Image of DARPA's Gremlin plan.The name Glemlin is named after World War II, after a fictional mischievous fairy who has become a lucky amulet of a British pilot: DARPA.
It was August 2015 that the plan was raised and the information inquiry was issued.First, the four companies conducted a feasibility as a phase 1, and the team of Dynetics and the General Atomix Aeronortical Systems Systems were won, and proceeded to phase 2.At this stage, we decided to implement preliminary designs for full -scale demonstrations and summarize plans for conducting risk reduction tests for individual components.
The Dynetics team has survived, and is currently working on phase 3, which actually produces full -scale demonstrations and conducts flight tests.
The unmanned aircraft used in the Gremlin Plan was called GAV (GREMLINS AIR VEHICLE), which was later named X-61A.A mechanism that develops the main wings on the left and right from the torso of the rounded triangular cross section.When housing in the C-130, which is the mother unit, the wings are folded so as not to take up space.
On the other hand, GADS (GADS (GAV Autonomous Docking System)) is installed near the rear lamp of the C-130 transport aircraft and is in charge of the start/collection of GAV.The GADS and GAVs are handled by Sielanebada, and Dynetics, the main contract company, is in charge of the overall summary.
The first X-61A aircraft (GFS-01) held the first flight at the end of November 2019.The flight time at that time is 1 hour and 41 minutes, the wings of the wings, the start of the engine, the transition to stable flight, the operation of the control system and the data link, the control system on the ground and the air control system, the docking and the docking.After trying the arm development, it was collected by parachute.Anyway, because it is an aircraft that assumes aerial collection, it does not have a settlement device.
After that, we first postponed the aerial collection test to reduce risk.In the flight test conducted at the Dougway Test Station in Utah in July 2020, a test for ground and recovery systems was confirmed to confirm that it was possible to securely recover.In addition, we skipped the X-61A and C-130 and performed a formula flight at a distance of 125ft (about 38m).
After this, it is planned to first try to collect one aircraft and two aircraft.Previously, it was reported that the aerial recovery would be actually done in 2020, but it has not yet been reported.Is it a COVID-19-to-batch?The ultimate goal is to launch or collect four GAVs in 30 minutes in the air.
Now.Which part will be the key to starting or collecting unmanned aircraft in the air using a flying aircraft?
First, in the aerial start, the unmanned aircraft held by the arm protrude outside the aircraft flying at a speed of several hundred km/h.However, it is not necessarily directly underneath, and it seems that there is enough use diagonally below.Nevertheless, if you can endure the high -speed airflow and hold the unmanned aircraft, you will still be sick.
Recovery is more difficult than starting.Unless the unmanned aircraft approaches from the back of the mother machine and does not perform stable close flights with the same needle road, the same speed, the collection itself will not be established.If the positional relationship between the mother and the unmanned aircraft is not stable, it is not possible to connect the unmanned aircraft into the recovery device generated from the mother unit.
What is needed is PNAV (Precision Navigation Capability), a precision navigation function.Originally developed for the AARD (Autonomous Aerialing Demonstration) plan that plans to automate aerial refueling.In the aerial refueling, the refueling aircraft and the oil dipplate must fly on the same needle road and the same speed, so if there is a technology that can do it autonomously, we believed that it could be applied to aerial collection.
However, just by stably flying close flights, the story has just progressed only half.For unmanned aerial aircraft, the collection device must be extended from the mother machine and connected.Then, where do you do the positioning?
In other words, whether the position of the recovery device should be adjusted on the unmanned aircraft side without moving, or the unmanned aircraft should be dedicated to the realization of stable flight and the position of the recovery device.If you look at the released video, the collection device is not like an arm, but it seems that the funnel -shaped device is running out with a wire, so it seems that this will adjust the position from the unmanned unit side.Like.
If you think it is a story you heard somewhere, make the air refueling in the flying boom (the oil pending machine is stable flight and adjusts the position from the flying boom) or the probe drawing system (refueling.The machine is similar to the choice of whether to make a stable flight and the oil receiving machine matches the probe position).
Anyway, if you can do autonomous proximity and docking in the air, you may be able to spread the spread to other fields.I want to pay attention to future flight exams.
Anyway.I don't know who named it, but I'm wondering why Gremlin was named more.Glemlin is a "fairy who mischiefs the machine", which has long been told.Wouldn't it be a problem if Gremlin (fairy) rampage during the flight test?
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