Tube Launched UAV with Glide to Hover Transition

Barron Associates has teamed with Professor Alfred Gates to develop a unique armament that launches from the barrel of a M320, deploys aerodynamic surfaces to become an efficient high-speed glider, and finally transitions to a hovering configuration capable of remote reconnaissance and surveillance. The SWITCHBLADE vehicle concept (Soaring WIng To CHopper with Barrel LAunched DElivery) has been developed to a high level of technical maturity for the glide and hover phases. The aerodynamic design yields a glide range exceeding 1 km, the propulsion system provides over 10 minutes of true hover capability, and a deployment mechanism allows the vehicle to unfold following a tube launch. The Phase I effort will focus on analyzing and refining the design to insure it is capable of withstanding the high accelerations experienced at launch. The team will combine the use of energy absorbing materials and mounting strategies for electronic and propulsion components of the air vehicle with a novel isolation shell to minimize peak launch loads experienced by the vehicle. To minimize technical risk, the team will draw on previous experience developing both tube launched and gun launched air vehicles, including a rifle launched UAV that employs an energy absorbing launch shell.