Drones and robotics, the BioRobotics Institute of Sant'Anna School is among the ten finalists of the 2022 UAV Chase Challenge, the international competition of drones able to fly in closed environments
The BioRobotics Institute of Sant'Anna School of Pisa has been selected among the ten universities that will compete in the first edition of the "2022 UAV Chase Challenge", the international competition of Robotics organized by Purdue University that will take place in Lafayette in Purdue's UAV Research and Test Facility (PURT) on April 8 and 9.
The competition will involve drones that can fly indoors and accomplish some tasks completely independently, without pilot intervention. The team, coordinated by Stefano Roccella, is composed by 16 people, including 11 honors students of Sant'Anna School and the pilot Claudio Lattanzi, of the Fondazione Toscana Gabriele Monasterio.
This first edition will take place completely remotely due to the Covid emergency. A drone will have to chase a small moving object (a model of a pre-programmed car) flying completely autonomously in the presence of obstacles represented by small scale buildings. The BioRobotics Institute group passed the initial qualification phase by placing second thanks to the development of UAV navigation control codes based on a three-dimensional vision system for obstacle avoidance. Artificial intelligence algorithms based on vision and inspired by the flight of birds allow the recognition of the moving object and its pursuit between buildings. During the final, the goal is to fly the drone autonomously between buildings while maintaining a distance of 1 meter from the moving object for the longest time. Although the competition is focused on code development, the team specifically developed a drone suitable for indoor flight.
"This is the first time we are participating in a remote drone competition - explains Stefano Roccella - and in closed environments. This competition will be an educational experience for the participating students who will put into practice the knowledge acquired during the courses learning to coordinate in groups and will lead us to increase our skills in the field of Aerial Robotics."
"Reaching the final stage of an international competition is a source of pride for the Scuola Sant'Anna - says Christian Cipriani, director of The BioRobotics Institute - In the team coordinated by Roccella, there are 11 students of the School: a virtuous example to enhance their role in research and experimentation activities".
The team of the Sant'Anna School is composed of: Stefano Roccella, team coordinator; Andrea Vannini, UAV navigation and vision system manager; Roberto Lazzarini, electronic engineer; Nicola De Agostini, Alessandro Meini, Simone Cirelli, Andrea Vicari, Filippo Mannino, Giovanni Mucci, Iacopo Regoli, Leonardo Vico, Michele Gasparini, Gabriele Marino, Davide Bettarini, honors students of Sant’Anna School; and pilots Claudio Lattanzi (Fondazione Toscana Gabriele Monasterio) and Andrea Capanna.
