September 7, 2010
School of Engineering, Bengaluru
Bright, young minds of Amrita’s Bengaluru campus developed a Vertical Take-off and Landing Micro Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (VTOL-MUAV), working under the supervision of the department chairperson, Dr. P. R. Vaya.
Final-year students of Electronics and Communication Engineering, Akshay Khurana, Kiran G., Pradeep M. M. and Supreeth G. Bharati made the flying robot with the guidance also of Mr. Sathish Kumar, Assistant Professor in the same department.
The robot is equipped with a surveillance camera. “The camera allows for live video streaming of any geographical area,” explained Mr. Sathish. “This can be clearly seen on a monitoring screen.”
How is the flying robot controlled?
“Accelerometers are devices that measure proper acceleration; these are used for measuring aviation parameters aboard the MUAV. The values are instantaneously transmitted to a base station using a wireless communication module, the 2.4GHz RF module.”
“At the base station, the received data is processed; the MUAV is thus monitored and controlled. It is easy to control the flying robot in this way.”
The robot also has a GPS data logger for trajectory analysis and monitoring and gyroscopes for stability during flight.
“The angle of tilt (roll) of the flying robot is recognized by the accelerometer. The path traveled by the robot or the trajectory can be easily seen at the base station with the aid of the GPS logger; however, trajectory analysis can be done only once the MUAV returns to the base station.”
This innovative project in electronics was funded by the college. What began as a final-year student project may well see several applications in the field soon.
“This aerial vehicle can have a wide range of applications including those for civil and military purposes. It can be used for surveillance, traffic management and monitoring of construction sites.”
“Military applications include border patrolling and geographical surveillance. It can also play an important role in a bomb detection and disposal squad. The MUAV can be used to replace servicemen in dangerous operations involving chemical, biological and nuclear facilities.”
“The greatest advantage of this device is that the risk of loss of human life in any application is eliminated.”
