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Full-Text Articles in Navigation, Guidance, Control and Dynamics
Theoretical Limits Of Lunar Vision Aided Navigation With Inertial Navigation System, David W. Jones
Theoretical Limits Of Lunar Vision Aided Navigation With Inertial Navigation System, David W. Jones
Theses and Dissertations
The precision navigation capabilities of the Global Positioning System (GPS) are used extensively within US military operations. However, GPS is highly vulnerable to intentional and unintentional external interference. Therefore, a need exists to develop a non-GPS precision navigation method to operate in GPS degraded environments. This research effort presents the theoretical limits of a precision navigation method based on an inertial navigation system (INS) aided by angle measurements with respect to lunar surface features observed by a fixed camera. To accomplish this task, an extended Kalman filter (EKF) was implemented to estimate INS drift errors and bring in simulated lunar …
Precision Relative Positioning For Automated Aerial Refueling From A Stereo Imaging System, Kyle P. Werner
Precision Relative Positioning For Automated Aerial Refueling From A Stereo Imaging System, Kyle P. Werner
Theses and Dissertations
The United States Air Force relies upon aerial refueling to fulfill its missions. Unmanned aerial systems (UAS) and remotely piloted aircraft (RPA) do not currently have access to this capability due to the lack of an on-board pilot to safely maintain a refueling position. This research examines stereo vision for precision relative navigation in order to accomplish the Automated Aerial Refueling (AAR) task. Previous work toward an AAR solution has involved the use of Differential Global Positioning (DGPS), Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR), and monocular vision. This research aims to leverage organic systems in future aircraft to compliment these solutions. …
Optimal Recovery Trajectories For Automatic Ground Collision Avoidance Systems (Auto Gcas), Angela W. Suplisson
Optimal Recovery Trajectories For Automatic Ground Collision Avoidance Systems (Auto Gcas), Angela W. Suplisson
Theses and Dissertations
The USAF's F-16 Automatic Ground Collision Avoidance System (Auto GCAS) uses a single pre-planned roll to wings- level and 5-g pull-up to meet the operational requirements of being both aggressive and timely, meaning that extremely agile avoidance maneuvers will be executed at the last second to avoid the ground. There currently exists no similar Auto GCAS for manned military heavy' aircraft with lower climb performance such as transport, tanker, or bomber aircraft. This research proposes a new optimal control approach to the ground collision avoidance problem for heavy aircraft by mapping the aggressive and timely requirements of the automatic recovery …
Expected Position Error For An Onboard Satellite Gps Receiver, Anthony S. Williams
Expected Position Error For An Onboard Satellite Gps Receiver, Anthony S. Williams
Theses and Dissertations
The Global Positioning System (GPS) constellation provides ranging information that delivers inexpensive, high precision positioning for terrestrial users. Satellites in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) can use an onboard GPS receiver resulting in meter-level navigation solution accuracy. There are limitations to using GPS for positioning for satellites above LEO. The number of GPS satellites who's signal can be received decreases as the receivers altitude approaches that of the GPS constellation. Above the GPS constellation, the available GPS signals for ranging will originate from satellites on the opposite side of Earth. This research calculates the available GPS signals to the receiver and …
Error Characterization Of Flight Trajectories Reconstructed Using Structure From Motion, Daniel C. Alix
Error Characterization Of Flight Trajectories Reconstructed Using Structure From Motion, Daniel C. Alix
Theses and Dissertations
This research effort assessed the accuracy of Structure from Motion (SFM) algorithms in replicating aircraft fight trajectories. Structure from Motion techniques can be used to estimate aircraft trajectory by determining the position and pose of an aircraft mounted camera from a sequential series of images taken during flight. An algorithm is proposed and implemented that successfully reconstructed aircraft trajectory using only a known starting position and a sequential series of images. The error in and reliability of the algorithm was found to be a function of image resolution as well as the amount of overlap and angular separation between sequential …
Pilot Assisted Inertial Navigation System Aiding Using Bearings-Only Measurements Taken Over Time, Anthony T. Mirabile
Pilot Assisted Inertial Navigation System Aiding Using Bearings-Only Measurements Taken Over Time, Anthony T. Mirabile
Theses and Dissertations
The objective of this work is to develop an alternative INS aiding source other than the GPS, while preserving the autonomy of the integrated navigation system. It is proposed to develop a modernized method of aerial navigation using driftmeter measurements from an E/O system for ground feature tracking, and an independent altitude sensor in conjunction with the INS. The pilot will track a ground feature with the E/O system, while the aircraft is on autopilot holding constant airspeed, altitude, and heading during an INS aiding session. The ground feature measurements from the E/O system and the INS output form measurements …
On The Integration Of Medium Wave Infrared Cameras For Vision-Based Navigation, Justin S. Tharp
On The Integration Of Medium Wave Infrared Cameras For Vision-Based Navigation, Justin S. Tharp
Theses and Dissertations
The ubiquitous nature of GPS has fostered its widespread integration of navigation into a variety of applications, both civilian and military. One alternative to ensure continued flight operations in GPS-denied environments is vision-aided navigation, an approach that combines visual cues from a camera with an inertial measurement unit (IMU) to estimate the navigation states of a moving body. The majority of vision-based navigation research has been conducted in the electro-optical (EO) spectrum, which experiences limited operation in certain environments. The aim of this work is to explore how such approaches extend to infrared imaging sensors. In particular, it examines the …
Navigation Constellation Design Using A Multi-Objective Genetic Algorithm, Heather C. Diniz
Navigation Constellation Design Using A Multi-Objective Genetic Algorithm, Heather C. Diniz
Theses and Dissertations
In satellite constellation design, performance and cost of the system drive the design process. The Global Positioning System (GPS) constellation is currently used to provide positioning and timing worldwide. As satellite technology has improved over the years, the cost to develop and maintain the satellites has increased. Using a constellation design tool, it is possible to analyze the tradeoffs of new navigation constellation designs (Pareto fronts) that illustrate the tradeoffs between position dilution of precision (PDOP) and system cost. This thesis utilized Satellite Tool Kit (STK) to calculate PDOP values of navigation constellations, and the Unmanned Spacecraft Cost Model (USCM) …
A Monocular Slam Method To Estimate Relative Pose During Satellite Proximity Operations, Scott J. Kelly
A Monocular Slam Method To Estimate Relative Pose During Satellite Proximity Operations, Scott J. Kelly
Theses and Dissertations
Automated satellite proximity operations is an increasingly relevant area of mission operations for the US Air Force with potential to significantly enhance space situational awareness (SSA). Simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM) is a computer vision method of constructing and updating a 3D map while keeping track of the location and orientation of the imaging agent inside the map. The main objective of this research effort is to design a monocular SLAM method customized for the space environment. The method developed in this research will be implemented in an indoor proximity operations simulation laboratory. A run-time analysis is performed, showing near …