Comparison of path-planning and search methods for cooperating unmanned aerial vehicles

The main goal of this research effort is develop a simulation environment for cooperating UAVs within MATLAB's SIMULINK. This is the first step in a process that will eventually lead to the implementation of model UAVs on a model battlefield. The interest in cooperation of UAVs over the past decade has grown significantly. This is due to several reasons including lower operational cost, lower risk for humans, and greater maneuverability.; This research explores two scenarios. The first is a scenario in which all of the characteristics of a battlefield are known prior to the UAVs being launched. Three prevalent path-planning methods are compared based on calculation speed and optimization. This thesis shows that a visibility graph method leads to the lowest cost solution, while the Voronoi diagram method provides a computationally inexpensive solution.; The second scenario is a search and destroy mission where nothing is known about the battlefield prior to UAVs launch. This will consist of the vehicles visiting a set of predetermined waypoints until a target is found. The result of this research produces a simulation of cooperating UAVs that shows the potential of fulfilling many realistic missions in a battlefield environment.