UNMANNED AIR VEHICLE SYNTHESIS [AE _]

Course objectives:
The course covers the fundamental principles related to UAV development, research and applications. It particularly focuses on the research themes of the CREATE program including airframe optimization, control, autonomy and navigation, and sensory feedback for improved UAV pilot performance.

1. UAV Aerodynamics (8 hours)
1. Introduction
2. Coordinate systems used in flight mechanics and flight dynamics
3. Aerodynamics and Computational Fluid Dynamics
4. Experimental Aerodynamics and Flow Control for UAVs
5. Design Process
6. UAV Configuration
2. UAV Conceptual Analysis (8 hours)
1. Aerodynamic Analysis
2. Weight Estimation
3. Propulsion System Analysis
4. Wing Design
5. Detailed Design
6. Multi-funcitonal and micro-architectural lightweight structure for UAVs
3. UAV Dynamics and Control (8 hours)
1. Quadrotor dynamics and control
2. Fixed wing dynamics and control
3. Performance Analysis
4. Stability Analysis
4. UAV Navigation (6 hours)
1. UAV Control System
2. Navigation for UAVs
3. Path Planning for UAVs
5. UAV Autonomy (8 hours)
1. Equation of motion of the rigid-body aircraft
2. Sensing and Estimation for UAVs
3. Instrumentation and Sensor Payloads for UAVs
4. Computer Vision for UAVs
6. UAV Performance and Design (7 hours)
1. Remotely Piloted UAV operation
2. Performance and Design Aspects

Practical:

1. For either fixed wing or rotorcraft UAVs, create a motion planning algorithm to avoid obstacles in a continuously updated map of the environment. Limit current map visibility to a fixed range and field of view of the sensors, and identify efficient strategies that can be updated in real time. Consider always planning a safe holding pattern, and demonstrate the algorithm on forest or urban environments.