We Are the Missing Piece: Solving the Urban Air Mobility Puzzle

ARTICLE BY BRANDON DRESLIN, DARRIN KNAGGS, AND REID SANTIAGO PHOTOS BY AVIONICS INTERNATIONAL, SUPERNAL, AND WISK AERO DESIGN BY DYLAN KOWLESSAR / Editor-in-Chief

The semester has drawn to a close. You breathe a sigh of relief when you finally finish your last final exam. To celebrate, you and a group of friends plan a trip to Disney this weekend. But when you check the traffic on Saturday morning, I-4 has come to a standstill. One of your friends suggests booking a flight on an urban air mobility vehicle. By flying in this vehicle from Daytona Beach to Disney, you will save gas, time, and frustration. In fact, the booking app estimates that it will only take 20 minutes to fly to Disney. You and your friends are sold - booking a flight is a no-brainer!

What is urban air mobility (UAM)? Essentially, UAM is marketed as ridesharing in the skies: instead of driving or taking an Uber to travel short distances, people will take UAM aircraft to their destination. The concept is a new and innovative mode of transportation that is under development to make it easier for people to get into and out of highly-populated urban areas. UAM aircraft use modern electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) platforms, meaning that aircraft will take off and land similarly to helicopters using a combination of electric motors and propellers. The introduction of a new vehicle platform to jumpstart the growth of the UAM industry signifies a shift in the transportation sector.

Urban Transportation Reimagined

Pioneers spearheading the development of eVTOL technology dream that UAM will revolutionize private transportation. The mission of UAM is to decrease traffic congestion in cities, reduce urban travel time, and offer an environmentally-conscious alternative.

eVTOL transportation would reduce emissions, both due to the lower number of cars on the road and the zero-emissions nature of the platform. One of the most appealing elements of UAM is its versatility. Aircraft that take off and land vertically do not require much space. Without the need for a runway or airport, UAM service could transport passengers in both rural and urban areas. Eventually, UAM companies want to make eVTOLs completely autonomous. Eliminating pilots would reduce costs, increase efficiency, and make the technology more accessible by removing the need for a specialized license.

The User Experience Puzzle

Think back to the scenario. Would you trust the aircraft’s autonomous technology to safely fly you from Daytona Beach to Disney? Are you comfortable flying with no pilots or flight attendants? What do you expect to be in the cabin? Where might you store your personal belongings? How would you relax during your flight? How might you control cabin features such as lighting and temperature? What would happen if an argument or fight between passengers happened mid-flight?

Factors program capstone course) are working to understand these limitations and design around them to advocate for usthe end user. Design teams started the semester investigating the problem and gathering requirements by analyzing the UAM UX literature, creating journey maps (a way of visualizing a person’s experiences using the product or service), and generating personas (fictional characters who represent the various users that interact with the product or service). Once the requirements were established, each team designed solutions to the issues they found most impacted passenger trust, acceptance, comfort, inclusivity, and satisfaction. To validate their solutions, all teams are gathering user feedback through usability testing, interviews, and focus groups. The data they collect will help determine whether their solutions are viable in UAM design.

Some of these questions may appear easy to answer. However, several limitations will undoubtedly impact the user’s experience. Perhaps the most significant limitation is the public’s trust and acceptance of UAM as a concept. Passengers may not trust an aircraft without pilots to fly them in between buildings and above highly-populated cities. Additionally, they may not be willing to take the initiative to solve conflicts or emergencies during a fully autonomous flight.

Research into UAM passenger perceptions indicates that trust and safety are two of the most important factors that impact people’s acceptance of UAM as a concept and their physical comfort onboard. Yet current research cannot answer whether people actually will accept and trust that UAM vehicles are safe simply because no one is flying on them yet!

Another limitation is weight. Like helicopters, UAM vehicles have a fixed weight limit to ensure proper flight characteristics. Thus, UAM companies are focused on minimizing weight inside the cabin to fit more passengers onboard per flight. From a business perspective, this decision makes sense: more people per flight equals more profit. But from the design standpoint, this decision means that every item inside the cabin - from the seats and lights all the way down to the exact number of storage containers - must be scrutinized. Some may think, “Just get rid of what people don’t want!” But that is the problem: what exactly do users want? More importantly, what do users need?

Fitting the Pieces Together

These limitations highlight the need for user experience (UX) research. Students in HF 400 (the undergraduate Human

One Piece is Still Missing

The UAM industry is currently experiencing an awkward stage of growth. Companies have already assembled most of the puzzle through the development of their technology, infrastructure, and aircraft. But a crucial piece is still missing because not much is known about how passengers actually feel about their experience inside an eVTOL aircraft. We are the missing piece. We are the connectors that fit perfectly in the last empty spot. And once we are able to see how our overall transportation experience is impacted by UAM - for better or for worse - the puzzle will be complete.

ARTICLES COMPILED BY ALISON SMALLING / ERAU Athletics Director of Sports Information

PHOTOS BY ERAU ATHLETICS, MAGGIE ALLEN, MARGARET DOTSON, KYRIN MAYFIELD, TAVANA MERCADO, AND KAREN THORNBURGH

DESIGN BY DYLAN KOWLESSAR / Editor-in-Chief

e Embry-Riddle women’s tennis team, ranked No. 39 in NCAA II, proved their worth by defeating the 13thranked Florida Southern team 4-3 in a Sunshine State Conference match. Both teams have identical conference records and are waiting to hear about their seedings in the upcoming SSC tournament.

e Eagles took an early lead in doubles play, with victories from Jessica Christa Wira Hadipoernomo and Kaylee Kirivong, as well as Sabrina Ehrenfort and Carla Cabero del Hierro. In singles matches, the Eagles secured wins from Alessia Tripaldelli, Sabrina Ehrenfort, and Itxaso Blanco, ultimately clinching the victory. e SSC Tournament will take place at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida.

No. 6 Embry-Riddle women’s rowing concluded the Southern Intercollegiate Rowing Association Championships with top-6 placements in Varsity Four and Varsity Eight in April. All races were held on Melton Hill Lake.

e Varsity Four boat of Alexis Mathis (coxswain), Alexandria Fife-Winslow, Helena Schmidt, Aria Moses, and Briella Goldenberg nished in the same spot in the the semi nals as the Eagles placed sixth in a race won by Florida Tech (7:33.945).

Embry-Riddle was seconds away from taking home a medal in Varsity Eight, but the Eagles did record their bestever nish in an Eight boat at the SIRA Championships.

Megan Byrne (coxswain), Shelby Ernst, Kendra Sander, Soleil Edwards, So a Lorenzini, Elise Dezotell, Alexandra Weilert, Veronika Zdrazil, and Kristen Vigna powered the shell to a fourth-place result of 7:09.666, just ve seconds away from Dayton in third but faster than Sunshine State Conference foes No. 8 Rollins (7:20.282) and No. 7 Barry (7:26.924). Kansas State posted a 7:00.236 to take the trophy.

A Final as they did in Saturday’s time trial. A time of 8:14.179 was a 29-second improvement over their time in e Eagles had a slight edge over the Flyers halfway through the 2,000-meter course, but Dayton charged hard at the end to take third and almost overtook Jacksonville for second. ERAU’s time in the nal was 22 seconds quicker than its semi nal mark.

For the second consecutive year, the Embry-Riddle men’s rowing team captured the Varsity Four title at the Southern Intercollegiate Rowing Association Championships in April at Melton Hill Lake.

From start to nish, Chase Nilsson (coxswain), Vaclav Kuncak, Igor Martinovic, Joshua ornburgh, and Blake Paynter were neck and neck with Texas. Out of the gate, the Longhorns maintained a slight edge over the Eagles, but as the race went on, Embry-Riddle slowly inched ahead and eventually won by just 11 hundredths of a second with a time of 6:47.248. ERAU also bested boats from Florida, Baylor, Virginia, and Northwestern State in the nal.

It’s the third medal of the season for the Four boat a er Embry-Riddle won a pair of silvers at the FIRA Championships. Page 45