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At least 37 records · Page 2
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1993

Measures for simulator evaluation of a helicopter obstacle avoidance system

The U.S. Army Aeroflightdynamics Directorate (AFDD) has developed a high-fidelity, full-mission simulation facility for the demonstration and evaluation of advanced helicopter mission equipment. The Crew Station Research and Development Facility (CSRDF) provides the capability to conduct one- or two-crew full-mission simulations in a state-of-the-art helicopter simulator. The CSRDF provides a realistic, full field-of-regard visual environment with simulation of state-of-the-art weapons, sensors, and flight control systems. We are using the CSRDF to evaluate the ability of an obstacle avoidance system (OASYS) to support low altitude flight in cluttered terrain using night vision goggles (NVG). The OASYS uses a laser radar to locate obstacles to safe flight in the aircraft's flight path. A major concern is the detection of wires, which can be difficult to see with NVG, but other obstacles--such as trees, poles or the ground--are also a concern. The OASYS symbology is presented to the pilot on a head-up display mounted on the NVG (NVG-HUD). The NVG-HUD presents head-stabilized symbology to the pilot while allowing him to view the image intensified, out-the-window scene through the HUD. Since interference with viewing through the display is a major concern, OASYS symbology must be designed to present usable obstacle clearance information with a minimum of clutter.

Demaio, Joe↗
NASA NTRS1992

Concepts for pilot interaction with an automated NOE obstacle-avoidance system

The problem of providing an appropriate method by which a human pilot interacts with an automated nap-of-the-earth rotorcraft guidance and control system is addressed. This problem is closely related to the broader question of what level and degree of automation is effective at reducing pilot workload during low-altitude flight missions requiring obstacle avoidance. A systematic approach for establishing the possible combinations of manual vs automatic authority over relevant guidance and control functions is first presented. From these possibilities, three candidate concepts are selected based upon their potential for practical implementation and reduction in pilot workload. This paper describes the selection of these three pilot-interaction concepts and the mathematical models for their implementation.

Coppenbarger, R. A.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Concepts for pilot interaction with an automated NOE obstacle-avoidance system

The problem of providing an appropriate method by which a human pilot interacts with an automated nap-of-the-Earth rotorcraft guidance and control system is addressed. This problem is closely related to the broader question of what level and degree of automation is effective at reducing pilot workload during low-altitude flight missions requiring obstacle avoidance. A systematic approach for establishing the possible combinations of manual versus automatic authority over relevant guidance and control functions is first presented. From these possibilities, three candidate concepts are selected; selection is based upon their potential for practical implementation and reduction in pilot workload. This paper describes the selection of these three pilot-interaction concepts and the mathematical models for their implementation.

Coppenbarger, R. A.↗
NASA NTRS2017

3D-Sonification for Obstacle Avoidance in Brownout Conditions

Helicopter brownout is a phenomenon that occurs when making landing approaches in dusty environments, whereby sand or dust particles become swept up in the rotor outwash. Brownout is characterized by partial or total obscuration of the terrain, which degrades visual cues necessary for hovering and safe landing. Furthermore, the motion of the dust cloud produced during brownout can lead to the pilot experiencing motion cue anomalies such as vection illusions. In this context, the stability and guidance control functions can be intermittently or continuously degraded, potentially leading to undetected surface hazards and obstacles as well as unnoticed drift. Safe and controlled landing in brownout can be achieved using an integrated presentation of LADAR and RADAR imagery and aircraft state symbology. However, though detected by the LADAR and displayed on the sensor image, small obstacles can be difficult to discern from the background so that changes in obstacle elevation may go unnoticed. Moreover, pilot workload associated with tracking the displayed symbology is often so high that the pilot cannot give sufficient attention to the LADAR/RADAR image. This paper documents a simulation evaluating the use of 3D auditory cueing for obstacle avoidance in brownout as a replacement for or compliment to LADAR/RADAR imagery.

3D audio↗
NASA NTRS1995

Flight test of a low-altitude helicopter guidance system with obstacle avoidance capability

Military aircraft regularly conduct missions that include low-atltitude, near-terrain flight in order to increase covertness and payload effectiveness. Civilian applications include airborne fire fighting, police surveillance, search and rescue, and helicopter emergency medical service. Several fixed-wing aircraft now employ terrain elevation maps and forward-pointed radars to achieve automated terrain following or terrain avoidance flight. Similar systems specialized to helicopters and their flight regime have not received as much attention. A helicopter guidance system relying on digitized terrain elevation maps has been developed that employs airborne navigation, mission requirements, aircraft performance limits, and radar altimeter returns to generate a valley-seeking, low-altitude trajectory between waypoints. The guidance trajectory is symbolically presented to the pilot on a helmet mounted display. This system has been flight tested to 150 ft (45.7 m) above ground level altitude at 80 kts, and is primarily limited by the ability of the pilot to perform manual detection and avoidance of unmapped hazards. In this study, a wide field of view laser radar sensor has been incorporated into this guidance system to assist the pilot in obstacle detection and avoidance, while expanding the system's operational flight envelope. The results from early flight tests of this system are presented. Low-altitude missions to 100 ft (30.5 m) altitude at 80n kts in the presence of unmapped natural and man-made obstacles were demonstrated while the pilot maintained situational awareness and tracking of the guidance trajectory. Further reductions in altitude are expected with continued flight testing.

Zelenka, Richard E.↗
NASA NTRS1991

Cascading a systolic array and a feedforward neural network for navigation and obstacle avoidance using potential fields

A technique is developed for vehicle navigation and control in the presence of obstacles. A potential function was devised that peaks at the surface of obstacles and has its minimum at the proper vehicle destination. This function is computed using a systolic array and is guaranteed not to have local minima. A feedfoward neural network is then used to control the steering of the vehicle using local potential field information. In this case, the vehicle is a trailer truck backing up. Previous work has demonstrated the capability of a neural network to control steering of such a trailer truck backing to a loading platform, but without obstacles. Now, the neural network was able to learn to navigate a trailer truck around obstacles while backing toward its destination. The network is trained in an obstacle free space to follow the negative gradient of the field, after which the network is able to control and navigate the truck to its target destination in a space of obstacles which may be stationary or movable.

Plumer, Edward S.↗
NASA NTRS1993

The use of CMAC neural architectures in obstacle avoidance

In this paper, CMAC neural architectures are used in conjunction with a hierarchical planning approach to find collision free paths over two dimensional analog valued obstacle fields. The method constructs a coarse resolution version of the original problem and then finds the corresponding coarse optimal path using multipass dynamic programming. CMAC artificial neural architectures are used to estimate the analog transition costs that dynamic programming requires. The coarse optimal path is then used as a baseline for the construction of a fine scale optimal path through the original obstacle array.

Peterson, James K.↗
NASA NTRS2013

Understanding the Effects of Spaceflight on Head-trunk Coordination during Walking and Obstacle Avoidance

Prolonged exposure to spaceflight conditions results in a battery of physiological changes, some of which contribute to sensorimotor and neurovestibular deficits. Upon return to Earth, functional performance changes are tested using the Functional Task Test (FTT), which includes an obstacle course to observe post‐flight balance and postural stability, specifically during turning. Aims: To quantify changes in movement strategies during turning events by observing the latency between head‐andtrunk coordinated movement. Hypothesis: It is hypothesized that subjects experiencing neurovestibular adaptations will exhibit head‐to‐trunk locking ('en bloc' movement) during turning, exhibited by a decrease in latency between head and trunk movement. Sample: FTT data samples were collected from Shuttle and ISS missions. Samples were analyzed three times pre exposure, immediately post‐exposure (0 or 1 day post) and 2‐to‐3 times during recovery from the microgravity environment. Methods: Two 3D inertial measurements units (XSens MTx) were attached to subjects, one on the head and one on the upper back. This study focused primarily on the yaw movements about the subject's center of rotation. Time differences (latency) between head and trunk movement were calculated at two points: the first turn (Fturn) to enter the obstacle course (approximately 90⁰ turn) and averaged across a slalom obstacle portion, consisting of three turns (approximately three 90⁰ turns). Results: Preliminary analysis of the data shows a trend toward decreasing head‐to‐trunk movement latency during post‐flight ambulation, after reintroduction to Earth gravity in Shuttle and ISS astronauts. Conclusion: It is clear that changes in movement strategies are adopted during exposure to the microgravity environment and upon reintroduction to a gravity environment. Some subjects exhibit symptoms of neurovestibular neuropathy ('en bloc movement') that may impact their ability to perform post‐flight functional tasks.

Madansingh, S.↗
NASA NTRS2014

Understanding the Effects of Spaceflight on Head-trunk Coordination during Walking and Obstacle Avoidance

Prolonged exposure to spaceflight conditions results in a battery of physiological changes, some of which contribute to sensorimotor and neurovestibular deficits. Upon return to Earth, functional performance changes are tested using the Functional Task Test (FTT), which includes an obstacle course to observe post‐flight balance and postural stability, specifically during turning. The goal of this study was to quantify changes in movement strategies during turning events by observing the latency between head‐and‐trunk coordinated movements. It was hypothesized that subjects experiencing neurovestibular adaptations would exhibit head‐to‐trunk locking ('en bloc' movement) during turning, exhibited by a decrease in latency between head and trunk movement. FTT data samples were collected from ISS missions. Samples were analyzed three times pre‐exposure, immediately postexposure (1 day post) and 2‐to‐3 times during recovery from the microgravity environment. Two 3D inertial measurements units (XSens MTx) were attached to subjects, one on the head and one on the upper back. This study focused primarily on the yaw movements about the subject's center of rotation. Time differences (latency) between head and trunk movement were calculated at two points on the obstacle course: the first turn to enter the obstacle course (approximately 90⁰ turn) and averaged across a slalom obstacle portion, consisting of three turns (approximately three 90⁰ turns). Preliminary analysis of the data shows a trend toward decreasing head‐to‐trunk movement latency during postflight ambulation in slalom turning after reintroduction to Earth gravity in ISS astronauts. It is clear that changes in movement strategies are adopted during exposure to the microgravity environment and upon reintroduction to a gravity environment. Most ISS subjects exhibit symptoms of neurovestibular changes ('en bloc head and trunk movement) which may impact their ability to perform post‐flight functional tasks.

Madansingh, S.↗
NASA NTRS2014

Understanding the Effects of Spaceflight on Head-trunk Coordination During Walking and Obstacle Avoidance

Prolonged exposure to spaceflight conditions results in a battery of physiological changes, some of which contribute to sensorimotor and neurovestibular deficits. Upon return to Earth, functional performance changes are tested using the Functional Task Test (FTT), which includes an obstacle course to observe post-flight balance and postural stability, specifically during turning. The goal of this study was to quantify changes in movement strategies during turning events by observing the latency between head-and-trunk coordinated movements. It was hypothesized that subjects experiencing neurovestibular adaptations would exhibit head-to-trunk locking ('en bloc' movement) during turning, exhibited by a decrease in latency between head and trunk movement. FTT data samples were collected from 13 ISS astronauts and 26 male 70-day head down tilt bed rest subjects, including bed rest controls (10 BRC) and bed rest exercisers (16 BRE). Samples were analyzed three times pre-exposure, immediately post-exposure (0 or 1 day post) and 2-to-3 times during recovery from the unloading environment. Two 3D inertial measurements units (XSens MTx) were attached to subjects, one on the head and one on the upper back. This study focused primarily on the yaw movements about the subject's center of rotation. Time differences (latency) between head and trunk movement were averaged across a slalom obstacle portion, consisting of three turns (approximately three 60⁰ turns). All participants were grouped as 'decreaser' or 'increaser,' relating to their change in head-to-trunk movement latency between pre- and post- environmental adaptation measures. Space flight unloading (ISS) showed a bimodal response between the 'increaser' and 'decreaser' group, while both bed rest control (BRC) and bed rest exercise (BRE) populations showed increased preference towards a 'decreaser' categorization, displaying greater head-trunk locking. It is clear that changes in movement strategies are adopted during exposure to an unloading environment. These results further the understanding of vestibular-somatosensory convergence and support the use of bed rest as an exclusionary model to better understand sensorimotor changes in space flight.

Madansingh, S.↗
NASA NTRS1990

Flight data acquisition methodology for validation of passive ranging algorithms for obstacle avoidance

An account is given of the methodology used to develop a data base containing low altitude imagery, augmented with the rotorcraft and sensor parameters required for passive-range estimation. The bata base is predicated on flight test data encompassing imagery, rotorcraft and sensor parameters, and ground truth range measurements. Data preparation was conducted by means of a novel technique for obtaining the sensor-calibration parameters. The data-base thus obtained will facilitate further development of computer vision-based obstacle-detection and passive range-estimation algorithms, as well as furnish a benchmark for verification of range estimates against ground-truth estimates.

Smith, Phillip N.↗
NASA NTRS1988

Optimal guidance with obstacle avoidance for nap-of-the-earth flight

The development of automatic guidance is discussed for helicopter Nap-of-the-Earth (NOE) and near-NOE flight. It deals with algorithm refinements relating to automated real-time flight path planning and to mission planning. With regard to path planning, it relates rotorcraft trajectory characteristics to the NOE computation scheme and addresses real-time computing issues and both ride quality issues and pilot-vehicle interfaces. The automated mission planning algorithm refinements include route optimization, automatic waypoint generation, interactive applications, and provisions for integrating the results into the real-time path planning software. A microcomputer based mission planning workstation was developed and is described. Further, the application of Defense Mapping Agency (DMA) digital terrain to both the mission planning workstation and to automatic guidance is both discussed and illustrated.

Pekelsma, Nicholas J.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Fuzzy logic control of telerobot manipulators

Telerobot systems for advanced applications will require manipulators with redundant 'degrees of freedom' (DOF) that are capable of adapting manipulator configurations to avoid obstacles while achieving the user specified goal. Conventional methods for control of manipulators (based on solution of the inverse kinematics) cannot be easily extended to these situations. Fuzzy logic control offers a possible solution to these needs. A current research program at SRI developed a fuzzy logic controller for a redundant, 4 DOF, planar manipulator. The manipulator end point trajectory can be specified by either a computer program (robot mode) or by manual input (teleoperator). The approach used expresses end-point error and the location of manipulator joints as fuzzy variables. Joint motions are determined by a fuzzy rule set without requiring solution of the inverse kinematics. Additional rules for sensor data, obstacle avoidance and preferred manipulator configuration, e.g., 'righty' or 'lefty', are easily accommodated. The procedure used to generate the fuzzy rules can be extended to higher DOF systems.

Franke, Ernest A.↗
NASA NTRS2008

Robust Path Planning and Feedback Design Under Stochastic Uncertainty

Autonomous vehicles require optimal path planning algorithms to achieve mission goals while avoiding obstacles and being robust to uncertainties. The uncertainties arise from exogenous disturbances, modeling errors, and sensor noise, which can be characterized via stochastic models. Previous work defined a notion of robustness in a stochastic setting by using the concept of chance constraints. This requires that mission constraint violation can occur with a probability less than a prescribed value.In this paper we describe a novel method for optimal chance constrained path planning with feedback design. The approach optimizes both the reference trajectory to be followed and the feedback controller used to reject uncertainty. Our method extends recent results in constrained control synthesis based on convex optimization to solve control problems with nonconvex constraints. This extension is essential for path planning problems, which inherently have nonconvex obstacle avoidance constraints. Unlike previous approaches to chance constrained path planning, the new approach optimizes the feedback gain as wellas the reference trajectory.The key idea is to couple a fast, nonconvex solver that does not take into account uncertainty, with existing robust approaches that apply only to convex feasible regions. By alternating between robust and nonrobust solutions, the new algorithm guarantees convergence to a global optimum. We apply the new method to an unmanned aircraft and show simulation results that demonstrate the efficacy of the approach.

autonomuys vehicles↗
NASA NTRS1992

Detection And Avoidance Of Obstacles By Helicopters

Report discusses problems relevant to control subsystems enabling helicopters on nap-of-the-Earth flight paths to detect and avoid obstacles automatically. Indicates similarities between this and obstacle-avoidance problem of industrial mobile robots. Two approaches extend two-dimensional obstacle-avoidance concept to three dimensions. First involves direct search of three-dimensional range-map data for indications of openings between obstacles. Second involves compression of data into two-dimensional map for path search.

Cheng, Victor H. L.↗