DARPA looks to the next generation of vertical flight
Source: DARPA Story, 26-Feb-13
One of the greatest challenges of the past half century for aerodynamics engineers has been how to increase the top speeds of aircraft that take off and land vertically without compromising the aircraft’s lift to power in hover or its efficiency during long-range flight. The versatility of helicopters and other vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) [...]
Rockwell Collins and DARPA collaborate to push GPS boundaries
Source: Rockwell Collins, 23-Jan-13
Imagine having GPS navigation capability embedded on something as small as a hummingbird-size unmanned aerial vehicle. That day may be coming soon, thanks to ongoing research and successful testing completed by Rockwell Collins and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). DARPA’s Dynamics Enabled Frequency Sources (DEFYS) effort has created tiny electronic oscillators and Rockwell [...]
DARPA funds trials of unmanned hovering UAV with robot arm
Source: DARPA, 11-Dec-12
When a person reaches out to place an object in just the right place, their mind makes a series of judgments requiring vision, stability and careful movement. Trying to do the same thing robotically from a hovering unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) requires several technology advances. A DARPA-funded technology demonstration recently finished a successful testing of [...]
Rockwell Collins chosen to develop helicopter synthetic vision avionics backbone
Source: Rockwell Collins, 07-Jun-12
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has selected Rockwell Collins to develop the synthetic vision avionics backbone for next generation helicopter operations under the Multi-Function Radio Frequency (MFRF) program. Rockwell Collins is teamed with BAE Systems on the first two phases of the $5.1 million contract. An optional third phase would bring the contract [...]
Helicopter survivability enhanced with MFRF contract
Source: BAE Systems, 27-Mar-12
BAE Systems has been awarded a $34 million Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) contract to develop the next generation Multi-Function Radio Frequency (MFRF) Advanced Rotary Wing Multifunction Sensor (ARMS) system for helicopter operations. The MFRF ARMS system improves aircraft survivability in degraded visual environments (DVE) while enhancing platform lethality and minimizing size, weight, power [...]
Carter to partner AAI for DARPA Transformer program
Source: Carter Aviation Technologies, 11-Dec-10
AAI, an operating unit of Textron Systems, a Textron Inc. (NYSE: TXT) company, announced today that its team has been selected to participate in Phase I of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Transformer program. The winning team also includes fellow Textron businesses Bell Helicopter and Textron Marine & Land Systems, as well as [...]
A160T program awarded $12.8M to develop payload integrations
Source: US DoD, 10-Dec-10
Frontier Systems, Inc., Irvine, Calif., is being awarded a $12,800,000 (NTE) cost plus fixed-fee contract modification (HR0011-07-C-0100). This modification provides for the development of necessary planning, payload integrations, and air vehicle improvements in support of an operational demonstration to further evaluate the military utility of the A160T integrated with a modified ARGUS-IS pod which includes [...]
AAI-led team selected for ground-breaking DARPA Transformer program
Source: AAI, 16-Nov-10
Nov 15, 2010 — AAI, an operating unit of Textron Systems, a Textron Inc. (NYSE: TXT) company, announced today that its team has been selected to participate in Phase I of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Transformer program. The winning team also includes fellow Textron businesses Bell Helicopter and Textron Marine & Land [...]
DARPA launches Transformer program – combining helicopters with ground vehicles
Source: DARPA, 15-Oct-10
To meet much of transportation needs of today’s deployed Warfighter, either highly mobile multipurpose wheeled vehicles (HMMWV) are used, or helicopters, which have limited availability, are used. DARPA’s Transformer (TX) program seeks to combine the advantages of ground vehicles and helicopters into a single vehicle equipped with flexibility of movement. The concept is to provide [...]
AVX Submits Proposal for Fly-Drive Vehicle to DARPA
Source: AVX, 17-Jul-10
AVX Aircraft Company has responded to a Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) seeking designs for a tactical fly-drive vehicle known as the Transformer (TX). The DARPA stated objective of the program is “to demonstrate a four (4) person flyable/roadable vehicle that provides the warfighter terrain-independent mobility. This presents [...]
Sikorsky Innovations Expected to Develop Mission-Adaptive Rotorcraft Under Prospective DARPA Contract
Source: Sikorsky, 22-Feb-10
Sikorsky Aircraft Corp. announced today that its Sikorsky Innovations group has been selected by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) for a contract to develop active rotor technologies that will allow aircraft to adapt to a changing environment and dynamically enhance performance. Sikorsky Aircraft is a subsidiary of United Technologies Corp. (NYSE: UTX). Once [...]
Boeing A160T Unmanned Helicopter Flies With Foliage-Penetrating Radar in DARPA Tests
Source: Boeing, 15-Oct-09
The Boeing A160T Hummingbird unmanned helicopter successfully completed 20 test flights from Aug. 31 to Oct. 8 with the Foliage Penetration Reconnaissance, Surveillance, Tracking and Engagement Radar (FORESTER). The tests, conducted at Fort Stewart, Ga., validated the radar-carrying A160T’s flight characteristics with more than 50 hours of flying time.
Boeing’s Ridley plant working on new style of military aircraft – the DiscRotor program
Source: Philadelphia Business Journal, 03-Feb-09
Pentagon researchers revisit technology of variable-length rotor blades
Source: The Register, 02-Feb-09
