The application of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) for short range civilian applications has\nreached new dimensions with the advent of modern yet affordable autonomous guidance\nsystems. Low altitude light weight UAV systems were developed that have capability for\nsemi-autonomous and autonomous way point navigation with a payload of sensing system.\nWhile UAV I was utilized to test the feasibility of application with manual control using\nradio control and first person wireless video, UAV II was built for autonomous flight and\nfield data collection. With UAV II, in addition to an autopilot navigation system, a Global\nPositioning Satellite (GPS) receiver and fight stabilization sensors were utilized for system\nstability and guidance during completely autonomous flights. Both the UAVs successfully\nperformed in flight conditions for terrain mapping of property, range, agricultural and natural\nresource management with respect to initial test flights, flight parameter calibration and field\ntrials. In UAV II, average calibration parameters were +/-0.64 deg. for pitch, +/-3.35 deg. for\nroll in speed range of 40 - 50 mph indicating good flight stability. The UAVs were tested\nover a user set waypoint path on fields, facilities/properties, and urban locales, altitude\nranging 100 ft to 1000 ft, speed from 25 to 60 mph, and maneuvers including straight paths,\nturns, and banks. An autonomous image acquisition system was developed that records\nimages and videos with onboard sensors at specified time, frequency and coverage area. Georeferenced\naerial images were created to 4 in. resolution using mosaic images and post\nprocessing software. UAV I and UAV II maintained intended flight path parameters within\n55 ft. and 8.23 ft. spatial position or cross track error, respectively.
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