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Drones
Special Issues
Next Generation of Unmanned Aircraft Systems and Services
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Next Generation of Unmanned Aircraft Systems and Services

A special issue of Drones (ISSN 2504-446X). This special issue belongs to the section "Drone Communications".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 October 2023) | Viewed by 7850

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Saba Al-Rubaye

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Centre for Autonomous and Cyberphysical Systems, Cranfield University, Cranfield MK43 0AL, UK
Interests: unmanned aircraft systems; urban air mobility; communication and networking; connected autonomy; applications to aerospace systems
Prof. Dr. Kamesh Namuduri

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Electrical Engineering, University of North Texas, 1155 Union Cir, Denton, TX 76203, USA
Interests: unmanned aircraft systems; urban air mobility; UAS communication and networks
Prof. Dr. Antonios Tsourdos

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Centre for Autonomous and Cyberphysical Systems, Cranfield University, Cranfield MK43 0AL, UK
Interests: unmanned aircraft systems; decision making on multi-agent systems; data-centric guidance and control; swarm
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UASs) have undergone increasing investigation in various research and service areas to support humans and enhance operations. In the future, it is expected that airspace in the metropolitan environment will be shared with traditional low- or very low-flying manned and unmanned vehicles (e.g., unmanned aircraft systems (UASs) or urban air mobility (UAM) vehicles such as aerial taxis) that cover a wide range of services. In this sense, many challenges in this research area must be addressed to enable the implementation of critical UAS operation and services. These innovations could help to drive the growth of UASs and open new opportunities for their use in various industries and sectors.

This Special Issue aims to present the latest advanced technologies and services for the next generation of UASs, which could pave the road towards reliable, autonomous, safe, and sustainable operations. The state-of-the-art methods used to address the challenges and requirements of the next generation of UASs are based on advances in communications, navigation, control, and autonomy. The editorial team of this Special Issue seeks original, unpublished, and high-quality research papers on the topics discussed above.

The topics of interest include, but are not limited to:

  • Unmanned aircraft system (UAS) use cases;
  • UAS air-to-air and air-to-ground connectivity;
  • Seamless mobility and management;
  • Autonomy and multiple-agent systems;
  • Advanced dynamic modeling for emerging UAS design;
  • Advance methods in swarm and path planning;
  • UAS conflict management and coordination;
  • Integration of UAS and urban air mobility (UAM);
  • Sustainable operations of UAS;
  • Hardware and embedded systems for UAS;
  • Emerging aerospace applications of UAS;
  • UAS modeling, simulation, and evaluation;
  • UAS experimental and field-tests analysis; 
  • UAS services (the transportation of people and goods, surveillance, the inspection of critical infrastructures, emergency services, etc.).

Dr. Saba Al-Rubaye
Prof. Dr. Kamesh Namuduri
Prof. Dr. Antonios Tsourdos
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Drones is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • unmanned aircraft system
  • urban air mobility
  • mobility management
  • autonomy decision making
  • UAS connectivity
  • networked swarms
  • autonomous agents
  • guidance, navigation, and control
  • UAS operation and services

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

30 pages, 7119 KiB  
Article
Analytical Framework for Sensing Requirements Definition in Non-Cooperative UAS Sense and Avoid
by Giancarmine Fasano and Roberto Opromolla
Drones 2023, 7(10), 621; https://doi.org/10.3390/drones7100621 - 03 Oct 2023
Viewed by 1168
Abstract
This paper provides an analytical framework to address the definition of sensing requirements in non-cooperative UAS sense and avoid. The generality of the approach makes it useful for the exploration of sensor design and selection trade-offs, for the definition of tailored and adaptive [...] Read more.
This paper provides an analytical framework to address the definition of sensing requirements in non-cooperative UAS sense and avoid. The generality of the approach makes it useful for the exploration of sensor design and selection trade-offs, for the definition of tailored and adaptive sensing strategies, and for the evaluation of the potential of given sensing architectures, also concerning their interface to airspace rules and traffic characteristics. The framework comprises a set of analytical relations covering the following technical aspects: field of view and surveillance rate requirements in azimuth and elevation; the link between sensing accuracy and closest point of approach estimates, expressed though approximated derivatives valid in near-collision conditions; the diverse (but interconnected) effects of sensing accuracy and detection range on the probabilities of missed and false conflict detections. A key idea consists of focusing on a specific target time to closest point of approach at obstacle declaration as the key driver for sensing system design and tuning, which allows accounting for the variability of conflict conditions within the aircraft field of regard. Numerical analyses complement the analytical developments to demonstrate their statistical consistency and to show quantitative examples of the variation of sensing performance as a function of the conflict geometry, as well as highlighting potential implications of the derived concepts. The developed framework can potentially be used to support holistic approaches and evaluations in different scenarios, including the very low-altitude urban airspace. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Next Generation of Unmanned Aircraft Systems and Services)
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24 pages, 2596 KiB  
Article
Advanced Air Mobility Operation and Infrastructure for Sustainable Connected eVTOL Vehicle
by Saba Al-Rubaye, Antonios Tsourdos and Kamesh Namuduri
Drones 2023, 7(5), 319; https://doi.org/10.3390/drones7050319 - 16 May 2023
Cited by 12 | Viewed by 5870
Abstract
Advanced air mobility (AAM) is an emerging sector in aviation aiming to offer secure, efficient, and eco-friendly transportation utilizing electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft. These vehicles are designed for short-haul flights, transporting passengers and cargo between urban centers, suburbs, and remote [...] Read more.
Advanced air mobility (AAM) is an emerging sector in aviation aiming to offer secure, efficient, and eco-friendly transportation utilizing electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft. These vehicles are designed for short-haul flights, transporting passengers and cargo between urban centers, suburbs, and remote areas. As the number of flights is expected to rise significantly in congested metropolitan areas, there is a need for a digital ecosystem to support the AAM platform. This ecosystem requires seamless integration of air traffic management systems, ground control systems, and communication networks, enabling effective communication between AAM vehicles and ground systems to ensure safe and efficient operations. Consequently, the aviation industry is seeking to develop a new aerospace framework that promotes shared aerospace practices, ensuring the safety, sustainability, and efficiency of air traffic operations. However, the lack of adequate wireless coverage in congested cities and disconnected rural communities poses challenges for large-scale AAM deployments. In the immediate recovery phase, incorporating AAM with new air-to-ground connectivity presents difficulties such as overwhelming the terrestrial network with data requests, maintaining link reliability, and managing handover occurrences. Furthermore, managing eVTOL traffic in urban areas with congested airspace necessitates high levels of connectivity to support air routing information for eVTOL vehicles. This paper introduces a novel concept addressing future flight challenges and proposes a framework for integrating operations, infrastructure, connectivity, and ecosystems in future air mobility. Specifically, it includes a performance analysis to illustrate the impact of extensive AAM vehicle mobility on ground base station network infrastructure in urban environments. This work aims to pave the way for future air mobility by introducing a new vision for backbone infrastructure that supports safe and sustainable aviation through advanced communication technology. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Next Generation of Unmanned Aircraft Systems and Services)
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