Development of Fixed-Wing UAV 3D Coverage Paths for Urban Air Quality Profiling

Area of Science:

• Environmental Science
• Robotics and Control Systems
• Aerospace Engineering

Background:

• Deteriorating air quality from industrial activity necessitates effective long-term monitoring.
• Current unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) air monitoring is limited by payload, endurance, and range, often using rotary-wing designs.
• Fixed-wing UAVs offer a potential alternative for enhanced air quality monitoring capabilities.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop an optimized 3D coverage path planning algorithm for fixed-wing UAVs.
• To improve the efficiency and spatial coverage of air quality data acquisition.
• To create an accessible tool integrating path planning with ground control software and flight controllers.

Main Methods:

• Development of a 3D coverage path planning algorithm utilizing Boustrophedon and Dubins paths.
• Integration of the algorithm with commercial ground control software.
• Design of a user interface for generalized tool module accessibility.

Main Results:

• Simulations demonstrated the proposed method's effectiveness in air quality monitoring.
• The new path planning approach significantly outperformed existing methods in coverage rate.
• Achieved a sampling density of 50 meters for comprehensive air particle indicator monitoring.

Conclusions:

• The developed 3D coverage path planning method enhances UAV-based air quality monitoring.
• Fixed-wing UAVs integrated with the proposed system offer superior spatial coverage and temporal efficiency.
• The generalized tool provides a practical solution for environmental monitoring applications.