282 research outputs found
A Survey of Offline and Online Learning-Based Algorithms for Multirotor UAVs
Multirotor UAVs are used for a wide spectrum of civilian and public domain
applications. Navigation controllers endowed with different attributes and
onboard sensor suites enable multirotor autonomous or semi-autonomous, safe
flight, operation, and functionality under nominal and detrimental conditions
and external disturbances, even when flying in uncertain and dynamically
changing environments. During the last decade, given the
faster-than-exponential increase of available computational power, different
learning-based algorithms have been derived, implemented, and tested to
navigate and control, among other systems, multirotor UAVs. Learning algorithms
have been, and are used to derive data-driven based models, to identify
parameters, to track objects, to develop navigation controllers, and to learn
the environment in which multirotors operate. Learning algorithms combined with
model-based control techniques have been proven beneficial when applied to
multirotors. This survey summarizes published research since 2015, dividing
algorithms, techniques, and methodologies into offline and online learning
categories, and then, further classifying them into machine learning, deep
learning, and reinforcement learning sub-categories. An integral part and focus
of this survey are on online learning algorithms as applied to multirotors with
the aim to register the type of learning techniques that are either hard or
almost hard real-time implementable, as well as to understand what information
is learned, why, and how, and how fast. The outcome of the survey offers a
clear understanding of the recent state-of-the-art and of the type and kind of
learning-based algorithms that may be implemented, tested, and executed in
real-time.Comment: 26 pages, 6 figures, 4 tables, Survey Pape
Fast and Accurate, Convolutional Neural Network Based Approach for Object Detection from UAV
Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), have intrigued different people from all
walks of life, because of their pervasive computing capabilities. UAV equipped
with vision techniques, could be leveraged to establish navigation autonomous
control for UAV itself. Also, object detection from UAV could be used to
broaden the utilization of drone to provide ubiquitous surveillance and
monitoring services towards military operation, urban administration and
agriculture management. As the data-driven technologies evolved, machine
learning algorithm, especially the deep learning approach has been intensively
utilized to solve different traditional computer vision research problems.
Modern Convolutional Neural Networks based object detectors could be divided
into two major categories: one-stage object detector and two-stage object
detector. In this study, we utilize some representative CNN based object
detectors to execute the computer vision task over Stanford Drone Dataset
(SDD). State-of-the-art performance has been achieved in utilizing focal loss
dense detector RetinaNet based approach for object detection from UAV in a fast
and accurate manner.Comment: arXiv admin note: substantial text overlap with arXiv:1803.0111
UAV Command and Control, Navigation and Surveillance: A Review of Potential 5G and Satellite Systems
Drones, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), or unmanned aerial systems (UAS) are
expected to be an important component of 5G/beyond 5G (B5G) communications.
This includes their use within cellular architectures (5G UAVs), in which they
can facilitate both wireless broadcast and point-to-point transmissions,
usually using small UAS (sUAS). Allowing UAS to operate within airspace along
with commercial, cargo, and other piloted aircraft will likely require
dedicated and protected aviation spectrum at least in the near term, while
regulatory authorities adapt to their use. The command and control (C2), or
control and non-payload communications (CNPC) link provides safety critical
information for the control of the UAV both in terrestrial-based line of sight
(LOS) conditions and in satellite communication links for so-called beyond LOS
(BLOS) conditions. In this paper, we provide an overview of these CNPC links as
they may be used in 5G and satellite systems by describing basic concepts and
challenges. We review new entrant technologies that might be used for UAV C2 as
well as for payload communication, such as millimeter wave (mmWave) systems,
and also review navigation and surveillance challenges. A brief discussion of
UAV-to-UAV communication and hardware issues are also provided.Comment: 10 pages, 5 figures, IEEE aerospace conferenc
A Multilevel Architecture for Autonomous UAVs
In this paper, a multilevel architecture able to interface an on-board computer with a generic UAV flight controller and its radio receiver is proposed. The computer board exploits the same standard communication protocol of UAV flight controllers and can easily access additional data, such as: (i) inertial sensor measurements coming from a multi-sensor board; (ii) global navigation satellite system (GNSS) coordinates; (iii) streaming video from one or more cameras; and (iv) operator commands from the remote control. In specific operating scenarios, the proposed platform is able to act as a “cyber pilot” which replaces the role of a human UAV operator, thus simplifying the development of complex tasks such as those based on computer vision and artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms which are typically employed in autonomous flight operations
Autonomous Vehicles
This edited volume, Autonomous Vehicles, is a collection of reviewed and relevant research chapters, offering a comprehensive overview of recent developments in the field of vehicle autonomy. The book comprises nine chapters authored by various researchers and edited by an expert active in the field of study. All chapters are complete in itself but united under a common research study topic. This publication aims to provide a thorough overview of the latest research efforts by international authors, open new possible research paths for further novel developments, and to inspire the younger generations into pursuing relevant academic studies and professional careers within the autonomous vehicle field
Predictive smart relaying schemes for decentralized wireless systems
Recent developments in decentralized wireless networks make the technology potentially deployable in an extremely broad scenarios and applications. These include mobile Internet of Things (IoT) networks, smart cities, future innovative communication systems with multiple aerial layer flying network platforms and other advanced mobile communication networks. The approach also could be the solution for traditional operated mobile network backup plans, balancing traffic flow, emergency communication systems and so on.
This thesis reveals and addresses several issues and challenges in conventional wireless communication systems, particular for the cases where there is a lack of resources and the disconnection of radio links. There are two message routing plans in the data packet store, carry and forwarding form are proposed, known as KaFiR and PaFiR. These employ the Bayesian filtering approach to track and predict the motion of surrounding portable devices and determine the next layer among candidate nodes. The relaying strategies endow smart devices with the intelligent capability to optimize the message routing path and improve the overall network performance with respect to resilience, tolerance and scalability.
The simulation and test results present that the KaFiR routing protocol performs well when network subscribers are less mobile and the relaying protocol can be deployed on a wide range of portable terminals as the algorithm is rather simple to operate. The PaFiR routing strategy takes advantages of the Particle Filter algorithm, which can cope with complex network scenarios and applications, particularly when unmanned aerial vehicles are involved as the assisted intermediate layers.
When compared with other existing DTN routing protocols and some of the latest relaying plans, both relaying protocols deliver an excellent overall performance for the key wireless communication network evolution metrics, which shows the promising future for this brand new research direction. Further extension work directions based on the tracking and prediction methods are suggested and reviewed. Future work on some new applications and services are also addressed
The Underpinnings of Workload in Unmanned Vehicle Systems
This paper identifies and characterizes factors that contribute to operator workload in unmanned vehicle systems. Our objective is to provide a basis for developing models of workload for use in design and operation of complex human-machine systems. In 1986, Hart developed a foundational conceptual model of workload, which formed the basis for arguably the most widely used workload measurement techniquethe NASA Task Load Index. Since that time, however, there have been many advances in models and factor identification as well as workload control measures. Additionally, there is a need to further inventory and describe factors that contribute to human workload in light of technological advances, including automation and autonomy. Thus, we propose a conceptual framework for the workload construct and present a taxonomy of factors that can contribute to operator workload. These factors, referred to as workload drivers, are associated with a variety of system elements including the environment, task, equipment and operator. In addition, we discuss how workload moderators, such as automation and interface design, can be manipulated in order to influence operator workload. We contend that workload drivers, workload moderators, and the interactions among drivers and moderators all need to be accounted for when building complex, human-machine systems
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