Manned Vehicles Research Articles

Effect of Low Temperature on the Fatigue Crack Propagation Behavior of Underwater Manned Vehicle Rudder Materials in Arctic Environments.

During polar navigation, adverse environmental conditions like cold temperatures, fatigue, and corrosion can affect surface and underwater manned vehicles (UMVs). Understanding the fatigue fracture growth behavior of polar ship steel is crucial for ensuring safety. This study investigates the mechanical properties and fatigue fracture propagation of steel used in underwater vehicle rudders under various low-temperature conditions through experimental research. It compares and analyzes the static mechanical characteristics, fatigue crack growth rate, and fracture morphology of underwater manned vehicle rudder steels at different low temperatures. Findings show enhancements in yield strength, tensile strength, elastic modulus, and fatigue crack propagation life of steel 925A, steel 20#, and their welded parts under low-temperature conditions. The tensile strength of 925A steel, 20# steel, and their welded parts increases by 6.87%, 14.61%, and 12.55%, respectively, as the temperature decreases from 20 to -60 °C. The yield strength also increases by 14.17%, 29.09%, and 15.76%, respectively. Fatigue crack propagation rate experiments were conducted under different constant low-temperature conditions. This study offers direction for future modeling and experimental testing.

Methods of air distant control for cadastral works in an agrocomplex

consider the technical-theoretical side of the work of neural networks on examples get acquainted with different methods of landing and understand their features, their possibilities and disadvantages compared to the standard methods of using manned vehicles. We will tell you about the method of improving the work of neural networks. We will introduce you to the features and importance of using air vehicles in rural industries and local supply organizations in order to improve the quality and speed of work.

AR-HUD Optical System Design and Its Multiple Configurations Analysis

The use of augmented reality head-up displays (AR-HUD) in automobile safety driving has drawn more and more interest in recent years. An AR-HUD display system should be developed to fit the vehicle and the complicated traffic environment in order to increase the driver’s driving concentration and improve the man–vehicle synchronization. In this article, we suggest an AR-HUD display system with dual-layer virtual-image displays for the near field and far field, as well as further research and design of the adjustment system for multi-depth displays of far-field images. It also examines the EYEBOX horizontal adjustment margin of the dual light path. The analysis results show that the scale of EYEBOX is 120 × 60 mm2, the modulation transfer function (MTF) of near-field light path > 0.2 @ 6.7 lp/mm, and the MTF of far-field optical path > 0.4 @ 6.7 lp/mm. The distortion of the near-field optical path is less than 0.86%, and that of the far-field optical path is less than 2.2%. By modifying the folding mirror, the far-field optical path creates an 8 m to 24 m multi-depth virtual picture display. Image quality can be maintained when the near-field and far-field optical paths are moved horizontally by 25 mm and 100 mm, respectively. This study offers guidelines for the multi-depth display, EYEBOX horizontal adjustment, and optical layout of augmented reality head-up displays.

Managing a bi-modal bottleneck system with manned and autonomous vehicles: Incorporating the effects of in-vehicle activity utilities

This paper addresses the congestion management issues of a bottleneck-constrained highway system with manned vehicles (MVs) and autonomous vehicles (AVs). A novel model that incorporates the in-vehicle activity utilities and activity type choices of AV commuters is presented for analyzing the equilibrium of the bi-modal bottleneck system with MVs and AVs. Time-varying and step tolling schemes accounting for the effects of in-vehicle activity utilities are analytically explored. In particular, a differentiated and a non-differentiated (or anonymous) step tolling scheme for the mixed MV and AV traffic system are analyzed and compared. The differentiated step tolling scheme means different toll levels across MV and AV commuters, whereas the non-differentiated step tolling scheme means an identical toll level for both the MV and AV commuters. The results show that a queuing segregation phenomenon occurs between the MV and AV commuters. The optimal AV proportion solution that minimizes the total social cost of the mixed MV and AV system exists. For a pure MV or AV system, the optimal step toll scheme can eliminate exactly half of the total queuing delay with the no-toll equilibrium for each of the differentiated and non-differentiated step tolling schemes. However, for a mixed MV and AV system, the queuing removal rate of the optimal differentiated step tolling scheme would exceed a half, whereas that of the optimal non-differentiated step tolling scheme may be lower than a half. The differentiated step tolling scheme outperforms the non-differentiated step tolling scheme in terms of total social cost and queuing removal rate.

Survey on the Developments of Unmanned Marine Vehicles: Intelligence and Cooperation

With the recent development of artificial intelligence (AI) and information and communication technology, manned vehicles operated by humans used on the ground, air, and sea are evolving into unmanned vehicles (UVs) that operate without human intervention. In particular, unmanned marine vehicles (UMVs), including unmanned underwater vehicles (UUVs) and unmanned surface vehicles (USVs), have the potential to complete maritime tasks that are unachievable for manned vehicles, lower the risk of man power, raise the power required to carry out military missions, and reap huge economic benefits. The aim of this review is to identify past and current trends in UMV development and present insights into future UMV development. The review discusses the potential benefits of UMVs, including completing maritime tasks that are unachievable for manned vehicles, lowering the risk of human intervention, and increasing power for military missions and economic benefits. However, the development of UMVs has been relatively tardy compared to that of UVs used on the ground and in the air due to adverse environments for UMV operation. This review highlights the challenges in developing UMVs, particularly in adverse environments, and the need for continued advancements in communication and networking technologies, navigation and sound exploration technologies, and multivehicle mission planning technologies to improve UMV cooperation and intelligence. Furthermore, the review identifies the importance of incorporating AI and machine learning technologies in UMVs to enhance their autonomy and ability to perform complex tasks. Overall, this review provides insights into the current state and future directions for UMV development.

Development of an MUM-T Integrated Simulation Platform

In this paper, we present a platform that can simulate Manned-UnManned Teaming (MUM-T) situations using various hardware and software being integrated. MUM-T, which combines unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) with an existing manned vehicle (MV), is growing into an indispensable strategy thanks to enormous advantages it provides. In order to test this indispensable strategy which involves flight control algorithms being applied for various MUM-T situations, it is certainly needed to run and evaluate three-dimensional (3D) MV-UAVs combined simulations in realistic environments. However, there is no such simulator that enables such 3D MUM-T simulations as well as the Human Interface (HI) for both MV pilot and the mission manager at a ground station. In this paper, we propose an MUM-T integrated simulation platform (MUM-T ISP) that combines a single full-scale helicopter simulator (for MV simulation) and multiple Iris/PX4-Autopilot (for UAVs simulation), along with specially developed HI devices (TM and TV). Tactical Monitor (TM), one of the HI devices, is a touchable tablet which allows the MV pilot to interact with UAVs by simple actions (e.g. touching a button), and the other HI device called Tactical Viewer (TV) allows the mission manager at a ground station to closely monitor the MUM-T situation via realistic 3D displays of MV and UAVs. The proposed MUM-T ISP is tested on several mission scenarios and then evaluated by actual pilots and the mission manager based on sensible criteria. It is expected that the proposed simulation platform may serve well as a training tool for prospective MV pilots working with UAVs, and also as a research tool for flight engineers developing control algorithms that make MV and UAVs work together.

Research on Lane Change Motion Planning Steering Input Based on Optimal Control Theory

Aiming at traditional control methods are not suitable for solving the multiconstraint problem of the vehicle steering and lane-change maneuvering process, a hybrid optimization scheme based on dynamic adaptive salp swarm algorithm and Gaussian pseudospectral method (DASSA-GPM) is proposed for its strong global search capability. Based on a steering inverse dynamics model, the lane change motion planning steering problem is converted into an optimal control problem which is then converted into a nonlinear programming problem by applying the adaptive salp group algorithm which is solved through the sequential quadratic programming (SQP) method finally. The simulation results verify the effectiveness and feasibility of the proposed dynamic adaptive salp swarm algorithm and hybrid optimization scheme. In addition, compared with GPM which the absolute error of steering wheel angle is 8.2 × 10−4 degree, the proposed method has higher computational accuracy, which absolute error of steering wheel angle is 5.5 × 10−4 degree. At the same time, under the same calculation accuracy (10−3), compared with GPM which CPU time is 4.81 s, the proposed method has higher calculation efficiency which CPU time is 3.86 s when solving non-smooth problems. The proposed method can provide a reference value into the active safety of manned and unmanned vehicles.

Performance Optimization of Underwater Communication Links at Different Ranges for AIS Relay to AUV

Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs) are becoming increasingly popular for large number of civil and military applications, such as environmental monitoring, oceanography, archaeology, or mine warfare. Operational safety issue still prevents the exploitation of the full potential of AUVs. Operations of AUVs are limited by constraints including the need to guarantee no collision with manned surface vehicles. To avoid collisions, a solution is to relay surface vessel positions to the AUVs by an underwater communication link. The communication must be optimized to establish a robust and reliable link at various range and depth. Commercial underwater acoustic modems are often dedicated for specific distances and bit rates with performances strongly dependent on the environmental conditions. For the considered application, the modem must be adaptive at the time and frequency selectivity of the channel which is varying according to the operation context. In this work, we propose an adaptive underwater acoustic waveform optimized to exploit at the best the time and frequency diversity the channel. To show the potential gain obtained by using diversity, the performance of the designed modem is evaluated using theoretical and realistic underwater channels. In addition, we propose a method for adapting the waveform based only on the knowledge of the transmission geometry. Finally, the proposed modem is tested to relay Automatic Identification Systems (AIS) picture of an area to AUVs.

A Multi-Objective Optimization Approach for Multi-Vehicle Path Planning Problems Considering Human–Robot Interactions

Abstract There has been unprecedented development in the field of unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) over the past few years. UGVs have been used in many fields including civilian and military with applications such as military reconnaissance, transportation, and search and research missions. This is due to their increasing capabilities in terms of performance, power, and tackling risky missions. The level of autonomy given to these UGVs is a critical factor to consider. In many applications of multirobotic systems like “search-and-rescue” missions, teamwork between human and robots is essential. In this article, given a team of manned ground vehicles (MGVs) and UGVs, the objective is to develop a model that can minimize the number of teams and total distance traveled while considering human–robot interaction (HRI) studies. The human costs of managing a team of UGVs by a MGV are based on human–robot interaction (HRI) studies. In this research, we introduce a combinatorial, multi-objective ground vehicle path planning problem that takes human–robot interactions into consideration. The objective of the problem is to find: ideal number of teams of MGVs-UGVs that follow a leader–follower framework where a set of UGVs follow an MGV and path for each team such that the missions are completed efficiently.

Virtual prototyping of the lunar module landing system to improve cosmonauts’ spatial and situational awareness

Relevance. The transition to manned flights after the launches of the automatic stations of the «Luna-Globus» series will require studying issues of the crew safety in lunar missions. First of all, it will be necessary to clarify the role and capabilities of cosmonauts when landing the lunar module in complicated conditions. The subject of the study is the means of modeling and visualizing the progress of the flight operation observed by the operator. The area of study is the issues of ensuring the safety of the automatic landing of the lunar descent module with the possibility of switching to manual control mode after a decision was made by a human to change the landing site of the lunar module. The provision of spatial and situational awareness is considered in this context as a prerequisite for the timely response of the operator to the occurrence of a non-standard situation. Objective. The goal of the work is to present the virtual prototyping of the Moon landing stage for studying details of information support for cosmonauts during the conditions of visual control complication. Methodology. The analysis of ways to maintain spatial and situational awareness for a timely assessment by the operator of the suitability of the predicted site in the landing area is a key condition for deciding whether to switch from automatic mode to manual mode. At the same time, the quality of preparation and decision-making in a short time frame significantly depends on the accepted methods of visualizing the landing on the surface of the Moon. Results and Discussion. The directions of application of modeling and visualization tools for virtual prototyping of the landing of the descent lunar module are formulated. It is shown that a person's decision-making in conditions of time scarcity and possible visual interference when monitoring the external environment requires special means of information support. The issues of organizing the visual environment in accordance with the information needs of a person are studied taking into account the prototypes in the classes of manned and unmanned vertical take-off and landing vehicles, for which similar types of operator activities are described. This made it possible to formulate basic approaches to modeling the landing of vehicles in conditions of problems with visual perceptions. Taking into account the increased requirements, we consider promising approaches based on the synthesis of 2D and 3D-visual dynamic scenes, as well as precedents for the use of synthetic vision systems in the described conditions. The scope of application of the obtained results is not limited to the tasks of designing complex human-technical systems, but may have applications in the field of building computer simulators for the training of cosmonauts. This practice compares favorably with the options for human training on hardware-in-the-loop simulation models and on real helicopter-type vehicles in terms of safety and flexibility of modification. Conclusion. The use of virtual prototyping of the moon landing makes it possible to expand the search for options for improving the cosmonaut's spatial and situational awareness. The general conclusion in the context of this goal pursuing is the feasibility of using simulation methods to build a virtual environment that recreates the conditions for a cosmonaut to make a decision in an emergency situation when landing a lunar module, as one of the most critical flight operations for the safety of lunar missions. Key words Lunar exploration, lunar lander, landing simulation and visualization, virtual activity environment, unmanned and manned vertical take-off and landing vehicles, spatial and situational awareness, synthetic vision systems.

Trajectory options for a manned mission to Mars using high-thrust propulsion systems

An analysis has been done of performance factors (mission duration, initial mass of the interplanetary crew transfer vehicle, velocity of the re-entry into the Earth atmosphere of the descent vehicle with the crew) for a single-spacecraft manned mission to Mars using high-thrust propulsion systems. Locally optimal solutions (in terms of delta-V budgets for the transfer) were found for the Earth–Mars–Earth transfer, with varying periods of waiting in Mars orbit, minimal distance to the Sun, as well as flight paths (direct Earth–Mars–Earth transfers vs. gravity assist maneuvers at Venus during Earth–Mars or Mars–Earth transfers). The proposed classification for locally optimal solutions is applicable to both high-thrust propulsion systems and low-thrust propulsion systems. A comparison of performance factors has been done for manned Martian mission options based on liquid-propellant engines and nuclear rocket engines with a 12,5 km/s constraint on the velocity of the manned re-entry vehicle in the Earth atmosphere. Key words: Manned mission to Mars, interplanetary transfer trajectory, high-thrust, liquid-propellant rocket engine, nuclear rocket engine, mission duration, initial mass of the interplanetary vehicle, re-entry velocity of a manned vehicle for returning the crew to Earth.

Some Issues of Repairing Manned Space Vehicles in Outer Space Using Electron Beam Welding

A new generation of electron beam tool for welding during assembly and repair-restoration works on board of manned space vehicles in open space was demonstrated. The tool includes a small-sized electron beam gun (EBG) with an electron beam power of up to 2.5 kW and a high-voltage power source with a voltage of 10 kV. The design of the electron-optical system of EBG allows using it in both manual as well as in automatic mode applying robotic devices. Applying the manufactured EBG and manipulator, in vacuum chamber the works on simulating the repair of a spacecraft’s section of aluminum 2219 alloy were carried out. The obtained results of studying the structure and mechanical characteristics and also sealing of welds confirmed the high quality of welded joints and a reliability of the technology for repairing a damaged fragment of a spacecraft's body using electron beam welding.

Illuminating centimeter-level resolution stratum via developed high-frequency sub-bottom profiler mounted on Deep-Sea Warrior deep-submergence vehicle

Sub-bottom profiling traditionally uses low-frequency signals (less than 20 kHz) to examine layered structures of the bottom sediment in large depth, but it has some limitations in deep-sea surveying. The surficial sediment within several meters under the water–sediment boundary in the deep sea cannot be distinguished clearly. In this study, a high-frequency sub-bottom profiler (HFSBP) was developed and applied to a manned deep-submergence vehicle (DSV), named Deep-Sea Warrior, to obtain a centimeter-level resolution stratum of several meters in the deep-sea surficial sediment. Twelve diving tests were carried out, the diversity of surficial benthic profiles on the northern slopes of the South China Sea was shown up for the first time and as many as four layers profiles were obtained in the low bending canyon region, rock surface profiles, discontinuous stratum structures and thick surficial sediment in the deeper region. Continuous and clear stratum structures within a range of about 2 m on the seabed surface sediment were obtained in 11 of the 12 dives. As the dive sites took a certain dispersive distribution, it reflected that the stratum structure of surficial sediment was prevalent in the northern slopes area of the South China Sea for the most part. To verify the effectiveness of HFSBP, a laboratory test in an anechoic tank was performed, and the experiment results verified the layered ability and the thickness measurement stability of it. The comparison was performed with shipboard data of deep-sea sub-bottom profiler (SBP) Bathy-2010, and the HFSBP results were obviously better than those of Bathy-2010 measurement. The clear and continuous fine layered data obtained by HFSBP may help scientists in new area research in marine geophysics.

Adaptation of the Theoretical Approaches to Control the Process of Training Crews of MSVs on the Technical Training Facilities with regard to Lunar Expeditions.

Further development of national manned cosmonautics stipulates designing and building a new manned transport spacecraft with regard to lunar and deep space missions. Accordingly, the elaboration of the programs of training cosmonauts on the simulators of lunar manned vehicles and habitable constructions (manned transport spacecraft, lunar takeoff-and-landing complex, lunar modules, stations, and bases) under construction should be scientifically reasoned and relied on a store of experience in training crews of national MSVs.

Neural network application for detection of road accidents

Subject of Research. The paper considers the issues of neural network application for detection and prediction of road accidents. The overtaking process of cars with crossing into oncoming traffic is analyzed. The potential possibility of road accident reduction while overtaking is shown owing to intellectual assessment of road situation dynamics development. Method. We proposed to use a two-class classifier based on a neural network. Road situations while overtaking with crossing into oncoming traffic were the objects of classification. The data on them was transmitted to the neural network input in the form of the frame set, that is, a graphical representation of discrete states of the “group of vehicles — section of the road” system. Frame formation was expected to be carried out as a result of information exchange between detectors and vehicle-mounted sensors, and road infrastructure, which is developed within the framework of the “smart city” paradigm. Main Results. The road situation is classified as “Dangerous” in case of high vehicle collision probability while overtaking and “Safe”, otherwise. If the situation is considered as “Dangerous”, the vehicle central processor generates an appropriate effect on the vehicle control elements to prevent an accident. Results of situation simulation implemented on Tensor Flow open software library for machine learning are obtained. They showed high prediction accuracy (0.96) on artificial data set. Practical Relevance. The results of the work can be used in promising unmanned and manned vehicles having radio communication with road infrastructure elements within the “smart city” concept to prevent road accidents caused by dangerous overtaking.

Stages to Create and Develop Module of Regional Intelligent Transportation and Logistics System

Creation and development of intelligent transportation and logistics system are supposed to be carried out in three stages. The first stage is devoted to the development of the optimal Regional Intelligent Transportation and Logistics System (RILTS) concept. The second stage is the development of interfaces for processing heterogeneous data on parameters of a transport stream and the environment and their integration into a single system. Development of algorithms for managing flows of unmanned and manned vehicles in transport corridors. The third stage is connected with software development and testing of proposed algorithms. The paper presents integrated results of the SWOT-analysis which was carried out in three directions: the current condition of the RITLS in Russia; the RILTS influence on all target groups of service users; the RILTS influence on the development of the region and national economy as a whole. There are some results obtained after finishing the first stage. To finish the second stage of the RILTS creation successfully the algorithm of control of access of vehicles to the high-speed transport corridor is proposed. The key result of the RITLS module development is the intelligent system of managing unmanned and manned vehicles which is regularly updated. This system includes aggregated modules for solving separate tasks and knowledge base to ensure uninterrupted management and monitoring of the road network. Besides there are algorithms for managing transport flows by simulation methods in existing software environments.

Use of cryogenic components of propellants for liquid-propellant rocket engines and in life support systems of manned space vehicles

The cited materials show the use of oxygen, hydrogen, liquefied natural gases (methane) and fluorine as components of the fuel for liquid-propellant rocket engines (LRE). The reasons for the need to use oxygen as an oxidizing agent are indicated. The advantages and disadvantages are disclosed from the point of view of using the listed components as fuel elements for liquid-propellant rocket engines. The issues of ecology when using the considered fuels are reviewed. Shown not only the use of cryogenic components as fuel for LRE, but also in life support systems in manned spacecraft in space research.

Drone technology as a tool for improving agricultural productivity

Drone is proving boon for managing agricultural production as it can focus on small crop fields at lower flight altitudes than other regular aerial vehicle to perform site-specific farm management operation with higher precision. The use of drone for agricultural applications is providing knowledge about fertilizing, seeding, multi-spectral imaging capacity to farmers who want to maximize their crop yields and reduce the amount they pay for labor. Drones will enhance farmer’s ability to obtain and utilize multi-spectral and hyper-spectral imagining to detect issues with crops before they harm crop yields. Drones also have the ability to autonomously lay seeds, fertilize soil, and spray pesticides. All farmers will have to do is program the drones to fly a certain pattern over their fields. This will effectively automate most of the farming process, including harvesting which will be done by autonomous tractors and other vehicles. Since drones will be able to fly at low altitudes too low for manned vehicles, the spraying of pesticides can be more exact, resulting in more precise spraying with less drift beyond the limits of the field sprayed. This paper presents an overview of research involving in the development of drone for agricultural management. Technologies, systems and methods are examined for in situ integration under Indian farming conditions.

Study on the optimal lane changing steering input under different road adhesion coefficients

To study the influence of road adhesion coefficient on lane changing steering input, vehicle handling inverse dynamics based on hp-adaptive Radau pseudospectral method is proposed in this article. First, a steering inverse dynamics model is established and then the inverse dynamics problem is converted into an optimal control problem. Second, by applying the hp-adaptive Radau pseudospectral method, the optimal control problem is converted into a nonlinear programming problem, which is then solved through sequential quadratic programming. Besides, two contrast verifications are carried out to validate the correctness and advantages of the proposed method. The simulation results show that the obtained control input satisfies the vehicle dynamic constraints. And comparing with Gauss Pseudospectral Method (GPM), hp-adaptive Radau pseudospectral method has higher computational accuracy and computational efficiency when solving non-smooth problem. The study of optimal steering input can provide guidance for driver’s lane changing behavior, so that the accident rate caused by human factors can be decreased. The proposed method can provide a reference value into the active safety of manned and unmanned vehicles.

Research on intelligent transportation solution based on big data mode

This paper presents an intelligent traffic road resource allocation solution based on the traffic big data model. Through the collection and analysis of road traffic information big data, a planning scheme that can minimize road congestion when shared road resources between manned vehicles and unmanned vehicles is established. In order to alleviate the traffic congestion caused by the imbalance between road resources and traffic demand, taking 2020 as an example, the road congestion level is solved and given. When the judgment criterion is between 0 and 0.5, the road congestion level is set to level 3. When the judgment criterion is between 0.5 and 1, the road congestion level is set to level 2, and the remaining levels are level 1 and level 4. When: 1. The speed of the front car before braking is vb = 40km / h. 2. The speed of the rear car before braking is va = 60km / h, and the car is moving at a constant speed in a short time. 3. When the dry asphalt pavement is taken ab max = 6m / s2. 4. When the wet asphalt pavement is abmax = 4.5m / s2. The degree of road congestion is level 1.