{"id":{"repo_id":"vt","oai_identifier":"oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/90578"},"canonical_url":"https://search.dev.ndltd.org/etd/vt/oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/90578","repository":{"repo_id":"vt","name":"Virginia Tech","base_url":"https://vtechworks.lib.vt.edu/oai/request"},"display":{"title":"Computer Vision Tracking of sUAS From a Pan/Tilt Platform","abstract":"The ability to quickly, accurately, and autonomously identify and track objects in digital images in real-time has been an area of investigation for quite some time. Research in this area falls under the broader category of computer vision. Only in recent decades, with advances in computing power and commercial optical hardware, has this capability become a possibility. There are many different methods of identifying and tracking objects of interest, and best practices are still being developed, varying based on application. This thesis examines background subtraction methods as they apply to the tracking of small unmanned aerial systems (sUAS). A system combining commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) cameras and a pan-tilt unit (PTU), along with custom developed code, is developed for the purpose of continuously pointing at and tracking the motion of a sUAS in flight. Mixtures of Gaussians Background Modeling (MOGBM) is used to track the motion of the sUAS in frame and determine when to command the PTU. When the camera is moving, background subtraction methods are unusable, so additional methods are explored for filling this performance gap. The stereo vision capabilities of the system, enabled by the use of two cameras simultaneously, allow for estimation of the three-dimensional position and trajectory of the sUAS. This system can be used as a supplement or replacement to traditional tracking methods such as GPS and RADAR as part of a larger unmanned aerial systems traffic control (UTC) infrastructure.","abstract_html":"The ability to quickly, accurately, and autonomously identify and track objects in digital images in real-time has been an area of investigation for quite some time. Research in this area falls under the broader category of computer vision. Only in recent decades, with advances in computing power and commercial optical hardware, has this capability become a possibility. There are many different methods of identifying and tracking objects of interest, and best practices are still being developed, varying based on application. This thesis examines background subtraction methods as they apply to the tracking of small unmanned aerial systems (sUAS). A system combining commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) cameras and a pan-tilt unit (PTU), along with custom developed code, is developed for the purpose of continuously pointing at and tracking the motion of a sUAS in flight. Mixtures of Gaussians Background Modeling (MOGBM) is used to track the motion of the sUAS in frame and determine when to command the PTU. When the camera is moving, background subtraction methods are unusable, so additional methods are explored for filling this performance gap. The stereo vision capabilities of the system, enabled by the use of two cameras simultaneously, allow for estimation of the three-dimensional position and trajectory of the sUAS. This system can be used as a supplement or replacement to traditional tracking methods such as GPS and RADAR as part of a larger unmanned aerial systems traffic control (UTC) infrastructure.","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Ogorzalek, Jeremy Patrick"],"institution":"Virginia Tech","degree_name":"Master of Science","degree_level":"masters","degree_discipline":"Aerospace Engineering","degree_department":"Aerospace and Ocean Engineering","school":null,"contributors":[],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":["Black, Jonathan T."],"committee_members":["England, Scott L.","Psiaki, Mark L."],"year":2019,"date_issued":"2019-06-24","date_published":"2019-06-24","updated_at":"2026-07-22T22:19:49Z","subjects":["sUAS","Computer Vision","Target Tracking","PTU"],"languages":[],"rights":["In Copyright"],"rights_urls":["http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/"],"identifier_entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier.other","label":"Dc Identifier Other","values":["vt_gsexam:21173"],"render_values":[{"text":"vt_gsexam:21173","href":null,"code":true}]}]},"links":{"outbound_url":"http://hdl.handle.net/10919/90578","outbound_label":"Handle","outbound_source":"dc:identifier.uri"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor.committeechair","label":"Committee Chair","values":["Black, Jonathan T."]},{"key":"dc:contributor.committeemember","label":"Committee Member","values":["England, Scott L.","Psiaki, Mark L."]},{"key":"dc:contributor.department","label":"Department","values":["Aerospace and Ocean Engineering"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Ogorzalek, Jeremy Patrick"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.accessioned","label":"Dc Date Accessioned","values":["2019-06-25T08:01:13Z"]},{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2019-06-25T08:01:13Z"]},{"key":"dc:date.issued","label":"Date","values":["2019-06-24"]},{"key":"dc:publisher","label":"Institution","values":["Virginia Tech"]},{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Aerospace Engineering"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["masters"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Science"]},{"key":"thesis:institution_name","label":"Thesis Institution Name","values":["Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["sUAS","Computer Vision","Target Tracking","PTU"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:rights","label":"Dc Rights","values":["In Copyright"]},{"key":"dc:rights.uri","label":"Rights URI","values":["http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier.other","label":"Dc Identifier Other","values":["vt_gsexam:21173"]},{"key":"dc:identifier.uri","label":"Identifier URI","values":["http://hdl.handle.net/10919/90578"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["The ability to quickly, accurately, and autonomously identify and track objects in digital images in real-time has been an area of investigation for quite some time. Research in this area falls under the broader category of computer vision. Only in recent decades, with advances in computing power and commercial optical hardware, has this capability become a possibility. There are many different methods of identifying and tracking objects of interest, and best practices are still being developed, varying based on application. This thesis examines background subtraction methods as they apply to the tracking of small unmanned aerial systems (sUAS). A system combining commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) cameras and a pan-tilt unit (PTU), along with custom developed code, is developed for the purpose of continuously pointing at and tracking the motion of a sUAS in flight. Mixtures of Gaussians Background Modeling (MOGBM) is used to track the motion of the sUAS in frame and determine when to command the PTU. When the camera is moving, background subtraction methods are unusable, so additional methods are explored for filling this performance gap. The stereo vision capabilities of the system, enabled by the use of two cameras simultaneously, allow for estimation of the three-dimensional position and trajectory of the sUAS. This system can be used as a supplement or replacement to traditional tracking methods such as GPS and RADAR as part of a larger unmanned aerial systems traffic control (UTC) infrastructure."]},{"key":"dc:description.abstractgeneral","label":"General Abstract","values":["The ability to quickly, accurately, and automatically identify and track targets in digital images has been of interest for some time now. Research in this area falls under the broader category of computer vision. Only in recent decades, with advances in computing power and commercial optical hardware, has this ability become a possibility. There are many different methods of identifying and tracking targets of interest, and best practices are still being developed, varying based on application. This thesis examines background subtraction methods as they apply to the tracking of small unmanned aerial systems (sUAS), commonly referred to as drones. A system combining cameras and a moving platform, along with custom developed code, is developed for the purpose of continuously pointing at and tracking the motion of an sUAS in flight. 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The stereo vision capabilities of the system, enabled by the use of two cameras simultaneously, allow for estimation of the three-dimensional position and trajectory of the sUAS. This system can be used as a supplement or replacement to traditional tracking methods such as GPS and RADAR as part of a larger unmanned aerial systems traffic control (UTC) infrastructure."],"dc:description.abstractgeneral":["The ability to quickly, accurately, and automatically identify and track targets in digital images has been of interest for some time now. Research in this area falls under the broader category of computer vision. Only in recent decades, with advances in computing power and commercial optical hardware, has this ability become a possibility. There are many different methods of identifying and tracking targets of interest, and best practices are still being developed, varying based on application. This thesis examines background subtraction methods as they apply to the tracking of small unmanned aerial systems (sUAS), commonly referred to as drones. A system combining cameras and a moving platform, along with custom developed code, is developed for the purpose of continuously pointing at and tracking the motion of an sUAS in flight. 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