Flight Navigation System of Transport Unmanned Aerial Vehicles for Forestry Practice

Abstract

Nowadays there is a need to increase air transportation of light-weighted cargo in timber industry and forestry practice, in the work of industrial enterprises, forest protection services, the Ministry of Emergency Situations, etc. The use of helicopters cannot ensure efficiency and is not always advisable in cases of transportation of light-weighted, but extremely necessary cargo over short distances, for example, for fire extinguishing in offroad conditions. The article provides evidence of the production and economic feasibility of creating transport unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) with flight navigation systems (FNS), which should ensure automatic flight and delivery of goods to the area of the forestry zone. The article provides a sketch of the flight map and the parameters of the UAV heading, as well as the block diagram of the FNS. The interaction of input devices for solving navigation problems is considered. The article notes that the FNS creation for automatic navigation of UAVs should be solved on the basis of the laws of applied mathematics and the ability to implement them in the development of algorithms and software and mathematical support as part of the FNS on-board computer. FNSs on the basis of the proposed structural scheme can also find application in order to control the environmental situation, to provide assistance in solving forestry problems related to monitoring and control over the conservation of wildlife, forest reserves and other natural resources of the country. The use of UAVs will ensure the safety of residents in the event of environmental and anthropogenic disasters. This will increase the efficiency of cargo delivery to remote areas of Russia for industrial purposes and to support the work of the Ministry of Defense to protect the northern borders, the protection of natural resources of the Arctic Ocean, etc. We consider it expedient and possible to recommend the creation of UAVs as transport vehicles, having regard to the current level of technological development, despite the existing significant challenges of technical and financial support during the introduction and operation of such vehicles. The domestic industry has the technical capabilities to develop UAVs. The feasibility of their creation should be determined by the interested organizations.