Electromagnetic Compatibility/Interoperability Research Tools For Aging Aircraft COTS Insertion

This Research and Development (R&D) effort will produce an architecture and prototype for performing quick-look analysis of Electromagnetic (EM) Compatibility (EMC) using Modeling and Simulation (M&S) technologies. The target domain will be aircraftsustainment and will focus on the insertion of commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) technologies into existing aircraft. COTS technologies provide a cost-effective solution for aging aircraft sustainment problems. However, electromagnetic compatibility (EMC)problems between inserted COTS components and aircraft systems have prevented the full realization of COTS technology sustainment benefits. We believe that a standard approach for measuring and modeling EM characteristics of aircraft subsystems will allowquick, more thorough, and less expensive approaches to EMC analysis. In addition, the use of the HLA will support the quick reconfiguration and reuse of aircraft EM models. The Phase I effort will examine existing standards for EM modeling and will definean M&S framework using the High Level Architecture (HLA) for distributed modeling of EM systems. Emerging work in Micro-electro Mechanical (MEMS) sensor technology will be investigated as an approach to instrumenting equipment for automated measurement,assessment and analysis using the tool. Electromagnetic Compatibility Analyses are used in virtually every industry producing or using sensitive electronic systems. Commercial aircraft customers would likely be the first commercial application of thisresearch. The automotive industry faces similar EMC issues during the design and testing of automobiles. Additional uses might be to evaluate the effect of unexpected / unauthorized EM equipment aboard an aircraft, such as laptops, cell phones, or evenelectromagnetic pulse (EMP) devices intended to disrupt aircraft electronics. AEgis Technologies Group intends to commercialize and offer the tool as a part of our commercial Modeling and Simulation (M&S) Tool Suite. The use of MEMS sensor technologiesmight offer a cost effective method of measuring and assessing EMC problems.