Unmanned Aerial Systems Research - University of … 2017 4 Faculty Involved in Unmanned Aerial Systems Research Dr. Yahia Baghzouz, P.E. Professor, Department of Electrical and Computer

Unmanned Aerial Systems Research

1March 2018


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Dr. Rama VenkatDean, College of EngineeringPhone: (702) 895-1094Email: [email protected]

Dr. Mohamed TrabiaAssociate Dean, College of EngineeringPhone: (702) 895-0957Email: [email protected]

In 2012 Nevada began a robust effort to secure the FAA designation as one of six UAS test sites. On December 30, 2013 Nevada was designated as an official test site. This has spawned a renaissance in the UAS industry as manufacturers extend their vision beyond the military market to national and international commercial applications including a wide variety of new platforms and sensor technologies.

UAS systems have entered the civilian market due to demand for many industry needs. This expanded use has in turn increased the demand for research in UAS manufacturing; sensor developers and operators; and applied research and development capabilities.

March 2018

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Why UNLV?

The State of Nevada, and in particular Clark County, already has in place several assets necessary for developing and sustaining the growth demanded by the UAS industry. These assets include:• A wide and expansive restricted airspace system

in which large-scale experiments and testing can be conducted

• A large number of experienced personnel expanding their application of UAS for national defense systems

• A strong and relevant curriculum offered by UNLV• A well-developed educational outreach program

necessary for work force enhancement


March 2018

March 2018 4

Faculty Involved in Unmanned Aerial Systems Research

Dr. Yi-Tung ChenProfessor, Department of Mechanical EngineeringCo-Director, Center for Energy Research

Dr. William CulbrethAssociate Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering

Dr. Laxmi GewaliChair and Professor, Department of Computer Science

Dr. Sarah HarrisAssociate Professor, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Dr. Ju-Yeon JoAssociate Professor, Department of Computer Science

Dr. Si Jung “SJ” KimAssistant Professor of Entertainment Engineering and Design

Dr. Yoohwan KimAssociate Professor, Department of Computer Science

Dr. Shahram LatifiProfessor, Department of Electrical and Computer EngineeringDirector, Center for Information and Communications

Dr. Brendan MorrisAssociate Professor, Electrical and Computer Engineering

Dr. Venkatesan MuthukumarAssociate Professor, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

March 2018 5

Faculty Involved in Unmanned Aerial Systems Research

Dr. Paul OhLincy Professor of Unmanned Aerial Systems, Department of Mechanical Engineering

Dr. Brendan O’TooleChair and Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering

Dr. Darrell W. PepperProfessor, Department of Mechanical EngineeringDirector, Nevada Center for Advanced Computational Methods

Dr. Emma RegentovaProfessor, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Dr. Ebrahim SaberiniaAssociate Professor, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Dr. Haroon StephenAssociate Professor, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering

Dr. Peter StubberudProfessor, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Dr. Mohamed TrabiaProfessor, Department of Mechanical EngineeringAssociate Dean for Research, Graduate Studies & Computing, College of Engineering

Dr. Evangelos YfantisProfessor, Department of Computer Science

Dr. Woosoon YimProfessor, Department of Mechanical EngineeringUAS Minor and Certificate Program Coordinator

Unmanned Aerial Systems

Research Highlights

March 2018 6

March 2018 7

Dr. Yi-Tung Chen

Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering

Co-Director, Center for Energy Research

Phone: (702) 895-1202

Email: [email protected]

• Research Interests

• Computational fluid dynamics

• Fluid-structure interaction

• Smart wing design

• Aircraft maneuver

• Aerodynamics

• Biomimic simulation


NACA 1412

March 2018 8

Dr. William Culbreth

Associate Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering

Phone: (702) 895-3426



• Development of alpha and neutron detection devices for use on UAVs

• Wireless engine speed controller design for alternative UAV fuels

• Development of a single-rotor UAV that counteracts engine torque by using deflection of the flow

• Indoor autonomous navigation of UAVs using ultrasonic distance sensors and accelerometer data

• Aerodynamics and wing deflection of high-aspect ratio UAV airfoils under loading


March 2018 9

Dr. Laxmi Gewali

Professor and Chair,

Department of Computer Science

Phone: (702) 895-4028



• Trajectory planning for UAS

• Covert path planning and threat modeling

• Sensor assisted target recognition

• Monitoring and surveillance


March 2018 10

Dr. Sarah HarrisAssociate Professor,

Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Phone: (702) 895-1341



• Research Interests• Digital design, reconfigurable computing• System on a chip design• Embedded systems• Robotics, interfacing sensors, actuation

March 2018 11

Dr. Ju-Yeon Jo

Associate Professor,


Phone: (702) 895-5873



• Cybersecurity in UAS control software and ground systems

• UAS communication network security

• UAS privacy protection schemes

• Software engineering in UAS system development


March 2018 12


Dr. Si Jung “SJ” Kim

Assistant Professor, Entertainment Engineering and Design

Digital Experience (DEx) Lab

Phone: (702) 895-3699


Website: http://www.unlverc.com

The Flying Orchestra: Aerial robotic musical instruments providing novel user experience in live entertainment


• Human factors and human-computer interactions in UAS

• User interactions and user interface issues in UAS

• Design and applications of user experience with UAS

http://www.sjlab.com/

March 2018 13

Dr. Yoohwan Kim



Phone: (702) 895-5348



• UAS privacy technologies

• UAS control and navigation software

• Secure and reliable communications

• Protection against cyber attacks


March 2018 14

Dr. Shahram Latifi

Professor, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Director, Center for Information and Communications Technology (CICT)

Phone: (702) 895-4016



• Search and rescue technologies

• Geolocation of RF emitters

• UAS system health monitoring

• UAS data acquisition and management


March 2018 15

Dr. Brendan Morris

Assistant Professor,


Phone: (702) 774-1480



• On-board computer vision and image processing

• Object detection and recognition

• Selective filtering

• Surround awareness

• Sense and avoid technology


March 2018 16

Dr. Venkatesan Muthukumar



Phone: (702) 895-3566



• Development of adaptive guidance, navigation and control (GNC) algorithms for UAVs

• Embedded Control Design using multi-core processors and reconfigurable hardware

• On-board multi-sensor fusion, hardware acceleration of UAV tasks, altitude and flight control algorithms

• Hardware in the loop testing of GNC algorithms


March 2018 17

Dr. Paul Oh

Lincy Professor of Unmanned Aerial Systems

Director, Drones and Autonomous Systems Lab

Professor and ASME Fellow

Department of Mechanical Engineering

Phone: (702) 895-0168



• Unmanned aerial vehicles

• Autonomous systems

• Robotics

• Humanoids


March 2018 18

Dr. Brendan O’Toole

Professor and Chair,

Department of Mechanical Engineering

Phone: (702) 895-3885



• Composite materials design and analysis

• Composite fabrication

• Resin infusion

• Static/dynamic material characterization

• Autonomous and R/C systems


March 2018 19

Dr. Darrell W. Pepper


Director, Nevada Center for Advanced Computational Methods

Phone: (702) 895-1056



• Aerodynamics

• Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD)

• Drag reduction techniques

• UAV design and fabrication

• Flight testing

• Application of thin-film solar for UAVs



Dr. Venkatesan Muthukumar



Phone: (702) 895-3566


System flow Initial pose Position change After alignment

Dr. Emma Regentova

Professor,


Phone: (702) 895-3187



• Camera-based leader tracking and adjusting flight parameters

• On-board calculation of the 3D position of the leader’s relative speed, pitch, yaw and roll angles for following leader’s path.

March 2018 20

March 2018 21

Dr. Ebrahim Saberinia



Phone: (702) 895-3169



• Wireless communication systems and signal processing

• Localization

• Communication security

• Sense and avoid algorithms

• Privacy and blanking

• Multiple vehicle networking

• Sensors


March 2018 22

Dr. Haroon Stephen


Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Construction

Director, GIS and Remote Sensing Core Lab

Phone: (702) 774-1463



• Sensors aboard UAS for remote sensing: testing and applications

• UAS and GIS integration

• Applications of UAS to resource mapping, monitoring, and management

• Data fusion and data mining of multi-scale sources: UAS, aerial, and spaceborne sensors


March 2018 23

Dr. Peter Stubberud

Professor,


Phone: (702) 895-0869



• Communication systems including direct conversion receivers communication circuits

• Radar systems delta sigma modulators

• Signal and image processing

• Adaptive signal processing


March 2018 24

Dr. Mohamed Trabia


Associate Dean for Research, Graduate Studies & Computing

Phone: (702) 895-0957



• Micro UAV design

• UAV dynamic analysis

• UAV control


Wind tunnel testing of UAV wing

Conceptual diagram for a figure-8 flapping wing for a UAV

Wing

Load Cell

Airfoil / Motor

xy

z

March 2018 25

Dr. EvangelosYfantis

Professor, Department of Computer Science

Phone: (702) 895-3536



• Digital video

• Video compression

• Pattern recognition

• Artificial intelligence

• Signal processing

• Statistics

• Database management

• File servers-network programming

• Digital communications-internet programming


Video capture, compression, and pattern recognition card, with PCI and PCI express data buses

8-layer video capture, compression, and pattern recognition card, with PCI and PCI express data buses

March 2018 26

Dr. WoosoonYim


Coordinator of Minor in UAS Program

Phone: (702) 895-0956



• UAS technology development for GPS denied applications

• Contour mapping of radiation

• Aerial manipulation


Documents

Unmanned Aerial Systems Research - University of … 2017 4 Faculty Involved in Unmanned Aerial Systems Research Dr. Yahia Baghzouz, P.E. Professor, Department of Electrical and Computer