NASA completes external vision system testing for X-59 aircraft

According to an article published on the NASA website on September 9, 2021, researchers at NASA's Langley Research Center have successfully completed various testing tasks for NASA's X-59 Silent Ultrasonic Technology (QueSST) aircraft External Vision System (XVS), including flight testing and structural stability testing. The system is ready to be installed on the X-59.

The QueSST aircraft is expected to achieve supersonic speeds in low frequency burst conditions, in order to provide data for US and international regulatory agencies to change laws related to supersonic commercial aviation.

To achieve this goal, NASA engineers have designed a uniquely shaped aircraft with a long nose that requires the cockpit to be located at a lower position on the aircraft body, without leaving space for the front window. This layout creates visual barriers for pilots and requires an external visual system to provide visual assistance.

XVS is a forward facing multi camera system capable of displaying the airspace in front of the X-59 QueSST. Its main window is a 4K display, allowing pilots to safely see the situation along their flight path, while also providing augmented reality (AR) graphical flight data for approach, landing, and takeoff.

Randy Bailey, the head of the XVS subsystem, stated that XVS's performance and security level are equivalent to or better than traditional front windows.

The XVS technology flight test was conducted on NASA's Beech UC-12B test aircraft, with its system hardware installed in the cabin and connected to an external camera on the nose.

In the test, one pilot sat in the cockpit and could see the situation along the flight path through the front window, while the other pilot sat in the cabin and only used XVS for external perception. The actual test scenario is whether the pilot can see a smaller NASA aircraft. The test includes highly challenging close range offset path scenarios (such as discovering other vehicles in a blind spot while driving), crossing the trajectory of another aircraft at the same altitude (similar to passing through a dangerous intersection), and a scenario where the target aircraft approaches the test aircraft from below.

In each scenario, two pilots press a button at the moment they discover another aircraft, recording the time it takes for them to identify the target aircraft for research purposes.

After successfully conducting XVS flight tests, researchers conducted a series of vibration tests to verify the structural integrity of the system.

XVS consists of three main components: XVS rack, camera system, and 4K display. The XVS rack contains computer processors, network equipment, video distribution, and power distribution components, serving as the brain of the system.

Researchers tested the rack system by simulating the vibration level in the flight environment to ensure that the equipment can operate normally when installed on the X-59.

Lockheed Martin is manufacturing the X-59 at the Skunk Works in Palmdale, California, and has developed an environmental requirements and testing document that defines the expected flight environment for the X-59.

Source: Aviation Briefing