Executive Summary : | The increasing use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in both civilian and defense applications poses growing threats to protected establishments, human lives, and cyber-attacks. To mitigate these risks, there is a global push to develop counter-UAs (CUAs) systems equipped with efficient anti-drone technologies. Three methods have been discussed in literature: 'take down', 'complete take over', and 'catching'. The net-capture method is considered a front-runner option as it can completely nullify the threat and allow for further investigations.
This project aims to develop novel efficient guidance algorithms for a fleet of multiple pursuers to coordinate their motion towards a target UAV for net-capturing in a terminal configuration-constrained final time-controlled manner. Two scenarios are considered: carrying separate capture nets individually and carrying a bigger capture net together. Validation of the developed guidance strategies will be performed through simulation studies in realistic software-in-the-loop setups and hardware-based validation using test-beds. The developed guidance strategies and software and hardware-based validation sets-ups are expected to cater to the growing global and national demand for CUAs technologies. |