2024 Corporate Aviation Leadership Summit

Reliable Robotics says the FAA has accepted its&nbsp;certification plans for the autonomous flight control system it plans to install on aircraft to enable remotely piloted operations under a supplemental type certificate (STC).
According to Reliable Robotics, its system can enable fully autonomous gate-to-gate operations through continuous autopilot engagement and an advanced navigation system. “Continuous autopilot engagement” is a term the FAA has used to distinguish the system from traditional autopilots, most of which cannot be used for taxi, takeoff, and landing.&nbsp;
“You get on the plane, you turn on the battery, and then you turn the autopilot on, and everything else is done through the autopilot, including engine start,” Reliable Robotics co-founder and CEO Robert Rose told FutureFlight. “All of the checklists are processed automatically through the system, and you don't turn the autopilot off until you're back on the ground at the destination airport and you've taxied to your parking spot and the shuts the engine off.”
In the near term, Reliable Robotics says this technology could enable safe single-pilot operations as early as next year. Eventually, the company aims to certify its system for remotely piloted operations with no crew on board.
Rose said he expects to have the first STC approved for installations in the next 18 to 24 months. He noted that while it is difficult to predict how long it will take regulators to approve remotely piloted, uncrewed flights, he believes it could happen by the end of this decade.&nbsp;
Reliable Robotics’ first STC will cover the installation of its autopilot system in Cessna 208 Caravan single-engine turboprops, and it intends to make the system available for more types of aircraft in the future. The Mountain View, California-based company has already tested the system extensively in the Caravan as well as a Cessna 172, flying from its test base at San Martin Airport near San Jose.&nbsp;
The company has been awarded contracts <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2022-04-26/us-air-force-turns-reliable-robotics-guidance-autonomous-operations">with the U.S. Air Force</a> and <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2023-05-01/nasa-and-reliable-robotics-partner-uas-safety">NASA</a> to design, develop, and test autonomous flight capabilities, and to study the safe integration of uncrewed aircraft in the National Airspace System.&nbsp;
The FAA’s acceptance of Reliable Robotics’ certification plans marks the completion of the third of five stages in the FAA’s certification process for the STC. First, the company had to come to an agreement with the FAA on a <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2022-08-23/faa-accepts-reliable-robotics-certification-basis-pilotless-technology">G-1 certification basis</a>, which they wrapped up in August 2022.&nbsp;
In the second stage of the certification process, the FAA must approve the <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2023-01-04/faa-clears-reliable-robotics-next-stage-remote-operations-approval">means of compliance</a>, or G-2 issue papers, which detail how the company will comply with the rules defined in its G-1 certification basis. Rose said the FAA has accepted nearly all of the means of compliance Reliable Robotics has put forth in the G-2 issue papers. “It’s almost done,” he said. “There's a few details that I think are more bureaucratic in nature that we're working through with the FAA.”
<h3 class="subheading">Continuous Autopilot Consists of Multiple Elements</h3>
The company’s autopilot involves both software and hardware, most of which it has developed in-house. Its flight control system consists of three flight computers that control two sets of actuators on each of the primary flight control surfaces. Its navigation system uses a redundant suite of advanced sensors, including radar altimeters, magnetometers, and GPS units.&nbsp;
While the company has not revealed many details about the various sensors in its system, Rose said it was inspired by systems used in the space industry. Rose and several of his colleagues at Reliable Robots are former SpaceX engineers.&nbsp;
To test out its new technology and gather valuable flight data, Reliable Robotics has launched its own cargo airline, which it recently named Reliable Airlines, under a Part 135 operator’s certificate. Reliable Airlines has a fleet of five Cessna planes it uses to deliver cargo for FedEx in the Albuquerque, New Mexico area.&nbsp;
“It was important for us to stand up this airline from scratch so that we could get a head start on modifying all of the operational procedures that an airline is going to need to have in order to be able to run the [autopilot] system,” Rose said.&nbsp;
Although Reliable Robotics will initially use its autonomous flight system for cargo operations, it could also be used for passenger flights. “There's nothing in the certification that says that we can only use this for cargo applications,” Rose said.
Reliable Robotics isn’t the only company working to certify self-flying airplanes. Rivaling company <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2023-04-13/xwing-begins-faa-certification-process-superpilot-autonomous-flight-system">Xwing</a> recently began the FAA approval process for its “Superpilot” autonomous flight control system in the Cessna 208B Grand Caravan, which it says is the first standard-category large uncrewed aircraft system (UAS) to receive official project designation from the regulator. Boston-based <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2023-05-25/merlin-extends-autonomous-flight-trials-new-zealand">Merlin</a>&nbsp;is also working on a similar autopilot system, and new Canadian cargo airline start-up <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2023-07-11/transport-canada-grants-13-million-contract-autonomous-flight-start-ribbit">Ribbit</a> is preparing to conduct autonomous flight trials in northern Canada.

Science & Technology Editor

Hanneke Weitering

FAA Accepts Reliable Robotics’ Certification Plans for Autonomous Flight Control System

Reliable Robotics has teamed with NASA to improve the safety of remotely-piloted aircraft in the National Airspace System using FAA primary surveillance radar (PSR) data. Specifically, the partners wanted to explore the use of existing radar infrastructure for automated detect-and-avoid (DAA) systems on board autonomous aircraft.&nbsp;
Reliable Robotics is a California company developing “drop-in” autonomy kits to give legacy aircraft remote-piloting capabilities. Together with NASA, Reliable Robotics conducted a flight-test campaign in California using two of its experimental aircraft. During the flight tests, Reliable Robotics&nbsp;coordinated multiple encounters between the two aircraft while the FAA’s ground-based radars and commercial air-to-air radars tracked the flights and collected data.&nbsp;
NASA is using that flight data to analyze and characterize the accuracy of the FAA’s radars, and the results of the study&nbsp;will help the agency develop a safety case for DAA systems using PSR data. Reliable Robotics says&nbsp;making high-quality PSR data available to pilots could significantly improve situational awareness and help to prevent mid-air collisions.
“We appreciate the close collaboration with the FAA and Reliable Robotics to collect meaningful data from flights to improve our collective understanding of using radar for DAA,” said Brad Snelling, partner chief engineer for the AAM National Campaign at NASA. “These landmark flights will help the entire AAM industry further their understanding and future use of PSR data to enhance aviation safety.”
This article originally was originally published on&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/aerospace/2023-04-27/nasa-reliable-robotics-partner-uas-safety" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">AINonline.com</a>, a&nbsp;FutureFlight sister site.

NASA and Reliable Robotics Partner on UAS Safety

Students at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (ERAU) in Prescott, Arizona, had the opportunity to test out Reliable Robotics’ voice communication system for remotely piloted, highly autonomous aircraft.
Researchers with&nbsp;<a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2020-09-28/reliable-robotics-says-its-flight-management-system-can-change-autonomous">Reliable Robotics</a>&nbsp;visited ERAU's Air Traffic Control (ATC) laboratory earlier this month to demonstrate the company’s autonomous flight and remote piloting capabilities using the university’s virtual simulators. During the demonstration, students took on roles of remote pilots and air traffic controllers to simulate communications in busy airspace.
“People were flying from point A to point B, finishing their climb or starting their descent, but mostly everyone was just at cruise until the tower gave clearance to land,” said Carol Martin, a graduate of Embry-Riddle’s aeronautical science program who volunteered to participate in the simulations while working to earn her aircraft dispatcher certificate. “I learned more about technology development and the value of rigorous testing as I was exposed to the specific challenges Reliable Robotics is working to solve.”
Mountain View, California company&nbsp;Reliable Robotics is working&nbsp;<a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2023-01-04/faa-clears-reliable-robotics-next-stage-remote-operations-approval">to certify an autonomous flight control system</a>&nbsp;that can be installed on existing, legacy aircraft to make them capable of remotely piloted operations. Aircraft equipped with Reliable Robotics’ autopilot technology can taxi, take off, and land without any pilot intervention, and have high-precision navigation capabilities. The tech startup said&nbsp;it is on track to obtain its first supplemental type certificate, covering the conversion of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/general-aviation/2020-09-28/reliable-robotics-flies-unmanned-cessnas">Cessna Grand Caravan</a>&nbsp;utility aircraft, in the second half of this year.&nbsp;
For now, all flight tests conducted by Reliable Robotics have safety pilots on board to monitor the remote-piloting operations and take control of the aircraft if necessary. The company also holds a Part 135 certificate and has been using the cargo operations to collect data that is helping to refine its autopilot technology.
One of the biggest challenges for companies developing remotely-piloted aircraft technologies will be figuring out how to safely integrate large uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs) into a National Airspace System that has so far only dealt with aircraft with&nbsp;pilots on board. Reliable Robotics—as well as competitors such as&nbsp;<a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2022-10-12/nasa-contracts-xwing-study-safety-autonomous-flight-operations">Xwing</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2023-04-12/merlin-wins-1-million-faa-contract-autonomous-flight-trials-alaska">Merlin</a>—have been working closely with the FAA and NASA to integrate autonomous and remotely-piloted operations with the existing ATC infrastructure.&nbsp;
Reliable Robotics chose to test its voice communication system at the university’s lab because it’s “one of the few facilities in the nation that have such a robust ATC simulation environment,” said Chad Healy, senior human factors engineer at Reliable Robotics. “We are very thankful that Embry-Riddle provided us with quick access to highly trained air traffic students. Students could see the end-to-end operations from the air traffic side as well as the pilot side. They provided great feedback throughout the test campaign, and we collected valuable data that will help us refine our system.”

Embry-Riddle Students Test Reliable Robotics’ Remote-pilot Tech

Autonomous flight technology developer Reliable Robotics has partnered with the satellite communications (satcom) provider Inmarsat to help integrate remotely piloted aircraft into the U.S. National Airspace System with a satcom solution specifically designed for uncrewed aircraft systems (UAS).&nbsp;
Reliable Robotics, which is based in Mountain View, California, is developing an autonomous flight system to be installed on existing aircraft to make them capable of remotely piloted operations. The company aims to obtain its first supplemental type certificate, covering the conversion of Cessna Grand Caravan utility aircraft, in the second half of this year. It also holds a Part 135 commercial air carrier certificate and has been testing its autonomous flight technology on cargo flights with pilots on board.&nbsp;
Inmarsat, a 44-year-old British satellite communications company, will work with Reliable Robotics to integrate its remotely piloted aircraft into the National Airspace System using the Velaris connectivity service, which Inmarsat recently developed specifically for beyond-visual-line-of-sight (BVLOS) operations using uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs).&nbsp;
Velaris provides connectivity between remote pilots, aircraft, and air traffic controllers&nbsp;through voice and digital communication links. Powered by Inmarsat’s <a href="https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/business-aviation/2022-05-24/inmarsat-honeywell-launch-swiftjet-l-band-satcom">Elera</a> L-band satellite network, Velaris provides a secure command-and-control link to seamlessly connect pilots on the ground with their remote aircraft fleet. The service requires a small satellite terminal to be installed on&nbsp;the aircraft.&nbsp;
Inmarsat and Reliable Robotics hope that relying on existing and certified airframes and satellite networks will enable them to accelerate the introduction of self-piloted aircraft, bringing the technology to market more quickly and without the need for costly new infrastructure. This technology could also expand the operational range of UAS, or the maximum allowable distance between a remote pilot and the aircraft they’re operating.&nbsp;
“Secure and consistent transmission of digital commands, telemetry, and voice data is critical to remote aircraft operation, where availability and integrity of the link are essential to the overall performance,” said Joel Klooster, Inmarsat’s senior vice president of aircraft operations and safety.&nbsp;
“We greatly appreciate the time and resources Inmarsat has devoted to tailoring a global satellite communications solution to our technical, certification, and commercial needs,” said Reliable Robotics chief business officer Myles Goeller. “It is exciting to work with Inmarsat to deploy a robust satcom system that will support the scaling of remotely operated aircraft and allow us to fly almost anywhere.”
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Inmarsat and Reliable Robotics Partner on Satellite Communications for Remotely Piloted Aircraft

Reliable Robotics has reached a milestone in the development of its autopilot:&nbsp;FAA acceptance of the certification basis for the advanced navigation and autoflight system, which will eventually enable pilotless flights monitored by ground personnel.
The certification basis is for a supplemental type certificate (STC) to install the advanced autopilot in the Cessna 208 Caravan single-engine turboprop. <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2021-10-14/reliable-robotics-gets-100-million-funding-boost-remotely-piloted">Reliable Robotics </a>expects to receive the supplemental type certificate in the second half of 2023.
Under the plan outlined in Reliable Robotics’ G-1 issue paper, which defines the certification basis, the company said, “This STC will enhance safety by enabling continuous autopilot engagement through all phases of aircraft operation, including taxi, takeoff, cruise, landing, braking, and rollout, with a single pilot on board for abnormal procedures.” Reliable Robotics has already demonstrated this kind of operation in the Caravan and also in a Cessna 172, flying from its test base at San Martin Airport near San Jose, California.
“This certification basis is the culmination of years of work with the FAA and represents a key step towards bringing advanced navigation and autoflight systems to normal category aircraft,” said Mark Mondt, director of certification at Reliable Robotics. “We look forward to continuing our work together as we move into the next phase of the certification process.”
In June, Reliable Robotics achieved another milestone:&nbsp;flying a human-piloted Caravan in cargo operations in the Albuquerque, New Mexico area.
While starting up a Part 135 cargo operation is not by itself hugely significant, what <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2021-10-27/autonomous-aircraft-could-expand-aviation-ecosystem">Reliable Robotics</a> learns about this kind of operation will inform its ability to fly Caravans and other airplanes without any input from an onboard pilot and eventually with only a manager on the ground monitoring the flight.
“Our goal is not to be an operator,” said chief business officer Myles Goeller, “but to provide systems and services [for other operators] to use in a cost-effective way.”
Systems engineering manager Jonathan Dring sees the Reliable Robotics Part 135 operation as smoothing the&nbsp;transition to autonomous flight. “It’s great learning [experience] to help us develop this capability,” he said. “And it will ease adoption by other operators.”
Meanwhile, Reliable Robotics has&nbsp;received a Small Business Innovation Research Phase II contract from the <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2022-04-26/us-air-force-turns-reliable-robotics-guidance-autonomous-operations">U.S. Air Force</a> Research Laboratory (AFRL) “to design, develop, and test autonomous aircraft capabilities on Air Force platforms.” The company’s plan has always been to make its remotely piloted aircraft system available on many aircraft types, and the AFRL contract will support that effort.
“In the last nine months, there has been a massive increase in automation in defense,” Goeller said. “This is a parallel market for what we’re doing [with commercial aircraft]. It could get faster traction on the Department of Defense side.” Reliable Robotics is discussing a variety of aircraft types that could be fitted with the remotely piloted aircraft system, including C-130 transports, air tankers, and others.
The remotely piloted aircraft system, he said, “is model-agnostic. What is portable and transferable is the system design and software and certification path. But the ground and communications structure is agnostic.”
“If you understand one type, it works with others,” Dring affirmed.
The company is exploring larger aircraft applications on the civil side, including Part 25 transport category certification. “We’re investing in that,” Goeller said.
However, the key to making the remotely piloted aircraft system work is not just the advanced autopilot but contingency management. In its flight testing in a Cessna 172 and the Caravan, Reliable Robotics has completed autonomous, remotely piloted flights, but with a human pilot onboard. That person's&nbsp;skills help with handling contingencies, such as a system or engine failure, communications breakdowns with the remote operator, a birdstrike, and unanticipated failures.
Designing the <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2020-09-28/reliable-robotics-says-its-flight-management-system-can-change-autonomous">autonomous system </a>and the remote operator capability to be able to respond to such failures is challenging but a key part of making the remotely piloted aircraft system work. This is why Reliable Robotics has designed its own software and hardware. “We design the autopilot components differently,” said Dring. “They’re designed for stable operations, but the autopilot [incorporates] full contingency conditions. It’s completely automating the flight envelope and requires more specialized components versus a regular autopilot.”
Reliable Robotics, headquartered in Mountain View, California, employs more than 100 people, mostly engineers and certification specialists, according to Goeller.

Editor-in-Chief

Matt Thurber

FAA Accepts Reliable Robotics' Certification Basis For Pilotless Technology

Autonomous flight systems developer Reliable Robotics is teaming with machine-learning-based avionics specialist Daedalean to develop advanced navigation and situation awareness systems for commercial aircraft operations. According to the partners, the proprietary flight-automation systems they are working on will support both onboard and remote pilots in making faster, better-informed operational decisions based on data from advanced sensors.
Last month, Reliable Robotics completed a series of&nbsp;test flights controlled by a ground-based pilot at its headquarters in Mountain View, California. From a distance of over 50 miles, the pilot instructed a Cessna 208 Grand Caravan to taxi, takeoff, and fly over a populated area, and then land, while communicating with air traffic controllers via the aircraft’s onboard radios.
According to Reliable Robotics, it expects to take another two years to achieve certification for its remote-pilot technology. Initially, the company is focused on converting Cessna Caravans mainly for freight operations, but it sees potential to do the same for other aircraft types and for other applications. 
The company maintains that automation will give cargo operators, in particular, greater flexibility in opening new routes and allow these to be launched more quickly in response to shifting demand. It would not comment on reports that express delivery giant Fedex has shown interest in using the system.
The business plan calls for increased service to smaller regional airports in underserved markets. The company claims that turnarounds between flights will be quicker and more efficient because they won’t depend on the availability of local flight crew in these locations.
“Pilots will no longer be limited to flying specific types of aircraft, the same routes, or only one or two flights a day,” it explained in a statement about the latest phase of flight testing. “Geographically distributed control centers will enable constant operation across time zones, giving remote operators the ability to fly more frequently than traditional airlines.”
Reliable Robotics was founded in 2017 by Robert Rose, who formerly led the development of flight software&nbsp;for SpaceX and the autopilot system for Tesla. It has attracted $33.5 million in funding, mainly from venture capital groups, and is pursuing a business model that would have it operating&nbsp;automated aircraft as a service. 
Switzerland-based Daedalean is developing machine-learning applications based on situational awareness technology that will meet safety standards now being defined by both FAA and EASA. In joint work with the European agency, it has developed high-performance machine-learning algorithms for safety-critical applications that formed the basis for "The Concepts of Design Assurance for Neural Networks," a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.easa.europa.eu/document-library/general-publications/concepts-design-assurance-neural-networks-codann">report</a> published in March 2020. The company is already partnered with avionics manufacturers Avidyne and Honeywell Aerospace, with the latter having invested in it last year.
“Our team has developed advanced machine learning that can adapt to the inherent uncertainties in airspace and increasing levels of onboard autonomy,” said Daedalean founder and CEO Luuk van Dijk. “Bringing our&nbsp;core competencies together was a logical next step to jointly develop a solution set that makes aircraft safer.”
Reliable Robotics started remotely piloted test flights in a smaller Cessna 172 Skyhawk aircraft in 2019. It began&nbsp;testing its system on the Cessna 208 Caravan in June 2020. 
The test flights have been conducted with a remote pilot based in a newly&nbsp;established control center, working in tandem with an onboard safety pilot who monitors flight performance. The company’s goal is to achieve incremental certification to support operations using gradually increasing levels of autonomy.
The Reliable Robotics team has been supported by colleagues from SpaceX’s Falcon 9 and Dragon 2 programs in developing the human interface for the control system and also cybersecurity protection. The company believes that successful commercial flights will depend on highly trained pilots who will transition into remote operations roles that will include communicating with ground and air traffic controllers so that the converted aircraft can use existing airspace and airport infrastructure. 
From the workstations, the remote pilots are expected to maintain situational awareness and manage flight plans similarly to how an onboard pilot would complete the task. The converted aircraft will feature a proprietary sensing and computing platform that will handle fault management in conjunction with added levels of mechanical redundancy.
Meanwhile, rival autonomous flight technology pioneer Xwing is working on what appears to be a similar plan for converting the Cessna Caravan single-engine turboprop aircraft. In December, the company started piloted commercial cargo flights after receiving FAA approval for its Part 135 charter operation in late November. It is using these flights as a means to continue development work on its Autoflight System. 
The California-based start-up has been conducting test flights since July 2020 as it prepares to seek approval for operations with its autonomous (non-piloted)&nbsp;Autoflight System, for which work started in 2017. It aims to secure FAA approval to begin autonomous commercial flights in 2022.
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Managing Editor

Charles Alcock

Reliable Robotics Steps Up Remote Piloting Plan with New Partner Daedalean

At a time when each week seems to bring another new entrant to the crowded race to bring autonomous aircraft into commercial service, Reliable Robotics isn't looking to add to the clutter. On the contrary, the&nbsp;believes it can put this ambition by developing a new flight management system (FMS) that it says delivers&nbsp;a fresh approach to automating flying.&nbsp;
The California-based company has already&nbsp;flown a Cessna 172 Skyhawk and a 208 Caravan without pilots in a relatively populated area and normal metropolitan airspace. The flights took place from San Martin Airport, about 25 miles southeast of San Jose, first with an&nbsp;unmanned Cessna 172 on September&nbsp;24, 2019, followed by the Caravan’s first remote automated landing on June 30, 2020.&nbsp;
While these weren't&nbsp;the first unmanned flights of a passenger-type general aviation aircraft, that Reliable Robotics was able to gain FAA approval to conduct the flights so close to major cities in the San Francisco Bay Area is significant. But there is more to what Reliable Robotics is doing, and&nbsp;it claims this could have a profound impact on the advanced air mobility (AAM) or urban air mobility (UAM) sector.
CEO Robert Rose and engineering vice president Juerg Frefel co-founded Reliable Robotics in 2017. According to the company, Rose led flight software at SpaceX and the autopilot program at Tesla, while Frefel formerly led the team developing the computer platform for the Falcon 9 rocket and the Dragon spacecraft. Since it's founding, Reliable Robotics has raised $33.5 million in funding, including an $8.5 million Series A round led by Lightspeed Ventures and a $25 million Series B round led by Eclipse Ventures with participation by Pathbreaker Ventures and Teamworthy Ventures.
The long-term goal, Rose told&nbsp;FutureFlight, is to make more efficient use of the 5,000 public-use airports in the U.S., most of which have a lot of underutilized capacity and are located near where people live. Most people, he explained, might see about 30 of the largest and busiest airports during their travels, while fewer people might occasionally use another 170 smaller regional airports. However, increasingly, people are moving to desirable locations away from metropolitan areas, and the thousands of available airports could be a tremendous resource. “We believe automated aircraft are the key to unlocking these airports for use by regular people,” he said.
Rose is aware that people are still wary of automated vehicles. “It will be quite some time before people are comfortable and the technology is ready to be flying passengers around, but before that, there is a lot of opportunity in the cargo space,” he reflected.
Certainly, many charter flight operators&nbsp;have tried to crack the nut of serving far-flung passengers.&nbsp;But the need for pilots to be available when passengers want to fly hinders the growth of these companies. “When we’ve broken this market down," he said, "a lot of the reason you don’t see this is pilots don’t live next to the airplane or where the demand is.” A huge amount of charter flying is just to reposition the aircraft for the next passenger flight and this adds more cost and logistical challenges for matching available pilots to the aircraft.&nbsp;
“When you automate the aircraft operating model for these kinds of businesses, it completely changes,” he said. Unmanned aircraft would cost less to operate, and what Rose envisions are remotely piloted operations with no need to have a pilot available to fly inside a particular aircraft. Even if passengers insisted on a live pilot onboard, this could be accommodated in the early stages, with higher efficiency obtained by flying the deadhead (passengerless) trips unmanned. The unmanned aircraft would also be ideal for cargo operations.
Rose believes that unmanned aircraft will have a big impact on safety. “In my limited aviation experience, I’ve been astounded at how complex flying a plane is, especially when things go wrong,” he said. “The basics of keeping it in the air requires a great deal of cognitive capability.&nbsp;An unmanned aircraft takes care of flying,” he explained, “and frees a person up to think how to get out of a situation or solve a problem.” If that means the aircraft is guided by a remote crew on the ground, all the better, because at the control center, he said, “We have a lot of people there ready to&nbsp;assist in in the event something does go wrong. We’ve got a room full of experts, a brain trust of people who know how to operate this plane.”&nbsp;
The system that Reliable Robotics has designed for the Skyhawk and Caravan light aircraft operates in parallel with the existing flight controls and it can be switched on and off in case a pilot needs to fly the airplane. For example, after heavy maintenance, a pilot could still conduct a test flight, or someone might need to move the airplane on the ground by taxiing it.&nbsp;
The new system “is tying into the [control] cabling like an existing autopilot would,” Rose said. “We use much stronger, more capable actuators that have greater redundancy and fault management and fault isolation capability.”&nbsp;
The aircraft's existing autopilot wasn’t usable, however, because it isn’t capable of autolandings and the navigation sensors in the existing avionics aren’t precise enough, Rose explained. “We’ve developed a navigation stack that allows us to precisely position the aircraft in the sky or on the&nbsp;taxiway.”
Although he wouldn’t provide too much detail, Rose said, “We have borrowed some techniques learned from the space industry and applied them to aviation. They’re not particularly novel. We’re able to utilize these techniques to show the integrity of navigation. It’s a combination of sensors. That’s where it is novel.”
The concept of an FMS isn’t new to aviation, but Rose still views the various inputs as separate (VOR, DME, GPS, etc.) “The pilot acts as the integrator,” he said, which is true in that the pilot has to interact with the FMS to navigate. He added, “We’ve developed another type of system that fuses this type of information to give a single cohesive view [to the aircraft operator].”&nbsp;
With the automation switched on, the aircraft is then connected to the control center through “redundant control links,” Rose said. The links are VHF or satellite and enable&nbsp;real-time control of the aircraft from the ground.&nbsp;
From a regulatory standpoint, Reliable Robotics sees a pathway under the new FAA Part 23 rules, which are intended&nbsp;to accommodate new technologies. The aircraft have to fit within the existing airspace infrastructure, so they are equipped with ADS-B Out transponders and use VHF for communications with air traffic controllers or to broadcast on local frequencies at non-towered San Martin Airport. The communications are done by the pilot-operator on the ground, via the link to the airplane. The aircraft are approved to fly on an experimental demonstration airworthiness certificate.&nbsp;
Rose was inspired to start Reliable Robotics after reading Uber’s seminal Elevate white paper, which laid out grand plans for electric-powered UAM vehicles carrying people through the air instead of on the ground. “I was really inspired by that,” he said. His family had long been involved in aviation and Rose joined the Civil Air Patrol while in college. “When the paper came out, I thought, ‘this is great, I’m going to jump in.’”
At first, Rose looked into designing new aircraft, like all the other aspiring UAM pioneers. Have worked in the Elon Musk empire at SpaceX and Tesla, he recalled, “I’ve done vehicle design, and it is a slog. I started looking at what it took to do an [already] FAA-certified aircraft, and this is the slog to end all slogs. But I was enamored by the use case and the potential of automated aircraft.”
When he spoke with the companies in the eVTOL/electric space, he found that their founders were wary of the FAA certification process and thought they might have an easier time seeking certification in other countries, then bringing their products to the U.S. for FAA acceptance. EASA, after all, was the first regulator to develop rules covering eVTOL and electric aircraft. But Rose soon learned that this pathway wasn’t going to make manufacturers’ jobs easier and that working with the FAA early would be far more productive.
So the problem that Rose decided to solve was not how to design a new eVTOL or electric airplane but something that all of the designers and manufacturers of those products would need, the ability to fly without a pilot and the regulatory framework that would allow this. “I got pretty excited about this,” he said. And after all, the SpaceX rockets that he had helped make possible were the ultimate unmanned vehicle. “At SpaceX there was no process to do a commercial launch, and we created it,” he said. “We were the ones explaining to the FAA the process by which they’d certify it.”&nbsp;
Ultimately, he explained, “Somebody needs to do this, and why not us?” The result was Reliable Robotics and the recent culmination of its efforts, the unmanned flights of the Skyhawk and the Caravan.&nbsp;
The next steps are to continue testing, working with designated engineering representatives, and gaining FAA confidence and a clear pathway to certification so customers can start operating unmanned aircraft, at least for cargo transport. In fact, the aircraft registration number of the Caravan--N927FE--pretty much reveals one company that is seriously interested in this technology (FedEx), although Rose can’t speak about it due to a nondisclosure agreement. “There is definitely interest by a number of operators in the U.S.,” he said.
Rose is confident that passengers will eventually elect to fly on unmanned aircraft. “I’m optimistic that when automated aircraft become more commonplace, they are going to be in a situation where there will be a mechanical failure or weather event that leaves you stranded, and the choice is to stay overnight or jump in an automated plane that’s leaving that night.”

Reliable Robotics

News

FAA Accepts Reliable Robotics’ Certification Plans for Autonomous Flight Control System

NASA and Reliable Robotics Partner on UAS Safety

Embry-Riddle Students Test Reliable Robotics’ Remote-pilot Tech

Inmarsat and Reliable Robotics Partner on Satellite Communications for Remotely Piloted Aircraft

FAA Accepts Reliable Robotics' Certification Basis For Pilotless Technology

Reliable Robotics Steps Up Remote Piloting Plan with New Partner Daedalean

Reliable Robotics Says Its Flight Management System Can Change the Autonomous Flight Equation

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