Design of an adaptive passive collision warning system for UAVs

R. W. Osborne III; Y. Bar-Shalom; P. Willett; G. Baker

doi:10.1117/12.829175

4 September 2009 Design of an adaptive passive collision warning system for UAVs

R. W. Osborne III, Y. Bar-Shalom, P. Willett, G. Baker

Proceedings Volume 7445, Signal and Data Processing of Small Targets 2009; 74450T (2009) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.829175
Event: SPIE Optical Engineering + Applications, 2009, San Diego, California, United States

Abstract

Collision warning systems are used for commercial air traffic to provide pilots with an extra layer of situational awareness (as well as avoidance actions). The recent surge in the use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) means the design of a collision warning system for UAVs is increasing in importance. This paper deals with the design for consistency of a Passive Collision Warning System (PCWS) which utilizes low resolution infrared (IR) cameras mounted to the airframe. The lack of range information, as well as the unknown measurement noise statistics, make tracking and the decision for collision warning difficult. Of the utmost importance is the estimation of the measurement noise variance of the sensor and the consistency of the resulting tracking filter. The proposed PCWS adaptively estimates this noise variance. The resulting system was found to provide consistent tracking filters as well as accurate estimates of the angular velocity of detected targets, verified through a number of test flights with an aircraft passing both over a stationary camera as well as across its field of view. Subsequently, the filter was modified for use on a light aircraft in conjunction with an inertial navigation system.

Citation Download Citation

R. W. Osborne III, Y. Bar-Shalom, P. Willett, and G. Baker "Design of an adaptive passive collision warning system for UAVs", Proc. SPIE 7445, Signal and Data Processing of Small Targets 2009, 74450T (4 September 2009); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.829175

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