Engineering Commons^™

Involuntary Signal-Based Grounding Of Civilian Unmanned Aerial Systems (Uas) In Civilian Airspace, Keith Conley

Master's Theses

This thesis investigates the involuntary signal-based grounding of civilian unmanned aerial systems (UAS) in unauthorized air spaces. The technique proposed here will forcibly land unauthorized UAS in a given area in such a way that the UAS will not be harmed, and the pilot cannot stop the landing. The technique will not involuntarily ground authorized drones which will be determined prior to the landing. Unauthorized airspaces include military bases, university campuses, areas affected by a natural disaster, and stadiums for public events. This thesis proposes an early prototype of a hardware-based signal based involuntary grounding technique to handle the problem …

Drones On The Rise: Societal Misperceptions Of Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems, Renee Keilman

The Journal of Purdue Undergraduate Research

Throughout the past decade, small unmanned aircraft systems (sUAS) have been on the rise in both the civilian and military sectors. It is forecasted that in the near future they will create thousands of jobs and billions in tax revenue due to their ability to execute difficult and hazardous tasks safely, efficiently, and cost-effectively. However, one current issue with the proliferation of the technology is a shortage of skilled employees due to a lack of education and common negative public misperceptions associated with them.

To investigate this, responses from a mixed-methods survey will be analyzed. Within the survey, questions such …

Evaluating The Variability Of Urban Land Surface Temperatures Using Drone Observations, Joseph Naughton, Walter M. Mcdonald

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

Urbanization and climate change are driving increases in urban land surface temperatures that pose a threat to human and environmental health. To address this challenge, we must be able to observe land surface temperatures within spatially complex urban environments. However, many existing remote sensing studies are based upon satellite or aerial imagery that capture temperature at coarse resolutions that fail to capture the spatial complexities of urban land surfaces that can change at a sub-meter resolution. This study seeks to fill this gap by evaluating the spatial variability of land surface temperatures through drone thermal imagery captured at high-resolutions (13 …

High Level Gesture Control For Uavs, John Akagi, Brady Moon, Jared Paxton, Dr. Cammy Peterson

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The usage and application of small unmanned aircraft has grown in recent years, but training, and constant attention is often required for controlling an aircraft in even the simplest of tasks. Our research seeks to reduce the complexity in controlling drones by sending high level commands to them using unique hand gestures captured by a glove with an inertial measurement unit (IMU). This would allow the aircraft operators to maintain focus on a primary task while easily supplementing decisions and actions with aircraft data. In contrast to low level commands, such as directing drone velocities and control surfaces, high level …

Phased Array Digital Beamforming Algorithms And Applications, David Moyle Marsh

Theses and Dissertations

With the expansion of unmanned aircraft system (UAS) technologies, there is a growing need for UAS Traffic Management (UTM) systems to promote safe operation and development. To be successful, these UTM systems must be able to detect and track multiple drones in the presence of clutter. This paper examines the implementation of different algorithms on a compact, X-band, frequency modulated continuous wave (FMCW) radar in an effort to enable more accurate detection and estimation of drones. Several algorithms were tested through post processing on actual radar data to determine their accuracy and usefulness for this system. A promising result was …

A Case Study On The Use Of Drones On Heavy Civil Construction Projects, William Devers

Construction Management

Even though the construction industry is known for being behind the curve in adopting new technologies for change, construction professionals are constantly striving for ways to save money and improve efficiency. The emergence of drone technology in recent years has sparked new interest among these professionals for those exact reasons. These flying machines offer numerous benefits to construction companies such as bypassing traditional surveying methods, using photogrammetry to create 3D models used for estimating quantities, improving team communication, ensuring worker safety, increasing owner satisfaction, among other benefits. In this case study, personal interviews will be conducted on a single construction …

Environmental Monitoring Using A Drone-Enabled Wireless Sensor Network, Gina Valentino, Laura Yates, Brooke Potter

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

Water quality monitoring traditionally occurs via resource intensive field surveys, such as when a researcher manually collects data in a stream. Limiting factors such as time, money, and accessibility often result in less oversight of impaired water bodies, significantly threatening ecosystemic health and related ecosystem services. According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency, 84% of rivers and streams within the United States remain unassessed, resulting in significant lapses in available data. Such lapses prohibit efficient and effective monitoring, restoration, and conservation efforts throughout the United States. The objective of this project was to employ an unmanned aerial vehicle to …

The Changing Face Of Airmanship And Safety Culture Operating Unmanned Aircraft Systems, Tracy Lamb

Student Works

The notion of using drones for commercial purposes has evolved in the past 5 years from the initial “boom” of excitement around this, somewhat of a novelty and curiosity, to more calculated and sophisticated use of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), or drones. In the hands of true professionals, drones can offer highly efficient and profitable solutions for industrial, and commercial inspections and other data capturing tasks. The appetite for safe and efficient collection of data is a changing face of safety cultures and how teams and individuals apply airmanship principles, and how inspection crew and UAS crew interact. UAS are …

Using A Balloon-Launched Unmanned Glider To Validate Real-Time Wrf Modeling, Travis J. Schuyler, S. M. Iman Gohari, Gary Pundsack, Donald Berchoff, Marcelo I. Guzman

Chemistry Faculty Publications

The use of small unmanned aerial systems (sUAS) for meteorological measurements has expanded significantly in recent years. SUAS are efficient platforms for collecting data with high resolution in both space and time, providing opportunities for enhanced atmospheric sampling. Furthermore, advances in mesoscale weather research and forecasting (WRF) modeling and graphical processing unit (GPU) computing have enabled high resolution weather modeling. In this manuscript, a balloon-launched unmanned glider, complete with a suite of sensors to measure atmospheric temperature, pressure, and relative humidity, is deployed for validation of real-time weather models. This work demonstrates the usefulness of sUAS for validating and improving …

Evaluation Of Unmanned Aircraft Flying Qualities Using A Stitched Learjet Model, Patrick M. Callaghan

Theses and Dissertations

In recent years, military UAVs have taken over missions that were too dull, dirty, or dangerous for manned aircraft. The increased demand has led to a build-fly-fix-fly development mentality, plaguing the early lifecycle with staggering mishap rates. Currently, MIL-STD-1797 lists flying qualities for UAVs as TBD, and the standards for manned fixed wing are inadequate when applied to UAVs. In an effort to expand the database of UAV flying qualities, an analysis was completed on a Simulink model of an LJ-25D developed from Calspans Variable Stability System aircraft at the United States Test Pilot School. Three maneuvers were simulated: (1) …

What Does A Drone See?: How Aerial Data Resolution Impacts Data Protection, Jonathan Ryan, David Maloney, Brian Quinn

Session 4: 2D, 3D Scene Analysis and Visualisation

The introduction of General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) means that organisations are responsible for data protection for all individuals within the E.U. One area of operation that is unclear is to what degree aerial camera systems capture personal data. Mega-pixels and ground sampling distance are normally used as metrics for camera resolution but they ignore a multitude of factors and do not re ect the actual resolving power of the camera system. This work examines the resolution gap by detailing what is actually captured in the image output and how this can be used as an objective measure when addressing …

Exposing Students To Stem Careers Through Hands-On Activities With Drones And Robots, Vukica M. Jovanović, George Mcleod, Thomas E. Alberts, Cynthia Tomovic, Otilia Popescu, Tysha Batts, Ms. Mary Louise Sandy

Engineering Technology Faculty Publications

Autonomous robots have been used in a variety of ways from collecting specimen in hazardous environments to space exploration. These robots can be found in various manufacturing systems as Autonomous Guided Vehicles (AGVs) to transport parts and assemblies throughout the manufacturing system. They have also been used as a vehicle to convey design thinking and other STEM-related concepts in mechanical engineering/mechanical engineering technology, electrical engineering/electrical engineering technology, computer science, and computer engineering. Various outreach events have included robotics based activities that engage students in building and programming autonomous robots for the purpose of achieving a specific task. These events are …