Unmanned aerial vehicles: challenges and technologies for improved autonomy
This paper describes recent advances in Unmanned Aerial Vehicles aimed at improving their autonomy and reliability for a diverse domain of applications from forest fires and rescue operations to military and border patrol missions. We introduce an experimental VTOL aircraft and discuss instrumentation requirements and control strategies that are essential to maintain stable operations as the vehicle executes extreme maneuvers. We review next mission scenarios that require the deployment of multiple UAVs and suggest briefly mission planning and control algorithms to achieve such challenging tasks. The control technologies are demonstrated through flight testing that illustrate the effectiveness and robustness of the planning and control strategies.
By Tony Martini, Economics ::: Advisor: Michael Jones ::: Presentation ID: AM_D39 ::: Abstract: This study suggests new methods of measuring the effectiveness of universities in protecting students from the impact of automation on the labor market. Using US government data on occupational activities and traditional measures of university outcomes, we produce a ranking of college majors by their susceptibility to automation and determine correlations between predicted traditional and automation-based outcomes. These are combined into a complete metric for the "automation resistance" of a university. Using an approach centered on distinctly human skills, occupational activities can be ranked by their automation resistance. Institutions which develop student skills with a focus on automation resistance should likewise demonstrate greater long-term viability. We demonstrate this methodology through a case study using data from the University of Cincinnati.