for various self-tasking modes, Moreover developments are going on Drone taxi, Drone delivery, Drone
policing etc.,
3) Name some Ground Control Software? (Nov/Dec 2018)
Ans: Some of the Ground Control Software are,
 Visionair Configuration tools is a UAV Navigation software used in order to configure autopilots (AP)
and AHR-INS units
 DJI GS pro
 MAV Pilot1.4
4) Define Waypoint? (April/May 2017)
Ans: A waypoint is a set of coordinates that identify a specific point in physical space. Drones with waypoint
technology typically utilize Global Positioning System (GPS) and Global Navigation Satellite System
(GLONASS) — which are two different networks of satellites orbiting the earth — to create waypoints
5) What are the disadvantages of rotary wing unmanned aerial vehicle? (Nov/Dec 2016)
Ans:
 Single rotors are harder to fly than multi-rotor UAVs
 They are expensive
 These UAVs have a higher complexity
 And can be dangerous because of the heavy spinning blade
 And most of the UAVs energy is spent on fighting gravity and stabilizing in the air in multi rotor
 PART B

1. Discuss the UAV Control Station Testing? (Nov/Dec 2018)

Introduction

A ground control station (GCS) is a land- or sea-based control center that provides the facilities for human
control of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs). GCS hardware refers to the complete set of ground-based
hardware systems used to control the UAV. This typically includes the Human-Machine Interface, computer,
telemetry, video capture card and aerials for the control, video and data links to the UAV. Larger military
UAVs such as the General Atomics MQ-1 Predator feature what resembles a "virtual cockpit". The pilot or
sensor operator sits in front of a number of screens showing the view from the UAV, a map screen and aircraft
instrumentation. Control is through a conventional aircraft-style joystick and throttle, possibly with Hands on
Throttle and Stick (HOTAS) functionality.

In addition, the GCS consists of satellite or long-range communication links that are mounted on the roof or on
a separate vehicle, container or building. Smaller UAVs can be operated with a traditional "twin-stick" style
transmitter, as used for radio controlled model aircraft. Extending this setup with a laptop or tablet computer,
data and video telemetry, and aerials, creates what is effectively a Ground Control Station.

Ground Station Testing

 The control station must be prepared before testing.

 The several sub-system equipments, such as the communications, controls, displays, recording
equipment, power-supplies etc. will have been separately checked out. Most of this equipment will have
been out-sourced and come with certificates of conformity.
 The CS vehicle or trailer will have been prepared with the necessary accommodation for the crew and
equipments and UAV(s) if relevant. Radio antennae will have been installed and elevating means, if
relevant, will have been functioned. Air-conditioning for crew and equipment, as appropriate, will have
been installed and operated. Now comes the time to assemble and test the CS as a complete entity and
then to integrate its operation with the UAV.
 An on-board check-out of all sub-systems will be made to ensure their correct and continued
functioning in their positions in the CS.
 Checks will ensure that the ergonomic interfacing with the operating crew is satisfactory, that there is
satisfactory system integration and no adverse mutual electromagnetic or physical interference and that
the air-conditioning system(s) maintain appropriate ventilation and temperatures for crew and
equipment. Radio communications will be functioned and checked for performance by transmitting data
and control commands to a slave radio receiver, preferably positioned at some distance away.
 If all is satisfactory, the next step will have been the integration of the CS with the UAV on its ground
functioningrig.Thestart-upprocedurewillbecarriedoutandbuilt-in-test-equipment (BITE) functioned.
 The BITE addresses the state of the UAV systems to ensure that it is ready for flight. i.e. that the on-
board power supplies, sensors, control systems, payload, fuel gauging, etc .are all operating within the
correct limits and that housekeeping data and health and usage monitoring system (HUMS) equipment
(if fitted) are registering. During the ground testing of the UAV, the manipulation of controls and
measurements made by the on-board instrumentation may have been transmitted by hard-wiring from
and to a separate console for display and recording. This control must now be transferred to the CS and
communicated by radio (or
othercommunicationsystemused).Similarlytheresultsoftheinstrumentationshouldnowbetransmitted to the
CS for display and recording, either separately to or as part of the aircraft housekeeping data
2. Detail the waypoint Navigation. (Nov/Dec 2018)
Introduction
A waypoint is a set of coordinates that identify a specific point in physical space. Drones with waypoint
technology typically utilize Global Positioning System (GPS) and Global Navigation Satellite System
(GLONASS) — which are two different networks of satellites orbiting the earth — to create waypoints.
Waypoint is an intermediate point or place on a route or line of travel, a stopping point or point at
which course is changed. In modern terms, it most often refers to coordinates which specify one's
 position on the globe at the end of each "leg" (stage) of an air flight or sea passage, the generation and
checking of which are generally done computationally (with a computer or other programmed device).
Working
Waypoints are sets of coordinates that identify a point in physical space. Coordinates used can vary
depending on the application. For terrestrial navigation these coordinates can include longitude and
latitude. Air navigation also includes altitude. Waypoints have only become widespread for
navigational use by the layman since the development of advanced navigational systems, such as the
Global Positioning System (GPS) and certain other types of radio navigation. Waypoints located on the
surface of the Earth are usually defined in two dimensions (e.g., longitude and latitude); those used in
the Earth's atmosphere or in outer space are defined in at least three dimensions (four if time is one of
the coordinates, as it might be for some waypoints outside the Earth).
Although the term waypoint has only entered common use in recent years, the equivalent of a waypoint
in all but name has existed for as long as human beings have navigated. Waypoints have traditionally
been associated with distinctive features of the real world, such as rock formations, springs, oases,
mountains, buildings, roadways, waterways, railways, and so on. Today, these associations persist, but
waypoints are more often associated with physical artifacts created specifically for navigation, such as
radio beacons, buoys, satellites or control points.
In the modern world, waypoints are increasingly abstract, often having no obvious relationship to any
distinctive features of the real world. These waypoints are used to help define invisible routing paths for
navigation. For example, artificial airways "highways in the sky", created specifically for purposes of
air navigation, often have no clear connection to features of the real world, and consist only of a series
of abstract waypoints in the sky through which pilots navigate; these airways are designed to facilitate
air traffic control and routing of traffic between heavily traveled locations, and do not reference natural
terrain features. Abstract waypoints of this kind have been made practical by modern navigation
technologies, such as land-based radio beacons and the satellite-based GPS.
Waypoint Navigation with GPS
GPS systems are increasingly used to create and use waypoints in navigation of all kinds. A typical
GPS receiver can locate a waypoint with an accuracy of three meters or better when used with land-
based assisting technologies such as the Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS). Waypoints can
also be marked on a computer mapping program and uploaded to the GPS receiver, marked on the
receiver's own internal map, or entered manually on the device as a pair of coordinates.
If the GPS receiver has track-logging capabilities, one can also define waypoints after the fact from
where one has been. For example, marine GPS receivers often have a "man overboard" function, which
instantly creates a waypoint in the receiver for the boat's position when enabled and then begins
displaying the distance and course back to that position.
In GPS navigation, a "route" is usually defined as a series of two or more waypoints. To follow such a
route, the GPS user navigates to the nearest waypoint, then to the next one in turn until the destination
is reached. Most receivers have the ability to compute a great circle route towards a waypoint, enabling
them to find the shortest route even over long distances, although waypoints are often so closely spaced
that this is not a factor.
Many GPS receivers, both military and civilian, now offer integrated cartographic databases (also
known as base maps), allowing users to locate a point on a map and define it as a waypoint. GPS
receivers used in UAV have databases which contain named waypoints, radio navigation aids, target
and landing location. These references allows Ground station to select routes that yield efficient point-
to-point navigation for UAV. Waypoints are often used in the termination phase of a flight to its
destination. Some GPS receivers are integrated into autopilot or flight management systems, to aid in
control of UAV.

3. Explain in detail about in-flight testing. (April/May 2018)