Platform Autonomy - Sate-of-the-Art and Future Perspectives from an S&T Point of View

Abstract

The Applied Vehicle Technology Panel (AVT) is an international network of defence scientists and engineers dedicated to increasing the performance of new and ageing vehicles in the air, sea, land, and space domains. This network consists of about 700 experts from all fields of vehicle design, including power and propulsion, mechanical structures and material, as well as flow physics. AVT is one of the seven panels of the Collaborative Support Office pertaining to the NATO Science and Technology Organization (STO).1 Additionally, the STO is comprised of a dedicated research centre known as the Centre of Maritime Research and Experimentation (CMRE) as well as the Office of the Chief Scientist (OCS). Unmanned vehicles for all domains (UxV) and aspects of vehicle autonomy are an important topic in AVT’s technical portfolio. This article is based on activities performed in AVT and on contributions to a NATO Science and Technology symposium on ‘Autonomous Systems’ in fall 2014. The article focuses on aerial and space vehicles, while many issues and statements may also apply to land or maritime systems.