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ptc-52758281-Visitor
1-Visitor
December 2, 2013
Question

Detection and Identification

  • December 2, 2013
  • 1 reply
  • 1152 views

For this year's challenge, does our UAV still have to follow the 2-step sensor process (detection and then identification)? If so, how will we know how many pixels we need for detection or identification? Is there also a specific amount of time necessary for each step? I know last year there were fixed numbers for each step: 4 pixels and .5 seconds needed for detection, 20 pixels and 5 seconds for identification. Are we to use the same numbers this year, or estimate new ones based on our search pattern/sensor?

Also, if we do have to follow a 2-step process for sensing infestation, how many times will we be expected to perform this during our flight? This will affect our mission time. Last year there was a fixed number of 5 object detections and object identifications during the search. Thank you for your help.

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    ptc-54935091-Visitor
    1-Visitor
    January 30, 2014

    As a basic concept, the 2-step process you are referring is valid: first collecting the sensor image/data, then determining notable items/pixels within the collected image that would match some type of pre-established identification criteria. Although this process sounds straight forward, in practicality the process will be a little more involved and may require more than just 2 steps. The data collection and identification are 2 separate processes; one a hardware collection process, the other a software process that identifies the infestation.

    The collection is simply recording data from the sensor, but many different items should be taken into consideration during the identification process like: sensor type & resolution, altitude & speed of the flight, size of what you are trying to detect, and environmental factors. During the software identification process the amount of pixels needed to detect infestation will vary depending on factors such as the type of sensor you use and the altitude you fly, etc. This identification process could very easily be a multi-step process on its own.

    The State Challenge requires you to cover the entire Area of Interest (AOI) which is 1 square mile. Your team will have to determine the most optimized way to accomplish this coverage requirement. Then based on your coverage technique, determine what steps will be needs to identify the infestation. So the number of pixels required to see an infestation and the amount of time for each step would be determined by your specific operational factors.

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