Abstract

As unmanned air vehicle (UAV) utilization increases in Wilderness Search and Rescue (WiSAR) efforts, onboard sensors yielding more information will be desired. UAVs can assist WiSAR efforts by accelerating the ground search process through returning quality aerial footage of the terrain. Additionally, tracking the progress of a search by populating a digital map with video resolution data increases confidence that a comprehensive search of the region has been made. This thesis presents methods for acquiring video from multiple video sensors and fusing them into a single rendered video stream as a Virtual Gimbal. The panoramic video stream is the first of its kind to be constructed from video transmissions from a small UAV, and the first known video panorama to be used to quickly survey a region within a WiSAR context. The Virtual Gimbal comprises two video transmissions from a three camera array mounted in a downward-looking configuration on a UAV. This video stream has been shown to decrease the amount of time required to thoroughly survey a region by more than 40 percent.

Degree

College and Department

Ira A. Fulton College of Engineering and Technology; Mechanical Engineering

Rights

http://lib.byu.edu/about/copyright/