License Plates & Drone Information Requirements: slide-by-slide reading copy

Slide 1: License Plates & Drone Information Requirements

Joseph Lorenzo Hall (CDT), josephhall.org; Amie Stepanovich (EPIC), epic.org. October 12, 2013.

Slide 2: Outline

• Background (15–20 min)
• Information needs (20 min): observers, drones, other aircraft, regulators
• Licensing and registration (10 min)
• Technical requirements (10 min)
• Other interests (10 min): proprietary, anonymity, security

Slide 3: Background — identification analogy

• Clear privacy and safety interests:
  • How do other aircraft know what’s around them?
  • How do ground-based people know what’s up?
• Imagined an analogy: vehicle license plates, aircraft N-numbers.

Visual: Side-by-side photos place a red plate marked “DR-5526” on the back of a motorcycle beside the registration “N301BK” painted on an aircraft fuselage. They illustrate the two visible identifier systems used for the analogy.

Slide 4: Background — the blog post

Wrote a blog post:

Visual: A screenshot from the Center for Democracy & Technology (CDT) website shows Joseph Lorenzo Hall’s March 8, 2013 post, “License Plates” for Drones? Its fully visible opening asks: “If we’re going to put cameras on drones and let just about anyone with a few hundred bucks fly them around our neighborhoods, recording video of anyone in our backyards and doing who-knows-what with them, shouldn’t there at least be a way to identify who the drone belongs to?” The screenshot cuts off the remainder of the post.

Slide 5: Background — ADS-B Out

Feedback clued us into “ADS-B Out”:

• Radio-frequency standard required by FAA for most aircraft by 2020.
• Broadcasts identifier, position, velocity, altitude once every 2 seconds.
• Used on manned aircraft to replace radar positioning and to better locate aircraft and organize airspace by ATC (air traffic control).

Slide 6: Background — ADS-B system diagram

Diagram: A Global Navigation Satellite System satellite supplies position information to an aircraft labeled “ADS-B Out Transmitter.” The aircraft broadcasts signals toward two smaller aircraft labeled “ADS-B In Receiver” and toward a ground ADS-B receiver. The ground receiver is shown between Ground Air Traffic Control and Remote Receivers. The diagram connects satellite positioning, aircraft broadcasts, airborne reception, and ground reception.

Slide source credit: Boeing Aero magazine, quarter 2, 2010. The credited URL is transcribed from the slide; its present availability has not been verified.

Slide 7: Background — airspace diagram

Diagram: A cross-section of U.S. airspace shows Class A above 18,000 feet and a Class E band above 10,000 feet. Arrows labeled “1090ES required” appear in Class A; arrows labeled “UAT or 1090ES required” appear in Class E and within depicted Class B and Class C airspace below it. The diagram also depicts a Gulf of Mexico area marked “3000 ft MSL” and “12 NM,” Class B rings marked “30 nm,” and an exclusion marked “2500 ft AGL” at the right. These labels describe the diagram’s depicted coverage; the slide does not explain every boundary or abbreviation.

Slide source credit: Professional Pilot, April 2012. The credited URL is transcribed from the slide; its present availability has not been verified.

Slide 8: Background — proposed UAS registry

In CDT’s FAA comments we proposed a UAS Registry containing:

• UAS ownership information.
• UAS classification: airframe type, weight, dimensions, locomotive mechanics/power and max aloft.
• Data Collection Statement: operational purposes, sensing packages, information collected, retention, minimization, data sharing, point of contact.
• Mode S “hex code”: 24-bit ID (16 MM).
• “U”-number: U-1a2b3, human friendly (11 MM).

The slide does not define “MM” or clarify whether “max aloft” refers to altitude or duration, so those terms are preserved as shown.

Slide 9: Background — proposed broadcast and vision

In CDT’s FAA comments we proposed broadcasting an ADS-B Out signal, with a transponder on the airframe (or ground?).

Vision:

• Both aircraft and ground observers can see in real time what UAS are operating in the skies above.
• FAA/companies provide web services for visualizing and tracking UAS operations.

Slide 10: Background — consumer receiver example

Visual: A ForeFlight “Stratus 2” product screenshot describes “subscription free weather and traffic,” alongside a photo of the small white receiver. The slide marks a price of $899. A second screenshot shows an aviation map on a tablet with the user’s aircraft symbol and several nearby aircraft symbols, illustrating traffic information presented to a pilot. These are historical product and price examples, not a recommendation or current offer.

Slide 11: Garmin ADS-B receiver example

Visual: A screenshot of a Sporty’s Pilot Shop listing shows a “Garmin GDL 39 ADS-B Receiver for iPad” and a photo of the receiver with an upright antenna in an aircraft cockpit. The listing displays “new low price - $699!”, $699.00, and “Original Price $799.00.” The slide provides another historical example of a receiver sold to pilots; the cropped listing does not establish current availability or price.

Slide 12: Background — technical complications

• Since our FAA comments, a lot of interest.
• Lots of complications!
• Technical:
  • Requires an IFR-certified GPS Receiver ($$$).
  • Requires a Mode-S Transponder.
    • Trig Avionics claims “smallest and lightest Mode S transponders” at 440g; power: 0.15A idle, 0.28A active.

Slide 13: Background — transponder hardware

Visual: Photos show a transponder system’s separate components: a rectangular metal hardware box with connector(s), and small black cockpit control heads with a display and buttons. The slide labels one image “Control Head” and the long metal unit “Hardware Box (antenna, etc.).” One displayed code reads “1200”; another reads “7000.” The images emphasize that the installation involves more than a single small device. Product identity and exact component connections are not stated on the slide.

Slide 14: Background — message from Trig Avionics

Visual and text: A screenshot of an email from Andy Davis to Joe and the Trig Support Team. The visible message reads:

Dear Joe,

The TT21 is already used by a number of UAV builders. The transponder itself is 350 grams; when combined with a controller, altitude sensor, antenna, wiring and appropriate GPS the total weight is about 1kg. List price for such an installation is around $6,000 (of which only about $2,200 is the transponder itself), although there is engineering integration effort involved - we're not talking about a hobbyist “plug and play” product.

The reason UAV vendors are using these transponders is to facilitate integration in the airspace and interoperability with other aircraft, although as you correctly point out, it makes the UAV visible to inexpensive ground based surveillance as well.

At that price and 1kg payload, this is a reasonable installation for a medium to large UAV, but is not appropriate for the very small hand launched types. It is unlikely that an autonomous ADS-B compliant surveillance product would/could be available for the very small UAV airframes because of weight and power constraints.

The visible signature identifies Andy Davis, Trig Avionics Limited, Heriot Watt Research Park, Currie, EH14 4AP, United Kingdom, and www.trig-avionics.com. Two telephone numbers in the screenshot are blurred and are not transcribed.

Slide 15: Information Needs

• Other aircraft?
• Drones?
• Observers?
• Regulators?

Slide 16: Licensing and Registration

• Licensing: Do drone pilots have to show competence wrt safety and privacy?
• Registration: What kinds of requirements of drone classes, sensing packages?

“wrt” appears on the slide as an abbreviation for “with respect to.”

Slide 17: Technical Requirements

• Every UAS or some subset?
  • E.g., EU: weight above 5,700 kilograms (12,600 lb) or max cruise of over 250 knots.
  • Where does that leave privacy/safety interests?
• If mandated, will the market provide a better solution?

Slide 18: Other Interests

• Proprietary interests? Specific activities may be business sensitive.
• Anonymity interests? Not available currently for commercial or non-commercial vehicle license plates.
• Security Interests? May be easier to damage drones.