SYS.RDY // CIVILIAN AEROSPACE

When flight fails, autonomy should not.

Advanced recovery systems bridging the gap between mission-critical hardware and intelligent descent logic.

Explore the TechnologyWatch Flight Tests
01 // THE CHALLENGE

Uncontrolled descent is unacceptable in civilian airspace.

Traditional ballistic recovery systems reduce descent speed but do not control where the aircraft lands. AeroGuard investigates guided parafoil recovery toward a designated recovery area.

PASSIVE BALLISTIC
Descent rate may be reduced, but lateral drift and landing location remain uncontrolled.
AEROGUARD GUIDED
Steering inputs shape the glide path toward a designated recovery area.
FIG_1: DESCENT_TRAJECTORY
Comparison of recovery trajectories from one UAV failure point: a red dashed passive ballistic descent ends in an uncontrolled landing area, while a teal AeroGuard guided parafoil path reaches a designated recovery area.
02 // SEQUENCE LOGIC

Emergency Recovery Sequence

  1. PHASE 01

    ACTIVATE

    Receives a recovery trigger from the aircraft or safety system.

  2. PHASE 02

    DEPLOY

    Releases the recovery package and deploys the parafoil to establish a steerable descent configuration.

  3. PHASE 03

    EVALUATE

    Uses onboard state estimates to evaluate parafoil response and select a reachable recovery objective.

  4. PHASE 04

    GUIDE

    Commands brake-line actuation to steer the parafoil toward the designated recovery area.

03 // SYSTEM ARCHITECTURE

From emergency activation to controlled recovery.

PROTOTYPE // AG-P01
AeroGuard AG-P01 prototype integration showing the ZD550 test drone, steering servos, deployment servo, onboard computer, flight controller, battery, and parafoil recovery package.

RECOVERY ELECTRONICS

Onboard computing and flight-control interfaces support state estimation, command execution, and recovery-system testing.

FLIGHT CONTROLLERONBOARD COMPUTER

DEPLOYMENT & STEERING

Dedicated servos support parafoil deployment and brake-line actuation, enabling the transition from packed recovery system to steerable descent.

DEPLOYMENT SERVOSTEERING SERVOS

PROTOTYPE INTEGRATION

The current platform integrates power, sensing, computation, and actuation in a modular payload for deployment, flight-characterization, and closed-loop guidance experiments.

BATTERYPOWERPAYLOAD STRUCTURE
04 // VALIDATION EVIDENCE

Evidence across the recovery stack.

AeroGuard links aerial deployment, flight characterization, and closed-loop guidance into one evidence-driven recovery workflow.

A // DEPLOYMENT

Aerial Deployment Testing

Aerial deployment testing captures the physical transition from release to stable suspended descent.

  1. Release
  2. Separation
  3. Line extraction
  4. Canopy inflation
  5. Suspended descent
B // FLIGHT CHARACTERIZATION

Flight Characterization

Flight data feeds the simulator and planner. The physical flight record informs the model, then the planner and guidance logic.

  1. Flight test
  2. Model
  3. Planner
  4. Guidance
C // CLOSED-LOOP GUIDANCE

Closed-Loop Guidance

~10 m horizontal touchdown error in a representative field P2P trial.

CLOSED-LOOP GUIDANCE
PHYSICAL PLATFORM
P2P FIELD CASE
~10 m HORIZONTAL ERROR
05 // APPLICATIONS

Recovery logic for every mission profile.

AeroGuard integrates with a range of autonomous platforms operating over populated and sensitive airspace.

Industrial Inspection UAVs

Industrial Inspection UAVs

Recovery assurance for drones operating near infrastructure, energy, and industrial assets.

Urban UAV Operations

Urban UAV Operations

Descent safety for vehicles flying above dense, populated environments.

Logistics UAVs

Logistics UAVs

Protecting payloads and ground assets across long-range delivery corridors.

Research Platforms

Research Platforms

Configurable recovery for experimental airframes and university flight programs.

RECOVERY PLANNER // SIMULATION
SIMULATION
ALTITUDE
62 m AGL
WIND
3.2 m/s NE
AIR SPEED
4.8 m/s
REACHABLE
UPDATED
CANDIDATES
7
EXCLUDED
4
SELECTED SITE
C03
STATUS
TERMINAL FEASIBLE
Recovery planner simulation showing mapped buildings, candidate routes, and selected operating regions.