Flight dynamics and surveillance equipment simulation for trajectory based operation in unmanned aerial systems

Abstract

This paper presents a Research and Development (R&D) effort to design and develop a flight simulation system with Adaptive Surveillance Broadcast (ADS-B), and Traffic Collision Avoidance System (TCAS), for integration of Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) into National Airspace System (NAS). The paper will delineate the design and development of the Next Generation Applied Research (NEAR) Lab's FMS (NEAR-FMS) including the UAS aircraft models, and the surveillance simulation equipment. The NEAR-FMS will be used in NextGen projects such as Four-Dimensional Trajectory 4DT operations, as well as Alliance for System Safety of UAS through Research Excellence (ASSURE) projects funded by Federal Aviation Association (FAA). Middle-fidelity Flight Dynamic Models (FDM) of two UASs, a Predator class and a Global Hawk have been designed and tested on JSBSim aerodynamic simulator. Autopilots have been designed and implemented for both UAS FDMs. The paper will present the results of tests on the UAS simulated flights and performance data. The UAS models will be used to test the criticality of the conventional surveillance equipment of the UASs as well as identifying the requirements of these systems for such aircraft. Finally, the assessment of the data generated by the simulated flights will drive the requirements and constraints on the conventional surveillance equipment on the UAS. This project is a work in progress and the detailed results will be published in future publications.