Periodic Reporting for period 2 - CORUS-XUAM (CONCEPT OF OPERATIONS FOR EUROPEAN U-SPACE SERVICES - EXTENSION FOR URBAN AIR MOBILITY)
Periodo di rendicontazione: 2022-01-01 al 2023-04-30
UAM operations are promising better, more sustainable transport technologies and models to improve commute times and accelerate the transport of goods across towns and urban environments.
In order to enable U-space UAM operations CORUS-XUAM aims to identify and demonstrate solutions that allow all airspace users (unmanned and manned) to operate safely, securely, sustainably and efficiently in a controlled and fully integrated airspace.
The 4 main objectives are:
1. Objective 1: “Using early versions of end-user systems, test mature and validated operational U-space concepts and services, in the context of UAM, that address representative environments, diverse types of operation, link with urban transport and infrastructure and Comprehensive traffic mix ”.
2. Objective 2: “Refine U-space services and solutions specifically relying on a high level of digitalisation and automation of functions enabling safe, secure, sustainable and fully integrated UAM”.
3. Objective 3: “Extend U-space CONOPS to address the specificities of Urban Air Mobility
4. Objective 4: “Boost the use of U-space capabilities and services in Urban Air Mobility.”
These results of the demonstrations have allowed the production of a Concept of Operations for Urban Air Mobility, a reference at European level.
CORUS-XUAM has addressed many representative environments, types of operations, links with urban transport and infrastructures and target traffic mix. Qualitative and quantitative performance indicators have been defined and measured during the exercise executions and later analysis against the performance expectations set. Finally, a set of operational and technical requirements for safe UAM operations have been produced.
Several of the CORUS-XUAM demonstrations have taken place in controlled airspace, which has allowed to demonstrate U-space/ATM interactions.
The project has also proposed two SESAR Solutions as Concepts relying on U-space services, to ensure that the deployed U-space capabilities provided benefits. Each Solution covered a high-level concept, tackling a series of Use Cases.
Finally the project has produced operational and technical requirements for safe UAM operations based on the demonstration results.
Communications and disseminations of project results was performed through the project website and social media pages on LinkedIn and twitter.
Several papers and articles were published and presentation created to be used in event such as the EU Drone Days and the EASA meeting.
Two workshops were held with a wide base of stakeholders, allowing CORUS-XUAM to build, refine and validate its concept of operations and 6 VLDs. CORUS-XUAM also participated to a workshop organised by the SJU on the dissemination of the ConOps.
Each of the six VLDs organised one or more day of dissemination of the demonstration results.
CORUS-XUAM organised a Final Workshop in Bari, Italy, from 29 till 30 March 2023.
CORUS-XUAM also supported and participated to the SJU workshop on U-space research providing a presentation of the CORUS-XUAM ConOps (29th and 30th of November 2022).
The participation at targeted external events was another relevant channel for both disseminating CORUS-XUAM, its activities and results, and promoting its internal events. CORUS-XUAM project partners were present at international events and promoted the CORUS-XUAM activities to amongst others the ATM and drone community.
In order to facilitate the exploitation of the results, the CORUS-XUAM Consortium partners have shared the project results with the U-space/UAM Community Network supporting the industry and operators in the development of U-space services to enable UAM operations. CORUS-XUAM partner’s participation in the international U-space/UAM working groups and regulation/standardisation bodies have further supported the transfer of the project results to industry and relevant stakeholders.
The six demonstrations performed by the project in seven different EU countries, each with a different scenario, interacting to some degree with managed airspace, have allowed to validate the safety of a wide variety of business cases, using UAM vehicles with different performance and functionalities.
In line with the call challenge, the CORUS-XUAM consortium recognises that an advanced set of U-space services are required to support UAM operations taking place in connection with airports or other city hubs, potentially entering shared airspace where some of them may receive ATC services. The project demonstrations findings have allowed the development of the CORUS-XUAM ConOps, an integrated and a fully accepted U-space ConOps for UAM, with a reference architecture precisely describing the advanced services and providing the foundation upon which the required technical and infrastructure developments can be better defined. The final objective is the success of the incipient drone and UAM market, considering the main stakeholders interested (ANSP, USP, smart cities, industry, citizens, airport operators), to achieve its full potential without compromising the current high level of air transport safety.
The project results are expected to have positive impacts on the following aspects:
• Development of aerial operating procedures in urban areas (Safety)
• Increase of situational awareness(Safety)
• Improved governance of U-space (Safety)
• Development of recommendations for regulation and standardisation (Safety)
• Support the technical and infrastructure deployments in cities (Safety, Market)
• Contribute to a fair access to the airspace (Capacity and Efficiency)
• Contribute to transport innovation (Market)
• Improvement of the urban mobility and its carbon and noise footprint (Environment)
• Emergency situations management (Safety and Social)
• New jobs perspectives, services and elements for economic grow (Socio-economic)
• Contribute to the use of the airspace by new stakeholders (UAM) (Access and Equity)
• New form of business aviation (Access and Equity-Market)