uAvionix Receives Patent for skyBeacon/tailBeacon Transponder Interface

Bigfork, MT Dec 4, 2018

uAvionix today announced it has received notice from the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) that its Patent application for “Aircraft Navigation Light ADS-B Radio” including the “Power Transcoder” has been accepted by the USPTO and will issue as Patent 10,156,627 on December 18, 2018.

The newly issued Patent describes the concept behind the uAvionix skyBeacon and tailBeacon products – a revolutionary design which reduces installation time to minutes by integrating the ADS-B radio, GPS, altimeter, and antennas into an aircraft position and strobe light.  The skyBeacon received 5 Technical Standard Order (TSO) Approvals from the FAA on September 4, 2018 – and a 272 aircraft  Approved Model List (AML) Supplemental Type Certificate (STC) on November 28, 2018 – making it the most widely applicable ADS-B OUT solution on the market for General Aviation (GA).

skyBeacon utilizes uAvionix’s Power Transcoder to ensure proper synchronization of data elements between Secondary Surveillance Radar (SSR) replies and ADS-B transmissions. “The Power Transcoder provides a much cleaner solution than either a dedicated data interface or an RF [radio frequency] solution like many existing products,” says Paul Beard, CEO and Inventor of the Patent. “Dedicated data interfaces increase installation costs, and wireless solutions that incorporate a 1090MHz receiver can pick up unintended signals from other aircraft.  The Power Transcoder works within the closed system of the aircraft itself, reducing both errors and costs.”

The Power Transcoder is used within uAvionix certified and uncertified products, including skyBeacon, tailBeacon, and echoUAT.

About uAvionix Corporation

 uAvionix develops the world’s smallest, lightest and most affordable ADS-B transceivers, transponders, and GPS receivers. Based in Bigfork, MT, uAvionix has gathered a cross-disciplinary team of experts in embedded RF engineering, sUAS operations, avionics, hardware, software, and cloud services. uAvionix was founded in 2015 and has received Series A and Series B investment funding from Playground Global and Airbus Ventures.