Team Phoenix March 15, 2006

Project Goal Our team will develop an air vehicle that will not only navigate a course autonomously while providing real time video footage, but will also allow us to win the UAV class competition on April 11, 2006.

Presentation Overview Status and Direction –Airframe –Autopilot –Navigation –Vision –User Interface Plan of Action

Airframe Recent Accomplishments –Lots of mechanical, electrical repairs –Successful testing Obstacles Encountered –Keeping hardware charged –Aerodynamics vs. structural integrity –Weather –Two faulty speed controls

Direction Testing, Testing, Testing Autopilot control loops Vision transmission Functional takeoff and landing using navigation system Maintain consistency in pre-flight preparation

Autopilot Status Report We successfully outsourced our jobs through the acquisition of new software by our superiors. Through repeated testing, we will continue to update the gains that allow the processor to properly perform navigation commands.

Navigation Only task path planning –Works well, but untested in the air Dynamic no-fly zones are “final” hurdle –“By hand” solution: no software integration Due March 22 nd –Integrated solution: planner pings VC Due April 1 st

Vision Objectives Accomplished: Implemented Feature Tracking both in Aviones and using the frame grabber. Used cvMatchTemplate with the CV_TM_COEFF method (accounts for changes in brightness of the image— works better) Implemented a Kalman Filter-like bias towards either the original image or the previous frame depending on the closer match Voltage regulator and connectors soldered to allow the camera to be powered by the UAV battery. Began code for GPS estimation

Direction Setbacks: –Camera transmitter never worked To Do: –Finish GPS estimation code (March 17) –Implement TCP/IP connection with Procerus virtual cockpit (March 24) –Mount camera on the plane with Airframe (ASAP- depending on transmitter)

GUI: Changing Gears Current Focus No longer replacing Virtual Cockpit Communicate with Virtual Cockpit (Telemetry, GPS) Communicate GPS estimation with Vision for target location Upload New Waypoints to Virtual Cockpit Display

Direction Determine which option: Learn TCP/IP syntax for QT Learn GUI for Visual Studios, and use Procerus code

Plan of Action Flights at least 3x per week Use extensive testing to modify airframe, autopilot gains, navigation algorithm, and vision code to enhance performance Implement workable GUI to simplify UAV performance

Conclusion Project Setbacks Subgroup Integration Questions