• 30 Jun 2019 01:28 PM
• 0

Honeywell Connects with eVTOL Developers

In early June, Honeywell Aerospace and its partners announced several new deals to supply technology for eVTOL/UAM developers. Honeywell signed an agreement with “an unnamed air taxi developer” to supply multiple units of its new IntuVue RDR-84K Band Radar System: “The innovative, compact and lightweight software-based radar detects multiple obstacles in and around its flight path and is a major step toward automating the takeoff and landing of UAM aircraft.”

Honeywell and Jaunt Air Mobility signed an MOU to define avionics, navigation, flight control, an electric propulsion system and connectivity solutions for Jaunt, assisting the new company with technology that will allow its air vehicles to interact safely and efficiently and help the company address regulatory and business challenges of the UAM segment.

Honeywell is partnering with Japanese automotive manufacturer Denso to develop hybrid-electric and electric powertrains, with an emphasis on the growing UAM market. The companies will work together to build concepts and technology demonstrators of hybrid-electric and electric propulsion systems for aerospace applications, including eVTOL and electric conventional takeoff and landing (eCTOL) aircraft, “driven not only by the promise of the burgeoning UAM market but also concern for rising environmental impact as the aviation industry continues to grow.”

Honeywell also announced that it is bringing its commercial aircraft fly-by-wire system to UAM market, by packaging it into a box the size of a book. "For UAM, weight is a huge concern," said Mike Ingram, Honeywell vice president and general manager of cockpit systems. "Initially, we thought in the beginning you might have hybrid-electric [vehicles], and now pretty much everything you hear is going all electric."