In het voorjaar van 2015 hebben de gemeente Eindhoven en Schiphol Real Estate het lectoraat Brainport van Fontys Hogeschool Management Economie en Recht gevraagd een serie scenario’s op te stellen voor de aanpak en toekomstige ontwikkeling van het kantorencluster Flight Forum. Dit cluster verkeert al enige tijd in zwaar weer en heeft, zoals veel vergelijkbare kantorengebieden, de voorbije jaren te kampen gehad met stagnerende ontwikkelingen en oplopende leegstand. Bij nadere beschouwing blijkt Flight Forum een aanschouwelijke casus om de stand van de Eindhovense kantorenmarkt af te lezen. Daarbij wordt eens te meer duidelijk dat kantorenleegstand, en de aanpak daarvan, niet alleen een mechanisme is van bvo’s en meterprijzen, maar inzicht vergt in de kwaliteiten van de plek, de daadwerkelijke gebruikers en de aanwezige dynamiek.
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This paper describes the concept of a new algorithm to control an Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) for accurate autonomous indoor flight. Inside a greenhouse, Global Positioning System (GPS) signals are not reliable and not accurate enough. As an alternative, Ultra Wide Band (UWB) is used for localization. The noise is compensated by combining the UWB with the delta position signal from a novel optical flow algorithm through a Kalman Filter (KF). The end result is an accurate and stable position signal with low noise and low drift.
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Flying insects like dragonflies, flies, bumblebees are able to couple hovering ability with the ability for a quick transition to forward flight. Therefore, they inspire us to investigate the application of swarms of flapping-wing mini-drones in horticulture. The production and trading of agricultural/horticultural goods account for the 9% of the Dutch gross domestic product. A significant part of the horticultural products are grown in greenhouses whose extension is becoming larger year by year. Swarms of bio-inspired mini-drones can be used in applications such as monitoring and control: the analysis of the data collected enables the greenhouse growers to achieve the optimal conditions for the plants health and thus a high productivity. Moreover, the bio-inspired mini-drones can detect eventual pest onset at plant level that leads to a strong reduction of chemicals utilization and an improvement of the food quality. The realization of these mini-drones is a multidisciplinary challenge as it requires a cross-domain collaboration between biologists, entomologists and engineers with expertise in robotics, mechanics, aerodynamics, electronics, etc. Moreover a co-creation based collaboration will be established with all the stakeholders involved. With this approach we can integrate technical and social-economic aspects and facilitate the adoption of this new technology that will make the Dutch horticulture industry more resilient and sustainable.
Agricultural/horticultural products account for 9% of Dutch gross domestic product. Yearly expansion of production involves major challenges concerning labour costs and plant health control. For growers, one of the most urgent problems is pest detection, as pests cause up to 10% harvest loss, while the use of chemicals is increasingly prohibited. For consumers, food safety is increasingly important. A potential solution for both challenges is frequent and automated pest monitoring. Although technological developments such as propeller-based drones and robotic arms are in full swing, these are not suitable for vertical horticulture (e.g. tomatoes, cucumbers). A better solution for less labour intensive pest detection in vertical crop horticulture, is a bio-inspired FW-MAV: Flapping Wings Micro Aerial Vehicle. Within this project we will develop tiny FW-MAVs inspired by insect agility, with high manoeuvrability for close plant inspection, even through leaves without damage. This project focusses on technical design, testing and prototyping of FW-MAV and on autonomous flight through vertically growing crops in greenhouses. The three biggest technical challenges for FW-MAV development are: 1) size, lower flight speed and hovering; 2) Flight time; and 3) Energy efficiency. The greenhouse environment and pest detection functionality pose additional challenges such as autonomous flight, high manoeuvrability, vertical take-off/landing, payload of sensors and other equipment. All of this is a multidisciplinary challenge requiring cross-domain collaboration between several partners, such as growers, biologists, entomologists and engineers with expertise in robotics, mechanics, aerodynamics, electronics, etc. In this project a co-creation based collaboration is established with all stakeholders involved, integrating technical and biological aspects.
The CARTS (Collaborative Aerial Robotic Team for Safety and Security) project aims to improve autonomous firefighting operations through an collaborative drone system. The system combines a sensing drone optimized for patrolling and fire detection with an action drone equipped for fire suppression. While current urban safety operations rely on manually operated drones that face significant limitations in speed, accessibility, and coordination, CARTS addresses these challenges by creating a system that enhances operational efficiency through minimal human intervention, while building on previous research with the IFFS drone project. This feasibility study focuses on developing effective coordination between the sensing and action drones, implementing fire detection and localization algorithms, and establishing parameters for autonomous flight planning. Through this innovative collaborative drone approach, we aim to significantly improve both fire detection and suppression capabilities. A critical aspect of the project involves ensuring reliable and safe operation under various environmental conditions. This feasibility study aims to explore the potential of a sensing drone with detection capabilities while investigating coordination mechanisms between the sensing and action drones. We will examine autonomous flight planning approaches and test initial prototypes in controlled environments to assess technical feasibility and safety considerations. If successful, this exploratory work will provide valuable insights for future research into autonomous collaborative drone systems, currently focused on firefighting. This could lead to larger follow-up projects expanding the concept to other safety and security applications.
