The feature dwells upon advanced aerial mobility industry current scenario along with the recent trends, dynamics and strategies adopted by the market players.
BY PRATIK KIRVE
The future of mobility is changing and the pace of innovation and advancements proves the same. In the next few years,people will not only witness the drones used by cinematographers but also the aerial vehicles used to transport people and cargo over the short distances. Advanced aerial mobility is the future of the transport. Aircrafts systems equipped with advanced and smart technologies will open up new avenues of mobility. Transporting people over short or medium distance safety will become possible as leading companies, organizations, and government authorities have been drawing out plans to launch air taxis, connect airports and other destinations, and improve overall operational efficiency.
Autonomous aircrafts that need little or no supervision of on-board pilots will emerge and fast transportation solutions will become a reality. Moreover, these aircrafts will be designed by taking environmental concerns into consideration. Advanced aerial mobility industry will observe few trends in terms of navigation, integration of smart systems, and lifecycle management. The demand for innovative solutions will increase in the coming years. This will supplement the growth of the market. According to the report published by Allied Market Research, the global advanced aerial mobility market is estimated to reach $16.81 billion by 2025 and $110.02 billion by 2035. Following are some of the new developments and trends taking place across the world.
Navigation and maneuverability
The advent of autonomous advanced aerial mobility vehicles would enable the access to locations that were inaccessible before. Accessing locations at low and medium altitudes and travelling short and medium distances are possible. These automated flying aircrafts can navigate with the help of maps, spot people, detect properties, and land safety with on-board pilot giving instructions. Moreover, these aircrafts are equipped with advanced algorithms and capabilities to avoid collision and be safe. The automatic detection capabilities of aircrafts in the vicinity will help in operating safely in the high-density areas. In addition, altitude control and path following technologies will be developed in the coming years to offer more control than before to the automated aircrafts.
Moving people and cargo over short and medium distances in much lesser time than before will become a reality. The airports can also be connected through the electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) technology. While a car or train would take hours to reach from one airport to another, these aircrafts would save a lot of time and improve overall efficiency of operations. With increase in accessibility, there will be surge in utilization of hub airports.
Integration of intelligent systems
The autonomous aircrafts are equipped with intelligent systems to carry out tasks with little help or supervision of on-board pilots. The implementation of sensors, artificial intelligence (AI) systems, and cognitive systems will help in executing different tasks. Finding the path between towers, cables, and high-altitude building need an intelligent system in an aircraft. This kind of transportation need higher safety levels as compared to traditional land-based transportation. To enable such level of decision making and safety, intelligent systems with advanced technologies need to be installed.
In these systems, cyber security becomes a key concern as cyber criminals can target these systems and jeopardize people and cargo in these aircrafts. The potential for cyber attacks rises considerably with connected and autonomous systems. The research and development activities for ensuring security of these systems are ongoing, and the more sophisticated systems will be introduced in the coming years as cyber criminals discover different types of attacks.
Lifecycle management of aircrafts
Reducing environmental footprint as much as possible is becoming the objective of every manufacturer of aircraft systems with rise in awareness regarding various concerns related to the environment. The products need to be designed and manufactured in such a way that it can be reused, disposed, and recycled even after the product life ends. Raw materials and manufacturing processes need to be analyzed. As the reuse and recycling of some electric components and lightweight materials is difficult, development of new materials will be carried out. Moreover, manufacturers should inform and educate the operators about the potential hazards and environmental impact of some of the materials. This will help in servicing and maintenance phases.
It is important to consider the recycling and decommission of aircraft parts during the design phase. Lightweight materials such as titanium, aluminum, and other alloys have been used in aircrafts. These materials can be reused and recycled. However, the composite materials such as carbon fiber and other resins are difficult to recycle. So, there needs to be a proper consideration in choosing the raw material for building the aircraft. The ongoing research and development activities focus on creating materials that would be recycled and reused after the end of their lives. Same goes for batteries. The battery technology and components must reduce the overall costs and the composition of chemicals must improve performance. However, they should also address environmental concerns and reduce the challenges that may arise in future due to the end of battery life.
(The writer is currently working as a Team Lead – Content Writing at Allied Market Research. He can be reached at:pratik.kirve@alliedmarketresearch.net)
