Systems and sensorsDr. Bertrand Dano
©Altapic.com, 2014
Overview of the systemAdvantages of Balloons vs. Bladed-UAVS
Systems and sensors
Gimbal system and controls
Sensors and applications
ALTA Flying Modes
ALTA balloons can either: Hover (single or multi tethers) Drift
Balloon Aerodynamics
Tethered: flow laminar under the balloon. Drifting: virtually no air flow. Ideal to study wind and atmosphere
Quad+ Aerodynamics Highly turbulent and re-circulating flow
Compromises air sample Inadequate for atmospheric studies.
ALTA Gimbal SystemProvides:• Geo-location• Image stabilization• Image geo-referenced
Stabilization is obtained using a high-performance GPS-Aided Inertial Navigation System. Advanced Kalman filtering algorithms to provide optimal estimates of position, velocity, and orientation.
ALTA Gimbal System
3-axis stabilization• Pan• Roll• Pitch
ALTA Skypad Software
•Point and click•Stare and Gaze modes
Remotely controlled Instantly availableanywhere in the world
ALTA SkyPad – Gaze mode
ALTA SkyPad – Stare mode
ALTA Cameras
• 5 Mpixel (visible spectrum)• 5 Mpixel Near IR (Visible w/ red filter removed)• Thermal IR camera (FLIR)• Multispectral camera (??)
Systems and sensorsData acquisition• Onboard 8 channels ADC• Geo-located (stored in image EXIF)
Categories• Essential• Pollution• Wind data• Air content• Radioactivity• …
Essential atmospheric data: •Altitude•Pressure•Temperature• Humidity
IMU already provides: 3-axis accelerometer, 3-axis gyroscope, 3-axis magnetometer, and a barometric pressure sensor.
Air Pollution:• O3-Nox (MQ131)• Methane (MQ-4)• CO (MQ-7)• …
MQ series are semiconductor based sensors:
FeatureHigh sensitivityFast responseWide detection rangeStable performance and long lifeSimple drive circuit
SO2
NOx
Urban Pollution
Gas Sensors:• CO2 (MG-811)• O2 (ME3-O2)• …
MQ series are semiconductor based sensors:FeatureHigh sensitivityFast responseWide detection rangeStable performance and long lifeSimple drive circuit
O2
CO2
Sea-Mangrove-Air gas exchange
Wind Data:• Direction• Magnitude (hot-film)
Air dust content:• Particles/dust sensor (Smoke, pollen count)
Radioactivity:• Geiger counter
15g
Air dust content:• Particles/dust sensor (Smoke, pollen count)
Radioactivity:• Geiger counter
15g
Questions ?
Thanks !
SO2
NOx
O2
CO2
Sea-air gas exchange
Urban Pollution Forest gas exchange