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Abstract
Design and development of autonomous or unmanned rotary wing vehicles have attracted a great deal of attention all over the world. Due to their unique capability to hover, these vehicles have potential applications in both civil and military sectors. Recently a research activity has been initiated at IIT Kanpur to set up a laboratory for design and development of an autonomous mini-helicopter. The major focus of this research activity is to design and integrate the sensors (Inertial Measurement Unit consisting of accelerometers and gyroscopes, magnetic sensor, SONAR and GPS) and communication systems (W-LAN and on-board computer) in a model helicopter, and provide the autonomous control and navigation capability. During the progress of this research and development effort, several testing systems have been designed and developed while facing several challenges at every stage of development. In addition, this high technology activity has provided an opportunity to the students to get hands on experience in the multidisciplinary aspects involved in the design and development of an autonomous mini-helicopter. The objective of this paper is to provide an over view of the challenges faced (till date) and how these problems have been addressed.
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References
- Buskey, G., Roberts, J., Corke, P., Dunbabin, M. and Wyeth, G., "The CSIRO Autonomous Helicopter Project", in Experimental Robotics VIII, edited by B. Siciliano and P. Dario, Vol.5 of STAR, Springer-Verlag, New York, 2003.
- Ye Hong., Jiancheng Fang and Ye Tao., "Ground Control Station Development for Autonomous UAV", Intelligent Robotics and Applications, Lecture Notes in Computer Science, Vol.5315, pp.36-44, Pub. Springer Berlin / Heidelberg, 2008.
- Swaroop, B.B., "Design, Development and Testing of an Autonomous Mini-Helicopter in Hover", M.Tech Thesis, Department of Aerosapce Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, India, 2012.
- Kottmann, M., "Software for Helicopter Flight Control", Technical Report 316, ETH, Zurich.
- Cookson, J.L., "A Method for Testing the Dynamic Accuracy of Micro-electro-mechanical Systems (mems) Magnetic, Angular Rate, and Gravity (marg) Sensors for Inertial Navigation Systems (ins) and Human Motion Tracking Applications", Masters Thesis, Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey, California, USA, June, 2010.
- Prasad, R. V., Swaroop, B. B. and Venkatesan, C., "Characterization of Actuators, Sensors and Wireless System for Autonomous Tethered Hover of a Mini-helicopter", International Conference on Intelligent Unmanned Systems, Chiba, Japan, October - November, 2011.
- Gebre-Egziabher, D., Gabriel, H.E., Powell, D.J. and Parkinson, B.W., "Calibration of Strapdown Magnetometers in Magnetic Field Domain", Journal of Aerospace Engineering, April, 2006, pp.87-102.
- Prasad, R.V., "Characterization of Servo Actuators and Implementation of Wireless Communication in a Mini-Helicopter", Masters Thesis, Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, India, 2011.
- Swaroop, B.B., Dhadwal, M.K., Kushari, A., Upadhyay, C.S. and Venkatesan, C., "Experimental Studies in the Development of an Autonomous Mini Helicopter", Proceedings of ICEAE 2009 (IISc Centenary International Conference and Exhibition on Aerospace Engineering), held at Bangalore, India, 18-22 May, 2009.
- Xu, Y., Li, P., Han, B. and Ren, Q., "Intelligent Rotor Speed Controller for a Mini Autonomous Helicopter", Proceedings of the 2006 IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems October 9 - 15, 2006, Beijing, China.
- Swaroop, B.B., "Closed Loop rpm Control of Autonomous Mini-helicopter", Report No. DST/AE/TR/RPMCONTROL-01/10, Helicopter Laboratory, Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, April, 2010.
- Swaroop, B.B., Ravinder, H. and Venkatesan, C., "Rotor Load Measurements and Stabilization in Tethered Hover of a Mini-helicopter", International Conference on Intelligent Unmanned Systems, Bali, Indonesia, November, 2010.
- Swaroop, B.B., Dhadwal, M.K. and Venkatesan, C., "Experimental Studies on Pitch-Roll-Yaw Control of a Mini Helicopter on a Test Rig", Proceedings of AHS Specialists Meeting, 2nd International Forum on Rotorcraft Multidisciplinary Technology, Seoul, Korea, October, 2009.
- Swaroop, B.B., Pathuri Haritha and Venkatesan, C., "Flight Test of a Mini-helicopter in Hover", International Conference on Intelligent Unmanned Systems, Singapore, October, 2012.
References
Buskey, G., Roberts, J., Corke, P., Dunbabin, M. and Wyeth, G., "The CSIRO Autonomous Helicopter Project", in Experimental Robotics VIII, edited by B. Siciliano and P. Dario, Vol.5 of STAR, Springer-Verlag, New York, 2003.
Ye Hong., Jiancheng Fang and Ye Tao., "Ground Control Station Development for Autonomous UAV", Intelligent Robotics and Applications, Lecture Notes in Computer Science, Vol.5315, pp.36-44, Pub. Springer Berlin / Heidelberg, 2008.
Swaroop, B.B., "Design, Development and Testing of an Autonomous Mini-Helicopter in Hover", M.Tech Thesis, Department of Aerosapce Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, India, 2012.
Kottmann, M., "Software for Helicopter Flight Control", Technical Report 316, ETH, Zurich.
Cookson, J.L., "A Method for Testing the Dynamic Accuracy of Micro-electro-mechanical Systems (mems) Magnetic, Angular Rate, and Gravity (marg) Sensors for Inertial Navigation Systems (ins) and Human Motion Tracking Applications", Masters Thesis, Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey, California, USA, June, 2010.
Prasad, R. V., Swaroop, B. B. and Venkatesan, C., "Characterization of Actuators, Sensors and Wireless System for Autonomous Tethered Hover of a Mini-helicopter", International Conference on Intelligent Unmanned Systems, Chiba, Japan, October - November, 2011.
Gebre-Egziabher, D., Gabriel, H.E., Powell, D.J. and Parkinson, B.W., "Calibration of Strapdown Magnetometers in Magnetic Field Domain", Journal of Aerospace Engineering, April, 2006, pp.87-102.
Prasad, R.V., "Characterization of Servo Actuators and Implementation of Wireless Communication in a Mini-Helicopter", Masters Thesis, Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, India, 2011.
Swaroop, B.B., Dhadwal, M.K., Kushari, A., Upadhyay, C.S. and Venkatesan, C., "Experimental Studies in the Development of an Autonomous Mini Helicopter", Proceedings of ICEAE 2009 (IISc Centenary International Conference and Exhibition on Aerospace Engineering), held at Bangalore, India, 18-22 May, 2009.
Xu, Y., Li, P., Han, B. and Ren, Q., "Intelligent Rotor Speed Controller for a Mini Autonomous Helicopter", Proceedings of the 2006 IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems October 9 - 15, 2006, Beijing, China.
Swaroop, B.B., "Closed Loop rpm Control of Autonomous Mini-helicopter", Report No. DST/AE/TR/RPMCONTROL-01/10, Helicopter Laboratory, Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, April, 2010.
Swaroop, B.B., Ravinder, H. and Venkatesan, C., "Rotor Load Measurements and Stabilization in Tethered Hover of a Mini-helicopter", International Conference on Intelligent Unmanned Systems, Bali, Indonesia, November, 2010.
Swaroop, B.B., Dhadwal, M.K. and Venkatesan, C., "Experimental Studies on Pitch-Roll-Yaw Control of a Mini Helicopter on a Test Rig", Proceedings of AHS Specialists Meeting, 2nd International Forum on Rotorcraft Multidisciplinary Technology, Seoul, Korea, October, 2009.
Swaroop, B.B., Pathuri Haritha and Venkatesan, C., "Flight Test of a Mini-helicopter in Hover", International Conference on Intelligent Unmanned Systems, Singapore, October, 2012.