Practical Considerations in the Design of an Obstacle Detection, Mapping and Path Planning System for Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems

Abstract

Practical considerations in the design of an obstacle detection, mapping and path planning system for small unmanned aircraft systems. International Journal of Unmanned Systems Engineering. 2(3): x-x. This paper discusses some of the practical engineering considerations relevant to the development and implementation of Obstacle Detection, Mapping and Path Planning Systems (ODMAPPS) for small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS). To illustrate the discussion, results are presented for a quad-rotor UAS, which employs a LIght Detection and Ranging sensor for obstacle detection, a dynamic occupancy grid using Bayesian estimation for obstacle mapping, and the depth first search, breadth first search and rapidly exploring random tree algorithms for path planning. Practical considerations explored include the platform dynamics; pose error; sensor accuracy and resolution; size and complexity of the obstacle environment; and dynamic obstacles and their effect on the design of an ODMAPPS for small UAS. The practical considerations identified and discussed emphasise the need for a more holistic approach to the design of ODMAPPS for UAS; extending design considerations to beyond the performance of algorithms (a focus of existing research) to include aspects of the system, its environment, and mission purpose.