Technology Development of Unmanned Underwater Vehicles (UUVs)

In recent years, the weapon systems have been changing drastically because of the advancement of science technology and the change of military concept of combat. There is an unmanned system at the center of all those changes. Especially, in case of maritime environment, as the center stage of combat has changed from ocean to coastal areas, it is difficult for the existing naval forces to effectively operate in shallow waters. Therefore, unmanned underwater vehicles (UUVs) are being required at an increasing pace. In this paper, we analyze the characteristics of already developed UUVs, which are the key unmanned system of the marine battlefield environment in the future. Through the analysis of development cases and the investigation of the essential technologies, the critical design issues of UUVs are elaborated. We also suggest the future directions of the UUV technologies based on the case analysis.

Analysis of Design Directions for Unmanned Surface Vehicles (USVs)

In recent years, because of the development of marine military science technology, there is a growing interest in the unmanned systems throughout the world. Also, the demand of Unmanned Surface Vehicles (USVs) which can be autonomously operated without the operator intervention is increasing dramatically. The growing interests lie in the facts that those USVs can be manufactured at much lower costs, and can be operated without the human fatigue, while can be sent to the hostile or quite dangerous areas that are inherently unhealthy for human operators. The utilization and the deployment of such vessels will continue to grow in the future. In this paper, along with the technological development of unmanned surface vehicles, we investigate and analyze the cases of already developed platforms and identify the trends of the technological advances. Additionally, we suggest the future directions of development.

Technical Analysis of VTOL UAV

Overall, this paper explains the related information about VTOL and trend of this technology worldwide. Also, it comes up with the distinction among VTOL and helicopter and fixed wing aircraft. This paper concentrates on domestic and international drones that utilize VTOL technology. Also, this paper gives the explanation about VTOL’s performance and object. Furthermore, this paper predicts the future of VTOL and which area this technology going to be used.

Analysis of VTOL UAV Propellant Technology

Recently, the surge in the interests in unmanned aerial vehicles has soared dra-matically worldwide due to many potential benefits foreseen by this technology. The most widespread use of the commercial drones is a multi-copter form of unmanned aerial vehicle, because of its vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) capability. However, due to the structural characteristics, it has a disadvantage that the flight time is quite short, which is typically ranging between 15 to 30 minutes. The fixed wing type of unmanned aerial vehicles has a longer flight time and duration, but it is not easy to secure a safe landing space, especially in the city areas. For this reason, demand for vertical fixed take-off and landing aircraft is rapidly increasing throughout the world. This study analyzes the trends and recent development of global VTOL technology and provides a direction into which the current state of the technology should be heading. By comparing the advantage and disadvantage of various VTOP propulsion types, we can clearly identify the most effective form of VTOL propulsion types. Such analysis will be highly beneficial to the drone researchers and scientists in terms of future development.

可制造性设计(DFM)的实时质量检测

目前,一个动态的、全球化的和以客户为导向的市场给依赖响应速度和产品策略的公司同时带来了机遇和威胁。这些策略之一就是同步工程(CE),它是一种着眼于提高产品开发过程的策略,它从早期的产品设计阶段就考虑到与产品生命周期紧密相关的各种因素。已经证明,可制造性设计(DFM)是一种能实施CE这一理念的有效方法。最近,在加工过程中,一种重要的可制造性设计概念(即实时检查)已同时引起学术界和工业界的重视。这是因为激烈的国内和国际竞争已经促使各方更加重视零部件的质量,以期缩短检测时间、提高零件精度以及减少废料。目前的方法是使用一台安装有触摸探针的机器来进行,但这种方法会受到限制,因为这样的话测量精度会受到机器的每个部件的定位精度和定位系统的影响。为解决这一令人关切的问题,所以进行了切削试验来收集触摸探针测量数据。然后对这些数据进行分析,以验证使用触摸探头来进行实时检测是否恰当。分析结果表明,与三坐标测量机(CMM)相比,触摸探针具有较高的能力指数和一致性,这表明触摸式探头可以作为一种手段被纳入DFM中,从而进行实时质量检查。

Development of Rescue Material Transport UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle)

Recently, the market for drones is growing rapidly. Commercial UAVs (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, or drones) are increasingly being used for various purposes, such as geographic survey, rescue missions, inspection of industrial facilities, traffic monitoring and delivery of cargos and goods. In particular, the drones have great potential for life-saving operations. A missing person, for example, can be rapidly and effectively searched using a drone in comparison with the conventional search operations. However, there is no commercially available rescue UAV until now. The motivation for this study is to design an unmanned aerial vehicle capable of vertical takeoff and landing, while containing a high power propellant apparatus in order to lift a heavy cargo that contains rescue materials (such as water, food, and medicine). We used the EDF (Electric Ducted Fan) technology as opposed to the conventional motor and prop combination. The EDF can produce the power about three times higher than the motor-prop combination. This became suitable for transportation of rescue goods, and can be widely used in rescue operations in natural environments. Based on these results, the UAV for rescue material transport capable of heavy vertical takeoff and landing is developed, including airframe, flight control computer and GCS (ground control station).

Remote Operation SW for USV: Part II. Simulation Development

For contingencies occurring in a complex marine environment, Unmanned Surface Vehicle (USV) has to recognize the situation and decide behaviors,?and?plan the following actions through the Integrated Mission Planning Process. Therefore, researches are actively being carried out about it. However, since it is difficult to test the actual USV with the mission planning process, it is necessary to develop a virtual experimental environment based on Modeling?&?Simulation (M&S). In this study, we developed an integrated simulation environment capable of simulating and analyzing the overall mission of USV. In Part?I, we modelled the USV Integrated Mission Planning Process and in Part?II, we developed an experimental framework and interface for loading them. In addition, we verified the suitability of this model through scenarios and defined the Mission of Effectiveness (MOE) concept for USV mission analysis.

Analysis of Modern Design Approach for Anti-Air Radar Screen

This study is a preparation phase for visualization of utilized information using ergonomic user interface and standardization of elements for anti-air radar screen. Therefore, we investigated the instances of anti-air radar screen for air defense weapon system for defense advanced country. Based on the collected data, we compared and analyzed the air defense weapon system radar screen design. In addition, we carry out a research for layout, configuration, standardization and design of the radar screen’s elements. Ultimately, it is essential to share a variety of battle field conditions such as enemy threat, enemy/friendly information, terrain information that can be effectively recognized. In this paper, we conduct case study for ergonomically development of automated/standardized radar screen. It is expected that this research improves the situational awareness and reduces the user’s task load.

Unified Platform for AI and Big Data Analytics

This paper describes an integrated platform for machine learning and big data analysis. The integrated platform is configured in a way that builds a large distributed data processing environment in the computing environment that makes up the NVIDIA AI platform. In addition, this paper describes the background of this idea selection and the use of the software to build the unified platform. The technical details are shown in terms of how to create the proposed platform. In the anlaysis section, the methodology is provided and also the steps are explained as to how to use this integration platform. Finally, the expected effects are elaborated in the conclusion section.

Remote Operation SW for USV: Part I. Integrated Mission Planning System

The integrated Mission Planning System?(MPS) of Unmanned Surface Vehicle?(USV) refers to the process which can recognize, decide, plan situations and carry out missions, such as human beings, for all incidental or complex events occurring at sea. In the actual operating environment, it is necessary to develop a simulation software environment and analyze, verify it in advance so as to make an appropriate mission plan considering equipment, sensor, fuel, and other available resources. The existing USV mission planning process methodology has several limitations in the analysis of USV missions because the scenario to be tested is limited and autonomy of USV is not considered sufficiently. To overcome these problems, we constructed a process that considers various missions and is more autonomous, and an integrated environment in which to experiment. In this study, we designed a multi-agent based USV Integrated Mission Planning System and modeled each component. In addition, we constructed the USV remote operation S/W based on M&S that user can experiment with the modeled process and verified the usefulness of the developed system through simulations.

Development of Jet Training FTD (Flight Training Device) Overhead System

Today, the growth of aerospace industry has led to the development of modular overhead systems that can be applied to a wide variety of aircraft.?It actually maximizes training effectiveness by working in a similar way as to the real aircraft maneuverability. Overhead system control device for aircraft simulator is developed as a module and integrated to the flight simulator. The developed system can replace the similar products imported from overseas at a much lower price, about one third of the imports, while maintaining the same level of functionality and the performance with the counterparts. This price advantage is the main motivation of this development, which is expected to enlarge the commercial training simulator market in our country. This development has been also funded by the government, and we invited several commercial airline pilots to test the equipment. The post operation interview revealed that the developed system at least matches or exceeds the performance of the imported products. With the development completed, it is ready for the commercial production and will help promote the expansion of flight training education at various aerospace universities in Korea.

Development of Autonomous VTOL UAV for Wide Area Surveillance

The drone was developed with the use of unmanned aircraft systems in the initial military sector based on the combination of aerospace technology and information and communication technologies in a variety of usability, including the civilian sectors. Developed for the field of reconnaissance, it is used in both civilian and police sectors as traffic monitoring and high altitude reconnaissance missions. It is used in broadcasting and surveillance, while continuously expanding into the areas of courier delivery and rescue missions. Based on the convergence of aviation technology such as various SW, sensor and flight control to utilize unmanned system and information communication technology, commercialization of related technology is being developed as a very diverse route.?In this paper, we propose and manufacture of?a VTOL UAV. Design process referred to the VTOL development process?that has been devised by us, and actual building of a UAV also applied the same VTOL development concept. In order to understand the aerodynamic characteristics of the aircraft, we have applied the aerodynamic design theory and used the CAE method that can replace the actual wind tunnel test. We tested the selection method and criteria for the internal modules that make up the UAV, and we were able to assemble the product. FW coding of flight control computer was conducted for VTOL control. In addition, we developed a LTE communication module for the long distance flight, and carried out flight experiments with GCS to observe and respond to the flight situation from the ground. Flight test results showed that stable transition flight was possible with broadband.?We could see that the actual performance results were met, compared to our development target values.

Usability Analysis of Touch Screen for Ground Operators

The importance of the aircraft is increasing gradually;among them it may be called Ground Control Station (GCS) receiving the highest expectations. In aspect of operation, operator’s workload and working speed are one of the most important factors. Thus, we need to compare Touch mode and Non Touch mode in order to improve workload and working speed. In this paper, we analyzed the differences of Touch mode and Non Touch mode about workload, working speed in operation of aircraft. Through NASA-TLX and Measured working time, quantified data were collected and an analysis of variance (ANOVA) was performed. According to experimental result, working speed and workload according to input mode showed significant difference. In ground operation, Touch mode is better than Non Touch mode about working speed and workload. In the Touch mode, the optimal value of lower display angle was selected as 60。 angle.

Development of Drone Cargo Bay with Real-Time Temperature Control

In order to deliver medical products (medicines, vaccines, blood packs, etc.) in time for needed areas, a method of transporting goods using drones is being studied. However, temperature-sensitive medical products may decay due to outside temperature changes. The time required to transport over the distance may vary a lot as well. As a result, the likelihood of the goods deteriorating is very high. There is a need for a study on cargo bay to prevent this and to protect the medical goods. In this paper, in order to protect the temperature sensitive medical goods, the inside cargo bay is equipped with the cooling fan device and the electric heating elements. These elements can be monitored and controlled according to the user’s discretion. By using the web server built inside the cloud server, the temperature can be controlled in real-time from anywhere without the limitation of distance. We built the proposed device, and installed it on the drone cargo bay. The test results show that the cargo bay can be temperature-controlled, and the setting can be maintained over a great distance. The user can watch the temperature variations during the transport and ascertain the goodness of the medical supply with the data. It is expected that such development can greatly enhance the utility of the drone operations, especially for the medical supply transport applications.

Case Analysis for USV Integrated Mission Planning System

Advanced countries around the world are spurring the development of Unmanned Surface Vehicles (USVs) that can operate autonomously at marine environment. The key enabling technology for such USVs is the mission planning system (MPS) that can autonomously navigate through the harsh waters. The MPS not only has the functions for the navigation, but also has the capabilities, such as obstacle avoidance, malfunction corrections, dealing with unexpected events, return home functions, and many other eventualities that cannot be programmed in advance. The autonomy levels are increasingly moving higher and it is foreseeable that the trend will continue in the future. The main purpose of this paper is the analysis of the MPS onboard the USVs, in terms of the categories, functions, and technological details. Also, we analyze the case study of autonomous mission planning control systems in various fields and introduce the features that constitute the critical functionalities of the mission planning systems.

Application of Informatics for the Enhanced Management of Robotic Operations

In the past, the proposed concept-the application of informatics for robot operations-was difficult to implement due to technological limitations. With the advancement of ICT technologies, the production robots can be integrated within the information network, and the critical data can be processed to reveal the very important information. From the information, better managerial decisions are expected that will ultimately contribute to the organizations’ efficiency and competitiveness. In this context, this study explains the merits of quality informatics in the domain of networked robots that are the essential tools for the global production companies. Even though this study merely presents the outcome of robot joint replacement period estimation, the foreseeable advantages of using the proposed method can be numerous. The future environment of global business will even push the boundaries of multinational, distributed production systems, and accelerate the implementation at a faster rate. Accordingly, the brand value of the product is expected to be greater than the country of the manufacturing. The survival of the company will be dependent on the optimized quality level that is encompassing the entire distributed production systems located throughout the whole. Under such circumstances, it can be foreseeable that the innovative ideas and the smart application of advanced technologies should be the priority.

Analysis of Mission Task Loading Based on the External Disturbance

This research investigates the impact of changing weather conditions on the crew members who sit in a side-by-side cockpit, which is unusual for attack helicopters. Extensive review conducted by the authors fails to locate similar studies;hence a helicopter simulator is developed in order to conduct the experiments. The simulator represents the realistic flight characteristics as well as the digital cockpit instruments that contain the advanced mission equipment. During the experiments, a camcorder is used to record the pilots to accurately analyze the task completion time and the physical motions of both pilots. NASA-TLX is also used to collect the workload data to assess the impact of task assignments among the pilots. The analytical findings from this study will be instrumental in improving the cockpit design for enhanced mission effectiveness.

Development of VTOL Drone for Stable Transit Flight

Fixed wing unmanned aerial vehicles typically have longer running (flight) time than multicopers, but runways are needed. Because it is difficult to expect a wide runway in the city area, the great need is there to develop a vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) type fixed-wing UAV that does not require any runway. In addition, our goal was to develop a VTOL plane that contains a stable transit flight characteristic. To achieve this goal, we have designed and developed a test plane and the flight parameters have been extensively tested. For the airframe design, the carbon-bar method was selected for vertical takeoff and landing, and the 11-way method was adopted through dynamics analysis. We assembled the airframe and made a prototype using the Pixhawk flight computer. The developed VTOL plane shows a very smooth transition flight. It is expected that the VOTL UAV will be widely used in the city area in the future for various purposes, such as cargo delivery and emergency medical supply delivery.

Technical Analysis of Exoskeleton Robot

Recently, the need for exoskeleton robots has been increased due to the advancement of robotic technologies and changes in the concept of how the robots can be utilized in direct contact with human bodies. The robots, once only used on the factory floor, are now becoming a part of human bodies, which provides the unprecedented level of muscle power boost and the increase of running speed. If used very carefully, the exoskeleton robots can be also used for patients’ rehabilitation. The exoskeleton robots have many potential application areas;?hence most advanced countries are currently developing various types of exoskeleton robots. Those robots can be classified into two major categories, namely the rigid type and the soft type. Each type has own advantages and disadvantages, while the carrying load capacity and the actuation speed can be quite different. There are also many technical difficulties in order to use the exoskeleton robots in the field. The aim of this study is, therefore, to introduce the trends of exoskeleton robot development in advanced countries, while providing the analysis on the technical merits and downside of robot types. The comparison chart also indicates the major technical directions, in which the future technology will be headed for, such as the improved robot response characteristics by employing advanced sensors and artificial intelligence. The robots are becoming smarter, lighter, and more powerful. It is foreseeable that the wearable robots can be a part of human life in the very near future.

Development of Multi-Purpose, Variable, Light Aircraft Simulator

Most aircraft simulators are manufactured separately for each model because the structure and flight characteristic of each model is different. However, light aircrafts are somewhat similar in terms of form and structure. In addition, from the flight schools’ point of view, it is not economically beneficial to purchase and maintain light aircraft simulators for each different aircraft type. Globally, there are four types of light aircraft models that are most widely used for basic flight training. If all four models are separately selectable within a single flight simulator, there will be a lot of economic benefits in terms of reducing the purchasing costs as well as the reduction of pilot training costs. In this regard, this study aims at developing the multi-purpose variable-type simulator technology so that it can train four different aircraft types using only a single simulator. The utility of simulator is divided into the use of flight training and the use of leisure time. The flight characteristics are analyzed for each model type to emulate the actual aircraft. It is anticipated that the developed simulator can be produced at a lower cost while occupying less floor space and using less electric energy than the previous one.