AiRXOS' air mobility platform interface. (AiRXOS)
To support the burgeoning urban air mobility (UAM) market, GE subsidiary AiRXOS has unveiled a platform for viewing and managing air mobility data and, running on it, a network ecosystem and a tool to facilitate airspace approvals.
Announced Tuesday, AiRXOS' air mobility platform provides a secure, scalable software infrastructure and unified view from which to monitor and manage mobility data. Cloud-housed, the platform is an FAA-compliant, system-agnostic "point of responsibility" from which to connect devices, applications and operations. According to AiRXOS, the platform is built to scale and evolve as air and ground mobility needs do, particularly those of unmanned traffic systems, which seem poised to expand but could go in a number of directions. The platform supports real-time data processing, analytics, flight planning and a number of other services through applications.
The first such application is an AiRXOS-developed service for getting FAA approval for advanced operations such as beyond visual line of sight and multi-vehicle. The application, which the company says "combines consulting services with a streamlined, proprietary, operational data tool," helps with the waiver and approval process by leveraging AiRXOS' domain expertise and data to provide strategic insight ahead of application. Last October, for example, the company helped fellow GE subsidiary Avitas Systems develop the processes, procedures and training necessary to receive FAA approval for beyond-visual-line-of-sight operations inspecting Shell Oil assets in Texas.
AiRXOS also announced that it received a unique nationwide Part 107 waiver for multiple-UAS operations, allowing operators to fly multiple small UAS simultaneously provided they meet pre-approved safety criteria. The company said it expects that waiver to help it when providing the waiver support service.
The air mobility platform will also host AiRXOS' newly announced air mobility ecosystem, a partner network to support unmanned traffic management. Based in the cloud, the ecosystem is designed to provide a peer-to-peer infrastructure while allowing centralized monitoring and security. The company is teaming with as-yet-unannounced technology and services innovators, it said, with the goal of safely integrating the air mobility landscape.
"The world is undergoing a massive transformation in how we move," said AiRXOS CEO Ken Stewart. "From people to cargo, to delivery, inspections and public safety, urban air mobility and the new air mobility economy are changing transportation and society. Today's announcement reflects AiRXOS digital strategy: enabling transportation transformation through commercial infrastructure, advanced operations solutions and best-in-class technologies."
One partner, announced Tuesday, is aerial intelligence company Measure. Steward said the Measure partnership is intended "to solve a customer problem we hear repeatedly: that advanced operations like BVLOS and Multi-UA operations are critical enablers for scaling inspection operations."
Both the air mobility platform and the approval service tool will be available later this quarter, according to an AiRXOS representative.