The ScanEagle is a fixed wing, long endurance Unmanned
Aerial Vehicle (UAV) developed by Insitu, a subsidiary of Boeing. With a 3.1 meter wingspan, 1.4 meter length and
a 20 kilogram mass, it utilizes a heavy fuel (JP-5 or JP-8) engine to fly at cruising
speeds of 50-60 knots with a maximum speed of 80 knots (Insitu, 2013) .
The ScanEagle has a flight endurance of over 24 hours and a flight
ceiling of 5,950 meters (Insitu, 2013) .
The
ScanEagle uses a command, control, and communications suite that allows the
operator the ability to send and receive signals to the aircraft during Line-of-Sight
(LOS) operations and Beyond-Line-of-Sight (BLOS) operations. Typically LOS command and control (C2) data
links use a C Band data link that uses low GHz frequencies for downlink,
3.7-4.2 GHz, and 5.9-6.4 for uplink (Oh, Piegl, & Valavanis, 2008) . C Band is strategically chosen for LOS C2
because the low GHz frequencies are less affected by extreme weather conditions
(Oh, Piegl, & Valavanis, 2008) . However, the ScanEagle uses UHF for LOS
command and control; and a Common Data Link (CDL) for BLOS operations. CDL is a jam resistant spread spectrum
digital microwave link only used by the military.
ScanEagle’s
Satellite-based communications (SATCOM) C2 platform used for BLOS operations
utilizes a 900 MHz or 1.3 GHz L band frequency (Wilke, 2007) . Due to the remote applications of the
ScanEagle, the C3 data link infrastructure is small and portable. The long range antenna uses a 1.8 meter
circular polarized dish with an effective range of 50-100 kilometers (Wilke, 2007) . These terminals also have the ability to link
with one another allowing C3 capabilities to multiple UAVs simultaneously and
the ability to pass off C3 capabilities from one GCS to another. The L-band antenna on the UAV allows for
direct analog video downlink to Insitu’s portable GCS (Rover III) or other
remote video terminals. The ScanEagle
operation requires seven personnel: Analyst (1), Operators (3), Maintainers
(2), and Mission Commander (1) (Wilke, 2007) .
In
regards to military operations, the advantage of BLOS operations is that it
allows operators to be a great distance from the actual UAV; keeping the
operator out of harms way and undetectable.
Two disadvantages of BLOS operations is that it is easier to encounter a
lost link situation and operators have low situational awareness. The unique operations of the ScanEagle is
that the LOS operations are done autonomously and the BLOS operations are done
manually; it’s typically the other way around.
This type of operation arises more human factor elements by the lower
situational awareness of BLOS flight.
There are many potential commercial
applications for BLOS UAV operations.
One in particular, is the application that Beyond Petroleum (BP) was
just presented a Certificate of Authorization from the Federal Aviation
Authority for and that’s the monitoring of oil pipelines in Alaska. The extreme conditions and remoteness of the
pipelines make a perfect prospective for BLOS operations.
References
Insitu. (2013). ScanEagle System. Retrieved
from insitu.com: http://www.insitu.com/systems/scaneagle
Oh, P., Piegl, L., &
Valavanis, K. (2008). Unmanned Aircraft Systems: International Symposium
On Unmanned Aerial Vehicles. New York City: Springer.
Wilke, C. (2007, Feburary 28). ScanEagle
Overview. Retrieved from csdy.umn.edu:
http://www.csdy.umn.edu/acgsc/Meeting_99/SubcommitteeE/SEpubrlsSAE.PDF
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