Early UAS Development: 1900 – 1960
The early history of UAS development was sporadic, often taking place when armed
conflict required that the military look for new technologies, only to have enthusiasm wane when
the armed conflict ceased. The concept of remote pilotless vehicles was born during the early
days of electricity through a partnership between George Westinghouse and Nikola Tesla, the
brilliant electrical engineer. He pioneered the remote control concept during the SpanishAmerican
War, inventing a simple remote boat called the “Teleautomaton,” which he implied
could be used as a torpedo. As was frequent until the modern era of UAVs, military commanders
failed to recognize the potential of unmanned craft (Newcome 2004, 11-14).
During the period from 1909 – 1920, scientific advancement of the aeronautical
gyroscope by Elmer Sperry and airframe construction by Glenn Curtiss allowed these early
pioneers to begin testing aerial torpedoes. These unmanned craft were not designed to return
merely to fly to a target remotely and through various mechanisms, terminate forward velocity,
dropping themselves, and presumably bomb payloads, on the targets. At this point, unmanned
vehicles were not remotely controlled but controlled through a series of on-board devices with
pre-set operations. In response to World War I, the aerial torpedo concept underwent rigorous
testing and a brief production run was overseen by Charles Franklin Kettering. The Kettering
Bug’s purpose was to fly 50 miles and deliver a 200-lb payload on a target. While the Bug fell
far short of this mark and was discontinued as the war came to a close, it was nevertheless the
first instance of an unmanned aircraft performing a pre-designated flight pattern successfully
(Newcome 2004, 15-29).
Early UAS Development: 1900 – 1960The early history of UAS development was sporadic, often taking place when armedconflict required that the military look for new technologies, only to have enthusiasm wane whenthe armed conflict ceased. The concept of remote pilotless vehicles was born during the early days of electricity through a partnership between George Westinghouse and Nikola Tesla, thebrilliant electrical engineer. He pioneered the remote control concept during the SpanishAmericanWar, inventing a simple remote boat called the “Teleautomaton,” which he impliedcould be used as a torpedo. As was frequent until the modern era of UAVs, military commandersfailed to recognize the potential of unmanned craft (Newcome 2004, 11-14).During the period from 1909 – 1920, scientific advancement of the aeronauticalgyroscope by Elmer Sperry and airframe construction by Glenn Curtiss allowed these earlypioneers to begin testing aerial torpedoes. These unmanned craft were not designed to returnmerely to fly to a target remotely and through various mechanisms, terminate forward velocity,dropping themselves, and presumably bomb payloads, on the targets. At this point, unmannedvehicles were not remotely controlled but controlled through a series of on-board devices withpre-set operations. In response to World War I, the aerial torpedo concept underwent rigoroustesting and a brief production run was overseen by Charles Franklin Kettering. The KetteringBug’s purpose was to fly 50 miles and deliver a 200-lb payload on a target. While the Bug fellfar short of this mark and was discontinued as the war came to a close, it was nevertheless thefirst instance of an unmanned aircraft performing a pre-designated flight pattern successfully(Newcome 2004, 15-29).
การแปล กรุณารอสักครู่..
