A new design for a tail-sitting vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) was proposed. A nonlinear mathematical model of the vehicle dynamics was constructed by combining simple estimation methods. The flight characteristics were revealed through a trim analysis and an optimized transitional flight path analysis by using the mathematical model. The trim analysis reveale...

The procedure presented within, considers the problem of calculating flight time for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) while incorporating a subset of important flight dynamics characteristics in an operational field, which contains obstacles. These flight time calculations are parameter inputs in mission planning and dynamic reassignment problems. The addition of pseudonodes and the addition of ...

SUMMARY Robotic systems have shown capabilities to perform inspection tasks in dangerous and difficult-to-access environments, such as those found different components of power plants. However, most the current robotic technology is designed for specific components. Aerial robots, commonly termed Drones, raised an option inspect a wider range structural Nevertheless, aerial inspecting still rel...

Various flight navigation strategies for birds have been identified at the large spatial scales of migratory and homing behaviours. However, relatively little is known about close-range obstacle negotiation through cluttered environments. To examine obstacle flight guidance, we tracked pigeons (Columba livia) flying through an artificial forest of vertical poles. Interestingly, pigeons adjusted...

Past studies have shown that birds use their wings not only for flight, but also when ascending steep inclines. Uphill flap-running or wing-assisted incline running (WAIR) is used by both flight-incapable fledglings and flight-capable adults to retreat to an elevated refuge. Despite the broadly varying direction of travel during WAIR, level, and descending flight, recent studies have found that...

A display that takes advantage of the threedimensional positioning data available from differential GPS has been flight tested on a general aviation aircraft. This glass-cockpit instrument provides a natural, “out the window” view of the world, making the horizon, runway, and desired flight path visible to the pilot in instrument flight conditions. The flight path is depicted as a series of sym...