ABSTRACT We present our work in designing and deploying airborne sensor vehicles specifically for... more ABSTRACT We present our work in designing and deploying airborne sensor vehicles specifically for cultural heritage applications. Numerous practical cultural heritage missions in survey, assessment, and conservation work can benefit from the utility of specializing commodity and customizable airborne platforms to collect visual and non-visual data. These systems and customizations therein have undergone several generations of development both in our own designs and in the research community at large. We discuss the historical application of airborne imaging to cultural heritage conservation and surveying as well as discuss the design evolution towards multi-rotor systems from conventional rotary-wing and fixed-wing systems. This discussion addresses the fundamental principles of operation, as well as the capabilities, contemporary methods and commodity components available for the implementation of such a system. We present our current system and its features in concert with example payloads of utility in conducting these practical reconnaissance missions, as well as useful post-processing techniques, as well as future work in applied visualization.
Visual analytics is an interdisciplinary field that facilitates the analysis of the large volume ... more Visual analytics is an interdisciplinary field that facilitates the analysis of the large volume of data through interactive visual interface. This dissertation focuses on the development of visual analytics techniques in scalable visualization environments. These scalable visualization environments offer a high-resolution, integrated virtual space, as well as a wide-open physical space that affords collaborative user interaction. At the same time, the sheer scale of these environments poses a number of challenges, including data management, visualization techniques, and interaction paradigms that support large-scale, interactive visual exploratory analysis. This dissertation addresses these challenges with the special attention on the large volume of very high-resolution image data sets. The presented core visualization approach can immediately address tens of terapixel worth of information by employing view-dependent, adaptive, out-of-core visualization techniques. Building on this approach, two domain-specific challenges are addressed. One is interactive image fusion, facilitating the visualization and analysis of high-resolution satellite imagery. The other is interactive visual exploratory analysis of the large volume of cultural data sets, in order to support the development and refinement of new insights and hypotheses into the data sets. Finally, a method towards creating a co-located, collaborative user interaction paradigm in scalable visualization environments is presented. This method provides a multiuser, user-centric graphical user interface (GUI) for these environments, controlled by multitouch mobile devices.
This paper explores a paraglider unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) concept, using rapid design and pa... more This paper explores a paraglider unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) concept, using rapid design and payload manufacturing techniques to achieve task specific functions. Autonomous fixed wing, multi-rotor and mono-rotor vehicles require prolonged durations of design, manufacturing and tuning to obtain reliable UAVs. Using 3D printing on the meter-scale, we are able to rapidly integrate sensors and alternative payloads into the suspended fuselage of the paraglider. Additive manufacturing has allowed complex designs to be created which provide greater strength and versatility at lower costs compared to the traditional machining method. This manufacturing type has allowed us to produce weekly prototypes for testing. The latest parafoils have yielded higher airspeeds and stable collapse recovery behavior making them interesting for UAV use beyond dirigeable parachutes. The pendulum nature of the platform is self-stabilizing and allows the discrete proportional-integral-derivative (PID) controller to adapt based on mass alteration of the suspended body. We describe modular designs, stabilization algorithms and applications in the imaging of cultural heritage sites for conservation.
Recording geometrically and aesthetically accurate models of cultural heritage sites is important... more Recording geometrically and aesthetically accurate models of cultural heritage sites is important for both their conservation and understanding of historical importance. Rapid imaging systems are required to capture models efficiently so that large sites can be documented with sufficient resolution. Increasing availability of consumer-level drones has fostered digital data collection to replace traditional surveying methods. While such systems allow photogrammetric data to be gathered, they often prove inadequate for large scale rapid imaging. We propose an aerial system infrastructure based on: adapted aerial platforms; optimizations for flight path generation and UAV operations; high-bandwidth LTE transmission; methods of efficient point cloud generation, to rapidly document large scale heritage sites.
... This row (ASDF ...), which is annotated in Figure 3 with a solid line, may be referred to as ... more ... This row (ASDF ...), which is annotated in Figure 3 with a solid line, may be referred to as the base row. The row above the base row (QWERTY ...) is annotated with a long dashed line and is referred to as the top row and the row below the base row (ZXCV ...) is annotated with a ...
Traditional rescue archaeology has focused on the rapid excavation or the cursory documentation o... more Traditional rescue archaeology has focused on the rapid excavation or the cursory documentation of endangered archaeological sites, typically in urban settings. However, when the archaeologist is in remote field situations and encounters an endangered site or a recently exposed robber's pit, little documentation is typically possible in the short time available to pursue such fortuitous projects. This leads to the loss of a significant amount of potentially useful cultural heritage data. With the advent of new point cloud technologies, more data can now be collected to preserve endangered sites prior to, or even during, their destruction. Over the 2011 field season of the University of California, San Diego's (UCSD's) Edom Lowlands Regional Project (ELRAP) in the Wadi Faynan of Jordan, two day long rescue archaeology projects, at Khirbat Faynan and Umm al-Amad, were undertaken utilizing terrestrial Light Detecting and Ranging (LiDAR) as their primary documentation tool. Such rapid documentation was possible with the aid of several modifications to the standard laser scanning equipment, which not only allowed the equipment access to the tight spaces these projects entailed, but required that fewer scans be taken than with traditional laser scanning. The use of free-station scanning also significantly decreased the amount of time needed for data capture in the field. However this increased the amount of post-processing and potential human registration error. The data sets created via “Rescue LiDAR” now preserve a detailed record of these two sites. This data would have been lost to posterity had rapid and adaptable scanning technology not been available.
Innovative imaging and visualization techniques allow for the capture and display of features or ... more Innovative imaging and visualization techniques allow for the capture and display of features or objects within their broader spatial contexts. With respect to Maya cave architecture, high-resolution panoramic visualization and the production of 3D models can be powerful analytical tools, enabling the evaluation of potentially meaningful relationships between natural features and constructed features within a cave. A collaboration between the Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia (INAH) in Quintana Roo and the University of California, San Diego involves a study of at-risk cave shrines. Initial comparative and multiscalar analyses across terrestrial and subterranean environments provide insight into the form, function, and meaning of Postclassic cave architecture in the northeastern Maya lowlands.
This paper explores the design of a 3D printable Prandtl Box-Wing UAV suitable for long-endurance... more This paper explores the design of a 3D printable Prandtl Box-Wing UAV suitable for long-endurance solar powered flight. Long-endurance UAVs, enabling extended imaging campaigns and beyond-horizon communication in support of remote exploration, environmental assessment, disaster and post-disaster reconnaissance and assistance, hold great promise for data-driven decision making. Yet, they also create a range of unique challenges for the vehicle design, propulsion system and power source, navigation and guidance, and payload package. The presented UAV design is a joined box-wing monocoque, a biplane with oppositely swept wings, with wing tips interconnected by winglets, offering a range of structural and aerodynamic design optimization opportunities, aimed at providing a balance between, flight performance, efficiency, flutter resistance, and adequate surface area for solar power generation, with a wingspan allowing for easy field deployment. The wing and its payload oriented fuselage are the result of aerodynamic, topology, and structural optimization, focused on enhancing structural resilience and weight, hand-in-hand with efficiency and sustainability of the resulting airframe. The aerodynamics of the wing were analyzed using high fidelity Computer Fluid Dynamic (CFD) with the goal of optimizing the Lift/Drag ratio of the wing, winglet and fuselage. In addition we performed high fidelity Finite Element Method (FEM) analysis on spars, ribs, skins, the box wing and the assembly of all the structural components. This allowed us to optimize material allocation in order to reduce weight and maximize the flight time of the vehicle. Mechanical and electrical components were chosen to optimize vehicle autonomy and automatically placed by an optimization algorithm aimed at properly placing all components inside the fuselage envelope, while maintaining the center of gravity target where desired, allowing for tasks specific optimization functions for the overall system. Using a combination of additive and composite manufacturing, the UAV can be entirely built using thermoplastics and fiber reinforced polymer.
Visualization can aid in improving the validation and evaluation of glider flight logs, which in ... more Visualization can aid in improving the validation and evaluation of glider flight logs, which in turn can make the logs more meaningful in flight evaluation and planning. This paper presents techniques to interpret and visualize local weather characteristics derived from glider flight logs. Although glider flight logs only contain discretely sampled position and elevation records, local weather characteristics such as thermal lift and wind velocity can be interpreted from the temporal and spatial components in the logs. A total number of 397 flight logs were used in this study, statistics were performed to identify strong thermal locations, maximum flight altitudes, and weather patterns along flight routes. When the derived thermal features are geo-referenced with 3D terrain models, results support post-flight evaluation and pre-flight planning. For a given flight task, the pilot can derive an optimal flight path based on the presented visualization techniques and the statistics obtained from the historical records.
International Conference on Auditory Display, Jul 1, 2004
In this paper, we select the application domain of earthquake engineering for utility of sonifica... more In this paper, we select the application domain of earthquake engineering for utility of sonification, where signals are of random frequency and amplitude content. In particular, we focus on the response of structures to particular earthquake time histories. Given a random ground motion input, the resulting response signal will vary in the time and frequency domain, and show large variations in acceleration, velocity and displacement space. We illustrate the utility of different simple, yet robust sonification techniques to the study of the response of a variety of linear elastic single-degree-offreedom (SDOF) oscillators, with different natural periods Tn and associated damping ratios ζn, subjected to a pair of earthquake motions. In the system study, we augment the representation of the response results of these SDOF structures with both visual and aural cues.
This paper introduces a new approach for volumetric visual hull reconstruction, using a voxel gri... more This paper introduces a new approach for volumetric visual hull reconstruction, using a voxel grid that focuses on the moving target object. This grid is continuously updated as a function of object location, orientation, and size. The benefit is a reduced amount of voxels that have to be evaluated or allocated towards capturing the target at higher resolution. This technique particularly improves reconstructions where the total reconstruction space is larger than the moving reconstruction target. The higher resolution of the voxel grid also reduces the computational cost per voxel reprojection since a one voxel to one input pixel reprojection ratio is approximated. In addition, the appropriate view independent color of the surface voxels is computed allowing for realistic visual hull texturing. All color calculations are performed locally, based on approximated surface voxel normals and the input images. A color outlier detection approach is introduced, which reduces the influence of occlusions in the color evaluation. The parallel nature of the presented focused visual hull reconstruction technique, lends itself to hardware acceleration, allowing interactive rates to be achieved by performing most computations on the GPU. A set of case studies is provided for well-defined static and dynamic data sets.
... Permissions & Reprints. Automatic object and image alignment using Fourier De... more ... Permissions & Reprints. Automatic object and image alignment using Fourier Descriptors. ... 3. Imagealignment using Fourier Descriptors. An overview of our method is shown in Fig. 1 and highlights the use of Fourier Descriptors in combination with ICP computation. ...
Professor Falko Kuester, Chair This dissertation introduces a foundation for human centric, large... more Professor Falko Kuester, Chair This dissertation introduces a foundation for human centric, large-scale, multi-dimensional data analysis. This research enables collaborative workspaces by utilizing ultra-large, high-resolution display environments, distributed rendering techniques, and new interface modalities. Contributions include interactive visualization of ultra-large layered data sets, real-time distributed large-scale data acquisition, scalable distributed approaches for video playback in tiled display environments, natural exploratory techniques for multi-dimensional data, and multiuser interface technologies for distributed display environments. Presented is a technique for the interactive visualization and interrogation of multi-dimensional gigapixel imagery, allowing several users to simultaneously xx compare and contrast complex data layers in a collaborative environment. This system is augmented through a distributed data gathering and visualization component, which allows researchers to pull, construct, and interrogate geospatial information from remote servers. Multimedia content can also be configured interactively, and viewed in many side-by-side comparisons using various color and temporal filters. Techniques also allow for the scalable playback of video content through a distributed architecture. Additionally, multi-touch devices allow for hands-on analysis of massive, multi-dimensional data. The presented research introduces a set of natural metaphors, which allow for rapid analysis of global and local characteristics in the data set. The interface modalities can also be used for volumetric data, where position, gesture and pressure information are used for voxel density and depth specific operations. Finally, the combination of multi-touch devices and tiled display environments is presented, enabling multiuser collaborative environments.
Multirotors have become the most popular UAV or aerial robot category due to their structural sim... more Multirotors have become the most popular UAV or aerial robot category due to their structural simplicity and ability to take off and land vertically. However, most multirotors suffer from short airborne time and range due to limited battery capacity. Thus we propose a novel hybrid multirotor design, QuadGlider, to increase its capability of traveling long distances with minimal battery consumption. QuadGlider is inspired by the body structure and gliding mechanism of gliding animals. The airframe design of QuadGlider imitates flying squirrels' skeletal and muscular structure with implementation of servo motor to actuate its compliant membrane wings. Therefore, it can transition from quadrotor flight mode to forward gliding mode via morphing and lowering motor speeds to save power. In this work, we first present the conceptual design of QuadGlider. Next, we model its flight dynamics in different gliding scenarios. Then, the design is verified in computational fluid dynamics simulations of gliding scenarios with angles of attack of 0 • −30 •. At last, preliminary gliding experiments are conducted at low Reynolds numbers of around Re = 4.7 × 10 5. The equilibrium glide simulation gives a maximum glide ratio of 4.27 : 1 at a takeoff velocity of 14.0 m/s, while the experimental result indicates a glide ratio of 2.97 : 1 at a takeoff velocity of 4.17 m/s.
The use of drones has the potential to reduce the time and costs of conventional techniques emplo... more The use of drones has the potential to reduce the time and costs of conventional techniques employed for field survey of cultural heritage buildings. This research explored the processes necessary to convert the most iconic building of the University of California, San Diego, the Geisel Library, into an H-BIM model. The main result findings of this work is to create a model can be used for two main purposes: to collect information which can protect the cultural significance of the building and achieve a virtual tool that can be used to better define a restoration strategy
ABSTRACT We present our work in designing and deploying airborne sensor vehicles specifically for... more ABSTRACT We present our work in designing and deploying airborne sensor vehicles specifically for cultural heritage applications. Numerous practical cultural heritage missions in survey, assessment, and conservation work can benefit from the utility of specializing commodity and customizable airborne platforms to collect visual and non-visual data. These systems and customizations therein have undergone several generations of development both in our own designs and in the research community at large. We discuss the historical application of airborne imaging to cultural heritage conservation and surveying as well as discuss the design evolution towards multi-rotor systems from conventional rotary-wing and fixed-wing systems. This discussion addresses the fundamental principles of operation, as well as the capabilities, contemporary methods and commodity components available for the implementation of such a system. We present our current system and its features in concert with example payloads of utility in conducting these practical reconnaissance missions, as well as useful post-processing techniques, as well as future work in applied visualization.
Visual analytics is an interdisciplinary field that facilitates the analysis of the large volume ... more Visual analytics is an interdisciplinary field that facilitates the analysis of the large volume of data through interactive visual interface. This dissertation focuses on the development of visual analytics techniques in scalable visualization environments. These scalable visualization environments offer a high-resolution, integrated virtual space, as well as a wide-open physical space that affords collaborative user interaction. At the same time, the sheer scale of these environments poses a number of challenges, including data management, visualization techniques, and interaction paradigms that support large-scale, interactive visual exploratory analysis. This dissertation addresses these challenges with the special attention on the large volume of very high-resolution image data sets. The presented core visualization approach can immediately address tens of terapixel worth of information by employing view-dependent, adaptive, out-of-core visualization techniques. Building on this approach, two domain-specific challenges are addressed. One is interactive image fusion, facilitating the visualization and analysis of high-resolution satellite imagery. The other is interactive visual exploratory analysis of the large volume of cultural data sets, in order to support the development and refinement of new insights and hypotheses into the data sets. Finally, a method towards creating a co-located, collaborative user interaction paradigm in scalable visualization environments is presented. This method provides a multiuser, user-centric graphical user interface (GUI) for these environments, controlled by multitouch mobile devices.
This paper explores a paraglider unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) concept, using rapid design and pa... more This paper explores a paraglider unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) concept, using rapid design and payload manufacturing techniques to achieve task specific functions. Autonomous fixed wing, multi-rotor and mono-rotor vehicles require prolonged durations of design, manufacturing and tuning to obtain reliable UAVs. Using 3D printing on the meter-scale, we are able to rapidly integrate sensors and alternative payloads into the suspended fuselage of the paraglider. Additive manufacturing has allowed complex designs to be created which provide greater strength and versatility at lower costs compared to the traditional machining method. This manufacturing type has allowed us to produce weekly prototypes for testing. The latest parafoils have yielded higher airspeeds and stable collapse recovery behavior making them interesting for UAV use beyond dirigeable parachutes. The pendulum nature of the platform is self-stabilizing and allows the discrete proportional-integral-derivative (PID) controller to adapt based on mass alteration of the suspended body. We describe modular designs, stabilization algorithms and applications in the imaging of cultural heritage sites for conservation.
Recording geometrically and aesthetically accurate models of cultural heritage sites is important... more Recording geometrically and aesthetically accurate models of cultural heritage sites is important for both their conservation and understanding of historical importance. Rapid imaging systems are required to capture models efficiently so that large sites can be documented with sufficient resolution. Increasing availability of consumer-level drones has fostered digital data collection to replace traditional surveying methods. While such systems allow photogrammetric data to be gathered, they often prove inadequate for large scale rapid imaging. We propose an aerial system infrastructure based on: adapted aerial platforms; optimizations for flight path generation and UAV operations; high-bandwidth LTE transmission; methods of efficient point cloud generation, to rapidly document large scale heritage sites.
... This row (ASDF ...), which is annotated in Figure 3 with a solid line, may be referred to as ... more ... This row (ASDF ...), which is annotated in Figure 3 with a solid line, may be referred to as the base row. The row above the base row (QWERTY ...) is annotated with a long dashed line and is referred to as the top row and the row below the base row (ZXCV ...) is annotated with a ...
Traditional rescue archaeology has focused on the rapid excavation or the cursory documentation o... more Traditional rescue archaeology has focused on the rapid excavation or the cursory documentation of endangered archaeological sites, typically in urban settings. However, when the archaeologist is in remote field situations and encounters an endangered site or a recently exposed robber's pit, little documentation is typically possible in the short time available to pursue such fortuitous projects. This leads to the loss of a significant amount of potentially useful cultural heritage data. With the advent of new point cloud technologies, more data can now be collected to preserve endangered sites prior to, or even during, their destruction. Over the 2011 field season of the University of California, San Diego's (UCSD's) Edom Lowlands Regional Project (ELRAP) in the Wadi Faynan of Jordan, two day long rescue archaeology projects, at Khirbat Faynan and Umm al-Amad, were undertaken utilizing terrestrial Light Detecting and Ranging (LiDAR) as their primary documentation tool. Such rapid documentation was possible with the aid of several modifications to the standard laser scanning equipment, which not only allowed the equipment access to the tight spaces these projects entailed, but required that fewer scans be taken than with traditional laser scanning. The use of free-station scanning also significantly decreased the amount of time needed for data capture in the field. However this increased the amount of post-processing and potential human registration error. The data sets created via “Rescue LiDAR” now preserve a detailed record of these two sites. This data would have been lost to posterity had rapid and adaptable scanning technology not been available.
Innovative imaging and visualization techniques allow for the capture and display of features or ... more Innovative imaging and visualization techniques allow for the capture and display of features or objects within their broader spatial contexts. With respect to Maya cave architecture, high-resolution panoramic visualization and the production of 3D models can be powerful analytical tools, enabling the evaluation of potentially meaningful relationships between natural features and constructed features within a cave. A collaboration between the Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia (INAH) in Quintana Roo and the University of California, San Diego involves a study of at-risk cave shrines. Initial comparative and multiscalar analyses across terrestrial and subterranean environments provide insight into the form, function, and meaning of Postclassic cave architecture in the northeastern Maya lowlands.
This paper explores the design of a 3D printable Prandtl Box-Wing UAV suitable for long-endurance... more This paper explores the design of a 3D printable Prandtl Box-Wing UAV suitable for long-endurance solar powered flight. Long-endurance UAVs, enabling extended imaging campaigns and beyond-horizon communication in support of remote exploration, environmental assessment, disaster and post-disaster reconnaissance and assistance, hold great promise for data-driven decision making. Yet, they also create a range of unique challenges for the vehicle design, propulsion system and power source, navigation and guidance, and payload package. The presented UAV design is a joined box-wing monocoque, a biplane with oppositely swept wings, with wing tips interconnected by winglets, offering a range of structural and aerodynamic design optimization opportunities, aimed at providing a balance between, flight performance, efficiency, flutter resistance, and adequate surface area for solar power generation, with a wingspan allowing for easy field deployment. The wing and its payload oriented fuselage are the result of aerodynamic, topology, and structural optimization, focused on enhancing structural resilience and weight, hand-in-hand with efficiency and sustainability of the resulting airframe. The aerodynamics of the wing were analyzed using high fidelity Computer Fluid Dynamic (CFD) with the goal of optimizing the Lift/Drag ratio of the wing, winglet and fuselage. In addition we performed high fidelity Finite Element Method (FEM) analysis on spars, ribs, skins, the box wing and the assembly of all the structural components. This allowed us to optimize material allocation in order to reduce weight and maximize the flight time of the vehicle. Mechanical and electrical components were chosen to optimize vehicle autonomy and automatically placed by an optimization algorithm aimed at properly placing all components inside the fuselage envelope, while maintaining the center of gravity target where desired, allowing for tasks specific optimization functions for the overall system. Using a combination of additive and composite manufacturing, the UAV can be entirely built using thermoplastics and fiber reinforced polymer.
Visualization can aid in improving the validation and evaluation of glider flight logs, which in ... more Visualization can aid in improving the validation and evaluation of glider flight logs, which in turn can make the logs more meaningful in flight evaluation and planning. This paper presents techniques to interpret and visualize local weather characteristics derived from glider flight logs. Although glider flight logs only contain discretely sampled position and elevation records, local weather characteristics such as thermal lift and wind velocity can be interpreted from the temporal and spatial components in the logs. A total number of 397 flight logs were used in this study, statistics were performed to identify strong thermal locations, maximum flight altitudes, and weather patterns along flight routes. When the derived thermal features are geo-referenced with 3D terrain models, results support post-flight evaluation and pre-flight planning. For a given flight task, the pilot can derive an optimal flight path based on the presented visualization techniques and the statistics obtained from the historical records.
International Conference on Auditory Display, Jul 1, 2004
In this paper, we select the application domain of earthquake engineering for utility of sonifica... more In this paper, we select the application domain of earthquake engineering for utility of sonification, where signals are of random frequency and amplitude content. In particular, we focus on the response of structures to particular earthquake time histories. Given a random ground motion input, the resulting response signal will vary in the time and frequency domain, and show large variations in acceleration, velocity and displacement space. We illustrate the utility of different simple, yet robust sonification techniques to the study of the response of a variety of linear elastic single-degree-offreedom (SDOF) oscillators, with different natural periods Tn and associated damping ratios ζn, subjected to a pair of earthquake motions. In the system study, we augment the representation of the response results of these SDOF structures with both visual and aural cues.
This paper introduces a new approach for volumetric visual hull reconstruction, using a voxel gri... more This paper introduces a new approach for volumetric visual hull reconstruction, using a voxel grid that focuses on the moving target object. This grid is continuously updated as a function of object location, orientation, and size. The benefit is a reduced amount of voxels that have to be evaluated or allocated towards capturing the target at higher resolution. This technique particularly improves reconstructions where the total reconstruction space is larger than the moving reconstruction target. The higher resolution of the voxel grid also reduces the computational cost per voxel reprojection since a one voxel to one input pixel reprojection ratio is approximated. In addition, the appropriate view independent color of the surface voxels is computed allowing for realistic visual hull texturing. All color calculations are performed locally, based on approximated surface voxel normals and the input images. A color outlier detection approach is introduced, which reduces the influence of occlusions in the color evaluation. The parallel nature of the presented focused visual hull reconstruction technique, lends itself to hardware acceleration, allowing interactive rates to be achieved by performing most computations on the GPU. A set of case studies is provided for well-defined static and dynamic data sets.
... Permissions & Reprints. Automatic object and image alignment using Fourier De... more ... Permissions & Reprints. Automatic object and image alignment using Fourier Descriptors. ... 3. Imagealignment using Fourier Descriptors. An overview of our method is shown in Fig. 1 and highlights the use of Fourier Descriptors in combination with ICP computation. ...
Professor Falko Kuester, Chair This dissertation introduces a foundation for human centric, large... more Professor Falko Kuester, Chair This dissertation introduces a foundation for human centric, large-scale, multi-dimensional data analysis. This research enables collaborative workspaces by utilizing ultra-large, high-resolution display environments, distributed rendering techniques, and new interface modalities. Contributions include interactive visualization of ultra-large layered data sets, real-time distributed large-scale data acquisition, scalable distributed approaches for video playback in tiled display environments, natural exploratory techniques for multi-dimensional data, and multiuser interface technologies for distributed display environments. Presented is a technique for the interactive visualization and interrogation of multi-dimensional gigapixel imagery, allowing several users to simultaneously xx compare and contrast complex data layers in a collaborative environment. This system is augmented through a distributed data gathering and visualization component, which allows researchers to pull, construct, and interrogate geospatial information from remote servers. Multimedia content can also be configured interactively, and viewed in many side-by-side comparisons using various color and temporal filters. Techniques also allow for the scalable playback of video content through a distributed architecture. Additionally, multi-touch devices allow for hands-on analysis of massive, multi-dimensional data. The presented research introduces a set of natural metaphors, which allow for rapid analysis of global and local characteristics in the data set. The interface modalities can also be used for volumetric data, where position, gesture and pressure information are used for voxel density and depth specific operations. Finally, the combination of multi-touch devices and tiled display environments is presented, enabling multiuser collaborative environments.
Multirotors have become the most popular UAV or aerial robot category due to their structural sim... more Multirotors have become the most popular UAV or aerial robot category due to their structural simplicity and ability to take off and land vertically. However, most multirotors suffer from short airborne time and range due to limited battery capacity. Thus we propose a novel hybrid multirotor design, QuadGlider, to increase its capability of traveling long distances with minimal battery consumption. QuadGlider is inspired by the body structure and gliding mechanism of gliding animals. The airframe design of QuadGlider imitates flying squirrels' skeletal and muscular structure with implementation of servo motor to actuate its compliant membrane wings. Therefore, it can transition from quadrotor flight mode to forward gliding mode via morphing and lowering motor speeds to save power. In this work, we first present the conceptual design of QuadGlider. Next, we model its flight dynamics in different gliding scenarios. Then, the design is verified in computational fluid dynamics simulations of gliding scenarios with angles of attack of 0 • −30 •. At last, preliminary gliding experiments are conducted at low Reynolds numbers of around Re = 4.7 × 10 5. The equilibrium glide simulation gives a maximum glide ratio of 4.27 : 1 at a takeoff velocity of 14.0 m/s, while the experimental result indicates a glide ratio of 2.97 : 1 at a takeoff velocity of 4.17 m/s.
The use of drones has the potential to reduce the time and costs of conventional techniques emplo... more The use of drones has the potential to reduce the time and costs of conventional techniques employed for field survey of cultural heritage buildings. This research explored the processes necessary to convert the most iconic building of the University of California, San Diego, the Geisel Library, into an H-BIM model. The main result findings of this work is to create a model can be used for two main purposes: to collect information which can protect the cultural significance of the building and achieve a virtual tool that can be used to better define a restoration strategy
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Papers by Falko Kuester