Solar Powered UAV for Surveillance With Long Endurance

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) have proven to be immensely valuable assets for a wide range of applications from remote sensing and forest fire detection to military surveillance. However, large scale UAVs come with logistical complexities, not to mention substantial purchasing and operational cost

Project Title

Solar Powered UAV for Surveillance With Long Endurance

Project Area of Specialization

Mechatronics Engineering

Project Summary

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) have proven to be immensely valuable assets for a wide range of applications from remote sensing and forest fire detection to military surveillance. However, large scale UAVs come with logistical complexities, not to mention substantial purchasing and operational costs. Our project ‘Solar Powered UAV for Surveillance with Long Endurance’ aims at mitigating not only the manufacturing and operational costs, but also the logistical hurdles faced in the transportation, fueling, deployment and control of UAVs. We aim to achieve an aerial vehicle which falls under the miniature or small UAV category with a Maximum Take Off Weight (MTOW) of 5Kg, with a wing span of around 3.2 meters. The relatively compact size of the UAV along with modular construction will allow for ease of transportation and assembly. The aircraft will be powered using a rich energy density lithium-polymer battery, connected to an array of high efficiency solar cells mounted on the wings interfaced with a Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT) charge controller, ensuring that under nominal flying conditions, the battery will be charging at maximum efficiency using the solar cells which will be running a brushless DC motor powering the aircraft. The solar powered UAV will have a suite of the latest flight control systems on board. An ArduPilot Module (APM) 2.8 flight controller with built in inertial measurement unit (IMU) will function as the brain of the aircraft. Connected to it will be a high precision GPS unit for positional awareness. A telemetry module operating on off-band frequency will be used to communicate in real time with a ground station, relaying real time position and performance parameters. The APM has the capability of fully autonomous flight along pre-planned flight routes with a complete failsafe and safety measures system ensuring that the aircraft is secure and reliable. The surveillance systems onboard the UAV will consist of a high-resolution daytime camera connected with a high-power, long-range video transmitter, transmitting real time footage to the ground station receiver module.

The power system running alongside the control system of the UAV will guarantee a reliable, long endurance solar powered UAV with surveillance capabilities for a wide range of uses in the real world.

Project Objectives

The objectives which we target with our project are as follows.

Firstly, we aim to design, analyze, and fabricate a compact, modular flightworthy airframe, modeled around geometrical parameters dominated by the sizing and quantity of solar cells required by the power system. The model will have more than sufficient power and agile flight characteristics, well suited towards a slow flying, efficient aircraft.

Secondly, to achieve long endurance, we aim to fit the aircraft with an array of solar cells and an MPPT charge controller, extending the flight time of the aircraft considerably and providing an elaborate way of charging the aircraft in remote locations.

Thirdly, the aircraft will have constant, real-time communication with a ground station providing positional and flight data.

Fourthly, we aim to achieve fully autonomous flight capability using the flight control system consisting of a GPS with high positional accuracy and an easy-to-use graphical interface. 

Lastly, the surveillance aspect of the aircraft will be covered using a high resolution camera and a air to ground real time transmit-receive system. 

Project Implementation Method

Extensive literature review will be carried out covering aspects of solar UAV design. An aircraft will be modeled in CAD. To validate the structural soundness of the aircraft, CFD and one-way FSI will be carried out. During the process aircraft attributes considered using the governing equations of flight dynamics, with MATLAB being used to perform majority of the calculations.

As for the power systems, the battery will be a 6 cell Lithium Polymer battery. The battery will be connected to an array of solar cells. A total of 44 of these high efficiency solar cells will be purchased and shipped from China. To interface the battery with the solar cells, a CN3306 Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT) charge controller will be implemented. The motor powering the aircraft will be a 12-pole brushless DC motor with a 1100Kv rpm constant, powered by a 60A Electronic Speed Controller (ESC) with a Universal Battery Eliminator Circuit (UBEC) rated at 5V and 5A which is sufficient to power the control systems. It provides a maximum continuous power output of 1500W and 6kg static thrust paired with a 14x7in. propeller which will be more than sufficient to propel an aircraft with a Maximum Takeoff Weight of 5kg.

Concerning the flight control systems, an ArduPilot Module (APM) 2.8 flight controller with built in Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) and compass will be the brains of the aircraft. Paired with a UBLOX NEO-M8N high precision GPS with an accuracy of 0.6 meters, the aircraft will have complete closed-loop positional control enabling fully autonomous flight capabilities. A 3DR radio telemetry module will provide real time communication between the ground station and aircraft. Using Mission Planner software, all flight parameters will be monitored and mission profiles will be established from the ground station. The transmitter will be a FlySky i6 paired with an iA6B receiver.

The surveillance systems of the solar UAV will be handled by a 1MP mini FPV camera paired with a TS5828 600mW video transmitter and RS832s receiver. The camera has a high Field of View of 120 degrees and 1080p video output which will provide high quality, real-time video feed to the ground station at a high refresh rate.

The aircraft itself will be fabricated using balsa wood and carbon fiber tubing. The wing ribs will be laser cut from balsa wood, and will be mounted onto carbon fiber spars. The entire wing will then be covered with transparent wrap to ensure minimal skin friction and weight.   

Benefits of the Project

The development of a solar compact solar UAV will enable the aircraft to be deployed in a short amount of time with minimal assembly required. It will have the capability to be airborne within moments notice and will require a short takeoff area. It will be able to be implemented into mission profiles where weight and size is a limitation yet its surveillance capabilities prove it to be immensely useful.

The solar nature of the aircraft allows it to be charged even in remote areas where there is no electricity. The UAV will be very well suited for combat environments where forward intel will come at a major advantage and ensure the safety of ground personnel. With a high service ceiling and relatively small size, it will be immensely difficult to detect visually, and almost impossible to be detected on radar. The autonomous capabilities allow for ground personnel to shift their attention where most needed instead of flying the aircraft manually. With instantaneous deployment, they do not have to waste time and wait for aerial support.

Furthermore, the solar UAV can also be used for environmental missions. Forest fires can be monitored closely and the damage caused by natural disasters can be assessed remotely. It can also be used to carry out search and rescue missions due to its long endurance.

The solar UAV will also be well suited for geographical information systems data gathering in remote areas and remote sensing of inaccessible sites.

The solar UAV built around long endurance and surveillance will have multiple uses in the real world being an environmentally friendly, easily deployable, and autonomous.

Technical Details of Final Deliverable

We aim to achieve a solar powered UAV built for surveillance and long endurance. The aircraft will be designed in a modular fashion, i.e., wings and fuselage detachable for ease of transport. The aircraft will also be designed for slow and exceptionally steady flight characteristics making it easy to fly and highly efficient. The MTOW of the aircraft will be restricted to 5kg to make it as light weight as possible. The MPPT charge controller and solar array will be capable of significantly increasing the flight time to in excess of 30-40 minutes. The aircraft will have a service ceiling of 1500-2000 meters, limited by the air to ground communication link. The aircraft will also have a range of up to 3Km, extendable to up to 5Km with slight modifications. The solar UAV will also provide real-time high-resolution video feed to the ground station. The ground station will also receive all flight parameters in real time including motor current draw, battery voltage, solar current supply, etc. The flight control systems will ensure fully autonomous flight along a pre-programmed mission profile using the high-precision GPS system. All aspects of the aircraft will be monitored by the ground station.

Final Deliverable of the Project

HW/SW integrated system

Core Industry

Security

Other Industries

Energy

Core Technology

Robotics

Other Technologies

Clean Tech

Sustainable Development Goals

Affordable and Clean Energy, Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure

Required Resources

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