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  • Reference work
  • © 2015

Handbook of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles

  • First unique and comprehensive treatise in the emerging Unmanned Aerial Vehicle domain
  • Extensive and thorough coverage of all important UAV technologies, R&D advances, business practices, and related topics written by world renowned authorities in their respective fields
  • A must have reference text belonging on the desk of educators, researchers, government and industry practitioners, business leaders and business companies eager to enter the expanding UAV markets
  • Includes supplementary material: sn.pub/extras

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Table of contents (126 entries)

  1. Front Matter

    Pages 1-79
  2. Introduction

    1. Front Matter

      Pages 1-1
    2. Introduction

      • Kimon P. Valavanis, George J. Vachtsevanos
      Pages 3-4
    3. Introduction to the Handbook on UAVs

      • Kimon P. Valavanis, George J. Vachtsevanos
      Pages 5-42
    4. Definitions and Terminology

      • Konstantinos Dalamagkidis
      Pages 43-55
    5. Aviation History and Unmanned Flight

      • Konstantinos Dalamagkidis
      Pages 57-81
    6. Classification of UAVs

      • Konstantinos Dalamagkidis
      Pages 83-91
    7. Military and Civilian Unmanned Aircraft

      • George J. Vachtsevanos, Kimon P. Valavanis
      Pages 93-103
  3. UAV Design Principles

    1. Front Matter

      Pages 105-105
    2. UAV Design Principles: Introduction

      • Kimon P. Valavanis, George J. Vachtsevanos
      Pages 107-108
    3. Computational and Experimental Design of a Fixed-Wing UAV

      • Helen Ryaciotaki-Boussalis, Darrell Guillaume
      Pages 109-141
    4. UAV Handbook: Payload Design of Small UAVs

      • Scott Gruber, Hyukseong Kwon, Chad Hager, Rajnikant Sharma, Josiah Yoder, Daniel Pack
      Pages 143-163
    5. Small UAV Design Development and Sizing

      • Steven A. Brandt
      Pages 165-180
    6. Systematic Design Methodology and Construction of Micro Aerial Quadrotor Vehicles

      • Swee King Phang, Kun Li, Ben M. Chen, Tong H. Lee
      Pages 181-206
    7. Dexterous UAVs for Precision Low-Altitude Flight

      • Guangying Jiang, Richard M. Voyles
      Pages 207-237
  4. UAV Fundamentals

    1. Front Matter

      Pages 239-239
    2. UAV Fundamentals: Introduction

      • Kimon P. Valavanis, George J. Vachtsevanos
      Pages 241-242
    3. Kinematics and Dynamics of Fixed-Wing UAVs

      • Vladimir Dobrokhodov
      Pages 243-277
    4. Dynamic Model for a Miniature Aerobatic Helicopter

      • Vladislav Gavrilets
      Pages 279-306
    5. Quadrotor Kinematics and Dynamics

      • Caitlin Powers, Daniel Mellinger, Vijay Kumar
      Pages 307-328

About this book

The Handbook of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles is a reference text for the academic and research communities, industry, manufacturers, users, practitioners, Federal Government, Federal and State Agencies, the private sector, as well as all organizations that are and will be using unmanned aircraft in a wide spectrum of applications. The Handbook covers all aspects of UAVs, from design to logistics and ethical issues. It is also targeting the young investigator, the future inventor and entrepreneur by providing an overview and detailed information of the state-of-the-art as well as useful new concepts that may lead to innovative research. The contents of the Handbook include material that addresses the needs and ‘know how’ of all of the above sectors targeting a very diverse audience.
The Handbook offers a unique and comprehensive treatise of everything one needs to know about unmanned aircrafts, from conception to operation, from technologies to business activities, users, OEMs, reference sources, conferences, publications, professional societies, etc. It should serve as a Thesaurus, an indispensable part of the library for everyone involved in this area. For the first time, contributions by the world’s top experts from academia, industry, government and the private sector, are brought together to provide unique perspectives on the current state-of-the-art in UAV, as well as future directions. The Handbook is intended for the expert/practitioner who seeks specific technical/business information, for the technically-oriented scientists and engineers, but also for the novice who wants to learn more about the status of UAV and UAV-related technologies.
The Handbook is arranged in a user-friendly format, divided into main parts referring to: UAV Design Principles; UAV Fundamentals; UAV Sensors and Sensing Strategies; UAV Propulsion; UAV Control; UAV Communication Issues; UAV Architectures; UAV Health Management Issues; UAV Modeling, Simulation, Estimation and Identification; MAVs and Bio-Inspired UAVs; UAV Mission and Path Planning; UAV Autonomy; UAV Sense, Detect and Avoid Systems; Networked UAVs and UAV Swarms; UAV Integration into the National Airspace; UAV-Human Interfaces and Decision Support Systems; Human Factors and Training; UAV Logistics Support; UAV Applications; Social and Ethical Implications; The Future of UAVs. Each part is written by internationally renowned authors who are authorities in their respective fields.
The contents of the Handbook supports its unique character as a thorough and comprehensive reference book directed to a diverse audience of technologists, businesses, users and potential users, managers and decision makers, novices and experts, who seek a holistic volume of information that is not only a technical treatise but also a source for answers to several questions on UAV manufacturers, users, major players in UAV research, costs, training required and logistics issues.

Editors and Affiliations

  • Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Denver, Denver, USA

    Kimon P. Valavanis

  • School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, The Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, USA

    George J. Vachtsevanos

About the editors

Editors-in-Chief: Dr. Kimon P. Valavanis, Professor and Chair, ECE and CS University of Denver, USA. Dr. Valavanis' research interests are focused in the areas of Unmanned Systems, Distributed Intelligence Systems, Robotics and Automation. He has published over 300 book chapters, technical journal / transaction and conference papers. Dr. Valavanis has authored/co-authored many books and papers, and served as the Editor-in-Chief of the IEEE Robotics and Automation Magazine for ten years (1996-2005), and he currently serves as the Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Intelligent and Robotic Systems. He is the General Chair of the 2011 IEEE Multi-Conference on Systems and Control and has been Vice President – Administration of the IEEE Mediterranean Control Association (MCA) since 1998. He was a Distinguished Speaker in the IEEE Robotics and Automation Society (- 2003), he is a senior member of IEEE and a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Dr. George J. Vachtsevanos, Professor Emeritus School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, USA. Dr. Vachtsevanos’ research interests are focused in the areas of Hierarchical/Intelligent control of large-scale industrial processes, Fault-tolerant and mode transitioning control of unmanned aerial vehicles, Vision and IR based inspection technologies for textile, glass and other industrial products, Analysis of EEG signals for detection and prediction of epileptic seizures, Sensor fusion techniques for classification and control. He has published over 250 technical papers and is the recipient of the 2002-2003 Georgia Tech School of ECE Distinguished Professor Award and the 2003-2004 Georgia Institute of Technology Outstanding Interdisciplinary Activities Award. He is the lead author of the book, Intelligent Fault Diagnosis and Prognosis for Engineering Systems, published by Wiley in 2006.

Bibliographic Information

Buy it now

Buying options

eBook USD 1,399.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Hardcover Book USD 1,999.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Other ways to access