Master's Thesis

Many aircrafts are inherent over-actuated regarding their control signals. Especially in the context of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) such redundancies could be helpful to facilitate licensing for commercial operations over inhabited areas. Therefore, new fault-tolerant control algorithms are to be developed and tested at the Institute of Flight Systems and Automatic Control using the example of hybrid UAVs. The object of research is a fixed-wing pusher configuration with four additional rotors, which enables it to vertically take-off and land (VTOL-UAV).

Master's Thesis

Many aircrafts are inherent over-actuated regarding their control signals. This can be advantageous especially in the context of unmanned aircrafts, where failures of certain actuator functions might occur in critical situations. In such cases, the redundant actuators can be used to fulfill the controller's objectives, thus increasing the overall operational safety. To test such methods new fault-tolerant control algorithms are developed at the Institute of Flight Systems and Automatic Control using the example of over-actuated flight systems.

Identification of relevant features for fuel consumption prognoses of airplanes with Machine Learning algorithms

The scope of this thesis is the identification of relevant features in full flight data for the purpose of fuel consumption prognoses. Machine Learning algorithms for feature subset selection such as wrapper and principal component analysis promise a reduction of input parameters to relevant features. This intends to use data-based and iterative learning models such as neural networks or decision trees more efficiently and to improve prognoses results. Outcomes should be validated with results of existing frameworks.

In the future cockpit, only one pilot may operate the aircraft during the cruise phase (“Reduced Crew Operations”). Autonomous systems will assume functions of the second pilot in order to reduce the workload of the remaining pilot. At FSR, the “Future Flight Deck” project currently investigates whether and how such a scenario could be implemented.

Master's Thesis

Formula 1 racing cars are controlled by a fully integrated steering wheel. This does not only include steering the car, but contains more than 100 different displays, switches and adjustment possibilities nowadays. A similar, yet not as drastic, development can be observed with the steering wheels of cars. Airplanes are controlled via sidesticks (Airbus) or control columns (so-called “Yokes”, Boeing). To date, however, these have mainly been used for direct flight path control. This thesis will evaluate integrated control columns for airplanes.

Analysis of future UAV missions in a heterogeneous airspace

The Scope of this project will be to identify and analyze the future usage of these new air vehicles. A special focus shall be given on the required data exchange between the UVAs, the UTM and their operators.

Development of an UAV simulation environment

The aim of this thesis is to develop and implement a simulation environment, where different types of UAVs and their missions can be simulated simultaneously.

At the Institute of Flight Systems and Automatic Control, a new flight simulator is being developed and built for research on future flight deck concepts. The purpose of this simulator is to evaluate future concepts and technologies. Eventually, the simulator will be used as a research-, demonstration, and evaluation platform. In the scope of this project a number of student theses and projects (ADPs & ARPs) will be available over the next months, focused on development and construction of the simulator.

Aircraft manufacturers and airlines have long been concerned with the question of how future flight decks should be designed. Against the background of so-called Reduced Crew Operations as well as increasing automation, the role, tasks and responsibilities of future pilots will change fundamentally: the pilot becomes a “mission manager” and supervisor. In order to actively involve the pilots during the flight in the future flight deck, tasks such as those of today's Airline Operations Center (AOC) could be assumed. This is to be investigated in this thesis.

In the flight mechanics lab (FMP), students can practically apply the theoretical knowledge acquired during the lectures on Flight Performance (FM 1) and Flight Dynamics (FM 2). For this purpose flight tests are carried out with a motor glider at the airport in Griesheim. In addition, a simulator course is held in the institute's own Diamond DA-40 simulator. For this simulator, a module is to be developed within the scope of a thesis project, with which flight performance and flight characteristics can be determined and displayed in real time.