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Autonomous UAS-based Water Fluorescence Mapping and Targeted Sampling

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Abstract

Uncrewed Aircraft Systems (UAS) are increasingly used in time-consuming and effort-heavy scientific exploration applications. One such application is the inspection of the physical, chemical, and biological properties of water in aquatic ecosystems. This paper presents a novel autonomous UAS capable of sensing water properties and collecting up to three 250 mL water samples from multiple sampling locations. The system features a customized UAS with an in-house built fluorescence sensor and pumping mechanism. The system does in situ fluorescence measurements to map the gradient of fluorescent content across the body of water and determine the best sampling spot for targeted sampling. To ensure safe near-water operation, multiple sensor fusion with an Extended Kalman Filter has been implemented for accurate altitude estimation within 1.5 m from the water surface. To validate the performance of the system, we present experimental results from deployment in two different water ecosystems, namely the Congaree River, SC and Lake Wateree, SC.

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank Mr. Dick Foote, homeowner and member of the Lake Wateree Association, for permitting us to use his private dock to deploy our system.

Funding

This work was partially supported by an ASPIRE grant from the Office of the Vice President for Research at the University of South Carolina.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC, USA

    Kazi Ragib Ishraq Sanim, Michail Kalaitzakis & Nikolaos Vitzilaios

  2. Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC, USA

    Caitlyn English, Zechariah B. Kitzhaber & Michael L. Myrick

  3. Department of Geography, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC, USA

    Michael E. Hodgson

  4. Department of Biological Sciences, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC, USA

    Tammi L. Richardson

Authors
  1. Kazi Ragib Ishraq Sanim
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Contributions

The authors confirm contribution to the paper as follows: conceptualization: N. Vitzilaios, M.L. Myrick, M.E. Hodgson, and T.L. Richardson; system design and development: K. Sanim, C. English, Z. Kitzhaber and M. Kalaitzakis; field deployment and data collection: K. Sanim, C. English, Z. Kitzhaber, M. Kalaitzakis, N. Vitzilaios, M.L. Myrick, and M.E. Hodgson; analysis and interpretation of results: all authors; draft manuscript preparation: K. Sanim, M. Kalaitzakis, N. Vitzilaios; manuscript revision: all authors; project administration: N. Vitzilaios and M.L. Myrick; funding acquisition: N. Vitzilaios, M.L. Myrick, M.E. Hodgson and T.L. Richardson. All authors reviewed the results and approved the final version of the manuscript.

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Correspondence to Nikolaos Vitzilaios.

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Sanim, K.R.I., English, C., Kitzhaber, Z.B. et al. Autonomous UAS-based Water Fluorescence Mapping and Targeted Sampling. J Intell Robot Syst 108, 25 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10846-023-01880-9

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