In a recent joint venture between Lockheed Martin, Kaman Aerospace, and Neya Systems, an unmanned air and ground emergency evacuation was conducted on March 26th. This included the use of the unmanned aerial system (UAS) Control Segment (UCS) Architecture and K-MAX cargo helicopter.
Jay McConville, director of Lockheed Martin’s Unmanned Integrated Solutions, stated,
"This application of the unmanned K-MAX enables day or night transport of wounded personnel to safety without endangering additional lives. Since the K-MAX returned from a nearly three-year deployment with the U.S. Marine Corps, we’ve seen benefits of and extended our open system design incorporating the UCS Architecture, which allows rapid integration of new applications across industry to increase the safety of operations, such as casualty evacuation, where lives are at stake."
The causality evacuation included a distress call, which alerted the ground operators. Therein, the unmanned ground vehicle is sent to the site to evaluate the situation. Communication is made possible by the UAS control segment architecture, sending signals back to the ground operators. Once the area and injured bodies are identified, the ground operators will request airlift and the K-MAX operators will utilize a tablet to guide landing of the aircraft. The unmanned K-MAX will land close to those who are injured, releasing a strap and seat for the individual to be safely hauled away from danger.
Through a cooperation between three of the leading aerospace companies, this project was made possible through the expertise in unmanned and robotic systems. Dr. Parag Batavia, president of Neya, said,
“Neya is continuing to develop advanced technologies for human robot interfaces for complex platforms and multi-robot missions. Our and Lockheed Martin’s use of the unmanned aircraft system control segment architecture greatly sped up integration of our respective technologies, resulting in a comprehensive capability that can be ultimately transitioned to the warfighter very efficiently.”
Via our proprietary website ASAP AOG, ASAP Semiconductor is a leading distributor of Kaman and Lockheed Martin products. Prospective customers can browse our inclusive inventory of hard-to-find obsolete & current Lockheed Martin and Kaman parts at www.asapaog.com. If you are interested in a part, please feel free to contact our knowledgeable sales staff at sales@asapaog.com or 1-714-705-4780 for a quote.
