To simulate highly autonomous eVTOL aircraft, Supernal will use Microsoft Azure cloud computing. As part of its manufacturing and maintenance processes, the company is also looking to incorporate Microsoft's HoloLens 2 augmented-reality headset. The company is the advanced air mobility division of South Korean car maker Hyundai. 

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Using a lightweight fly-by-wire system, Supernal plans to initially operate the SA-1 with a pilot on board, but it hopes to eventually switch to fully autonomous flight. 

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Microsoft will give Supernal early access to Project AirSim, a new simulation platform for aircraft developers, as part of its newly announced collaboration with Supernal. Artificial intelligence is used to simulate autonomous aerial vehicles’ flights in order to evaluate and improve their decision-making processes.

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According to Adam Slepian, Supernal's deputy chief commercial officer, Microsoft Azure provides the platform and cloud storage to run Microsoft Project AirSim, which simulates flight environments for testing, training, and optimizing Supernal's autonomy stack. simulated sensor returns generated through AirSim could assist in tasks like optimizing sensor placement and testing unique scenarios within autonomy algorithms.” 

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According to Adam Slepian, Supernal's deputy chief commercial officer, Microsoft Azure provides the platform and cloud storage to run Microsoft Project AirSim, which simulates flight environments for testing, training, and optimizing Supernal's autonomy stack.lations is more efficient and less risky than attempting to conduct real-life test flights with the same variety of circumstances and environmental conditions.

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To train the automation stack, Supernal will simulate the flight paths across an urban air mobility network, including other actors in the airspace, Slepian said. In addition to integrating eVTOL vehicles into multimodal solutions on the ground, such as vertiports, these efforts can also help.

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THE HOLOLENS 2: AN AID FOR MAINTENANCE AND MANUFACTURING

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The company plans to use new augmented reality technology in its manufacturing and maintenance processes as well as adding artificial intelligence to its flight control systems. In the near future, Supernal's engineers and technicians may be able to use Microsoft's HoloLens 2 mixed-reality headset. Holographic objects can be viewed and interacted with through what looks like high-tech welding goggles when wearing the HoloLens 2 headset. There is a price tag of $3,500 per headset. 

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Slepian said HoloLens 2 and augmented reality could improve efficiency in the development and manufacturing of autonomous flight technology. By providing tangible representations of the engineering, IT, or manufacturing components involved, HoloLens 2 enables Supernal to collaborate and innovate with suppliers and team members."

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According to Slepian, Supernal is exploring use cases with HoloLens 2, including "assisted preflight checks, manufacturing inspections, training, and such as “assisted preflight checks, manufacturing inspections and process flows, training and customer service.”

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