Utilizing Airborne LiDAR and UAV Photogrammetry Techniques in Local Geoid Model Determination and Validation

This investigation evaluates the performance of Digital Terrain Models (DTMs) generated in different vertical datums by aerial LiDAR and UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) photogrammetry techniques, for the determination and validation of local geoid models.

Many engineering projects require the point heights referring to a physical surface, i.e., geoid, rather than an ellipsoid. When a high-accuracy local geoid model is available in the study area, the physical heights are practically obtained with the transformation of Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) ellipsoidal heights of the points.

Besides the commonly used geodetic methods, this study introduces a novel approach for the determination and validation of the local geoid surface models using photogrammetry. The numeric tests were carried out in the Bergama region, in the west of Turkey. Using direct georeferenced airborne LiDAR and indirect georeferenced UAV photogrammetry-derived point clouds, DTMs were generated in ellipsoidal and geoidal vertical datums, respectively.

After this, the local geoid models were calculated as differences between the generated DTMs. Generated local geoid models in the grid and pointwise formats were tested and compared with the regional gravimetric geoid model (TG03) and a high-resolution global geoid model (EIGEN6C4), respectively. In conclusion, the applied approach provided sufficient performance for modeling and validating the geoid heights with centimeter-level accuracy. 

Read more at https://www.researchgate.net/publication/344146054_Utilizing_Airborne_LiDAR_and_UAV_Photogrammetry_Techniques_in_Local_Geoid_Model_Determination_and_Validation

Low Cost 3D Mapping Using a Commercial Drone/UAV: Application in Structural Geology

This presentation describes an experience of mapping a geological structure with a commercial UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle).

Being based in Venezuela, an appropriate area for the acquisition was identified in the Andes Cordillera where a major strike slip fault (Boconó Fault) intersects geomorphic features modeled by the latest glaciation.

This fault is a major tectonic lineament oriented SW-NE, extending more than 300 km along the Venezuelan Andes and accommodating a dextral slip on the order of 1 cm/year.

This motion has displaced various landscape features that cross the fault, in particularly the "Los Zerpa" moraine system, located a few kilometers NE of the locality "Apartaderos".

The moraine formed during the last glaciation that ended 10,000 years ago; its northern tip crosses the Boconó Fault and is displaced 100 m towards the NE; this corresponds to a rate of 1 cm/year, which is consistent with GPS measurements. 

http://www.searchanddiscovery.com/documents/2017/42054rocca/ndx_rocca.pdf

Composite 3D printing for the small size unmanned aerial vehicle structure

The paper is concerned with design, analysis and fabrication of the small size Unmanned Aerial Vehicle composite frame structure.

The frame has the form of a lattice composite structure manufactured by 3D printing of continuous carbon fibers and two matrix materials – thermoset, which is used to join the elementary fibers in the tow, and thermoplastic, which consolidates the cured tows into a unidirectional composite.

The paper consists of contains the description of the 3D printing procedure, finite element analysis of the structure, test results for mechanical properties of the structural elements and the fabricated frame. The result of analysis is in good agreement with experimental data.

Read more:

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1359836818320031

Design for Additive Manufacturing

Design For Manufacturing (DFM) has typically meant that designers should tailor their designs to eliminate manufacturing difficulties and minimize manufacturing, assembly, and logistics costs.

However, the capabilities of Additive Manufacturing (AM) technologies provide an opportunity to rethink DFM to take advantage of the unique capabilities of these technologies:

1) Shape complexity: It is possible to build virtually any shape.

2) Hierarchical complexity: Hierarchical multiscale structures can be designed and fabricated from the microstructure through geometric mesostructure (sizes in the millimeter range) to the part-scale macrostructure

3) Material complexity: Material can be processed one point, or one layer, at a time.

4) Functional complexity: Fully functional assemblies and mechanisms can be fabricated directly using AM processes.

These unique capabilities enable new opportunities for customization, very significant improvements in product performance, multifunctionality, and lower overall manufacturing costs.

In the case of UAVs, AM technology enables low-volume manufacturing, easy integration of design changes and, at least as importantly, piece part reductions to greatly simplify product assembly.

(Read more)

General Atomics to upgrade USAF's Reaper UAV fleet

General Atomics has been awarded a contract by the U.S. Air Force for Block 5 kits for the MQ-9 Reaper, just as the U.S. military begins to phase out the MQ-1 Predator Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV).

The contract was announced Wednesday 3 by the U.S. Department of Defense, tapping General Atomics for Block 5 kits, in addition to other services worth more than $14.1 million under a cost-plus-fixed-fee and firm-fixed-price undefinitized contract action, which is a modification on a previously awarded contract.

The UAVs are considered one of the primary weapons in U.S. counter terrorism strategy as both the Predator and the Reaper have strike capabilities, usually carrying a payload of AGM-114 Hellfire air-to-ground missiles. The MQ-9 Reaper is a significantly upgraded version of the MQ-1 Predator UAV, which is primarily used for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions (ISR).

The U.S. military has long planned the retirement of the MQ-1 Predator in favor of an all-MQ-9 Reaper fleet. The Air Force explained their reasoning to retire the Predator in February 2017, noting that the more modern MQ-9 Reaper has been better equipped with superior features and operational capabilities. Work on Block 5 kits for the contract will occur in Poway, California, and is expected to be completed by February 2021.

BAE Systems: MAGMA UAV

BAE Systems and The University of Manchester have developed and tested a unique UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) designed to test an innovative flight control technology that could enable future aircraft to maneuver without the use of control surfaces such as ailerons, flaps or tails.

Instead, supersonic air streams are blown from the jet engine over the trailing edge and nozzle to control the flight. These new control methods remove the conventional need for complex, mechanical moving parts used to move flaps to control the aircraft during flight.

According to the developers, this could give greater control as well as reduce weight and maintenance costs, allowing for lighter, stealthier, faster and more efficient military and civil aircraft in the future. To test the new concept the team developed the MAGMA, a small jet-powered UAV that will use a unique blown-air system to maneuver the aircraft.

Further flight trials are planned for the coming months to demonstrate the novel flight control technologies with the ultimate aim of flying the aircraft without any moving control surfaces or fins. If successful, the tests will demonstrate the first ever use of such circulation control in flight on a gas turbine aircraft and from a single engine, paving the way for future, stealthier aircraft designs.

Japan would acquire one RQ-4B Global Hawk

In the defense plan 2018 , Japan would acquire one RQ-4B Global Hawk UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) in order to enhance persistent wide-area surveillance capability and to ensure security of seas and airspace surrounding Japan.

Source: https://www.armyrecognition.com/december_2017_global_defense_security_news_industry/new_record_for_defense_budget_of_japan_with_$46_billion.html

Metal Plating UAV 3D-printed parts

Currently, Polymertal –global leader in metal plating solutions– together with a large Israeli defense company, are testing a unique large metal-plated 3D-printed part.

¿Why, and why now? Very simple: In recent years, more engineering-grade materials have become available for use with plastic 3D printers and these offer a good solution for metal replacement applications, including end-use parts.  ¿What if you could combine the advantages of plastic and metal together?

In the coming weeks the 3D-printed version of that end-use part will be assembled and tested on an UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle). Success in testing would mean the defense company has a new option of performing a fully functional test of such parts which allows for faster design and testing cycles.

Metal-plating could enable the introduction of cost-effective hybrid UAV plastic parts with the following properties provided by the metal layer:

1) EMI/RFI Shielding

2) Electrical Conductivity (Plastic antennas, Wave-Guide)

3) Barrier Characteristics (offering protection from humidity, chemicals, fumes…)

4) Enhancing Mechanical Properties – over the original plastic parts design flexibility

5) ESD Protection

Metal plating is a method of depositing a thin layer of metal, usually Copper or Nickel, on an object made of a different material. This is done in order to improve one or more of the object’s properties, for example strength; thermal or electrical conductivity; chemical or heat resistance. ¿The result? a hybrid product and a new set of potential solutions for metal replacement applications.

¿New Hope for Mountain Rescues?

A student team at the prestigious University of Warwick School of Engineering in Coventry, England, has designed an UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) with the ability to deliver immediate aid and equipment to people in trouble, before a rescue team arrives.

The project’s design lead, Ed Barlow (who has since graduated), knew he had a large-format 3D printer at his disposal. And that meant the team could design and manufacture something different than existing UAVs for aid and supply drops, such as the drones US startup Zipline uses to deliver blood and plasma to Rwandan hospitals: “They all use an airframe that you can go and buy from a shop,” Barlow says. “We needed our own custom airframe, made specifically for long-distance flight with a heavy payload.”

Warwick Associate Professor of Engineering Simon Leigh, who specializes in Additive Manufacturing, guided Barlow’s team during the project. He knew they would 3D-print reusable molds of the UAV body parts and then use them to resin-infuse strong-yet-light carbon fiber to create the finished product. Leigh says it took about one month of continuous 3D printing to finish the molds. After that, infusing the carbon fiber proved a challenge, as well: “We used liquid-resin infusion, which is under the vacuum,” Barlow says. “You apply a vacuum to your carbon fiber on the mold, and then you inject resin into it under the vacuum. That’s generally done on a much bigger scale, with much easier geometric parts than we were using, so we had to invent a lot of really cool tools to do it.”

General Atomics MQ-9 Reaper 3D model

The General Atomics MQ-9 Reaper (sometimes called Predator B) is an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) capable of remotely controlled or autonomous flight operations, developed by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems (GA-ASI) primarily for the United States Air Force (USAF).

Available formats:

STL (.stl) 551 KB

3D Studio (.3ds) 218 KB

OBJ (.obj) 1.1 MB

Autodesk FBX (.fbx)

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Additive Manufacturing for the Drone/UAV Industry 2017-2027

In this report, the firm Research and Markets projects that the yearly value of Additive Manufacturing (AM) in the UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) industry to reach $1.9 billion, driving over $400 million in yearly sales of AM equipment, software, materials and services.

The Drone AM report also provides information on which companies and institutions in the space infrastructure industry are using additive manufacturing today, with relevant case studies. Key firms in the drone AM segment include: Boeing, CRP Group, DJI, EHANG, EOS, General Atomics, HP, Hubsan, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, Oxford Performance Materials (OPM), Parrot, Ricoh,  Stratasys, 3D Systems and 3DR.

The report includes an in-depth analysis of the materials used for drone AM prototyping and production, which takes into consideration both high performance polymers and metals as well as composites, ceramics and technologies for direct 3D printing of electronics.

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/7mvrn7/additive

Achieving ship's mission flexibility through designing, printing and operating unmanned systems with additive manufacturing and delayed differentiation

The Design, Print and Operate (DPO) Concept Of Operations (CONOPS) is proposed in this thesis as a new means of equipping ships with the appropriate capabilities. A companion concept of delayed differentiation is also introduced. In coupling the two concepts, Additive Manufacturing (AM) of capabilities in-situ becomes a possibility through the equipping of operational units with three building blocks: additive manufacturing systems and their raw materials, commercial off-the-shelf items and field programmable gate arrays.

A concept of operations on uses of additive manufacturing was developed to illustrate the flexibility that the nexus of DPO CONOPS and delayed differentiation can engender. A tactical UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) was used as an illustration to contextualize the concept of operations to enhance the littoral combat ship's survivability when operating in the littorals. Assessments were then made on the feasibility of DPO CONOPS for shipboard uses. A tactical UAV was used as it was assessed to be operationally relevant and significant. Analytical models that could be iterated to achieve the specific-to-mission requirements were developed to analyze and assess the implementation approach. The models focused on the UAV's reliability in fulfilling the mission as well as the build-time of the UAV.

Link to download:

https://calhoun.nps.edu/handle/10945/50484

Iran shows off new UAV base

According with Arutz Sheva, Iran has revealed a previously unseen Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) base in a new video released today, coming amid rising tensions with Washington.

The clip shows a long line of UAVs parked on the tarmac at an undisclosed air base. Iran is estimated to have considerable UAV capabilities, but today is the first time it has ever revealed its UAV's base.

¿More reasons to worry? OK: Tensions have been rising between the Islamic Republic and Washington ever since President Trump instituted new sanctions in July over its ballistic missile program, but Iran also announced yesterday that it was testing its new Bavar-373 air defense system, which it claims rivals the Russian S-300.

¿Can 3D Printing get married with traditional technologies?

More and more, Additive Manufacturing is now seen as a complementary technology, as witnessed by the increased in hybrid printers that combine 3D Printing and CNC machining.

Now, Stratasys, one of the leading players in the 3D printing industry, is sharing some of that expertise via a new whitepaper titled "How Additive and Traditional Manufacturing Mix".

The whitepaper is free to download from 3dprint.com after you fill out a brief form, by clicking here: https://3dprint.com/stratasys-how-additive-and-traditional-manufacturing-mix/.

Introduction to Additive Manufacturing for Composites

Additively manufactured composites offer advantages that include greater design flexibility, decreased costs and production efficiency. In this e-book, you’ll learn more about:

• Reinforced thermoplastics for high-performance applications
• Multi-axis motion platforms for design optimization
• Lightweight, agile mold tooling capabilities
• Sacrificial tooling for easier production of hollow composites
• Autoclave cure- and high-temperature-capable materials

Download this FREE e-book to learn how additive manufacturing enables a new era of lightweight structures with degrees of geometric complexity, part consolidation, and design optimization not previously possible.

Low-cost approaches to UAV design using Additive Manufacturing

Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) platforms are of major interest to Defense, Government, and commercial industries. The ability to remotely control an aerial vehicle capable of surveillance, offensive and defensive maneuvering, reconnaissance, or numerous other applications without the need to put a human life in jeopardy is a major attraction to their use. Furthermore, there exists opportunities to make these airborne vehicles largely autonomous, further reducing the need for even remote human operators. However, for all of the significant advantages of UAVs, there is a significant negative: the cost of manufacture, and the cost of design. Due in part to the substantial amount of complex electronic equipment on board, UAVs become not only a design of aeronautics, but an experiment in energy conservation through optimization. A limited range of UAV power becomes a limiting factor of UAV application. The challenge becomes to optimize the size, weight, and aerodynamics of the UAV based on the application. 

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3D Robotics X8+ UAV Structure Scan Demo Using DroidPlanner 2.0

Adam from http://www.aeroworksproductions.com demonstrates a fully autonomous "Structure Scan" flight using DroidPlanner 2.0 and a 3D Robotics X8+ multirotor UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle). Post processing done with Autodesk 123D Catch 3D stitching software.

Pakistan: JF-17 shoots down an iranian UAV

An Iranian UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) operating in Pakistan’s Parom area of Panjgur district was shot down by a Pakistan Air Force (PAF) JF-17 fighter.

Iran’s army chief recently warned that Tehran would strike militant safe havens inside Pakistan ─remarks that drew a strong protest from Islamabad─ after 10 Iranian border guards were killed by militants allegedly from across the border earlier this year.

It was unknown when the UAV was shot down but the wreckage was recovered by local security forces last monday. According official sources, the UAV was shot down by a JF-17 in the Parom area of Panjgur district after it ventured “deep inside Pakistani airspace” on a spying mission.

The JF-17 (Joint Fighter-17) can be used for aerial reconnaissance, ground attack and aircraft interception. Technically is a lightweight, single-engine, multi-role combat aircraft developed jointly by the PAC (Pakistan Aeronautical Complex) and the CAC (Chengdu Aircraft Corporation) of China.

ExecuJet Adds UAV Services In Africa

ExecuJet has announced the addition of Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) services at its African facilities in Cape Town, Johannesburg and Lagos.

UAVs will form an integral part of ExecuJet's operations, enabling clients to carry out inspections, surveys, mapping and photography in greater detail. ExecuJet will be able to deploy UAVs to any location on the continent, as required by its customers.

Gavin Kiggen, Director, Aviation Africa, ExecuJet, says: "The market for drone technology in the commercial sector has been increasing in recent years and is expected to grow at a rate of 19%+ between 2017 and 2020, as the technology becomes more widely utilised. Whilst attending the Drone Con conference, it emerged from research done by Dr Roelof Botha that in South Africa, the drone market is expected to create 24,000+ jobs by as early as the end of 2018, contributing R2b+ to the economy. UAVs can be used in various ways, from wind turbine inspections and crop monitoring, to covering sporting events and filming for television and movies. Industry experts believe that Africa is one of the most progressive regions when it comes to drone technology."

PDF E-BOOk: Build Your Own Drone Manual

Build Your Own Drone Manual provides practical advice and step-by-step procedures to enable the reader to build a basic, affordable, DIY drone. 

Download at:

https://wesdrftyghuj.files.wordpress.com/2017/06/build-your-own-drone-manual.pdf