BARNARD MICROSYSTEMS LIMITED

generating ideas, creating software and designing innovative products...

Introduction

• We design navigation, comms and flight control systems for UAs
• We develop miniaturised sensor instruments for use on UAs
• We develop small Unmanned Aircraft for use in R+D applications
• We write software to process data from instruments on an UA
• We create UAS strategies for companies and venture capital firms
• Associations
• Member of Unmanned Vehicle Systems (UVS) International
• Member of the Association of Unmanned Vehicle Systems International

     Corporate brochure

• Download a copy of our Corporate Brochure.

• We design miniature, high performance, systems:

• Unmanned Aircraft navigation, communication and flight control systems;
• Unmanned Aircraft collision sensing systems;
• Unmanned Aircraft based sensor systems.

• We develop small Unmanned Aircraft for use in Research and Development applications.
• We write software and develop strategies:

• software to process and analyse data from instruments on a Unmanned Aircraft;
• Unmanned Aircraft application strategies.

• We specialise in high performance, low signal level and high frequency, electronic and optoelectronic circuit and system design. We also develop scientific data processing and data fusion software.

We provide independent, professional advice and system design and development services. We are especially focused on the civilian aspects of Unmanned Aircraft Systems and their sensor systems, although many of these high performance systems can be used in security applications.

• return to top

We design,develop and test high performance navigation, communication and flight control systems, based on years of experience in the design of optoelectronic transceivers operating from 155 MBit per second right up to 11.3 GBit per second.

• Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU)
• Flight Control Unit (FCU)
• Communications Management Unit (CMU)
• Air speed indicator unit for an Unmanned Aircraft
• Ultrasonic altimeter, for use in automated take off and landing
• Precision microwave and millimetre wave altimeter and collision detection unit

We attend the major international technical conferences to ensure that we are up to date with the latest technical advances and are aware of the latest optoelectronic and microwave components.

return to top

The latest additions to our microwave and optoelectronic test equipment: the HP 54825A oscilloscope with a bandwidth of 500 MHz and a sampling rate of 2 GSa/s, on top of an Agilent 4285A Precision LCR meter.

• Scanning LIDAR systems
• Imaging systems mounted on a stabilised platform:

• high resolution visual
• infra-red
• thermal

• Stereo imaging systems mounted on a stabilized platform

return to top

• A small Unmanned Aircraft, typically with a 1.5m wingspan, for use in Research and Development activities to test navigation, flight control, communication and sensor systems. These Unmanned Aircraft are based on the following airframes:

• Ripmax Bossanova
• Irvine Tutor 40
• Vmar Stik
• multi-engine airframes of our own design

• We design towed sensor systems with active flight stabilisation

Unmanned Aircraft test flight in an urban environment

return to top

• Ground control software
• Image correction and merging
• Management and display of stereo imagery
• Integration of:

• visual, Infra-red and thermal images
• magnetic and gravity data into maps

return to top

Unmanned Aircraft Systems technology presents decisive advantages in many areas of activity. However, there may also be problems in the immediate application of this technology. Timing is critical. Wait too long and your competitors could well reap tremendous cost savings, or, benefit from more accurate survey data. Proceed without a strategy and you could waste money when you confront unexpected regulatory issues and the unreliability of current Unmanned Aircraft. We are a completely independent company and can help to define a detailed strategy, identifying areas in which Unmanned Aircraft technology could benefit your business. We will suggest whether you should get involved at all and if so, when you should get involved and at what level.

return to top

• The Barnard Microsystems Team was selected as one of six teams funded by the UK Ministry of Defence to participate in the Grand Challenge competition in August 2008. The inauguration meeting occurred at the Army Urban Warfare training centre at Copehill Down on Mondat 30th July 2007.
• We will be using technology developed for pipeline monitoring in the competition and we will also apply new technology developed as part of the Grand Challenge to improve our pipeline monitoring capabilities
• For more details on our involvement in the MoD Grand Challenge

return to top

We are working within the context of EuroCAE Working Group 73 to contribute towards recommendations to enable Unmanned Aircraft Systems to fly in non-segregated air space. Our contributions to date include:

• EuroCAE Working Group 73 meeting in Paris from 21 - 22 March 2007
• EuroCAE Working Group 73 Plenary Meeting at EuroControl HQ in Brussels from 29 - 31 May 2007
• We are an active contributor in the Command and Control Sub-Group 3 of EuroCAE Working Group 73 developing the recommendations for the integration of Unmanned Air Vehicles in commercial air space.

• Dr Joseph Barnard of Barnard Microsystems Limited is the "Small UAS Focus Group" Leader in EuroCAE Working Group 73. A Small (< 150 kg takeoff weight) Unmanned Aircraft Systems Special Interest Group web site has been set up at www.smalluas.com where anyone can view progress and contribute towards the development of a global set of recommendations in respect of the air worthiness, operations and command and control of small Unmanned Aircraft Systems.
• EuroCAE Work Group 73 Leaders Meeting at EUROCONTROL HQ in Brussels on Monday 8^th October to discuss progress on recommendations for air worthiness, operations and command and control of Unmanned Aircraft Systems.
• EuroCAE Working Group 73 Plenary Meeting at the Galileo Avionica site just outside Rome from Monday 29^th October to Wednesday 31^st October 2007. Dr Joseph Barnard is the Focus Group Leader for the Small Unmanned Air Systems Group.
• EuroCAE Work Group 73 Command and Control Sub-Group meeting in Prague on Tuesday 27^th November and Wednesday 28^th November 2007. Barnard Microsystems Limited is a contributor to the work of this Sub-Group.
• EuroCAE Work Group 73 Sub-Group 4 meeting at EUROCONTROL HQ in Brussels on Monday 28^th of January 2008. Dr Joseph Barnard of Barnard Microsystems Limited is the Focus Group Leader of Sub Group 4 on light Unmanned Aircraft Systems.
• EuroCAE Work Group 73 Plenary Meeting at EUROCONTROL HQ in Brussels on the 13^th and 14^th of February 2008.
• Two day meeting on 20^th and 21^st February 2008 at European Defence Agency (EDA) HQ in Brussels to attend meeting arranged by the Air4All Consortium discussing the development of a Road Map for the Insertion of Unmanned Aircraft in Civil Air Space.

Stitched, panoramic view of main meeting room at EDA HQ. The curvature on the tables in the foreground is an artifact of the image stitching process.

• EuroCAE Work Group 73 Sub-Group 4 meeting at EUROCONTROL HQ in Brussels on Tuesday 6^th of May 2008.

• Two day meeting on 7^th and 8^th of May 2008 at EUROCONTROL HQ in Brussels to attend the second day of the meeting arranged by the Air4All Consortium and the EUROCONTROL UAS Workshop organised by Holger Matthiessen.

return to top

See the papers + presentations section to download a copy of any of our papers and / or presentations.

We contribute articles to industry standard publications. We also attend and contribute at major conferences, to keep abreast of the latest developments and requirements, in respect of UAVs and the associated navigation, flight control and sensor systems:

• Defence Systems and Equipment International (DSEi) 2005 in London.
• Farnborough 2006 in the U.K.
• The Society of Exploration Geophysicists Conference 2006 in New Orleans.
• The Optical Fibre Conference (OFC) 2007 in Anaheim, California.
• Paper in the June 2007 issue of the oil and gas exploration industry magazine called Hart E&P.
• Presentation at the UAV 2007 Conference in Paris from 12 - 14 June 2007.
• Defence Systems and Equipment International (DSEi) 2007 in London.

Interesting dual rotor UAV helicopter at the Harris stand at DSEi 2007.

• ASTRAEA Meeting in Bristol on 17^th October, 2007. Barnard Microsystems Limited is not as yet involved in ASTRAEA.
• Dubai Air Show 2007 in Dubai from Sunday 11^th November to Tuesday 13^th November 2007.

Dr Joseph Barnard at the controls of an F18 simulator at the Boeing stand at the Dubai Air Show 2007.

• Inaugural meeting of the newly formed AUVSI London Chapter on Tuesday 20^th November, 2007. Dr Joseph Barnard is the Air Systems Officer in the AUVSI London Chapter.

• Presentation given at the Institute of Engineering and Technology ("IET") Seminar on 5^th December 2007 at Savoy Place in London on "Communicating with UAVs", where the title of Dr Barnard's presentation was "Small UAV (< 150 kg TOW) Command, Control and Communication Issues".
• Attended the West of England Aerospace Forum in Bristol on Wednesday 19^th March 2008.
• Presentation of a paper at the UAV Systems 23^rd International Conference at Bristol from 7^th - 9^th April 2008.

return to top

© Barnard Microsystems Limited 2006 - 2008