Using Echoic Flow for the Guidance and Control of an Unmanned Aerial System
Loading...
Date
2016-05
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
The Ohio State University
Abstract
Abstract – Bats are able to navigate through complex environments in low light conditions with enough precision to intercept insects in midair. It has been suggested that bats accomplish this task through echolocation and the use of echoic flow. At its simplest, echoic flow is a ratio of the distance from a target to the velocity towards the target. This parameter is known as τ, it is the time to collision with the target. This project explores the use of echoic flow for the guidance and control of an Unmanned Aerial System (UAS). The UAS platform used to implement this technique was a quadrotor outfitted with an acoustic range sensor. The objective was to have the UAS perform different braking strategies for landing through a perception of τ. Because errors in the measured distance were present during a maneuver, different strategies for filtering the distance measurements were developed. Polynomials at various orders were fit to the incoming measurements to determine the UAS’s actual distance from the target as it moves. The combination of this filtering and the use of echoic flow allowed the UAS to control its approach to a target, for landing or otherwise, in a simple and accurate way.
Description
Keywords
UAS, echoic flow, tau theory, control, navigation