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UAV ground control station (GCS) is a land- or sea-based control centre that provides the facilities for human control of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs or "drones"). [1] It may also refer to a system for controlling rockets within or above the atmosphere, but this is typically described as a Mission Control Centre.
GCS hardware refers to the complete set of ground-based hardware systems used to control the UAV. This typically includes the Human-Machine Interface, computer, telemetry, video capture card and aerials for the control, video and data links to the UAV.
Larger military UAVs such as the General Atomics MQ-1 Predator feature what resembles a "virtual cockpit". The pilot or sensor operator sits in front of a number of screens showing the view from the UAV, a map screen and aircraft instrumentation. Control is through a conventional aircraft-style joystick and throttle, possibly with Hands on Throttle and Stick (HOTAS) [2] functionality.
In addition, the GCS consists of satellite or long-range communication links that are mounted on the roof or on a separate vehicle, container or building. [3]
Smaller UAVs can be operated with a traditional "twin-stick" style transmitter, [4] as used for radio controlled model aircraft. Extending this setup with a laptop or tablet computer, data and video telemetry, and aerials, creates what is effectively a Ground Control Station. [5]
A number of suppliers offer a combined system that consists of what looks like a modified transmitter combined with what is usually a touch screen. [6] An internal computer running the GCS software sits behind the screen, along with the video and data links.
Larger GCS units are also available that typically fit inside flight cases. [7] As with the smaller units, they feature an internal computer running the GCS software, along with video and data links. Large single or dual screens are also fitted that can be high-brightness or treated with an anti-glare coating to increase visibility in bright sunlight. They can either be placed on the ground, on a portable table, or feature integrated folding legs. [8]
Some portable GCS units are in the HOTAS (Hands On Throttle And Stick) layout. This layout includes a 3-Axis Joystick to control yaw, pitch and roll of the UAV. A slide or t-bar fader can increase or decrease the airspeed of the UAV.
GCS software is typically run on a ground-based computer that is used for planning and flying a mission. [9] It provides a map screen where the user can define waypoints for the flight, and see the progress of the mission. It also serves as a “virtual cockpit”, showing many of the same instruments as in manned aircraft.
The General Atomics MQ-1 Predator is an American remotely piloted aircraft (RPA) built by General Atomics that was used primarily by the United States Air Force (USAF) and Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). Conceived in the early 1990s for aerial reconnaissance and forward observation roles, the Predator carries cameras and other sensors. It was modified and upgraded to carry and fire two AGM-114 Hellfire missiles or other munitions. The aircraft entered service in 1995, and saw combat in the war in Afghanistan, Pakistan, the NATO intervention in Bosnia, the NATO bombing of Yugoslavia, the Iraq War, Yemen, the 2011 Libyan civil war, the 2014 intervention in Syria, and Somalia.
The IAI RQ-5 Hunter is an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) originally intended to serve as the United States Army's Short Range UAV system for division and corps commanders. It took off and landed on runways. It used a gimbaled EO/IR sensor to relay its video in real time via a second airborne Hunter over a C-band line-of-sight data link. The RQ-5 is based on the Hunter UAV that was developed by Israel Aerospace Industries.
The AAI RQ-7 Shadow is an American unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) used by the United States Army, Australian Army, Swedish Army, Turkish Air Force and Italian Army for reconnaissance, surveillance, and target acquisition and battle damage assessment. Launched from a trailer-mounted pneumatic catapult, it is recovered with the aid of arresting gear similar to jets on an aircraft carrier. Its gimbal-mounted, digitally stabilized, liquid nitrogen-cooled electro-optical/infrared (EO/IR) camera relays video in real time via a C-band line-of-sight data link to the ground control station (GCS).
Surveillance aircraft are aircraft used for surveillance. They are primarily operated by military forces and government agencies in roles including intelligence gathering, maritime patrol, battlefield and airspace surveillance, observation, and law enforcement.
An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), commonly known as a drone, is an aircraft with no human pilot, crew, or passengers on board. UAVs were originally developed through the twentieth century for military missions too "dull, dirty or dangerous" for humans, and by the twenty-first, they had become essential assets to most militaries. As control technologies improved and costs fell, their use expanded to many non-military applications. These include aerial photography, area coverage, precision agriculture, forest fire monitoring, river monitoring, environmental monitoring, policing and surveillance, infrastructure inspections, smuggling, product deliveries, entertainment, and drone racing.
The Northrop Grumman MQ-4C Triton is an American high-altitude long endurance unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) developed for and flown by the United States Navy and Royal Australian Air Force as a surveillance aircraft. Together with its associated ground control station, it is an unmanned aircraft system (UAS). Developed under the Broad Area Maritime Surveillance (BAMS) program, the Triton is intended to provide real-time intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions (ISR) over vast ocean and coastal regions, continuous maritime surveillance, conduct search and rescue missions, and to complement the Boeing P-8 Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft.
HOTAS, an acronym of hands on throttle-and-stick, is the concept of placing buttons and switches on the throttle lever and flight control stick in an aircraft cockpit. By adopting such an arrangement, pilots are capable of performing all vital functions as well as flying the aircraft without having to remove their hands from the controls.
Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) include both autonomous drones and remotely piloted vehicles (RPVs). A UAV is capable of controlled, sustained level flight and is powered by a jet, reciprocating, or electric engine. In the twenty-first century, technology reached a point of sophistication that the UAV is now being given a greatly expanded role in many areas of aviation.
The General Atomics MQ-9 Reaper is an unmanned aerial vehicle capable of remotely controlled or autonomous flight operations, developed by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems (GA-ASI) primarily for the United States Air Force (USAF). The MQ-9 and other UAVs are referred to as Remotely Piloted Vehicles/Aircraft (RPV/RPA) by the USAF to indicate ground control by humans.
The TAI Anka is a family of unmanned aerial vehicles developed by Turkish Aerospace Industries primarily for the Turkish Air Force. Envisioned in the early 2000s for aerial surveillance and reconnaissance missions, Anka has evolved into a modular platform with synthetic-aperture radar, precise weapons and satellite communication.
The EADS Harfang, formerly known as Système intérimaire de drone MALE is an unmanned aerial vehicle used by the French Air Force, supplementing the RQ-5 Hunter.
The General Atomics MQ-20 Avenger is a developmental unmanned combat aerial vehicle built by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems for the U.S. military.
The GIDS Uqab is a tactical unmanned reconnaissance aerial vehicle built and developed by the Global Industrial Defence Solutions (GIDS) for the joint drone program of the Pakistan Navy and Pakistan Army. The Uqab is a tactical system which can be used for damage assessment, reconnaissance operations, artillery fire corrections, and can perform other variety of security and military operations.
Unmanned aircraft system simulation focuses on training pilots to control an unmanned aircraft or its payload from a control station. Flight simulation involves a device that artificially re-creates aircraft flight and the environment in which it flies for pilot training, design, or other purposes. It includes replicating the equations that govern how aircraft fly, how they react to applications of flight controls, the effects of other aircraft systems, and how the aircraft reacts to external factors such as air density, turbulence, wind shear, cloud, precipitation, etc.
INDELA-I.N.SKY is a Belarusian rotary wing unmanned aerial vehicle, medium-range with the weight up to 140 kg. It is developed and produced by KB INDELA Ltd. Serial production has been set up since 2014.
As of January 2014, the United States military operates a large number of unmanned aerial vehicles : 7,362 RQ-11 Ravens; 990 AeroVironment Wasp IIIs; 1,137 AeroVironment RQ-20 Pumas; 306 RQ-16 T-Hawk small UAS systems; 246 MQ-1 Predators; MQ-1C Gray Eagles; 126 MQ-9 Reapers; 491 RQ-7 Shadows; and 33 RQ-4 Global Hawk large systems.
An autonomous aircraft is an aircraft which flies under the control of on-board autonomous robotic systems and needs no intervention from a human pilot or remote control. Most contemporary autonomous aircraft are unmanned aerial vehicles (drones) with pre-programmed algorithms to perform designated tasks, but advancements in artificial intelligence technologies mean that autonomous control systems are reaching a point where several air taxis and associated regulatory regimes are being developed.
The Bell V-247 Vigilant is a concept by Bell Helicopter to develop a large tiltrotor unmanned aerial vehicle.
The Fuji TACOM is an air-launched unmanned aerial vehicle developed by Fuji Heavy Industries. In 1995, the TACOM UAV was conceived as a platform to test and evaluate the technologies needed for an air-launched UAV for the Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF). Although it was not designed for any specific mission, some missions that the TACOM could potentially undertake included intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition, reconnaissance, electronic warfare, decoy and aerial target.
The General Atomics Mojave is an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) capable of short takeoff and landing (STOL), being developed by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems. First unveiled on December 9, 2021, General Atomics states that it is to fulfill the roles of reconnaissance, close air support, and armed overwatch.
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