Successfully operating a drone in heavy rain or extreme wind conditions has long been a challenge, but a new, multi-million-dollar project at the University of Memphis could soon change that.
The university has secured a $9.2 million contract from the U.S. Navy to design and construct a cutting-edge facility on Presidents Island aimed at developing and testing drones capable of performing under adverse weather conditions. An additional $21.18 million in U.S. Navy funding over two years will develop a wind wall with variable airflow patterns for testing aerial drones. The majority of this work will be conducted in Memphis, with portions of the project also being carried out in Tucson, Arizona; Orlando, Florida; and Columbia, Missouri.
The facility, sponsored by the Office of Naval Research and the Naval Surface Warfare Center – Carderock Division, will be located on President’s Island at the William Morgan Large Cavitation Channel. This project, still in its early planning stages, underscores the U of M’s commitment to advancing technological innovation and contributing to national defense efforts.
“This project is the latest in an ongoing effort by the University of Memphis to develop intentional research-focused collaborations with the Naval Surface Warfare Center – Carderock,” said Cody Behles, Executive Director of Research and Innovation Development at the University of Memphis’ Division of Research & Innovation. “The Memphis Institute for National Defense Sciences at the University of Memphis helps coordinate opportunities in partnership with the offices of the Tennessee Congressional Delegation. Their collaboration and continued support are vital to get projects such as this off the ground.”
The project is being led by Eddie Jacobs, a senior researcher at the Center for Applied Earth Science and Engineering Research (CAESER) and professor of electrical and computer engineering in the Herff College of Engineering. The U of M will collaborate with researchers from the University of Arizona, the University of Central Florida, and the University of Missouri-Kansas City.
“The William Morgan Large Cavitation Channel is already a unique facility for testing ship and submarine components,” Jacobs explained. “We now have the incredible opportunity to help build another unique facility for testing unmanned aerial systems (drones) in this space, greatly expanding the Navy’s ability to develop and test these systems.”
Jacobs highlighted the potential of the new Unmanned Systems Degraded Environment Facility (USDEF) to significantly enhance the performance of unmanned systems in challenging environments, with far-reaching implications for both military and civilian applications.
“When flying drones, we are often restricted to days that have calm winds and no rain,” Jacobs said. “We will be able to accurately control the wind and generate rain in this new facility. This will help us design and test drones that can operate under more challenging conditions.”
U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen (D-Memphis) said he’s long supported the U of M’s “headlong leap into the unmanned aerial technologies of the future.”
“This Navy contract will demonstrate the university’s critical national role in developing and testing these technologies, while helping create the cutting-edge aviation workforce of the mid- and late-21st century,” he said in a statement.
