Development of a modular model city for Unmanned Aerial Vehicle experiments - A visionary concept

Abstract

The German Aerospace Center (DLR) plans to set-up a model city for experiments of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS). For this endeavor, the aerodrome formerly known as the Magdeburg-Cochstedt Airport has been purchased and upgraded by DLR to serve as the National Experimental Test Center for Unmanned Aircraft Systems. As a part of this test site, the model city is envisioned to be of a modular manner using different kinds of containers serving as infrastructure elements, i.e. (blocks of) houses in a downsized city model. The scale of the model city is envisioned to be 1:4. This scale has been chosen in order to enable flight missions between buildings along streets having a representative width. However, it is important to note that the setup also allows the representation of different scales if the aircraft represents a respectively scaled demonstrator. In accordance with all involved institutes in the project HorizonUAM, a first city plan has been developed and corresponding 3D models have been built. The city plan is based on a generic European city with its characteristic city parts, i.e. city center, residential areas, and industrial and commercial areas. To set up the city for UAV and (downscaled) air taxi experiments, two stationary vertiports are part of the model city. The modular character of the entire city allows for individual setups and scenarios to meet the varying needs of different users from industry and academia for technological and also acceptance studies. It is envisioned that a variety of different experimental data can be generated. For this, a variety of different surface materials, e.g. to conduct tests on optical and noise interference effects, and provision of infrastructure for specific measuring equipment, i.e. electrical outlets, 5G/WIFI antennae, and lighting, are planned.