Supernal will use Microsoft’s Azure cloud computing platform to conduct flight simulations with highly autonomous eVTOL aircraft. The company, which is the advanced air mobility division of South Korean car maker Hyundai, says it is also looking to incorporate Microsoft’s HoloLens 2 augmented-reality headset into its manufacturing and maintenance processes. 

The U.S. -based company is developing a five-seat eVTOL aircraft known as the SA-1, which will initially operate with a pilot on board using a lightweight fly-by-wire system. However, Supernal aims to eventually switch to fully autonomous flight operations. 

As part of its newly-announced collaboration with Supernal, Microsoft will give the company early access to Project AirSim, a new simulation platform for aircraft developers that uses artificial intelligence to simulate the flights of autonomous aerial vehicles, evaluating and improving the vehicle’s decision-making processes and capabilities.

“Microsoft Azure provides the platform and cloud storage to run Microsoft Project AirSim, which will render a simulated flight environment used to test, train, and optimize Supernal’s autonomy stack,” Adam Slepian, Supernal’s deputy chief commercial officer, told FutureFlight. “The simulated sensor returns generated through AirSim could assist in tasks like optimizing sensor placement and testing unique scenarios within autonomy algorithms.” 

The simulation tool allows autonomous aircraft developers to put their algorithms to the test, observing how their aircraft will behave in different environments and scenarios, such as when it encounters an obstacle in the air or on the ground. Collecting this data from flight simulations is more efficient and less risky than attempting to conduct real-life test flights with the same variety of circumstances and environmental conditions. 

“Supernal intends to simulate the flight paths across an urban air mobility network to train the autonomy stack in the virtual ecosystem, including other actors in the airspace,” Slepian added. “These efforts can also help integrate eVTOL vehicles into new and existing multimodal solutions on the ground, such as vertiports.”

HoloLens 2: A Manufacturing and Maintenance Aide

While Supernal is working on adding artificial intelligence into its flight control systems, the company is also planning to use new augmented reality tech in its manufacturing and maintenance processes. Supernal says its engineers and technicians could soon be using Microsoft’s HoloLens 2 mixed-reality headset as a visual aide. The HoloLens 2 headset allows wearers to see and interact with holographic objects that are displayed through what may look like a pair of high-tech welding goggles. The headset costs $3,500 a piece. 

“HoloLens 2, and more broadly augmented reality, enable applications that could increase efficiencies in the development and manufacturing of autonomous flight technology,” said Slepian. “For Supernal, HoloLens 2 creates the opportunity to collaborate and innovate with team members and suppliers by bringing them virtually ‘on site,’ supplemented by tangible visual representations of the engineering, IT, or manufacturing components in question.”

Slepian added that Supernal’s engineering teams are exploring use cases with HoloLens 2, such as “assisted preflight checks, manufacturing inspections and process flows, training and customer service.”