uAvionix secures FAA Contract for Innovative Frequency Management in UAS

uAvionix has announced its prosperous acquisition of a contract from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to conduct extensive demonstrations of a Frequency Assignment Manager (FAM) as part of the uAvionix SkyLine Command and Control Communications Service Provider (C2CSP) management system.

Dynamic Frequency Allocation for Unmanned Aircraft

This comprehensive presentation aims to empower a Frequency Management Association (FMO) utilizing the SkyLine Platform to dynamically allocate available frequencies within the globally recognized UAS C-Band Command and Non-Payload Control (CNPC) spectrum, specifically between 5030-5091MHz, to unmanned aircraft equipped with CNPC radios. uAvionix plans to utilize established technologies currently in operation for UAS missions, including the SkyLine C2CSP platform and the SkyLink CNPC radios.

Collaboration with Northern Plains UAS Test Site

In this initiative, uAvionix has partnered with the Northern Plains UAS Test site (NPUASTS), which has extensive experiance with centralized C2 Service Provision thru uAvionix’s operations within the North Dakota Vantis UAS network.

Key Demonstration Objectives

The demonstrations are designed to showcase several critical capabilities:

• Management of a pool of allocated and licensed frequencies within a specific geographic area by the SkyLine C2CSP platform.
• Allocation of available frequencies (both allocated and currently unused) to specific CNPC radios for designated missions.
• Capability of SkyLink CNPC radios to receive assigned frequencies for their respective missions.
• Operation of SkyLink CNPC radios on the designated frequencies throughout the mission duration.
• Monitoring and execution of C2CSP functionalities by the SkyLine platform for the SkyLink CNPC radios during missions.
• Demonstration of non-interference when multiple aircraft operate on uniquely assigned frequencies in close proximity.

Advancing UAS Operations with Dynamic Spectrum Management

The primary objective of this contract is to validate and demonstrate real-world applications of dynamically allocated FAA-protected spectrum for UAS operations.By doing so,uAvionix builds on the foundational work of organizations such as the ITU,ICAO,RTCA,FAA,and FCC in establishing service rules for UAS CNPC protected frequencies,thereby bringing Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) operations closer to everyday implementation. The proposed solution aims to manage a limited amount of protected spectrum for multiple operators concurrently, utilizing specialized radios on each drone and on the ground to dynamically adjust frequency assignments as needed, specifically for the duration of each flight.