RELIABILITY ANALYSIS OF THE INDICATED AIRSPEED SENSOR IN UNMANNED AERIAL VEHICLES USING NON-PARAMETRIC METHODS

AERONAUTICAL DRONES, PART 2: CURRENT APPLICATIONS AND TRENDS

This paper examines the current applications and emerging development trends of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), with emphasis on the technological and operational evolution of contemporary drone systems across civil and military domains. The study reviews the expanding use of UAVs in precision agriculture, infrastructure inspection, logistics, emergency response, urban air mobility, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR), electronic warfare and tactical operations, highlighting the operational advantages offered by unmanned platforms in diverse mission environments. The principal challenges affecting future UAV deployment are also analyzed, including battery endurance, cybersecurity, communication reliability, regulatory compliance, airspace integration and environmental constraints. Attention is given also to the increasing role of artificial intelligence, autonomous mission execution, swarm coordination, advanced propulsion technologies and digital airspace management in shaping the next generation of unmanned aircraft systems. Current research directions indicate a transition from individually operated drones toward interconnected, intelligent and highly autonomous aerial systems capable of cooperative decision- making and large-scale deployment. The analysis shows that future progress in unmanned aviation will depend not only on improvements in aircraft performance but also on advances in systems integration, secure communications, resilient autonomy and regulatory frameworks that enable the safe and efficient operation of increasingly complex UAV ecosystems.

Analysis of Critical Issues in the Assembly and Deployment Techniques of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles

With the complexity of chemical warfare threats and the diversification of battlefield environments, traditional toxic agent detection methods are facing bottlenecks such as response delays, coverage blind spots, and personnel safety risks. This research focuses on the application of unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) carried toxic agent sensor systems, aiming to analyze the methods of mounting and deploying the sensors on the UAVs, and to construct a rapid response, high-precision, and highly resistant toxic agent monitoring system. Its significance lies in two aspects: 1. Tactical value: It breaks through the time and space limitations of manual reconnaissance, realizes real-time dynamic perception and early warning of toxic agent contamination, and provides key decision-making support for battlefield command; 2. Application expansion: The research results can be transferred to counter-terrorism, nuclear, biological, and chemical emergency response fields, providing theoretical support and engineering paradigms for the development of unmanned and intelligent chemical defense equipment.

Development of an icing-resilient autopilot for automated egress of small UAVs from dangerous icing conditions

Small fixed-wing unmanned air vehicles (UAVs) weighting under 20 kg are typically not protected against icing. Yet, commercial and military users find interest in operating this class of platform under cold climates where encounters with icing conditions are likely. This paper introduces a new concept named sense-and-egress that aims at safeguarding small UAVs in case of an inadvertent icing encounter. A short overview of the system’s operating principles and a plausible architecture candidate are given. Then, the benefits and drawbacks of the proposed solution are assessed with respect to both unprotected (no ice detection or deicing devices active) and fully ice-protected vehicles. Enabling technologies and knowledge gaps are briefly explored in order to gauge the maturity of the concept. The non-linear flight dynamics model of an existing UAV is built up using results from numerical aerodynamics software. The model is then improved and validated using system identification from existing flight test data. A bespoke path-following autopilot is designed to control the UAV during the escape manoeuvre. The selected control system structure and the tuning procedures for both the attitude controller and the total energy control system are detailed. The ability of the baseline autopilot to perform a simple egress manoeuvre with both clean and iced airframes is assessed in simulation. Simple yet effective solutions are implemented to improve the autopilot performance in icing while preserving its gust resistance capabilities.

Research on Structural Improvements of UAVs under Extreme Weather Conditions

Classification and Assessment of Propeller Faults in Electric Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Drive Trains

Propellers are critical to the safe operation of multicopter unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), as faults can decrease the efficiency of the propulsion system and affect flight performance. Depending on the type and extent of the fault, the effects can range from a slight reduction in performance to a significant loss of thrust that could compromise safety.  Because of the limited amount of sensor data available on board a UAV, propeller damage cannot be measured directly. Therefore, a data-based prediction using available sensors is required. This paper focuses on establishing and predicting a health index for damaged propellers.A test bench is used to investigate the effects of two different types of damage: broken propeller tips and notches at the leading edge. Each type of damage is examined at three levels of severity.  Based on sensor data collected from the test bench, a health index is defined to characterize the remaining performance of the damaged propellers. A two-stage approach for the data-based health prediction is implemented by first classifying the type of the propeller faults, and then employing a random forest regressor to estimate the remaining health.

AERONAUTICAL DRONES, PART 1: CURRENT STATUS AND TRENDS

Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), commonly referred to as drones, have become an essential component of modern aerospace systems due to their fast expansion across civil, commercial and military applications. Advances in lightweight materials, miniaturized electronics, navigation systems and manufacturing technologies have enabled the development of increasingly capable platforms ranging from small multirotor drones to high-altitude long- endurance aircrafts. This paper reviews the current status of the global drone sector by examining market evolution, industrial development and the principal regulatory frameworks governing UAV operations. A technical classification of drone configurations is presented, including fixed-wing, rotary-wing, hybrid VTOL and mission-oriented categories, highlighting their operational characteristics and engineering trade-offs. Representative civil and military platforms are comparatively analyzed in terms of range, payload, endurance, cost and mission capability in order to illustrate current technological trends. Attention is also given to structural materials and manufacturing technologies employed in modern UAV design (composite materials, lightweight alloys, additive manufacturing and modular construction concepts). The analysis shows that progress in materials engineering and airframe design, together with the diversification of operational requirements, is driving the development of increasingly efficient, specialized and adaptable unmanned aircraft. These trends confirm the importance of UAV technologies within the evolving aerospace industry.