23 Jan 2007 | Ref. 018/2007
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BAE Systems RAVEN UAV
London, United Kingdom. – Bill Rammell, minister for life long learning and higher education, this morning announced the award of up to £500,000 to BAE Systems’ research partner Leicester University, to carry out research in conjunction with leading Indian research institutions. The grant is awarded by the UK India Education and Research Initiative (UKIERI), co-ordinated by the British Council. The research project aims to develop new control technologies for Unmanned Air Vehicles (UAVs).
Gordon Brown last week confirmed this to an Indian audience in Delhi during his ministerial trip to the country.
BAE Systems is one of four "corporate champions" helping to sponsor the UKIERI’s collaborative education projects between the UK and India, along with BP, GlaxoSmithKline and Shell. This project will draw upon the research capabilities of two countries, establishing stronger links between the research communities which will be important for future collaboration.
Leicester University and BAE Systems will be working in partnership with the Indian Institute of Science at Bangalore, the National Aerospace Laboratories (Bangalore) and the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay. BAE Systems will be bringing its skills in successfully applying knowledge in a commercial environment to contribute to the innovative, cutting edge research that Leicester University and its Indian partners will produce.
The project is titled “Towards Reliable and Smart Air-Vehicles”, and aims to develop control technologies for UAVs and micro-satellites to be used in search and rescue scenarios. The research objectives will involve the design of:
1. Robust, reconfigurable control systems for UAVs, especially light-weight UAVs.
2. Fault-tolerant, reconfigurable control systems for micro-satellites.
3. Distributed coordination strategies for multiple UAVs.
4. Optimal software and hardware for light-weight UAVs.
5. Smart structures for airborne actuators and sensors.
The project will also be developing control technologies for high performance piloted aircraft to reduce Pilot Induced Oscillations (PIOs).
A key benefit of this project is that it will help develop autonomous systems which are so vital for Unmanned Air Vehicles. The research aims to be particularly beneficial in natural disaster situations where, due to potential hazards, it is desirable to deploy UAVs which can identify dangers and then provide full details to command centres for a response.
In addition to supporting University based research through the UKIERI, BAE Systems is also investing in a project linking schools in Bangalore with schools in the UK. In late 2006 teachers from Brough in the UK, where BAE Systems builds the Hawk Advanced JET Trainer (AJT), visited India and met with teachers from Bangalore, where HAL will be also be building HAWK AJT. Schools from Bangalore and Brough have since started working together on a number of projects. Younger pupils will be helping each other by sharing cultural materials online that they have produced.
Activities for older students are to be more focused on science and engineering. UK and Indian students will be working with BAE Systems and HAL to share information about science and engineering in their respective programmes, as well as closely following the Hawk programmes of both companies in each country.
Shortly, teachers from Bangalore will travel to the UK on a return visit to continue these educational ties as part of this three year initiative.
Photo Caption: Raven - Developed by BAE Systems, the jet powered Raven is fully autonomous from take off to landing and is highly agile. As such Raven is dynamically unstable and uses advanced control technology to remain in flight.
About BAE Systems
BAE Systems is a global transatlantic defence and aerospace company delivering a full range of products and services for air, land and naval forces, as well as advanced electronics, information technology solutions and customer support services. With 88,000 employees worldwide, BAE Systems' sales exceeded 12 billion pounds (US22 billion dollars) in 2005, excluding the Group's former interest in Airbus.
For further information, please contact:
Guy Douglas, BAE Systems
Tel: +44 (0) 1252 384841 Mob: +44 (0)7736 810490
guy.douglas@baesystems.com
Lisa Hillary-Tee, BAE Systems
Tel: +44 (0) 1252 384934 Mob: +44 (0)7801 718994
lisa.hillary-tee@baesystems.com
Issued by:
BAE Systems, Farnborough, Hampshire, GU14 6YU, UK
Tel: +44 (1252) 38 4719 Fax: +44 (1252) 383947
www.baesystems.com
018/2007
