Reliable Robotics has completed a flight test campaign under contract with the USA’s Federal Aviation Administration to validate detect and avoid system performance for large uncrewed aircraft operating in and around airport environments.
The Detect and Avoid (DAA) data collection flights were conducted under the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) Broad Agency Announcement program in collaboration with Virginia Tech’s Mid Atlantic Aviation Partnership and integration partners Sagetech, Collins and uAvionix.
Reliable’s DAA system is based on the Airborne Collision Avoidance System X (ACAS X), an FAA-developed algorithm that improves upon the existing Traffic Alert and Collision Avoidance System II (TCAS II) equipped in most transport-category aircraft. The system is designed to facilitate a remote pilot’s responsibility to perform both remain-well-clear and collision avoidance functions against all airborne traffic.
The flight testing evaluated the threshold and boundaries between en route and terminal environments around airports. It assessed the ability of the DAA system and ACAS X to provide alerts and maneuvering guidance for remote pilots in these environments.
A key finding was the distinction between en route and terminal environments for DAA. The behavior and output of the ACAS X algorithm changed between the two airspaces, confirming an important adjustment that pilots under Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) make to interoperate with Visual Flight Rules (VFR) aircraft.
Brandon Suarez, vice president of uncrewed aircraft systems (UAS) integration at Reliable Robotics, said, “Demonstrating the ability of UAS to integrate into airport environments with a VFR traffic pattern is necessary for building a scalable aviation autonomy solution. The data Reliable captured through this testing under the FAA is nearly impossible to generate in a lab environment, and is tremendously useful in the development of relevant and useful standards.”
To complete the contract, Reliable conducted extensive hardware-in-the-loop testing and a flight test campaign including scripted encounters in and around the terminal area at Hollister Municipal Airport in California.
Reliable partnered with Sagetech for its prototype ACAS X hardware, Collins for its prototype ground-based radar, and uAvionix for its prototype Skylink C-Band communication equipment. Data collected from the campaign has been shared with RTCA Special Committee 228 and Special Committee 147 to inform validation of the next set of standards for advanced DAA systems.
