The Infona portal uses cookies, i.e. strings of text saved by a browser on the user's device. The portal can access those files and use them to remember the user's data, such as their chosen settings (screen view, interface language, etc.), or their login data. By using the Infona portal the user accepts automatic saving and using this information for portal operation purposes. More information on the subject can be found in the Privacy Policy and Terms of Service. By closing this window the user confirms that they have read the information on cookie usage, and they accept the privacy policy and the way cookies are used by the portal. You can change the cookie settings in your browser.
This paper describes the theory and implementation of a trajectory optimization layer operating within an energy-aware, airborne, dynamic data-driven application system (EA-DDDAS). The work addresses wind field data estimation, trajectory optimization, and implementation of communication protocols to increase sUAS endurance in persistent sensing missions. The trajectory optimization layer acts as...
This paper presents an original approach for autonomous navigation based on RGB-D data and known 3D markers, where the basic concept is to detect and recognize the markers and then to use them for a straightforward pose estimation solution. The developed algorithms can allow a quadrotor to autonomously fly in (cooperative) GPS denied environments and/or when there is no natural or artificial illumination...
The optimal control of a “blind” UAV searching for a target moving on a road network and heading at a known speed toward a set of goal vertices is considered. To aid the UAV, some roads in the network have been instrumented with Unattended Ground Sensors (UGSs) that detect the target's passage. When the UAV arrives at an instrumented node, the UGS therein informs the UAV if and when the target visited...
UAVs are used in several remote applications. While performing a mission, electro-mechanical faults can occur which requires the UAVs to land quickly and safely. Landing in emergency conditions is a time critical problem, where, the UAV needs to find a landing site and plan a path to the selected site that satisfies some safety criterion in a given time. In this paper, we use terrain information from...
This paper presents a framework to deal with outdoor navigation using an AR.Drone Parrot quadrotor. The proposed system runs in a centralized computer, the ground station, responsible for the communication with the unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) and for synthesizing the control signals during flight missions. The outdoor navigation is performed through using a layered control architecture, where a...
A monocular vision-based approach to indoor autonomous navigation for an off-the-shelf, low-cost Micro Air Vehicle (MAV) quadcopter is presented. Our approach is fully automated and relies on the extraction and analysis of the visual contours of the surrounding physical environment to successfully steer the MAV in hallways and to turn at intersections. All image analysis and processing necessary for...
The aim of this paper is the description of the CIRA's (Italian Aerospace Research Center) vision about GN&C (Guidance, Navigation and Control) technologies for RPAS (Remotely Piloted Aircraft System). Specifically, the architecture (limiting to GN&C functions) of on-ground and on-board segments realized for the experimental CIRA RPAS will be described and compared with the recommendations...
As unmanned aerial systems (UASs) become ever more ubiquitous with National Airspace (NAS) commercial and civilian operations, test sites and proving grounds need to be developed and heavily researched. Small UASs are being used as remote sensing systems, on demand, at the personal level, thus “personal remote sensing” scientific data drones urgently need Ground Truthing Test Sites beyond compliance...
The continued growth of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) is driving innovation from delivery techniques to military surveillance. Cost and knowledge barriers are major limiting factors to general UAS adoption. A UAS controlled by an onboard smartphone is proposed to leverage consumer understanding and transform the emergent industry. Based upon user-supplied GPS flight path coordinates, the UAS can...
This paper reports the results of the UNIZG-FER team in the third European Robotics Challenge (EuRoC). More precisely, the results of the 1st qualifying stage of the challenge where a micro aerial vehicle (MAV) is tested in realistic simulation scenarios. The paper presents the entire controller setup, starting from the power distribution level, low level cascade controllers with wind disturbance...
Increasing research into aerial manipulation technology has widened the scope of possible applications for unmanned aircraft. One such application that is introduced in this paper is above-canopy sampling in forests. A preliminary study has investigated the problem experimentally as a means of determining a representative scenario whilst identifying key issues. These issues include relative position...
Unmanned Aerial Systems are very promising in monitoring applications. Their flexibility, ease of operation and relative low-cost construction make them the best candidates for monitoring activity in precision farming, where prompt management reactions to plant disease, lack of plants nutrients and environmental changes are the focal point to farm efficiency and productivity. In this paper, we show...
It is proposed to estimate wind velocity, Angle-Of-Attack (AOA) and Sideslip Angle (SSA) of a fixed-wing Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) using only kinematic relationships with a Kalman Filter (KF), avoiding the need to know aerodynamic models or other aircraft parameters. Assuming that measurements of airspeed and attitude of an UAV are available as inputs, a linear 4th order time-varying model of...
This paper presents the key design features, the numerical simulations and the experimental ground/flight test activities performed to verify the functionalities of an obstacle detection and avoidance system suitable for various classes of manned and unmanned aircraft. The Laser Obstacle Avoidance and Monitoring (LOAM) system is proposed as one of the key non-cooperative sensors adopted for avoiding...
The use of tethered Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) in aerial robotic applications is a relatively unexplored research field. In this work a numerically efficient implementation of a sigma-point Kalman filter is applied to the attitude and relative position estimation of a small-size tethered unmanned helicopter. For that purpose, the state prediction is performed using a kinematic process model driven...
In recent years, the technology of wireless sensor networks (WSNs) have evolved quickly leading to sensors with increased memory, storage, processing, and communication capabilities. WSNs have many applications in the commercial, environmental, and military fields. In addition, the technology of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) has gone through revolutionary improvements, which have led to highly advanced...
Fixed wing Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) are an increasingly common sensing platform, owing to their key advantages: speed, endurance and ability to explore remote areas. While these platforms are highly efficient, they cannot easily be equipped with air data sensors commonly found on their larger scale manned counterparts. Indeed, such sensors are bulky, expensive and severely reduce the payload...
Cooperative and non-cooperative Sense-and-Avoid (SAA) capabilities are key enablers for Unmanned Aircraft Vehicle (UAV) to safely and routinely access all classes of airspace. In this paper state-of-the-art cooperative and non-cooperative SAA sensor/system technologies for small-to-medium size UAV are identified and the associated multi-sensor data fusion techniques are introduced. A reference SAA...
In this paper a novel algorithm for distant aircraft detection for visual sense-and-avoid for UAV is presented. The algorithm uses local edge density to partition the frame into two types of regions. The first type is the unstructured or homogeneous part like sky region and the second part where there is a structured background, like high contrast clouds or terrain regions. The airplanes are detected...
This paper provides experimental validation of a uniformly semi-globally exponentially stable (USGES) non-linear observer for estimation of attitude, gyro bias, position, velocity and acceleration of a fixed-wing Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV). The available sensors are an Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU), a Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver, a video camera, and an inclinometer. The UAV is flown...
Set the date range to filter the displayed results. You can set a starting date, ending date or both. You can enter the dates manually or choose them from the calendar.