Improving MAV control by predicting aerodynamic effects of obstacles

John Bartholomew; Andrew Calway; Walterio Mayol-Cuevas

IROS 2015poster9 citations

Improving MAV control by predicting aerodynamic effects of obstacles

John Bartholomew, Andrew Calway, Walterio Mayol-Cuevas

Abstract

Building on our previous work [1], in this paper we demonstrate how it is possible to improve flight control of a MAV that experiences aerodynamic disturbances caused by objects on its path. Predictions based on low resolution depth images taken at a distance are incorporated into the flight control loop on the throttle channel as this is adjusted to target undisrupted level flight. We demonstrate that a statistically significant improvement (p ≪ 0.001) is possible for some common obstacles such as boxes and steps, compared to using conventional feedback-only control. Our approach and results are encouraging toward more autonomous MAV exploration strategies.

BibTeX

@inproceedings{iros2015_improvingmavcont,
  title = {Improving MAV control by predicting aerodynamic effects of obstacles},
  author = {John Bartholomew and Andrew Calway and Walterio Mayol-Cuevas},
  booktitle = {IROS 2015},
  year = {2015}
}