In view of the local, regional and global security trends over the past decade, the threats of disaster to the populace inhabiting urbanized areas are real and there is a need for increased vigilance. There can be multiple causes for urban disaster natural disasters, terrorist attack and urban warfare are all viable. This thesis focused on the event in which an urban search and rescue operation is required due to the aftermath of a terrorist activity. Systems engineering techniques were utilized to analyze the problem space and suggested a plausible solution. Application of unmanned vehicles in the scenario enhanced the reconnaissance, intelligence and surveillance capabilities of the responding forces, while limiting the exposure risk of personnel. One of the many challenges facing unmanned systems in a cluttered environment is a capability to rapidly generate reactive obstacle avoidance trajectories. A direct method of calculus of variations was applied for the unmanned platforms to achieve mission objectives collaboratively, and perform real-time trajectory optimization for a collision-free flight. Dynamic models were created to enable simulated operations within the thesis design scenario. Experiments conducted in an indoor lab verified the unmanned systems ability to avoid obstacles and carry out collaborative missions successfully.

Civilian, Defence Science and Technology Agency, Singapore

http://archive.org/details/integrationofmul1094532805