Binoculars are still used in control towers for everyday operations. Now, researchers from SESAR JU member, NLR - Netherlands Aerospace Centre, are investigating augmented reality goggles that will help controllers keep an augmented eye on airport traffic!
The researchers specifically looked at attention guidance strategies with an augmented reality device, the Microsoft HoloLens 2 (TM), inside an air traffic control tower environment for Schiphol Airport.
The augmented reality blends real-world images with computer-generated data in real-time so that visual information can be enhanced to improve the identification and tracking of aircraft (or vehicles) on and around the airport. In low visibility, synthetic vision can show digital georeferenced data that supplement the missing real vision (virtual reality).
How fascinating is that? We'll be keeping our own beady eyes on this story to see how augmented reality goggles works out!
In other news, Auterion has announced their partnership with drive and motor specialist maxon — whose precision systems are enabling the autonomous helicopter Ingenuity and rover Perseverance to explore Mars.
The partnership will offer industry-changing avionics and propulsion system integration for software-defined drones that comply with federal directive, and mark the future of drone scaling.
With maxon's motors in NASA’s Ingenuity helicopter, they flew on Mars. Now they're focusing on drones on Earth, which will play an important role in the automated future.
This looks like a strong partner network to work on advancing state-of-the-art drone technology. We look forward to seeing their progress!
We also want to take the time to celebrate our 100th version of this newsletter!
100 excellent weeks of innovative news stories and exciting updates. Thanks to you all for your extremely helpful comments and contributions.
We can't wait to see how the next 100 weeks unfold.
Airports news
- Egis to support the provision of new and upgrade/replacement of air navigation equipment for Hong Kong’s Three-Runway System - To support the 3RS implementation, new air navigation service equipment and replacement/upgrade of existing ones are required.
Market news
- Auterion Partnered With Mars-Exploring Maxon to Galvanize the Drone Industry - Our strategic partnership with Maxon will offer industry-changing avionics and propulsion system integration for software-defined drones that comply with federal directive, and mark the future of drone scaling.
Reports and data
- NAV CANADA reports April traffic figures - In April 2021 weighted charging units increased by an average of 67.5 percent compared to the same month in 2020. As compared to the same month in 2019, April 2021 weighted charging units decreased by an average of 57.7 percent.
- First-quarter marked by the pandemic - The Avinor Group - Passenger traffic is around 80 per cent lower than the level in 2019 and the decrease is greatest at the airports with international traffic.
- EUROCONTROL Comprehensive Assessment of COVID-19's Impact on European Air Traffic - In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, EUROCONTROL is publishing a regular comprehensive assessment of the latest traffic situation in Europe and provides a comparison to the same period in 2019.
- Eurocontrol traffic forecast predicts long road to recovery for aviation - Eurocontrol, never one to sugarcoat matters, today predicted that air traffic in Europe won’t return to 2019 levels until 2024 at the earliest.“We’ll probably have around 50% of 2019 traffic for all of 2021 (5.5 million flights).
Research and innovation
- Keeping an augmented eye on the traffic - SESAR Joint Undertaking - Binoculars are still used in control towers for everyday operations. Now researchers from SESAR JU member, NLR, are investigating augmented reality goggles that will help controllers better manage airport traffic!
UAV and UTM
- NASA partners Longbow Group to develop “drone flight corridors” - Unmanned airspace - NASA and the US Longbow Group announced this week a partnership agreement to establish beyond visual line of sight flight-corridors for Advanced Air Mobility unmanned aerial system flight tests in Hampton Roads, Virginia.
- Aviation Regulator provides the Irish drone industry with a pathway to new markets - IAA has today issued its first ‘light UAS operator certificate’ to Manna Aero, the Irish drone delivery operator. Manna Aero was the first company to apply for a LUC, following their recent trials of drone delivery services in rural Ireland.
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