Geophex Airborne Unmanned Survey System (GAUSS). Topical report, October 1993--September 1996
This document is a Final Technical Report that describes the results of the Geophex Airborne Unmanned Survey System (GAUSS) research project. The objectives were to construct a geophysical data acquisition system that uses a remotely operated unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) and to evaluate its effectiveness for characterization of hazardous environmental sites. The GAUSS is a data acquisition system that mitigates the potential risk to personnel during geophysical characterization of hazardous or radioactive sites. The fundamental basis of the GAUSS is as follows: (1) an unmanned survey vehicle carries geophysical sensors into a hazardous location, (2) the pilot remains outside the hazardous site and operates the vehicle using radio control, (3) geophysical measurements and their spatial locations are processed by an automated data-acquisition system which displays data on an off-site monitor in real-time, and (4) the pilot uses the display to direct the survey vehicle for complete site coverage. The objective of our Phase I research was to develop a data acquisition and processing (DAP) subsystem and geophysical sensors suitable for UAV deployment. We integrated these two subsystems to produce an automated, hand-held geophysical surveying system. The objective of the Phase II effort was to modify the subsystems and integrate them into an airborne prototype. The completed GAUSS DAP system consists of a UAV platform, a laser tracking and ranging subsystem, a telemetry subsystem, light-weight geophysical sensors, a base-station computer (BC), and custom-written survey control software (SCS). We have utilized off-the-shelf commercial products, where possible, to reduce cost and design time.
- Research Organization:
- Geophex Ltd., Raleigh, NC (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE Office of Environmental Restoration and Waste Management, Washington, DC (United States)
- DOE Contract Number:
- AR21-93MC30358
- OSTI ID:
- 594446
- Report Number(s):
- DOE/MC/30358-5612; ON: DE97002258; TRN: 98:001903
- Resource Relation:
- Other Information: PBD: [1998]
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
Geophex Airborne Unmanned Survey System
Geophex Airborne Unmanned Survey System