Monocular vision assisted autonomous landing of a helicopter on a moving deck

[摘要] ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The landing phase of any helicopter is the most critical part of the whole flight envelope,particularly on a moving flight deck. The flight deck is usually located at the stern of the ship,translating to large heave motions. This thesis focuses on the three fundamental componentsrequired for a successful landing: accurate, relative state-estimation between the helicopterand the flight deck; a prediction horizon to forecast suitable landing opportunities; andexcellent control to safely unite the helicopter with the flight deck.A monocular-vision sensor node was developed to provide accurate, relative position andattitude information of the flight deck. The flight deck is identified by a distinct, geometricpattern. The relative states are combined with the onboard, kinematic state-estimates ofthe helicopter to provide an inertial estimate of the flight deck states. Onboard motionprediction is executed to forecast a possible safe landing time which is conveyed to thelanding controller.Camera pose-estimation tests and hardware-in-the-loop simulations proved the systemdeveloped in this thesis viable for flight tests. The practical flight tests confirmed the successof the monocular-vision sensor node.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University