MRI Acquisition of: Heavy-lift UAV Sensor Platform for Research and Development

在国家科学基金会的支持下，蒂莫西·黑尔博士将使用一种重型无人机(无人机或无人机)，并将其提供给其他研究人员和工程师，该飞行器带有多个摄像头和扫描传感器，可用于研究和开发的各种用途。这一组合的无人机/遥感系统使快速、准确地捕获环境数据成为可能，以便创建植被、地表和构造特征的3D模型。它还为测试新的机器人和遥感技术提供了一个平台。例如，农业科学和工程技术等领域的研究人员可以使用该仪器进行精准农业、农场和牧场测绘以及机器人开发。地球和太空科学家可以使用该仪器测试新的传感器和环境研究。黑尔博士将利用这一工具为中美洲考古学引入新的能力。学生将从实践体验和尖端技术开发中受益。这将是位于阿巴拉契亚东部肯塔基州的莫尔黑德州立大学和中美洲考古研究所的研究人员和学生可以使用的第一个此类仪器。组合的重型无人机/遥感系统将通过利用几项新技术来加强研究和开发。首先，重型无人机允许在低海拔和低速时同时携带多个传感器，以在大多数气候和地表条件下捕捉高分辨率和重叠的图像数据。其次，全球导航卫星系统和惯性测量单元提供厘米级的控制和数据的地理参考。第三，高分辨率相机可以捕捉多种波长，包括可见光、近红外和红外。第四，光探测和测距(LiDAR)设备可以扫描植被，精度优于10厘米。使用该仪器的一个例子是黑尔博士绘制了通过森林树冠的考古废墟和相关环境特征的地图，用于他在墨西哥北部尤卡坦地区的马亚潘古城进行的考古调查。在墨西哥北部尤卡坦半岛进行考古调查的目的是绘制古代政治和经济首都马亚潘的地区背景图。因此，该仪器将用于考古田野调查、绘制古代定居点地图以及绘制用于空间数据分析的挖掘地图。由此产生的数据将使在整个地区范围内创建古代玛雅遗址的3D模型成为可能。捕捉古人遗骸的背景是所有考古研究的基础，但这些活动受到困难的野外条件和传统测绘技术的限制和高昂成本的阻碍。组合的重型无人机/遥感系统将克服这些障碍，使以前所未有的细节水平创建古代玛雅世界的3D地图成为可能。

With National Science Foundation support, Dr. Timothy Hare will use and make available to other researchers and engineers a heavy-lift unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV or drone) with multiple cameras and scanning sensors for a wide variety of uses in research and development. This combined UAV/remote sensing system makes possible rapid and accurate capture of environmental data for the creation of 3D models of vegetation, land surfaces, and constructed features. It also provides a platform for testing new robotic and remote sensing technologies. For instance, researchers in fields such as agricultural sciences and engineering technology can use the instrument for precision farming, farm and pasture mapping, and robotics development. Earth and space scientists can use the instrument for testing new sensors and environmental research. Dr. Hare will employ the vehicle to introduce new capabilities to Mesoamerican archaeology. Students will benefit from hands-on experience and development with cutting-edge technologies. This instrument will be the first one of its kind available to the researchers and students at Morehead State University, in Appalachian eastern Kentucky, and in Mesoamerican archaeological research.The combined heavy-lift UAV/remote sensing system will enhance research and development by leveraging several new technologies. First, the heavy-lift UAV allows for carrying multiple sensors simultaneously at low elevations and slow speeds to capture high-resolution and overlapping image data through most climatic and surface conditions. Second, the global navigation satellite system and inertial measurement unit provide centimeter-level control and georeferencing of data. Third, the high-resolution cameras capture a variety of wavelengths including visible, near infrared, and infrared. Fourth, the Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) device can scan through vegetation with better than 10 cm accuracy. One example of the instrument's use is Dr. Hare's mapping of archaeological ruins and associated environmental features through the forest canopy for his ongoing archaeological investigations at the ancient city of Mayapán in the northern Yucatan of Mexico. The purpose of archaeological survey in Mexico's northern Yucatán Peninsula is to map the regional context of the ancient political and economic capital of Mayapán. Hence, the instrument will be used for archaeological field survey, mapping ancient settlements, and mapping excavations for spatial data analysis. The resulting data will make possible the creation of 3D models of ancient Mayan ruins at the scale of entire regions. Capturing material remains of past people in context is the foundation of all archaeological research, but these activities are hampered by difficult field conditions and the limitations and high costs of traditional mapping technologies. The combined heavy-lift UAV/remote sensing system will overcome these obstacles, making possible the creation of 3D maps of the ancient Mayan world at a detail level never before possible.