With a background in product design engineering, computer science and mathematics, Hasan is perfectly suited to his role managing AOS’s participation in ASTRAEA. He oversees all aspects of the company’s input, from technical project requirements and deliverables through to attending the regular ASTRAEA Operations Board meetings. He also applies his 15 years’ experience in systems management to deal with the ASTRAEA website’s ‘back-end’, the hidden nuts and bolts that ensure the website is up and running and stays that way.
“The ASTRAEA website is now technically more robust and the content is more dynamic,” he explained. “We update regularly and the revamped Member’s Area promotes collaboration between partners and stakeholders – a key to the Programme’s success.”
Hasan said he was impressed by the level of cooperation between the ASTRAEA I consortium members. After all, they were some of the largest, most influential and most competitive companies in the UK and, in many cases, the world. With ASTRAEA II now underway, he sees that cooperation growing into a strong, coordinated team with the singular goal of unrestricted UAS operations.
“I think everyone involved recognises the importance of the Programme on the world stage,” Hasan explained. “The goal is now really in sight. We’re working on something both ground-breaking and internationally significant and that’s a rare opportunity in anyone’s career.”
One of the most important improvements Hasan sees in ASTRAEA II is the increased role of the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA). They acted as an independent advisor to ASTRAEA I and continue this role in ASTRAEA II. But this time, while maintaining the appropriate professional distance, they’re more open to discussions with consortium members on those UAS certification issues that break new ground, like autonomy and detect, sense and avoid systems.
“Establishing certification requirements for UAS is new for everyone,” Hasan said, “and the best way to get it done is working alongside the regulatory organisations to determine what needs to be done to maintain or improve safety margins. Then we can work out the most efficient way of achieving it.”
In a broader sense, autonomous systems are already on their way into our daily lives, e.g. collision avoidance systems in the automotive industry. While these will save lives, others will save us time, reduce effort and let us focus on high-level strategic planning instead of the mundane. But challenges remain.
“We must convince regulatory authorities and the public at large that autonomous systems are safe and reliable,” Hasan said, “and that will take some time. But there’s no reason why an autonomous decision-making system can’t equal or even exceed human capabilities, and that’s our goal.”
About AOS
AOS leads the world in the revolutionary new field of autonomous and semi-autonomous systems. Our software products provide the decision-making capability that underlies autonomy and they can be employed in a variety of ways including autonomous vehicles, oil platforms, IT systems or even running on a tablet or smartphone as an intelligent assistant.
Within ASTRAEA, AOS is the lone SME that’s also a prime contractor. Our roles include advising fellow consortium members on autonomy and autonomous systems and modelling the autonomous decision-making aspects of UAS, with emphasis on the impact of decision-making software systems on aircraft safety and certification.