A paper entitled "
UAS Pilot Performance Comparisons with Different Low Size, Weight and Power Sensor Ranges", has been awarded Best Paper of Session at this year’s 39th Digital Avionics Systems Conference.This paper covered the results of the second low size, weight, and power (SWaP) human in-the-loop (HITL) simulation conducted in the Human-Autonomy Teaming (HAT) Laboratory at NASA Ames Research Center. The study evaluated detect-and-avoid (DAA) system and pilot performance under four low SWaP sensor ranges between 1.5-3.0nmi. During experimental scenarios, active-duty UAS pilots responded to scripted DAA conflicts against non-cooperative intruders while flying a RQ-7 Shadow model at varied speeds along a pre-filed flight path in Class E airspace. Findings revealed that a minimum sensor range of at least 2.5nmi was necessary to enable the minimum alerting times required for pilots to maintain safe separation (i.e., DAA well clear) in the worst-case scenarios. The results were also briefed to RTCA Special Committee 228, and informed the development of DAA display and radar requirements for small-to-medium Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) flying with alternative surveillance equipment and aircraft performance capabilities in the National Airspace (NAS).
