Avionics News February 2022 - 50

UNIVERSAL AVIONICS' APERTURE
Continued from page 32
" Initially, Aperture will collect, analyze, compile, and
distribute the video inputs and overlay them to one of the
cockpit's head-down display units, " he explained. " The pilot
will decide what and where the information is presented. The
more-advanced installations will have the video available for
display on the HUD or wearable display unit. "
Is it real, or is it Aperture?
One of Aperture's most-notable capabilities is its
augmented reality functions. As Yahav explained, the system
gathers video information from all of the aircraft's cameras
and digitally stitches the enhanced images together to create
a new composite view.
The end result is an image, whether displayed on
the aircraft's panel, the HUD, or HWD, that gives the
perception of what is happening within the aircraft's realworld
environment. For example, if the system senses an
unidentified drone flying off the aircraft's 1 o'clock position,
it can place a digital symbol representing that target on the
display and alert the pilot.
Or another scenario would be if the EVS " saw " an obstacle
on the runway, which was for a reduced-visibility reason,
invisible to the pilot's naked eye, it would alert the crew to its
location via a graphic symbol.
Augmented reality differs from virtual reality in the sense
that it's directly dependent on the digital images being placed
in an actual physical world, whereas virtual reality is a
complete replacement of real images with digitally simulated
versions.
If you build it, they will come
As you can imagine, a technological breakthrough like
Aperture brings considerable benefits to all kinds of pilots.
There's no doubt what Aperture offers will be much in
demand across all aircraft types.
In this case, Aperture's myriad of new-generation features,
functions, and safety-enhancing capabilities sold the system
to its first original equipment manufacturer before it was
even created.
" We developed the basic Aperture system specifically for
a major business jet OEM, " Yahav stated. " I can't say which
one yet, but we're very excited about it. There will be 10
video cameras in this aircraft's configuration, which is a lot.
We envision the typical aftermarket installation to have an
average of at least four cameras running through the system. "
While the first Aperture systems will be introduced with
the unnamed, new-generation bizjet, Yahav explained that
50 avionics news * february 2022
Universal Avionics is also pursuing supplemental type
certificates to bring it to market as an aftermarket upgrade.
" We own a King Air and a Gulfstream, and we will certify
the aftermarket version of Aperture on those aircraft first, " he
said. " Then we will work with our dealer network and other
partners to identify and develop other STCs as the demand
grows.
" Initially, the easiest approvals for us will be on aircraft
that have already been upgraded with our InSight display
systems. We have them on Falcon 20s, 50s, 900Bs, Hawker
800XPs, Citation VIIs, and others. Those are the low-hanging
fruit, if you will. However, the way the system works, it can
be installed in practically any system that has video coming
in and going out. "
He also added that because Aperture's primary role is
a very high-end video processor, it is extremely easy to
integrate into a variety of current systems.
" Take a latest-generation business jet, for example; we
provide many of the EVS cameras for those aircraft, and
someone else provides the head-down panel displays, "
Yahav said. " The Aperture unit fits between the camera and
the display, and that makes it a relevant installation for the
technology.
" If an avionics shop is installing upgrades with new glass,
cameras or an EVS, they need to engineer a way to manage
all of that video to make it usable in the cockpit. That can
be very complex. Aperture will be a much-simpler way to
handle all of that complexity. It's video in and video out.
" Plus, you get all of the added capabilities I mentioned
before that really make the system extremely capable and
valuable to the pilots. Even if the owner doesn't want all
the extras, Aperture is a simple solution to handle multiple
cameras. "
As for when Aperture will be available to anxious aircraft
owner/operators, Yahav said by the time you read this, the
program will be entering the final phase of its initial Federal
Aviation Administration certification.
" Right now, we have targeted the FAA certification of the
basic Aperture system we had on display at NBAA for early
this year, " he added. " The second phase with the moreadvanced
AI (artificial intelligence) is going to fly in the
middle of 2022, and we're shooting for FAA certification in
mid-2023. "
With all of its pending product approvals and upgrades,
along with all the advanced capabilities that Aperture
promises to deliver, it's clear as day that Universal Avionics
has its sights firmly set on staying at the forefront of
innovation. q
To learn more about Universal Avionics, visit uasc.com.
http://www.uasc.com
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