User Localization in Complex Environments by Multimodal Combination of GPS, WiFi, RFID, and Pedometer Technologies

The Scientific World JOURNAL ◽

10.1155/2014/814538 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 2014 ◽

pp. 1-7 ◽

Cited By ~ 13

Author(s):

Trung-Kien Dao ◽

Hung-Long Nguyen ◽

Thanh-Thuy Pham ◽

Eric Castelli ◽

Viet-Tung Nguyen ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Conceptual Design ◽

Complex Environments ◽

Outdoor Environments ◽

Grid Points ◽

General Localization

Many user localization technologies and methods have been proposed for either indoor or outdoor environments. However, each technology has its own drawbacks. Recently, many researches and designs have been proposed to build a combination of multiple localization technologies system which can provide higher precision results and solve the limitation in each localization technology alone. In this paper, a conceptual design of a general localization platform using combination of multiple localization technologies is introduced. The combination is realized by dividing spaces into grid points. To demonstrate this platform, a system with GPS, RFID, WiFi, and pedometer technologies is established. Experiment results show that the accuracy and availability are improved in comparison with each technology individually.

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Conceptual Design of Flapping Wing Using Shape Memory Alloy Actuator for Micro Unmanned Aerial Vehicle

Applied Mechanics and Materials ◽

10.4028/www.scientific.net/amm.629.152 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 629 ◽

pp. 152-157

Author(s):

Navanitha Marimuthu ◽

Ermira Junita Abdullah ◽

Dayang L.A. Majid ◽

Fairuz I. Romli

Keyword(s):

Shape Memory Alloy ◽

Shape Memory ◽

Conceptual Design ◽

Smart Materials ◽

Operating Cost ◽

Flapping Wing ◽

Complex Environments ◽

Reduce Operating Cost ◽

Air Vehicle ◽

Aerial Vehicle

Micro Air Vehicle (MAV) has the capability to fly autonomously in complex environments which enables human to conduct surveillance in areas which are deemed too dangerous or in confined spaces that does not allow human entry. Research and development of MAVs aim to reduce their size further, thus novel techniques need to be explored in order to achieve this objective while still maintaining the MAVs’ current performance. In this paper, a conceptual design of an MAV with a main drive system using shape memory alloy (SMA) actuator to provide the flapping motion is proposed. SMA is considered superior to other smart materials due to its efficiency and large energy storage capacity. By incorporating SMA in the flapping wing MAV, it will provide users the flexibility to add more payloads by reducing bulky cables or reduce operating cost by using less fuel. However, there are some drawbacks in using SMAs such as nonlinear response of the strain to input current and hysteresis characteristic as a result of which their control is inaccurate and complicated.

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Conceptual Design and Prototype Development of a Solar-Powered Ground Robot for Energy-Autonomous Operation

Volume 5B: 43rd Mechanisms and Robotics Conference ◽

10.1115/detc2019-98361 ◽

2019 ◽

Author(s):

Amir Behjat ◽

Leighton Collins ◽

Andrew Hoffman ◽

Sharat Chidambaran ◽

Maulikkumar Dhameliya ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Conceptual Design ◽

Incident Angle ◽

Optimization Approach ◽

Solar Pv ◽

Solar Panels ◽

Energy Capture ◽

Prototype Development ◽

Autonomous Operation ◽

Outdoor Environments ◽

Solar Powered

Abstract This paper presents the conceptual design and fabrication/assembly of an autonomous solar powered small unmanned ground vehicle (UGV) platform for operation in outdoor environments. The contribution lies in the ability of the proposed design to offer uninterrupted operation in terms of endurance, to facilitate educational and research applications that are otherwise challenging to perform with a typical UGV (that needs significant downtime for recharging). A high incident area for solar PV panels is required to be able to support the complete energy needs of a ∼ 46 lb UGV (i.e., fully recharge the suitably sized battery powering the UGV). This makes it challenging to develop a stable platform that can carry solar panels much larger than the surface area of the platform itself (an aspect receiving minimal attention in other similar purpose platforms). To address this challenge, a novel umbrella-like folding mechanism is conceived, designed and successfully incorporated in the baseline prototype. This mechanism allows incorporating a remarkable ∼1 sq.m of incident solar PV with a net rated capacity of 200 W, one that remains folded to facilitate mobility, and can open/unfold to different extents for energy capture when needed. At the same time, the proposed design facilitates static and dynamic stability in spite of the significant solar PV incorporation. With the reference of the baseline prototype, an optimization approach is taken to develop a conceptual design of the next generation of this solar UGV. Specifically, the incident angle of the solar panels (enabled by the umbrella mechanism) at complete-open stage and the dimensions of the mechanism links and associated supports are separately optimized to respectively maximize the energy capture and the range of the UGV (assuming operation in Buffalo, NY), subject to stability and nominal velocity (of 2km/hr) constraints. The optimum design is found to provide an estimated range of 19.8 km/day.

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A method for UAV multi-sensor fusion 3D-localization under degraded or denied GPS situation

Journal of Unmanned Vehicle Systems ◽

10.1139/juvs-2018-0007 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 6 (3) ◽

pp. 155-176 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Thanabadee Bulunseechart ◽

Pruittikorn Smithmaitrie

Keyword(s):

Position Estimation ◽

Measurement Unit ◽

Sensor Calibration ◽

Complex Environments ◽

Indicator Method ◽

3D Localization ◽

Gps Measurement ◽

Outdoor Environments ◽

Indoor And Outdoor Environments ◽

Optical Flow Sensor

Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) have been developed to be used in complex environments. Continuity of a UAV operation when GPS is degraded or denied is crucial in many applications, such as flying near high buildings and trees, or flying outdoor-to-indoor. In this paper, an algorithm for 3D-localization during transition between indoor and outdoor environments for a UAV is presented. Localization inputs are based on information from GPS, inertial measurement unit, monocular camera, and optical flow sensor. Information is carefully selected using GPS quality indicator method corresponding to the operating environment. After that, a smoothing offset approach is employed to smooth the position estimation. The selected sensors’ data are filtered by indirect extended Kalman filter for localization and extrinsic sensor calibration in real time. Results show a seamless offset convergence of UAV localization for indoor–outdoor transition. Moreover, the proposed method of decision-making to cut off GPS measurement even when it experiences poor signal quality can still outperform conventional GPS-based cutoff method in terms of response time.

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Curve-Localizability-SVM Active Localization Research for Mobile Robots in Outdoor Environments

Applied Sciences ◽

10.3390/app11104362 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (10) ◽

pp. 4362

Author(s):

Liang Gong ◽

Xiangyu Yu ◽

Jingchuan Wang

Keyword(s):

Mobile Robots ◽

Working Environment ◽

Localization Algorithm ◽

Complex Environments ◽

Planning Strategy ◽

Outdoor Scenes ◽

New Strategy ◽

Outdoor Environments ◽

Planning Algorithm ◽

Active Localization

Working environment of mobile robots has gradually expanded from indoor structured scenes to outdoor scenes such as wild areas in recent years. The expansion of application scene, change of sensors and the diversity of working tasks bring greater challenges and higher demands to active localization for mobile robots. The efficiency and stability of traditional localization strategies in wild environments are significantly reduced. On the basis of considering features of the environment and the robot motion curved surface, this paper proposes a curve-localizability-SVM active localization algorithm. Firstly, we present a curve-localizability-index based on 3D observation model, and then based on this index, a curve-localizability-SVM path planning strategy and an improved active localization method are proposed. Obtained by setting the constraint space and objective function of the planning algorithm, where curve-localizability is the main constraint, the path helps improve the convergence speed and stability in complex environments of the active localization algorithm. Helped by SVM, the path is smoother and safer for large robots. The algorithm was tested by comparative experiments and analysis in real environment and robot platform, which verified the improvement of efficiency and stability of the new strategy.

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Innovative Conceptual Design

10.1017/cbo9780511612923 ◽

2001 ◽

Cited By ~ 45

Author(s):

Ehud Kroll ◽

Sridhar S. Condoor ◽

David G. Jansson

Keyword(s):

Conceptual Design

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Human Factors Design Guidance During The Conceptual Design Phase of System Development: A Methodological Approach

PsycEXTRA Dataset ◽

10.1037/e533872006-001 ◽

1990 ◽

Author(s):

Lawrence S. Finegold ◽

Michael T. Lawless

Keyword(s):

Human Factors ◽

Conceptual Design ◽

System Development ◽

Methodological Approach ◽

Design Phase ◽

Conceptual Design Phase ◽

Design Guidance

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ANALYSIS OF COMPETING VARIANTS OF AIR CONDITIONING SYSTEMS WITHOUT AIR EXTRACTION FROM ENGINES AT THE STAGE OF PASSENGER AIRCRAFT ONBOARD SYSTEMS CONCEPTUAL DESIGN

Computational nanotechnology ◽

10.33693/2313-223x-2019-6-3-86-91 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 6 (3) ◽

pp. 80-85

Author(s):

Denis Igorevich Smagin ◽

Konstantin Igorevich Starostin ◽

Roman Sergeevich Savelyev ◽

Anatoly Anatolyevich Satin ◽

Anastasiya Romanovna Neveshkina ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Conceptual Design ◽

Air Conditioning ◽

Research University ◽

Cooling System ◽

Fuel Efficiency ◽

Air Cooling ◽

Moscow Aviation Institute ◽

Air Conditioning System ◽

Low Efficiency ◽

Air Conditioning Systems

One of the ways to achieve safety and comfort is to improve on-board air conditioning systems.The use of air cooling machine determines the air pressure high level at the point of selection from the aircraft engine compressor. Because of the aircraft operation in different modes and especially in the modes of small gas engines, deliberately high stages of selection have to be used for ensuring proper operation of the refrigeration machine in the modes of the aircraft small gas engines. Into force of this, most modes of aircraft operation have to throttle the pressure of the selected stage of selection, which, together with the low efficiency of the air cycle cooling system, makes the currently used air conditioning systems energy inefficient.A key feature of the architecture without air extraction from the main engines compressors is the use of electric drive compressors as a source of compressed air.A comparative analysis of competing variants of on-board air conditioning system without air extraction from engines for longrange aircraft projects was performed at the Moscow Aviation Institute (National Research University).The article deals with the main approaches to the decision-making process on the appearance of a promising aircraft on-board air conditioning system at the stage of its conceptual design and formulated the basic requirements for the structure of a complex criterion at different life cycle stages.The level of technical and technological risk, together with a larger installation weight, will require significant costs for development, testing, debugging and subsequent implementation, but at the same time on-board air conditioning system scheme without air extraction from the engines will achieve a significant increase in fuel efficiency at the level of the entire aircraft.

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