UNMANNED SYSTEMS UPDATE

14 Apr 08. Wind River Systems, Inc. announced that the nEUROn European Unmanned Combat Air Vehicle (UCAV) demonstrator will be standardized on Wind River’s VxWorks 653® operating system. The computer core system complies with the ARINC 653-1 avionics standard and can be supplied with complete RTCA DO-178B / EUROCAE ED-12B up to Level A certification documentation. The objective of the nEUROn project is not to perform military missions, but to demonstrate maturity and effectiveness of technical and cooperation solutions. This technology demonstrator will have the following goals:
* Performing an Air to Ground mission, inserted in a Network Centric Warfare
* Designing a stealth platform (Radar cross section and Infrared)
* Weapon delivery from an internal bay with stringent tempo constraint
The nEUROn UCAV demonstrator is being developed with the intention of demonstrating a modular and reliable avionics system, using commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS)-based modular on-board computers, and high-productivity and high-quality critical real-time software.

20 May 08. Demand from commanders in Iraq is driving an evaluation of Class I unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) and small unmanned ground vehicles (SUGV) that may result in earlier fielding of the Future Combat Systems (FCS) components, U.S. Army officials say. Paul Mehney, the Army’s FCS communicator, said there are advantages to fielding the systems earlier than planned. “The Class I UAV provides a hover-and-stare capability we don’t have on the battlefield,” he said. “And the SUGV provides enhanced sensing capabilities.” Soldiers with the Army Evaluation Task Force at Ft. Bliss, Texas, are in the final stages of training on the two platforms, Mehney said. They will begin evaluating the systems, providing the Army with a full report in September or October 2008. Based on the report, the Army will make a decision whether to begin fielding the Class I UAV and SUGV, keep the two components as a core program or take variants out into the field. (Source: Defense News)

May 08. Prioria Robotics Launches Maveric™ micro UAV. Prioria Robotics, Inc. has launched its updated micro UAS (Unmanned Aerial System) Maveric™. Maveric™ is a single-person portable and operable UAS which includes Prioria’s proprietary on-board processing platform Merlin™. The smarts of Merlin™ make Maveric™ the most advanced UAS in its size class with on-board collision avoidance capabilities. In addition to target tracking and video stabilization features, Prioria is advancing reconnaissance competencies with minimal or denied ground station communication. “Our goal at Prioria is to deliver a reliable, scalable UAS reconnaissance platform that can sense and avoid collisions. With Merlin™, Prioria is demonstrating these features on our own UAS, Maveric™, and introducing a platform for incorporating these capabilities into already existing UAS’s,” says Bryan da Frota CEO of Prioria. Advanced processing features are just one part of Maveric’s™ capable offering. Prioria’s patented bendable, carbon fiber wings allow Maveric™ to be stored in a six-inch tube and deployed in less than two minutes with no assembly. Its light-weight advanced composite materials enable single-person launches and multiple missions. Its two-camera (forward and gimbaled) configuration allow for reconnaissance capabilities that outclass other UAS’s of its size. These combined features create a stable platform with high availability for mission critical reconnaissance information. Da Frota says, “When our soldiers are in hostile environments they need reliable information to keep them out of harm’s way. (Source: Shephard)

21 May 08. General Atomics Aeronautical System, San Diego, Calif., was awarded on May 19, 2008, a $5,000,000 cost-plus-incentive fee contract for development and demonstration for the extended range/multi-purpose unmanned aerial vehicle. Work will be performed primarily in San Diego, Calif., a