Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) for Transportation, Incident Management, and Infrastructure Assessment

Unmanned aerial systems (UAS) have received significant attention in recent years due to substantial advances in capabilities. The goal for this project has been to work with Drive Ohio and the Ohio UAS Center: (1) to identify those Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) core business functions which can be improved/enhanced by application of UAS technologies, (2) to identify the corresponding necessary unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) system configurations and missions and (3) to begin developing, testing, and documenting vehicle system configurations and capabilities to perform these missions. In collaboration with ODOT, the following application areas were selected for in-depth investigation: Bridge and facility inspection, aerial mapping, construction monitoring, and traffic monitoring and management. Additional integrative, crosscutting technologies to support operations were also considered. A variety of UAS vehicles were acquired along with associated cameras and supporting hardware and software. In addition, custom hardware and software were developed for systems integration and operation, image processing and tele-remote UAV video streaming. Several hundred hours of flight operations were conducted at test sites as well as in actual ODOT field operational setting across the state of Ohio. The limits of UAS operations and applications in these areas were explored and documented. Based on the results obtained, a set of seven Standard Operations Procedures (SOPs) were developed and delivered and associated training session were conducted. The research showed that UAS operations are poised to dramatically impact several areas, and that ODOT, through its UAS Center, is poised to capitalize on many of these trends leading to improved operational efficiency, increased safety and mobility, and reduced costs.

• Record URL:
  https://www.dot.state.oh.us/Divisions/Planning/SPR/Research/reportsandplans/Reports/Final%20Reports/SJN%20135310%20Final%20Report,%20UAS%20Master%20Project,%20PID%20102141,%20May%2014.pdf
• Record URL:
  https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p267401ccp2/id/21517/rec/1
• 
• Summary URL:
  https://www.dot.state.oh.us/Divisions/Planning/SPR/Research/reportsandplans/Reports/Final%20Reports/SJN%20135310%20Final%20Fact%20Sheet%2c%20UAS%20Master%20Project%2c%20PID%20102141%2c%20May%2014.pdf
• Record URL:
  https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/64266
• Corporate Authors:

  University of Cincinnati

  Cincinnati, OH  United States  45221

  Ohio Department of Transportation

  Office of Statewide Planning and Research
  1980 West Broad Street
  Columbus, OH  United States  43223

  Federal Highway Administration

  1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
  Washington, DC  United States  20590
• Authors:
  • Helmicki, Arthur
  • Hunt, Victor
  • Brown, Bryan
  • Norouzi, Mahdi
  • Cohen, Kelly
  • Kumar, Manish
• Publication Date: 2021-5

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Digital/other
• Edition: Final Report
• Features: Maps; Photos; References;
• Pagination: 190p

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Aircraft operations; Drones; Monitoring; Traffic surveillance; Unmanned aircraft systems
• Identifier Terms: Ohio Department of Transportation
• Geographic Terms: Ohio
• Subject Areas: Aviation; Highways; Vehicles and Equipment;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01780928
• Record Type: Publication
• Report/Paper Numbers: FHWA/OH-2021-16
• Contract Numbers: 27899
• Files: NTL, TRIS, ATRI, USDOT, STATEDOT
• Created Date: Aug 31 2021 11:18AM