NAECON 09 Grand Challenge Problem: Signals of Opportunity (SO)
NAECON GRAND CHALLENGE PRESENTATIONS:
Five final teams for the National Aerospace and Electronics Conference (NAECON) Grand Challenge will present their research on 21 July, Tuesday morning. The NAECON Grand Challenge is Chaired by Dr. Joanne DeGroat and Dr. Erik Blasch. The "NAECON Grand Challenge Problem" is in the area of, "Signals of Opportunity". Judging will be done by both the audience and invited judges. Judging and paper references and terminology will use the “SON” Figure-of-Merit Diagram and supplied data sets.
(Title, Individuals, and Summary):
1. "Computer Vision Localization Based on Pseudo-Satellites", Kevin R. Huggins, Michael A. McGrath, Yuan F. Zheng, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio.
In following the "Signals of Opportunity" theme of the NAECON '09 Grand Challenge, we explore using computer-vision techniques for localization and orientation techniques to complement navigation via the pseudo-satellite technique proposed . The proposed approach is not affected by the strength of the microwave, and is more accurate than the conventional time of arrival approaches. Methods based on limited and varying information of markers is discussed.
2. "Cooperative Position Location with Signals of Opportunity", Chun Yang, Sigtem Technology, Inc., San Mateo, CA, Thao Nguyen, Donald Venable, Lt. Matthew White, Air Force Research Laboratory, Rich Siegel, Microwave Innovations, Furlong, PA.
When the reception of GPS signals becomes unreliable, one alternative is to explore signals of opportunity (SOOP) to complement or substitute GPS. Broadcast digital radio transmissions (e.g., digital TV signals) contain field and segment sync codes, which can be used for ranging even though it was not originally designed for so. Another example is the wireless local area network (WLAN).
3. "Experimental Development of a Software-Configurable Multifunctional UWB Radar/Communications/Navigation System", Dmitriy Garmatyuk , Kyle Kauffman, Miami University Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Oxford, Ohio.
In-house research has demonstrated the dual use of radar systems for both communication and navigation systems. Examples will be given showing the novel use of radar systems for non-radar novel applications.
4. "Localization and Surveillance using Wireless Sensor Network and Pan-Tilt Camera." Pratikkumar Desai and Kuldip Rattan, Department of Electrical Engineering, Wright State University, Dayton, Ohio.
In this project, a system consisting of Cricket wireless sensor motes, a camera and a Pan/Tilt gimbal is proposed to solve the indoor localization and surveillance problems. The system is easy to deploy, is cost effective and gives accurate results. The Crickets motes use the Time Difference of Arrival (TDoA) between the RF and the ultrasound signals to estimate the distance of the object.
5. "An Onboard Assistant to GPS Navigation of Vehicle Formations", Nitin Reddy, Chris Papachristou, Frank Wolff, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio.
There are more than 80 processors in modern cars. The engine control unit (ECU) is the most important multi-tasking unit in the car. However, the ECU info of one car is not shared by the ECU's of other close by cars on the road, therefore it would be desirable to exchange ECU packet information of cars using wireless networking sensors (proximity and others) should provide a back up to augment the wireless.
