Micro-Air Vehicle-Enabled Remote Environmental and Chemical Sensing (MAVERECS)

Abstract

This final report summarizes the Micro-Air Vehicle-Enabled Remote Environmental and Chemical Sensing (MAVERECS)-enabling technology project. This project demonstrated environmental remote sensing by incorporating a chemical detection module (a miniaturized ion mobility spectrometer) and Gumstix computer (La Jolla, CA) into a compact module that was fully integrated into the T-Hawk unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV; Honeywell; Charlotte, NC) electronics. A software implementation of the chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear (CBRN) common sensor interface was run on the Gumstix processor to demonstrate this standard interface technology on a working CBRN UAV platform. A real-time chemical contamination mapping capability was coded that output KML files directly into the UAV ground control station to display georeferenced detection heat maps that were readily exportable to any common operational environment, including the Joint Warning and Reporting Network. The fully functional MAVERECS system was operated on several sorties during the Sophos/Kydoimos (S/K) Challenge III event at Dugway Proving Ground, UT in August 2016, and it successfully detected several chemical simulant releases. Three T-Hawk platforms with integrated chemical and radiological sensing and real-time display and reporting capabilities were delivered to the Integrated Early Warning Advanced Technology Demonstration Technical Manager and to the Defense Threat Reduction Agency operational test range team.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
May 24, 2023
Accession Number
AD1201889

Entities

People

  • Alan C. Samuels
  • Brian Hall
  • F. M. Von Fahnestock
  • Harold Wylie
  • John Sparks
  • Lester Strauch
  • Mark Colgan
  • Nader Tubbeh
  • Robert Schafer
  • Vincent Mchugh

Organizations

  • Honeywell International, Inc.

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Air Platforms
  • Autonomy
  • Counter WMD
  • Materials and Manufacturing Processes
  • Sensors
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Aircrafts
  • Biological Aerosols
  • Chemical Detection
  • Chemical Detectors
  • Chemical Warfare
  • Chemical Warfare Agents
  • Data Transmission
  • Detection
  • Detectors
  • Global Positioning Systems
  • Ground Control Stations
  • Micro Air Vehicles
  • Range Finding
  • Test And Evaluation
  • Unmanned Aerial Systems
  • Unmanned Aerial Vehicles
  • Unmanned Systems

Readers

  • Critical Infrastructure Protection in CBRN and WMD Threats.
  • Database Systems and Applications
  • Sensor Fusion and Tracking Systems.

Technology Areas

  • Autonomy
  • Microelectronics