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Center for Nonlinear Studies |
The JetQuad is the world’s first, fully automated, jet-powered vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) unmanned aerial system (UAS). It is compact, rugged, runs on diesel or jet fuel, and has the advantages of high payload capacity and high top-speed. This unique UAS platform uses four small jet engines for propulsion and stabilization, and opens up a variety of challenging applied mathematics problems in the areas of guidance, navigation, control, and trajectory optimization. This talk will provide a top-level system overview of the JetQuad, and then discuss flight dynamics, control systems, and practical implementation issues. The performance, versatility, and maintainability of the JetQuad will be compared with other state-of-art multirotor and fixed-wing UAS platforms. This new UAS concept also opens up a range of capabilities that could be applied to develop novel approaches to planning optimal remote sensing and surveillance missions. Finally, we will describe current and future development efforts, as well as other potential applications of the technology.
Alexander Taits, CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER & FOUNDER
Alex has dedicated his life to bringing disruptive technologies to the world of transportation. FusionFlight allows Alex to channel his abilities into a single task - to create the world's most powerful, versatile, and compact drone. Alex performs all the design, engineering (software/hardware), manufacturing and testing necessary to bring the JetQuad drone to fruition. Alex has professional experience in the nuclear, aerospace and semiconductor industries and holds a Master's of Mechanical Engineering from University of Southern California.
Keith Ciccotello, P.E.CHIEF OPERATIONS OFFICER & DRONE PILOT
Keith Ciccotello has a Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering and a Minor in Business Administration. Most noteworthy, he is a licensed Professional Engineer with Management-level experience in the Telecom and Automotive Industries and he is an FAA Part 107 licensed pilot. Keith focuses all his spare time on building FusionFlight as a company and implementing drone technology in new ways.
Host: Anatoly Zlotnik