I-Corps: Enhancing Autonomous Capabilities of Unmanned Aerial and Underwater Vehicles

这个I-Corps项目更广泛的影响/商业潜力是在空中和水下领域为无人驾驶车辆开发增强的自主能力。 无人机（UAV）用于包括搜索和救援、维护检查、娱乐、精准农业、通信网络、执法等在内的多种应用正在快速增长，现在是一个价值数十亿美元的产业。 同样，无人水下航行器（UUV）用于扫雷、海上检查和海洋生物监测等应用也在增加。 所提出的技术可以为UAV和UUV提供更大的自主能力。 当用于无人机时，成功部署拟议的创新可能会加强这些车辆的使用，以帮助消防员进行搜索和救援行动，从而挽救生命。 拟议的创新还将使一组国防无人机能够保护空域免受敌对和未经授权的无人机的渗透，从而有利于国土安全。 当用于UUV时，这些创新可以增强这种车辆的使用，以帮助检查浮动水下基础设施，如风力涡轮机和石油平台，并具有积极的经济和环境影响。 这个I-Corps项目的基础是结合人工智能方法开发制导和控制算法，以增强无人驾驶航空器（UAV）和无人水下航行器（UUV）的自主能力。 已经开发了两种算法创新，称为创新A和创新B。 自主创新A旨在使无人机和UUV能够执行自主机动，便于它们通过可以是静止或移动的狭窄孔口。在空气和水下领域中存在可能出现小孔的多种情况。 这些孔口的小尺寸要求运载工具以高精度水平通过孔口的可操纵性。 军事创新B旨在使一组防御无人机能够拦截并可能使侵入受保护空域的无人机失效。 这些算法创新是在一个通用框架中开发的，该框架使它们适用于广泛的飞行器，包括固定翼、四轴飞行器和扑翼构型。 该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this I-Corps project is the development of enhanced autonomous capabilities for unmanned vehicles in aerial and underwater domains. The use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for multiple applications including search and rescue, maintenance inspections, entertainment, precision agriculture, communication networks, law enforcement, etc. is increasing at a rapid pace and is now a multi-billion dollar industry. Similarly, the use of unmanned underwater vehicles (UUVs) for applications such as mine-sweeping, maritime inspections, and marine life monitoring is also increasing. The proposed technology may provide greater autonomous capabilities to UAVs and UUVs. When used in UAVs, successful deployment of the proposed innovations may strengthen the use of these vehicles to aid firefighters in search and rescue operations, which can save lives. The proposed innovations will also enable a team of defense UAVs to protect airspace sectors from infiltration by hostile and unauthorized drones, thereby benefitting homeland security. When used in UUVs, these innovations may enhance the use of such vehicles to aid inspections of floating underwater infrastructure such as wind turbines and oil platforms, and have a positive economic as well as environmental impact. This I-Corps project is based on the development of guidance and control algorithms in conjunction with Artificial Intelligence methods to impart increased autonomous capabilities to unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and unmanned underwater vehicles (UUVs). Two algorithmic innovations, referred to as Innovation A and Innovation B, have been developed. Algorithmic Innovation A is designed to enable UAVs and UUVs to perform autonomous maneuvers that facilitate their passage through narrow orifices that can be stationary or moving. There are multiple scenarios in air and underwater domains where small orifices may occur. The small size of these orifices requires the maneuverability of the vehicle through the orifice with a high level of precision. Algorithmic Innovation B is designed to enable a team of defense UAVs to intercept and potentially disable drones that have intruded into protected airspace. These algorithmic innovations are developed in a general framework that makes them applicable to a broad range of aerial vehicles, including fixed wing, quadcopter, and flapping wing configurations. The plan is to determine the required user interfaces to benefit the end-users of these innovations.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.