Magnetic interference mapping of four types of unmanned aircraft systems intended for aeromagnetic surveying

Unmanned aircraft systems as wingmen

This paper introduces a method to integrate Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UASs) into a highly functional manned/ unmanned team through the design and implementation of 3D distributed formation/flight control algorithms with the goal to act as wingmen for a manned aircraft. The proposed algorithms are designed to increase UAS autonomy, dynamically modify formations, utilize standard operating forma...

Choosing Replanning Strategies for Unmanned Aircraft Systems

Unmanned aircraft systems use a variety of techniques to plan collision-free flight paths given a map of obstacles and nofly zones. However, maps are not perfect and obstacles may change over time or be detected during flight, which may invalidate paths that the aircraft is already following. Thus, dynamic in-flight replanning is required. Numerous strategies can be used for replanning, where t...

Cyber-Physical Optimization for Unmanned Aircraft Systems

A = area of an image b = wingspan CD0 = zero-lift drag coefficient E = energy for physical system e0 = Oswald efficiency factor f = focal length of camera H = entropy cost Hdist = horizontal distance of imaging plane Jp = cost function for physical system K = aerodynamic parameter k = execution cycle of task τ L = Lagrangian of constrained cost function m = mass of aircraft P v = power as a fun...

Avionics Systems Development for Small Unmanned Aircraft

The avionics systems for two small unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are considered from the point of view of hardware selection, navigation and control algorithm design, and software development. Some common challenges for many small UAV systems are addressed, including gust disturbance rejection at low speeds, control power, and systems integration. A rapid prototyping simulation framework whic...

Handling Qualities Evaluations of Unmanned Aircraft Systems