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Master360

In use during the project: DLR research helicopter ACT/FHS

Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) will be one of the most important areas of growth in aviation over the next few years. It is crucial for growth and economic development to ensure the integration of such UAVs into the air traffic space. The need to use technical solutions to prevent collisions with manned aircraft and other UAVs has been identified as a key element in recent years. System integrators and manufacturers of UAVs such as Airbus Defense and Space are highly dependent on system components that allow cooperative separation and automatic "Sense & Avoid".

Project description

Under the project lead of Airbus Defense and Space GmbH, the Master360 project is on the one hand dedicated to the safe integration of UAVs into the airspace. To this end, it is developing approaches that allow airspace to be used efficiently even with high traffic densities. On the other hand, Master360 examines their implementation by means of technology demonstrators.

The value chain ranges from chip development in radar technology, as a necessary prerequisite for miniaturization, to the modification of radar processing modules from the automotive sector, and to the delivery of a radar sensors with the corresponding algorithms. Furthermore, a complementary communication system is being further developed and receiving miniaturized components for estimating the direction of radio signals. The detection of the flight environment is extended by a specially developed camera. Routes and alternative recommendations are finally calculated based on the results of complex data fusion.

In a second focus, systems for landing support (ATOL) for helicopters are developed, which are also to be used in new urban air mobility systems. In particular, innovative methods based on artificial intelligence (AI) are used here to synthesize landing corridors.

For novel traffic scenarios, concepts for airspace integration and operational requirements are to be developed at the DLR in extensive traffic simulations. These new types of traffic scenarios represent both a higher number of air traffic participants with multicopter flight profiles and the investigation of new types of traffic management and avoidance concepts.

Objectives

The joint project Master360 aims to reduce the technological risks in the self-separation and collision avoidance of UAVs and in the (partially) automated landing support for helicopters and air taxis. If airworthiness is proven, product development for the system components will start immediately after the project, which will influence the product development of aircraft.