Company Backgrounder

The following answer some common questions about the background of the company. Regards, Marc Ausman

Why did you develop the VP-200?
There has been a major trend in aviation from mechanical systems to digital systems, and a corresponding trend from federated products to integrated systems. All-digital attitude displays, navigation systems, and engine monitoring systems were some of the big ideas that we've seen implemented in general aviation aircraft in the last eight years or so. The result of this shift is that many aircraft are now entirely driven by software and electrons instead of vacuum pumps and other mechanical means. Flaps, trim, and stall warning systems have also become electrically driven.

It was obvious to us that the electrical system in an aircraft was becoming a lot more important than it was in the past. We saw beautiful big-screen glass cockpits, but ironically they were powered by 80-year old technology—breakers and switches accompanied by very manual piloting techniques.

Conversely, the automotive, recreation vehicle, trucking and marine markets have been adopting electronic circuit breakers (ECBs) to improve their products' reliability and functionality. So we saw an opportunity to develop ECB technology for the aviation market while everyone else was focused on EFIS development.

We also saw that pilots were rapidly adopting the new glass cockpits when given a choice. So it was clear that customers were eager for new technologies that made flying safer and easier, and also for features that added a bit of "wow" factor to flying. Plus, I had recently finished building an RV-7 and thought this technology was very relevant. Having been involved with several startup companies during my career, this seemed like an idea worth pursuing and ultimately led to the formation of the Company and outside investment.

The above noted "observations" led us to the conclusion that the next big leap in aircraft safety and reliability would be intelligent electronics via ECBs and software. The VP-200 is our third generation product which replaces switches, circuit breakers, trim and flap control systems, climate control systems, and a host of federated products (black boxes) in the aircraft with a solid-state control system.

What was the greatest challenge in designing a modern electrical system?
The greatest challenge we faced was how to apply ECBs to the aircraft market in a meaningful way.

We did not want to simply replace switches and breakers with their solid-state equivalents. We believed that existing data on the aircraft (air data, engine data, gps data) could be used to drive electrical switching functions. For example, we can use airspeed from the EFIS to enable power to the landing gear circuit, rather than having squat switches or mechanical airspeed switches. Or we can start pulsing the landing lights above a certain airspeed. Or we can automatically turn off the air conditioning compressor during take-off. These functions are implemented in software and require no external modules and add no weight.

But we challenged ourselves to go further than that, and ended up designing a patent-pending system that automatically detects each of 11 modes of flight (taxi, takeoff, cruise, landing, etc.). When you think about it, flying is a repetitive task. We developed a system that handles many of the repetitive and routine tasks for pilots (like turning on and off lights, fuel pumps, etc.) so the pilot can focus on flying the airplane rather than managing systems. That spurred the development of an innovative new way to handle in-flight emergencies whereby the pilot could press a single button and numerous tasks were performed automatically.

The next challenge involved a lot of user interface work to ensure that the pilot was always in the loop, and that the pilot could always override anything if necessary.

During the development process, we ended up filing eight patent applications covering various aspects of aircraft electrical system control. We learned that as you drill down and really understand the benefits that ECBs provide, there is a very large opportunity to significantly reduce pilot workload and present meaningful information to the pilot. I like to think of it as the electrical system equivalent of using a VOR needle vs. a GPS moving map for navigation. Both the old way and the new way are viable options, but the new way is much better.

What benefits does the VP-200 provide?
The benefits to the pilot are that it provides a quantum leap in safety and reliability while at the same time reduces pilot workload. You can watch videos to see and better understand how the system works here on our video page

The benefits to the aircraft builder are that it simplifies wiring (fewer parts and connections) while at the same time provides MORE features and capabilities than traditional electrical system designs. The wires simply go from the Control Unit to load being powered.

And the system configuration is extremely flexible because settings can be changed using the built-in setup menus.

Once in the field, troubleshooting is much easier because the wiring is very straightforward. The complexity that used to be in multitudes of discrete boxes is now contained in a single system.

Management Team
Marc Ausman
Marc brings a wide range of experience in the software and aviation industries and has been an integral member of the management team of three startups, and co-founded a telecommunications software company. In recent years, Marc has worked in the aviation industry and built his own RV-7. He holds a Commercial Pilot Certificate with Multi-Engine and Instrument ratings.

Prior to working in the aviation industry, Marc was involved with several venture-funded software companies where he played a key role in defining the original product concepts, conducting early market validation, launching new products, and managing product groups through rapid growth.

Marc earned his pilot’s license in college and went on to serve with the U.S. Navy as a Naval Flight Officer on board the P3-C Orion. He holds an MBA from the University of Texas at Austin and a BS from California Polytechnic University.

Kevin DeVries
Kevin most recently worked at Boeing SVS in the Real-Time Systems group, developing advanced tactical systems for the military. He has over 15 years experience in the design, development, and testing of state-of-the-art embedded and real-time processing systems. He’s been an integral part in the development of several airborne weapons programs for the Air Force and other government agencies. While finishing his Masters in Computer Science, Kevin developed the flight software for the Imager on the Mars Pathfinder. He has also been instrumental in the development of mission-critical software for medical devices.

Kevin has helped define and institute software process guidelines based on the specifications outlined by the FDA and SEI. He holds a Masters in Computer Science from the University of Arizona and a BS in Computer Science from the University of Colorado at Boulder.

Jay Skolnik, PE
Jay is a Professional Licensed Electrical Engineer, and is an engineering consultant to the Company. He has spent so much time working with Vertical Power that we decided to make him an honorary part of the management team, as his designs and inputs have been invaluable. With over twenty-five years of experience in the electronics industry, Jay has developed a multitude of products for the military, defense, avionics, aerospace, commercial, industrial, medical, and automotive industries. He has designed advanced and reliable avionics for several military programs at Honeywell Defense Avionics Systems, such as the HH-60, CT-II, OH-58, ASE, CH-47, F-18, B-1, AH-64, V-22, and MAV FCS projects. Certified by NARTE (The National Association of Radio & Telecommunications Engineers, Inc.), Jay is an expert ESDC (Electrostatic Discharge Control) Consultant. Jay holds a BSEE in Electrical Engineering from the University of Rolla, Missouri.