(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2014)
Karan, Ebrahim P.; Christmann, Hans Claus; Gheisar, Masoud; Irizarry, Javier; Johnson, Eric N.
The continuous improvement in the
function and performance of Unmanned
Aerial Systems (UASs) promotes the need
for specific research to integrate this
leading edge technology in
to various applications across Departments of
Transportation (DOTs). DOTs of several states have started looking into using UAS
technology for different purposes from tracking highway construction projects and
performing structure inventories to road maintenance, monitoring roadside
environmental conditions, as well as many other traffic management or safety issues,
albeit individually focusing on specific us
age scenarios. This study investigates
various divisions and offices within a Department of Transportation to determine the
operational requirements for UAS usage in specific divisions which have the potential to implement this technology to aid and supplement their daily operations. Through a
series of interviews with subject matter experts at the management and operational levels, a matrix of user requirements for tasks that have the potential to use UAS is developed. This matrix is mapped to a
UAS technical matrix that embeds the
technological and technical requirements for development of a potential UAS. These
matrices can be used by other DOTs for defining the design specifications for UAS
that can fulfill their construction related operational requirements.