An Integrated Measure and Location Method Based on Airborne 2D Laser Scanning Sensor for UAV's Power Line Inspection

Real-time and reliable autonomous navigation measure and location method is crucial for unmanned air vehicles(UAVs) power line inspection autonomous flight. A new two phase's measure and location method of using onboard two-dimensional (2D) laser scanning sensor for UAV autonomous continues flight is introduced. To solve real-time and reliable problems of terrain matching, a novel UAV terrain contour match method of multi-path terrain matching based on 2D plane laser radar is proposed. Laser scanning sensor is introduced to provide terrain scanning data and location. An improved multi-path terrain elevation contour matching algorithm is introduced to promote flexibility and real-time performance in second flight phase of power line inspection. Simulation results demonstrate the feasibility of the proposed method for UAVs. The experimental result shows that the improved terrain matching algorithm will provide more efficient and effective measure and location integrating ability for future UAVs autonomous flight and control.