A test bed for measuring UAV servo reliability
This addresses safety hazards in UAS flight operations due to component failures, but it is incremental as it builds on existing test-bed methods with new data.
The study tackled the problem of minimal research on UAS component reliability by assessing a laboratory-designed test-bed for a UAS aileron servo unit using real-world flight data. The result showed no significant difference in reliability after extended operating cycles, as measured by encoder output.
Extant literature suggests minimal research in the area of system reliability of components used in the design of these UAS (Unmanned Air Systems), thus, subjecting UAS to critical failures that may pose a safety hazard to flight operations. The purpose of the study was to critically assess the reliability of a laboratory designed UAS component test-bed operated using real-world data collected from a Boeing Scan Eagle UAS aileron servo unit via a flight data recorder. The study hypothesized that the test-bed unit's replicating a UAS aileron servo motor's reliability, in terms of a base-line measured encoder output of commanded servo positions, will not be significantly different after double and triple periods of time for continuous operating cycles. Study adds to paucity of extant research on UAS reliability and recommends further studies on commercial UAS components reliability and time to failure.