Shared UAV enterprise operator pooling framework (SUAVE) chance constrained pooled fan-out queueing analysis

Abstract

The number of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in the Air Force inventory is rapidly increasing without a concomitant increase in manpower. Military planners are currently seeking technologies that enable operators to simultaneously control a greater number of UAVs. The technology planning and recommendation process requires a systems-level engineering analysis of UAV operations and their sensitivity to various constraints. Olsen and Wood introduced a concept called fan-out, which estimates how many operators are required to effectively operate a given set of UAVs. The fan-out concept assumes that UAVs are permanently assigned to a single operator or operator team. We designed a pooled UAV-to-operator team allocation scheme, which allows sharing of operator team resources across the entire UAV fleet. Rather than permanently assigning a given UAV to an operator team, our architecture dynamically allocates operator teams to UAVs on an as-needed basis during multi-UAV operations. We constructed an architecture based on queueing theory to empirically compare pooled and non-pooled performance. Queueing systems analysis of this architecture demonstrates that it performs better than a non-teaming approach. Moreover, our architectural analysis leads to a more general definition of fanout. More importantly, the closed-form queueing analysis is highly efficient, allowing us to analyze a greater number of problem configurations. This greater command of the problem space also offers advantages in determining appropriate autonomy and teaming technologies for further development.