An Acoustic Camera for Use on UAVs

Area of Science:

• Acoustics
• Sensor Technology
• Aerospace Engineering

Background:

• Airborne acoustic surveillance offers significant potential for applications like security, noise monitoring, and wildlife observation.
• Current limitations exist due to the lack of integrated acoustic camera systems on unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) airships.
• Existing systems lack the deployment flexibility and utility required for effective airborne acoustic monitoring.

Purpose of the Study:

• To design and construct an acoustic camera specifically for direct mounting on UAV airships.
• To advance the capabilities of airborne acoustic surveillance systems.
• To enable far-field, low-level acoustic signal detection from aerial platforms.

Main Methods:

• Development of a novel acoustic camera featuring 64 microphones and a central processing unit.
• Creation of dedicated software for data acquisition and processing tailored for low-level acoustic signals.
• Design of a large-aperture (2m) camera mock-up for ground-based demonstration and airship integration.

Main Results:

• Successful design and construction of an acoustic camera prototype for UAV airship mounting.
• Demonstration of the camera's functionality through ground-based operation of a large-aperture mock-up.
• The system is designed for surveillance up to 300m with a spatial resolution of 12m.

Conclusions:

• The developed acoustic camera represents a significant advancement for airborne acoustic surveillance.
• The system is engineered for effective deployment on UAV airships, addressing current technological gaps.
• Preparations are complete for airship integration, paving the way for practical application of this technology.