Fuzzy control loop in an autonomous landing system for Unmanned Air Vehicles

Humans are still responsible for operating complex equipment because they are able to respond during emergency situations. By removing the pilot from an aircraft, Unmanned Air Vehicles (UAVs) are vulnerable to unpredictable activity within their environment. The landing process is the most stressful phase of flight for pilots and as a consequence, a significant number of UAV are being destroyed or unnecessarily damaged. An automated landing system similar to that for civil aviation would not only improve safety, but it would reduce the cognitive loading of operators and logistic costs. A small team will integrate a segmented Fuzzy Logic Controller (FLC) with a low cost sensor (The XBox 360 Kinect) to create an autonomous landing system for UAV platforms. The knowledge discovered while processing and analysing the data captured during the course of the project will be used to evolve further capability into the controller.