Principal and Considerations for Design of Small Unmanned Aerial Vehicles for Inspection and Survey
This study aims to identify the principal and considerations for the design of Small Unmanned Aerial Vehicles for inspection and survey processes. It provides a background of the current stage of the technologies and design parameters that should be taken into consideration for different aerial configurations. Additionally, a very robust design tool, Nonlinear Aeroelastic Trim and Stability of HALE (High Altitude Long Endurance) Aircraft (NATASHA) is customized to assess the aeroelastic stability and design of flexible fixed-wing that are beneficiary to survey and inspection maneuvers. Three aircraft configurations that are suitable for mapping and survey maneuvers have been designed with NATASHA. These designs are adjustable based on the payload requirement (camera, data acquisition system, etc.) and flight conditions. The computer program has been modified to take into account these parameters systematically and assess the stability of the aircraft. Moreover, an implementation demonstration of small rotorcraft drone for conceptual verification is performed for selective identified processes and applications. A model drone (rotorcraft) was used to carry out a different view of existing bridge segments in FIU Engineering Campus, which were part of the exit ramp of the Fort Lauderdale airport that was removed in 2013. As an exercise, the pilot flew the drone in the vicinity of the bridge segments and captured clear pictures of the damaged part of the bridge.
Language
- English
Project
- Status: Completed
- Funding: $52608
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Contract Numbers:
DTRT13-G-UTC41
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Sponsor Organizations:
Accelerated Bridge Construction University Transportation Center (ABC-UTC)
Florida International University
10555 W. Flagler Street
Miami, FL United States 33174Office of the Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology
University Transportation Centers Program
Department of Transportation
Washington, DC United States 20590 -
Managing Organizations:
Accelerated Bridge Construction University Transportation Center (ABC-UTC)
Florida International University
10555 W. Flagler Street
Miami, FL United States 33174Department of Transportation
Office of the Secretary
1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
Washington, DC United States 20590 -
Project Managers:
Azizinamini, Atorod
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Performing Organizations:
Accelerated Bridge Construction University Transportation Center (ABC-UTC)
Florida International University
10555 W. Flagler Street
Miami, FL United States 33174Florida International University
10555 W. Flagler Street
Room 3602
Miami, FL United States 33172 -
Principal Investigators:
Mardanpour, Pezhman
Mehrabi, Armin
- Start Date: 20170601
- Expected Completion Date: 20190531
- Actual Completion Date: 20190430
- USDOT Program: University Transportation Centers
Subject/Index Terms
- TRT Terms: Bridges; Drones; Field tests; Inspection; State of the practice; Surveying; Vehicle design
- Subject Areas: Aviation; Bridges and other structures; Design; Maintenance and Preservation; Vehicles and Equipment;
Filing Info
- Accession Number: 01711242
- Record Type: Research project
- Source Agency: Accelerated Bridge Construction University Transportation Center (ABC-UTC)
- Contract Numbers: DTRT13-G-UTC41
- Files: UTC, RIP
- Created Date: Sep 20 2018 3:32PM