Raytheon tests multiple UAV control system

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Raytheon tests multiple UAV control system

FALLS CHURCH, Va., April 10 (UPI) -- A single control system developed by Raytheon has successfully controlled simultaneously unmanned aerial vehicles and an unmanned surface vehicle.

The Multiple Vehicle Control System (MVCS) is aimed at eventually placing multiple unmanned assets under the control of a single unit rather than relying on a specific system for each vehicle.

"The unmanned air systems (UAS) that are deployed today consist of one ground station with one type of air vehicle," explained Steve Daniel of the Naval Air Systems Command. "The state-of-the-art in UAS system development is one ground station with multiple air vehicles."

The MVCS is based on Raytheon's Tactical Control System and manages multiple video streams, allowing the operator to coordinate the activities of unmanned vehicles as part of a single mission. The prototype system is based on STANAG-4586 specifications, which make it compatible with standard NATO information-sharing technology for UAVs.

Raytheon said the recent exercise was based on a rescue-mission scenario involving two Manta tactical UAVs flying above the Arizona desert, and an unmanned boat on Chesapeake Bay.

The scenario involved the detection and engagement of enemy forces and relocation the extraction point for the imperiled Special Forces team to a secondary location, all while juggling imagery and commands among the three vehicles from a control station outside Washington.