Introducing Optimate: An additional set of visual and auditory tools for aviation professionals
Airbus Unveils Optimate: Revolutionizing Aircraft Autonomy for a Safer Future
Airbus, the global aerospace giant, has unveiled Optimate, a groundbreaking autonomy demonstrator designed to support pilots and enhance operational safety. This innovative project integrates cutting-edge sensor fusion and smart automation technologies to facilitate automatic gate-to-gate operations, starting with automated taxiing [1][3][4].
Optimate employs geolocating sensors in tandem with advanced 4D radar and LiDAR technologies to precisely detect the aircraft's surroundings and environment on the ground. The use of 4D LiDAR, in particular, enables the system to perceive the environment in real time with high spatial and temporal resolution, ensuring safety and avoiding obstacles without the need for pilot intervention [1][3][4].
By automating low-speed ground movements such as taxiing, Optimate aims to reduce pilot workload and human error risk, contributing to operational safety improvements. This could pave the way for single-pilot or reduced-crew operations in the future [1][3][4].
Optimate has already been trialled at UpNext's headquarters near Toulouse and on the runways of Blagnac airport. The team behind the project hopes to take it a step further by testing it at an international airport [5].
The Optimate ground test bench, named OPTI1, is a fully-electric truck equipped with an A350 virtual flight deck and sensor technology, serving as a virtual assistant for safe and automatic guided aircraft during taxi [6]. Initially, the focus is on the taxi phase of the mission, but the ultimate goal is to extend this automation throughout the flight phases on the ground [6].
Optimate is the culmination of a three-year partnership between Airbus and various industry stakeholders, researchers, and regulatory bodies, including the French Civil Aviation Authority. It represents a significant step forward in the field of aviation autonomy, building upon the successes of Airbus' previous projects such as VERTEX and ATTOL [2].
As the global jetliner fleet is predicted to double over the next twenty years to satisfy demand, the need for innovative solutions to address pilot workload, increase safety, and navigate increasingly congested and complex airports becomes increasingly urgent [7]. Optimate is poised to meet these challenges head-on, offering a promising future for the aviation industry.
[1] Airbus UpNext [2] Optimate: A New Era of Autonomy in Aviation [3] Airbus UpNext: Optimate Demonstrator [4] Airbus UpNext: Optimate Demonstrator - Technical Specifications [5] Airbus UpNext: Optimate Demonstrator - Trials and Testing [6] Airbus UpNext: OPTI1 Ground Test Bench [7] Airbus UpNext: Gate-to-Gate Autonomy
