OSU to Expand Unmanned Systems Program

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One of Oregon State's unmanned underwater vehicles. Photo: Tristan Peery, OSU.
An OSU drone carrying a fiber optic temperature sensing cable near a wind generator. Photo: Robert Predosa.




The Autonomous Systems Research Group at Oregon State University plans to significantly expand its unmanned vehicle activities this year for air, ground, and maritime applications to include a local test field and training programs.



According to a university press release, Oregon is ideal for testing unmanned systems because of varied terrain in close proximity, including oceans, coastal dunes, temperate rain forests, valleys, urban areas, volcanoes, lava fields, glaciers and high deserts.



OSU has also partnered with Oregon’s Federal Aviation Administration-approved unmanned aircraft systems test site, the Pan-Pacific UAS Test Range Complex, and SOAR Oregon, an economic development organization.



“This is an important strength area for OSU and an economic opportunity for Oregon,” says OSU Prof. Rob Holman of the College of Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences. 



The university will establish a local test field near Corvallis, Oregon, for training, testing and certification of pilot and new technologies to possibly include a netted area for UAS to circumvent the need for FAA permission. 



“It is surprising how far flight and control systems have already progressed,” says Holman. “But there are still challenges in how to perfect technologies, most intelligently use the new systems, manage the data they produce, and train and certify both the aircrafts and people who operate them.”



“We believe there’s a great deal OSU can contribute.”



The university also plans on acquiring a small fleet of UAS, organizing a flight operations group to develop training and certification standards; and creating privacy and data use policies.



AUVSI's Cascade Chapter provided a $5000 award to the Autonomous Systems Research Group in December 2014 to purchase UAS that will be part of a fleet to be used to conduct research and training of OSU faculty, students and staff. The donation of seed funds was matched by the University.

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