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Physical Sciences Inc. (PSI) has been awarded an Army Phase I STTR to develop a laser power conversion (LPC) system to enable extended endurance and range of the DoD’s cleared (“blue”) Group 1 small unmanned aerial systems (sUAS). The LPC system will consist of a photovoltaic-based receiver payload integrated with the sUAS power electronics. The payload will capture a laser beam projected from a ground station that autonomously tracks and steers the beam to the payload. Along with their research partner, PSI will transfer, fabricate, and adapt their cutting edge multi-junction photovoltaic research to the sUAS application. These photovoltaic devices will be characterized for efficiency, and thermal and electrical management requirements via modeling and benchtop experiments. PSI will design, develop, and test a benchtop beam launch apparatus that collimates/focuses a laser to a beam profile and spot size compatible with the sUAS-mounted receiver array at distance greater than 500m from source to target. A complete beam steering and tracking system will be defined. Phase I will demonstrate key feasibility criteria and define overall system requirements via directed modeling and empirical testing initiatives. The data will guide the Phase II complete system design, yielding a full concept of operations demonstration.
For more information contact:
Dr. Shin-Juh Chen
Group Leader, Industrial & Environmental Sensors Group
schen@psicorp.com
Physical Sciences Inc.
Office: (978) 689-0003
Acknowledgement of Sponsorship: This work is supported under a contract with the U.S. Army. This support does not constitute an expressed or implied endorsement on the part of the Government.