Autonomous Drone

Abstract

This report presents the design and implementation of an autonomous drone system aimed at enhancing disaster management capabilities through real-time surveillance and target detection. The system utilizes a customized propulsion system featuring a 5010 750 kV motor paired with a 12-inch propeller to achieve an optimal thrust-to-weight ratio and extended flight time. It is equipped with a high-resolution 640 640-pixel camera integrated with an advanced object detection model trained using Roboflow, enabling the identification of specific targets within affected areas. The coordinates of detected targets are calculated using the Haversine formula, leveraging the drones GPS data and camera orientation to support accurate navigation. Telemetry data is transmitted through a robust ELRS radio link, ensuring reliable control signals and real-time data feedback to the ground station. The drones operational framework incorporates both manual and autonomous flight modes, allowing flexible mission execution. Extensive pre-flight and post-flight testing, including thrust and power consumption analysis, is conducted to refine system performance and validate its effectiveness. The results demonstrate the potential of the proposed system to enhance situational awareness and response effectiveness in disaster scenarios, paving the way for future advancements in autonomous aerial systems.