Modeling of Videosequence of Flight of UAV for Testing of Visual Navigation Algorithms

Abstract

The paper deals with the process of creating a system of modeling the video sequence of the flight of an unmanned aerial vehicle for the tasks of testing visual navigation algorithms. This system can be used when it is impossible to carry out the flight and to obtain real images of the terrain from the onboard camera of the unmanned aerial vehicle. The basis for the generation of images is the base image that can be a satellite image or an orthophoto. The input data are the control points through which the flight, altitude and characteristics of the aircraft, such as flight speed, should be simulated. The control points are connected by straight lines, forming a flight route that determines the flight area on the base image. Based on the altitude and flight speed of the unmanned aerial vehicle, the scale of the output images is calculated, taking into account the resolution of the base image. Using the obtained scale and flight speed of the aircraft, the displacement of the coordinates is calculated. On the basis of control points and coordinate displacement, intermediate points are formed, which determine the flight path. For each point, the direction of flight of the unmanned aerial vehicle is formed, using the angle of rotation along the circle. If there are several control points, the trajectory is smoothed by gradually changing the angle of rotation at each point. The points of the obtained trajectory are used as the centers of the generated flight images, which are transformed according to the direction of movement of the unmanned aerial vehicle, using affine transformations. EXIF format metadata containing the coordinates of the image and flight characteristics are generated for the images. As a result, a video sequence is formed for each intermediate point with flight characteristics located in the metadata of the image file. In conclusion, the paper provides examples of the use of the obtained images and describes possible improvements of the developed system.