An Optical System for Guidance of Terrain Following in UAVs

There is considerable interest in designing guidance systems for UAVs that use passive sensing (such as vision), rather than active sensing which can be bulky, expensive and stealth-compromising. Here we describe an optical sensor, based partly on principles of insect vision and optic flow analysis, for measurement and control of height above the ground. A video camera is used in conjunction with a specially shaped reflective surface to simplify the computation of optic flow, and extend the range of aircraft speeds over which accurate data can be obtained. The imaging system also provides a useful geometrical remapping of the environment, which facilitates obstacle avoidance and computation of 3-D terrain maps.