The book covers the history of unmanned flight and describes the range of solutions available world‐wide. It then addresses the key aspects of the subsystems such as structure, propulsion, navigation, sensor payloads, launch and recovery, and associated ground systems in a readable and precise manner, pulling them together as elements of a total integrated system. In this way it is complementary to other systems books in the Series.
It is important for engineers and designers to visualize the totality of a system in order to gain an understanding of all that is involved in designing new vehicles or in writing new requirements to arrive at a coherent design of vehicle and infrastructure. Even more important if the new vehicle needs to interact and inter‐operate with other vehicles or to operate from different facilities.
If unmanned air systems are going to become accepted in civilian airspace and in commercial applications then it is vital that a set of standards and design guidelines is in place to ensure consistency, to aid the certification process, and to provide a global infrastructure similar to that existing for today’s manned fleets. Without that understanding, certification of unmanned air vehicles to operate in civilian controlled airspace is going to be a long and arduous task.
This book sets the standard for a definitive work on the subject of unmanned air systems by providing a measure of consistency and a clear understanding of the topic.
Acknowledgments
We would like to thank Engineering Arresting System Corporation (ESCO) (Aston, PA), Division of Zodiac Aerospace and General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc., for providing pictures and diagrams and/or other information relating to their air vehicles and equipment.
The Joint UAV Program Office (Patuxent River Naval Air Station, MD) and the US Army Aviation and Missile Command (Huntsville, AL) both provided general information during the preparation of the first edition.
We especially thank Mr. Robert Veazey, who provided the original drafts of the material on launch and recovery while an employee of ESCO, and Mr. Tom Murley, formerly of Lear Astronics, and Mr. Bob Sherman for their critical reading of the draft and constructive suggestions.
Great appreciation goes to Mrs. Lauren Poplawski, Acquisitions Editor for Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at Wiley, who suggested the third author to prepare the Fifth Edition, and provided him with guidance through the preparation of the manuscript. We are also thankful for Kimberly Monroe‐Hill, Managing Editor and Gabby Robles, Associate Managing Editor, who provided some helpful information when the manuscript for this new edition was sculpted. The authors are also very grateful to Copy Editor Mrs. Patricia Bateson for her careful reading of the manuscript for the Fifth Edition and for many helpful suggestions related to style and grammar. People at Wiley were very patient with us throughout the process of working out the details of how that might be accomplished.
List of Acronyms
ACalternating current, aerodynamic centerADCanalog‐to‐digital converterADTair data terminalAFCSautomatic flight control systemsAGLabove ground levelAhampere‐hoursAIartificial intelligenceAJanti jamAOAangle of attackARaspect ratioARMantiradiation munitionAVair vehicleBDbi‐directionalBITbuilt‐in testBVLOSbeyond visual line of sightBLOSbeyond line of sightC2command and controlCARScommon automatic recovery systemCBRchemical, biological, radiologicalCCDcharge‐coupled deviceCFDcomputational fluid dynamicsCGcenter of gravityCLRScentral launch and recovery sectionCPcenter of pressureCPUcentral processing unitCOMINTcommunication intelligenceCWcontinuous waveDAAdetect and avoidDACdigital‐to‐analog converterdBdecibeldBAdBs relative to the lowest pressure difference that is audible to a persondBmvdBs relative to 1 mVdBsmdB relative to 1 m2DCdirect currentDFdirection findingDOFdegrees of freedomECCMelectronic counter‐countermeasuresECMelectronic countermeasureELINTelectronic intelligenceEMIelectromagnetic interferenceEOelectro opticERPeffective radiated powerESMelectronic support measureeVTOLelectric vertical take‐off and landingEWelectronic warfareFAAFederal Aviation AdministrationFARFederal Aviation RegulationsFCSforward control sectionFEMfinite element methodFLIRforward‐looking infraredFLOTForward Line of Own TroopsFOVfield of viewfpsframes per secondFPVfirst‐person viewFSEDFull Scale Engineering DevelopmentGCSground control stationGDTground data terminalGHzgiga hertzGNCGuidance‐Navigation‐ControlGPSglobal positioning systemGSEground support equipmentGyrogyroscopeHALEhigh‐altitude, long enduranceHELLFIREhelicopter launched fire and forget missileHEROHazards of Electromagnetic Radiation to OrdnanceHMMWVHigh Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled VehicleHPhydraulic‐pneumaticHTOLhorizontal takeoff and landingIAIIsraeli Aircraft IndustriesICintegrated circuitIFFidentification friend or foeIMCImage Motion CompensationiOSiPhone operating systemIRinfraredISRIntelligence, Surveillance, ReconnaissanceISOInternational Organization for StandardizationJATOJet Assisted Take‐OffJIIJoint Integration InterfaceJPEGJoint Photographic Experts GroupJPOjoint project officeJSTARSJoint Surveillance Target Attack Radar SystemKEkinetic energyLANlocal area networkLi‐ionlithium ionLi‐polylithium polymerLOSline of sightLPIlow‐probability of interceptLQRlinear quadratic regulatormAhmilli ampere hourMALEmedium‐altitude, long enduranceMARSmid‐air recovery systemMARTMini Avion de Reconnaissance TelepilotMbpsmega bits per secondMDOmultidisciplinary design optimizationMEMSMicro‐Eectro‐Mechanical SystemMETmeteorologicalMICNSModular Integrated Communication and Navigation SystemMPCSmission planning and control stationMRCminimum resolvable contrastMRDTminimum resolvable delta in temperatureMRTminimum resolvable temperatureMSLmean sea levelMTFmodulation transfer functionMTIMoving Target IndicatorNACANational Advisory Committee for AeronauticsNASNational Airspace SystemNASANational Aeronautics and Space AdministrationNDInon‐developmental itemNiCdnickel cadmiumNiMHnickel metal hydridenmnautical mileNOAANational Oceanic and Atmospheric AdministrationNPneutral pointOBCoptical bar cameraOSDon‐screen displayOSIOpen System InterconnectionOToperational testPGMprecision guided munitionPICPilot In CommandPIDProportional, Integral, DerivativePINpositive intrinsic negativePLSSPrecision Location and Strike SystemQFTquantitative feedback theoryRAMradar‐absorbing materialRAPradar‐absorbing paintRATOrocket‐assisted takeoffRC Planeradio‐controlled airplane, remotely controlled airplaneR&DResearch and DevelopmentRCSradar cross‐sectionRFradio frequencyRGTremote ground terminalRMSroot mean squareROCrate of climbRPGrocket propelled grenadeRPMrevolutions per minuteRPAremotely piloted aircraftRPVremotely piloted vehicleSARsynthetic aperture radarSEADSuppression of Enemy Air DefenseSFsafety factorshpshaft horsepowerSIGINTsignal intelligenceSLARside‐looking airborne radarSOTASStand‐Off Target Acquisition SystemSPARSShip Pioneer Arresting SystemsUASsmall unmanned aircraft systemsTADARSTarget Acquisition/Designation and Aerial Reconnaissance SystemTUAVtactical UAVUAMUrban Air MobilityUASunmanned aerial systemUAVunmanned aerial vehicleUCAVunmanned combat aerial vehicleUDunidirectionalVLOSvisual line‐of‐sightVTOLvertical takeoff and landing
About the Companion Website
This book is accompanied by a companion website:
https://www.wiley.com/go/fahlstrom/uavsystems5e
The website includes:
Solutions manual
Part I Introduction
Part One provides a general background for an introduction to the technology of unmanned aerial