Avionics International reports, “Once a speculative concept reserved for futurists, Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) is now rapidly emerging as a practical reality, thanks largely to revolutionary developments in avionics. From electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft to highly automated flight control systems, avionics is the nerve center of this next-generation ecosystem, orchestrating the delicate balance of safety, autonomy, and sustainability. AAM seeks to redefine how people and goods move across urban and regional landscapes. Instead of being confined to traditional runways or existing air corridors, new aircraft designs such as eVTOLs are built to operate flexibly within dense environments.”
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Tag: Enabling
Blue Origin Unveils Plans for Enabling Long-Term Human Presence on the Moon
SPACE reports, “Blue Origin has begun revealing how it plans to establish itself as a provider of hardware to enable long-term human stays on the moon. One newly unveiled key element is the “Transporter,” a vehicle that can be launched on a single Blue Origin New Glenn rocket into low Earth orbit. It will harvest leftover propellant from the booster’s second stage and then haul the hydrogen and oxygen to lunar orbit.”
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Johns Hopkins APL Develops Algorithm Enabling UAVs to Avoid Collisions
ExecutiveGov reports that Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory researchers “developed an algorithm that enabled fixed-wing unmanned aerial vehicles to avoid potential collisions in complex environments.” The study also “resulted in a new maneuvering capability that allowed the UAVs to launch in near-vertical takeoffs, eliminating the need for long runways or manual lift-off, the laboratory said Thursday.” To achieve the “predictive control algorithm, researchers equipped the fixed-wing vehicles with an onboard depth camera and NanoMap, a mapping system developed by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.” The camera’s stereo feature “gave the UAV depth of perception and enabled triangulated collection of data, even in extremely constrained spaces and at a speed of 20 miles per hour.”
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