Unmanned Systems Technology 027 l Hummingbird XRP l Gimbals l UAVs insight l AUVSI report part 2 l O’Neill Power Systems NorEaster l Kratos Defense ATMA l Performance Monitoring l Kongsberg Maritime Sounder

and stresses on it being varied and randomised through a control interface to try different cumulative impacts on the system. Conclusion With gimbals being among the most mission-critical parts for a UAV’s commercial and tactical viability, it is vital that manufacturers continue to adopt the latest technologies available for processing and stabilisation, while continuing to invest in their own core competencies in gimbal production. Acknowledgements The author would like to thank Konstantins Popiks of UAV Factory, Frank Severinsen of UAV Components, Kristjan Tiimus of Threod Systems, Nir Bar Batan of Controp, Evert van Schuppen of Ascent Vision Technologies, and David Pinta of UAV Navigation for their help with researching this article. than the other window materials without becoming scratched or cracked. The optical quality comes from how well the crystals form, down to sub-grains that cannot be seen with the human eye but can certainly interfere with a laser rangefinder. The highest purity and quality of crystal structures are thus reserved for lasers. Testing Standards such as Mil-Std-461 and 810 often set the requirements for the operating tolerances of moisture, shock, vibration and temperature extremes of high-end gimbals, to name a few. Some issues, such as misalignment or boresight errors are unavoidable during the manufacturing process, and must be addressed during testing so that they can be calibrated-out, either in software or mechanically. Given the complexity and number of integrated parts inside gimbal assemblies, however, it is impossible to test and calibrate (or redesign) everything that can go wrong over the system’s lifetime. One approach that can be very useful is Highly Accelerated Stress Screening (HASS). This requires a special chamber capable of subjecting the gimbal to significant shocks, including temperatures from -100 C to +150 C, and high vibration levels and shocks in random or pre-programmed directions. These unearth latent defects in the assembly that could become apparent after several months of use, and encompass anything from loose wires to cold-soldered joints in the PCBs. The manufacturer can then go back through the production process to find where they occur, and replace the relevant manufacturing point with something more resilient. HASS can then be conducted again, to find the next likeliest point of failure during the gimbal’s lifetime, with tests