Challenges of Commercial

UAV Operations in Civilian

Airspace
Robert Morris
Principal Software Engineer
CDL Systems
 Background
Engineering

Worked with Unmanned Vehicles

for 20 years

Worked with UAVs with CDL

Systems for 15 years

CDL Systems develops software for

UAV GCS

US Army

Built my own UAV just for fun

Evaluation from a Commercial

Perspective
 UAV Systems
Performance and Cost of current UAS
Conventional
• Predator
• Grey Eagle
• Shadow
• Raven

Unconventional
• LEMV
• Draganflyer
 Predator

•Operated primarily by USAF

•Pilot oriented philosophy
• Sticks, Rudder, Take off, Land
•48 ft wingspan
•Two operator configuration – AVO, MPO
 Grey Eagle
•56 ft Wingspan
•36 hour endurance
•135 knots (250 km/hr)
•800 lb payload
•Traditional Runway
•Auto-takeoff
•Auto-land
•~$25M System cost
•~$4 Million Replacement
 Shadow
•14 ft Wingspan
•6 hour endurance
•118 knots (200 km/hr)
•100 lb payload
•Launcher Assisted
Takeoff
•Catchwire Landing
•$4 M system cost
•~$300,000 Replacement
 Raven
•5 ft Wingspan
•1 hour endurance
•Battery
•40 knots (75 km/hr)
•1 lb payload (EO/IR)
•$250,000 System cost
•~$35,000 Replacement
•Hand launched
•RC type landing
 LEMV (Long Endurance
Multi-Intelligence Vehicle)
•300 ft
•3 weeks endurance
•50 knots (90 km/hr)
•2500 lb payload
•~$??? Replacement
 Draganflyer
•3 ft
•VTOL
•20 minutes endurance
•40 knots (75 km/hr)
•2 lb payload
•~$10,000 Replacement
 Cessna 162 (Skycatcher)
•30 ft
•4 hours endurance
•120 knots (220 km/hr)
•200 lb payload (soft tissue)
•25 lbs baggage
•~$120,000 Replacement
 Comparison
Wingspan Endurance Speed Payload Price
Grey Eagle 56 36 135 800 4000
Shadow 14 6 118 100 300
Raven 5 1 40 2 35
LEMV 300 500 50 3500 ???
Draganflyer 3 0.5 40 2 10
Cessna 162 30 4 120 1 / 25 120
Cessna 172 36 4 120 2 / 200 350

Wide variety of UAV performance for a wide variety of roles

As size increases, costs increase
Large cost for System
Need to compete with Cessna 172
Military Benefits of UAVs
Easy to confuse a ‘difference’ with an ‘benefit’
Military Benefit does not necessarily translate to
Commercial Benefit

Military Benefits
• Reduced Risk to Pilot
• can fly more hazardous missions
• Endurance
• Don’t have to land AV to change pilot
• Long surveillance duration
• Forward Deployment
• Reduced Operator Training Cost
 Commercial Benefits
Commercial application must translate to a cost savings

• Perform a role that could not have previously been done

• Perform an existing role at lower cost
Hot spot Detection
Two Operator Manned System
Piloted Aircraft with 2 occupants
• Pilot
• Aircraft
• IR Camera Operator
• IR Camera
Two Operator Unmanned System
UAV with 2 operators
• Air Vehicle Operator
• UAV
• IR Camera Operator
• IR Camera
Side by Side
Unmanned Manned
• Air Vehicle Operator ~ • Pilot
• UAV System ?? • Piloted Aircraft
• IR Camera Operator = • IR Camera Operator
• IR Camera = • IR Camera
Any detection technology that can be placed on a UAV
can be placed on a Traditionally Piloted vehicle
Considering total cost of operation,
Piloted Aircraft will be more economical
 Can a UAS make economic
sense?
•Completely Autonomous
•Operates for 24 hours
•2 person crew launch and recovery
of 4 vehicles (1 hour)
•Dispatch of previous day’s data
Scan Eagle
•$50, 000 per vehicle $100,000 unit cost
•$250,000 System cost $3.2 M system cost
20 hours endurance
10 lb payload
Transport Canada Regulations
Need SFOC to fly a UAV – red tape, delay
“While the ultimate goal is to “normalize” UAV operations within
civil airspace, the industry technology is not mature enough, and
the regulatory structure is not in place, to support routine
operations.”

Detect, Sense, and Avoid other aircraft

Radar
See and Avoid
ADS-B

Certification
 Summary
1. Technical Barriers - Some technical challenges, but none
are beyond present day technology
2. Cost Barriers – Current UAV Systems are too expensive to
compete
3. NRE – Little incentive to build such a system because
volumes are low
4. Regulatory barriers – Integrating Manned and Unmanned
system is years away
 Thanks and Questions

Robert Morris
rmorris@cdlsystems.com
Principal Software Engineer
CDL Systems