A Method for Selecting Strategic Deployment Opportunities for Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) for Transportation Agencies

Unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) are increasingly used for a variety of applications by state Departments of Transportation (DOT) and local transportation agencies due to technology advancements, lower costs, and regulatory changes that have simplified operations. There are numerous applications (e.g., bridge inspection, traffic management, incident response, construction and roadway mapping) and agencies find it challenging to prioritize which applications are most appropriate. Important factors to consider when prioritizing UAS applications include: (1) benefits, (2) ease of adoption, (3) stakeholder acceptance, and (4) technical feasibility. These factors can be evaluated utilizing various techniques such as the technology acceptance model, benefit analysis, and technology readiness level (TRL). This paper presents the methodology and results for the prioritization of UAS applications’ quality function deployment (QFD), which reflects both qualitative and quantitative components. The proposed framework can be used in the future as technologies mature, and the prioritization can be revised on a regular basis to identify future strategic implementation opportunities. Numerous transportation agencies have begun to use UAS, some have developed UAS operating policies and manuals, but there has been no documentation to support identification of the UAS applications that are most appropriate for deployment. This paper fills that gap and documents a method for identification of UAS applications for strategic deployment and illustrates the method with a case study.

Unmanned aerial system applications in construction: a systematic review

PurposeOver the past decade, researchers have used unmanned aerial systems (UASs) in construction industry for various applications from site inspection to safety monitoring or building maintenance. This paper aims to assort academic studies on construction UAS applications, summarize logics behind using UAS in each application and extend understanding of current state of UAS research in the construction setting.Design/methodology/approachThis research follows a systematic literature assessment methodology to summarize the results of 54 research papers over the past ten years and outlines the research trends for applying UASs in construction.FindingsUASs are used in building inspection, damage assessment, site surveying, safety inspection, progress monitoring, building maintenance and other construction applications. Cost saving, time efficiency and improved accessibility are the primary reasons for choosing UAS in construction applications. Rotary-wing UASs are the most common types of UASs being used in construction. Cameras, LiDAR and Kinect are the most common onboard sensors integrated in construction UAS applications. The control styles used are manual, semi-autonomous and autonomous.Originality/valueThis paper contributes to classification of UAS applications in construction research and identification of UAS hardware and sensor types as well as their flying control systems in construction literature.

Unmanned Aircraft as a Subject of Safety and Security

<p class="keywords">Currently increasing UAV operation significantly changes the view of conventional aviation. Unmanned aerial vehicles have become part of air traffic and therefore, its operation should be adequately controlled through related legislative framework and law enforcement procedures. Considering the fact, that single unmanned aircrafts will be soon replaced by swarms, it is necessary to get prepared for all possible UAs applications and define all rules including also emergency and law enforcement procedures in case that public safety is endangered.</p><p class="keywords">This paper summarizes recent regulatory framework for UAVs in EU and US and points out a concealed weakness of legislative requirements. The legislative scope addressed in this paper is limited primarily to civil aviation. The second part stresses the security threat created by an uncontrolled or violently-controlled UA. Aerial vehicles detection and disposal methods are described in the last part of paper.</p>

A Mission Performance Evaluation Approach for Civil UAS Applications

The Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) mission fulfilment grade is determined by performance capabilities of the system elements, such as UAV flight performance, sensor parameters, energy consumption and communication abilities. The mission simulation and evaluation tool chain developed at the Institute of Aircraft Design allows to assess the system effectiveness in terms of civil and commercial UAS applications and by this to evaluate trade off studies regarding the compatibility between the air vehicle, the sensor payload and the mission. The presented approach for mission performance evaluation is based on the calculation of an overall mission performance index implemented in the UAS design and optimization processes.