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On-board and Ground Visual Pose Estimation Techniques for UAV Control

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Abstract

In this paper, two techniques to control UAVs (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles), based on visual information are presented. The first one is based on the detection and tracking of planar structures from an on-board camera, while the second one is based on the detection and 3D reconstruction of the position of the UAV based on an external camera system. Both strategies are tested with a VTOL (Vertical take-off and landing) UAV, and results show good behavior of the visual systems (precision in the estimation and frame rate) when estimating the helicopter’s position and using the extracted information to control the UAV.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Computer Vision Group, Centro de Automática y Robótica (CAR), Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, C/ José Gutiérrez Abascal 2, 28006, Madrid, Spain

    Carol Martínez, Iván F. Mondragón, Miguel A. Olivares-Méndez & Pascual Campoy

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  1. Carol Martínez
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  2. Iván F. Mondragón
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  3. Miguel A. Olivares-Méndez
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  4. Pascual Campoy
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Correspondence to Carol Martínez.

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Martínez, C., Mondragón, I.F., Olivares-Méndez, M.A. et al. On-board and Ground Visual Pose Estimation Techniques for UAV Control. J Intell Robot Syst 61, 301–320 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10846-010-9505-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10846-010-9505-9

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