2.5 - Weeding out a Solution

Scenario Analysis

The biggest problem to this scenario is the weight constraints that revolves around the two subsystems which are acquired off-the-shelf (OTS). Being OTS, that means the designs are not catered to fit the specific requirement of the precision crop dusting UAS.  Safety was highlighted as a concern should there be any change in the fuel margin and this is of paramount importance compared to the adequacy of fertilizer for the crop dusting operation.

Cutting the weight

As a system engineer, I will need to gather both teams together and explore whether is there any possibility of cutting off some weight from the OTS hardware. In most circumstances the likelihood of doing so is high since both OTS subsystems might not have been designed with weight-savings as priority. At the same time, these subsystems may have other functional hardware that are not applicable and can be removed. Moreover, even though these two subsystems have gone beyond their allotted weight limits, reducing the weight of these two subsystems might not be the only viable solution. The other subsystems such as the airframe, propulsion, etc., could use other alternative parts which are lighter. For example, the airframe of the UAS might be using aluminum which might require other supporting mechanical structures since aluminum is light but not as strong as other composites. This subsystem can be replaced by carbon fiber which has much better strength to weight ratio, making it a better material for making the airframe than aluminum (Dragonplate, 2016).  This will then allow doing away with the supporting mechanical structures, resulting in further weight savings.

Safety

As a system engineer, the ultimate goal is to manage the project in a way that allows the safe operation of the completed UAS. Even if the various subsystems are designed to integrate seamlessly together in a unit that provides the best performance, it is unacceptable if the crop dusting cannot be done safely. Therefore, there is always a need to perform verification and validation to ensure that the system can perform in the most optimized and safe manner. The certificate of authorization (COA) for the commercial crop dusting operation can only be issued by FAA if the proposed operation “can be conducted at an acceptable level of safety” (Austin, 2010, p. 88).

Future prospects and challenges

The crop dusting UAS can be further customized to include the capability of carrying other thermal IR sensors to monitor the health of the crops. This will enable the same UAS to be used for both crop health monitoring and crop dusting, thus a dual use capability by just swapping out the payload for the chosen application. This can be further discussed with the customers. Future roles of system engineers can get more challenging due to the increasing complexity of aircraft systems. Traditional system engineering methods may not work as well as the past, and system engineers’ abilities to predict the outcome of any decisions and actions may erode (Pennock & Wade, 2015).

References

Austin, R. (2010). Unmanned aircraft systems: UAVs design, development and deployment. West Sussex, UK: John Wiley & Sons.

DragonPlate (2016). What is carbon fiber? Strength, stiffness and comparison with other materials. Retrieved from https://dragonplate.com/sections/technology.asp

Pennock, M.J., & Wade, J.P. (2015). The top 10 illusions of system engineering: A research agenda. Procedia Computer Science, 44(1), 147-154.

 

History of UAS

Introduction

The origin of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) can be traced back to the era of the first two World Wars where such technology was primarily used to deliver payloads that could destroy distant enemies, which eventually led to long range intercontinental missiles and the myriad of UAS variants today. The infamous World War 2 V-1 Flying Bomb, or Doodlebug, that devastated London and other cities in the war, and the AQM-34 Ryan Firebee that were used in the Vietnam war, shared similar concepts with today’s UASs (Army-technology.com, 2012). Current UAS technology enables the transmission of real-time intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance information from enemy territories. While UAS has been primarily used for military applications, there are also numerous benefits of UAS for commercial applications such as search and rescue, wildlife preservation, border patrol, building inspections, etc. One of the major applications of UAS today occurs over conflict zones such as the Middle East where warfare has been widely dominated by the extensive use of UAS in the fight against terrorism. Of these UASs, the MQ-1 Predator, MQ-1C Sky Warrior, and the MQ-9 Reaper, are equipped with offensive capabilities (Callam, 2010).

MQ-1 Predator UAS

            The MQ-1 Predator UAS was developed in the early 1990s and is the first operational long endurance UAS that originated from U.S. government project GNAT 750 (Strickland, 2013). Built by General Atomics, the Predator is constructed from graphite epoxy composites that is very light. Powered by a four-cylinder piston engine, it cruises at about 84 mph. The underside of the UAS holds electro-optical and infrared video cameras with radars and satellite antennas incorporated into the nose. Originally designed for reconnaissance and forward observation roles, the Predator was adapted by U.S. Forces to carry weapons and successfully fired the first AGM missile over Afghanistan with almost total invulnerability. This gave rose to the advent of Predators and other similar offensive UASs that became an integral part of combat operations in Balkans, Iraq, Afghanistan and Libya (Whittle, 2013).

Future Evolution

            The Predator is not designed to defend itself against any attacks till date. According to Callam (2010), the Predator UAS is useful against low-intensity and insurgency warfare, where the adversaries do not have any air defenses against any intruding UAS. In high and medium-intensity conflicts where the defensive capabilities are desired, unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV), with the ability to defending itself and flying at higher speeds to avoid surface to air missiles, will be expected to be used to suppress enemy defenses ahead of any ground mission (Callam, 2010).

Conclusion

The MQ-1 Predator UAS offers the benefit to surveil and attack hostile forces at a distance that poses no danger to any military unit that uses it. It will continue to remain a vital asset to U.S. operations in the fight against global terrorism until such time when better technology comes on board that delivers mission success with lesser collateral damage.

 References

Army-Technology.com (2012, November 15). UAV evolution – How natural selection directed the drone revolution. Retrieved from http://www.army-technology.com/features/featureuav-evolution-natural-selection-drone-revolution/

Callam, A. (2010). Drone wars: Armed unmanned aerial vehicles. International Affairs Review, 18(3). Retrieved from http://www.iar-gwu.org/node/144

Strickland, F. (2013). The early evolution of the predator of the Predator drone. Studies in Intelligence, 57 (1). Retrieved from https://www.cia.gov/library/center-for-the-study-of-intelligence/csi-publications/csi-studies/studies/vol.-57-no.-1-a/vol.-57-no.-1-a-pdfs/Strickland-Evolution%20of%20the%20Predator.pdf

Whittle, R. (2013, April). The man who invented the Predator. Air & Space Magazine. Retrieved from http://www.airspacemag.com/flight-today/the-man-who-invented-the-predator-3970502/