SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY SUPPORTING FUTURE ARMY AVIATION


PLATFORM DESIGN AND STRUCTURES Ultimately, the desired effect on the battlefield for aviation sys- tems, whether assault, attack, lift, reconnaissance or medical evacuation, is provided by the platform. Tat platform may be manned, optionally manned or unmanned, depending on mis- sion and environment. Te focus of S&T in platform design is to support FVL. S&T in this area encompasses concept devel- opment and design analysis through system development and demonstration.


Tis includes current efforts such as the Joint Multi-Role Tech- nology Demonstrator (JMR-TD) and future efforts such as Next Generation Tactical Unmanned Aircraft Systems (NGTUAS). Te JMR-TD is demonstrating platform and mission systems technologies in support of FVL. NGTUAS is focused on the development and demonstration of technologically feasible and affordable unmanned air vehicle technologies and capabilities that provide improvements in flight performance, survivabil- ity and reliability. Long-term efforts are focused on vertical lift technologies that enable both high speed and efficient hover.


POWER One of


the most important areas of technology needed to


dominate the future operational environment is aircraft power systems. Tis area includes technologies that advance the capa- bilities of turbine engines and drivetrains. Current vertical lift turbine engines and drivetrains are designed to operate at a fixed speed and lift; forward movement is produced by adjusting the pitch of the helicopter rotor blades. Tese turbine engines and drivetrains are optimized for this fixed speed but are at their limit of efficiency and power.


To meet the requirements for range and speed with maximum efficiency, technologies like variable-speed turbine engines and multispeed transmissions are being developed. To build these future power systems, new turbine designs, materials and components will need to be developed through innovative manufacturing capabilities like additive manufacturing. Addi- tionally, engine designs will need to be highly reliable to meet the demands of the future operating environment, which will be fast-paced and require much longer operation between main- tenance sessions than today’s aircraft. Leap-ahead technologies like hybrid-electric power systems are also being investigated and developed. Tese technologies combine the efficiency of electric motors and optimized engines, not unlike current hybrid-electric cars. Combining all of these new technologies and capabilities will be required in order to enable the FVL air- craft to meet all of its future requirements.


98 Army AL&T Magazine January-March 2018


MISSION SYSTEMS Te goal of the mission systems area is to mature and validate man-machine mission equipment software and hardware tech- nologies to enable overmatch and survivability in the future operating environment. If the airframe, engines, transmission and rotors are the body of FVL, then the mission systems can be thought of as the eyes, ears and brains. To allow for a holis- tic approach to mission system development and employment, open systems architectures will be required to allow Soldiers to “plug and play” future reconnaissance, survivability and lethal- ity systems.


Current sensors and payloads are federated, meaning they don’t interoperate much. In order to install updated payload equipment, an aircraft upgrade would likely need to be devel- oped, which would increase cost and aircraft downtime. Te Army’s air systems S&T portfolio is conducting research in


A BIRD IN THE HAND


Spc. Derek Opthof of the 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division winds up to throw an RQ-11 Raven unmanned aerial vehicle to scan the field where Soldiers had just jumped from an aircraft during a deployment readiness exercise at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, in July. This kind of teaming between unmanned systems, Soldiers and manned systems is an important area of investment and research for Army aviation. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Andrew Lee)


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