TEKEVER demonstrates Manned – Unmanned Teaming at AWE19
TAKEVER demonstrates AR4 platform on Salisbury Plain with new software to enhance mission planning and target detection with the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory Dstl and the Army
This Research Project developed new technologies to reduce operator burden in three key areas of Mission Planning, Mission Execution and Data Monitoring
Project funded via Defence and Security Accelerator (DASA) Manned-Unmanned Teaming (MUM-T) competition
TEKEVER (www.tekever.com) has successfully completed a demonstration on Salisbury Plain working with the Army and Dstl as part of the UK Army Warfighting Experiment 19 for Defence and Security Accelerator (DASA).
The Enhanced Mission Autonomy Pack (EMAP) was demonstrated on live flights, exploring the reduction in operator burden in three key areas:
Automated mission planning. The autonomy pack plans the aircraft’s route in a dynamic operational environment, relieving the operator from complex management of flights;
Automated sensor planning Sensors are optimised to provide unsupervised standoff searching of areas;
Automatic target identification Objects are classified and tracked within the field of view of the sensor.
The demonstration showed how increased automation reduces the operational burden of using UAVs, particularly when monitoring large open areas for targets of interest.
Automatic alerts free operators to conduct other activities instead of continuously monitoring sensor feeds.
The demonstration showed how Manned-Unmanned Teaming can deliver the best of both worlds, combining the decision-making skills of experienced personnel, with the benefits of non-stop automated processing. Operators are removed from high-risk environments and boring or demanding tasks are re-assigned to computers. It also shows the potential of enhancing existing systems with increased situational awareness and can improve their operational effectiveness.
“Working with the Army, Dstl and DASA has provided crucial insight into the operating environment for the future application of this technology. The engagement with active service personnel as part of the demonstration has proved invaluable. We’re excited to see where these new technologies will be used in the future” explains Mark Baxter, Technical Lead for the project.
TEKEVER sees advances being realised across a multitude of areas spanning the military and civilian spheres. Missions such as Search and Rescue (SAR) and Fisheries protection which require large areas of open terrain surveillance can benefit heavily in the future from the integration of this technology.
“We have created an autonomy framework that allows for the development of new behaviours for the UAV. This could allow more detailed and complicated search patterns when responding to a distress call” added Mark Baxter.
This project is a great example of Prototype Warfare. A big “Thank You” to the team from Dstl, the Army and DASA who have worked so hard to allow this demonstration to go ahead, even under the current COVID restrictions.
