PHD, Kent State University, 2017, College of Education, Health and Human Services / School of Lifespan Development and Educational Sciences

Predicting flight training success has been well researched in military aviation yet there is limited information pertaining to general aviation. The purpose of this study was to determine if attributes of pilot performance could be used to differentiate students in a collegiate flight training program. Several pre-entry and flight training attributes were examined to see if any served as predictors of success. A general survey was administered to explore why students may or may not have chosen to remain in the flight training program and/or pursue the certified flight instructor (CFI) certificate. Finally, the Tabular Speed Test© was administered to further understand flight student population characteristics as they pertained to existing aviation selection test batteries. The participants in this study were 242 persons attending a Midwestern post-secondary institution who began and completed the private pilot flight course between the spring of 2010 and fall of 2014. Logistic regression results indicated that it was possible to predict student completion of the multi-engine flight course 73.2% of the time (X2 (7) = 23.349, p < .001). Additionally, there were several significant correlations amongst performance variables which warrant future research, such as the relationship between high school GPA to the private, instrument and commercial flight theory courses (r = .307, n= 199, p = .000, r = .367, n= 103, p = .000, and r = .219, n= 84, p = .045, respectively). In total, results indicate that development of a pilot selection battery for use in collegiate aviation may be promising.

Committee: Richard Ferdig (Committee Chair); Bradley Morris (Committee Member); Kristine Pytash (Committee Member) Subjects: Education; Educational Evaluation; Educational Psychology; Transportation

Master of Arts, Miami University, 2007, History

During the twentieth century, women's aviation organizations created a place for women to share experiences and advice, pool their financial resources, and push for additional opportunities for women in aviation. Between 1929 and 1955, three organizations formed to serve these ends, including the Ninety-Nines (99s), the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP), and the Whirly-Girls. With the help of dynamic leaders like Amelia Earhart, Jacqueline Cochran, and Jean Ross Howard Phelan and loyal members like Dr. Dora Dougherty Strother and Marty Martin Wyall, these organizations developed both the popularity and the resilience to maintain their numbers and continue their activities into the twenty-first century. Because of the bonds of camaraderie formed through individual relationships and group influence, the unity created by unique women's aviation dress and flying songs, and collective resistance to sex-based discrimination, women used aviation organizations to construct their own culture to meet the needs of women pilots.

Committee: Mary Frederickson (Advisor) Subjects:

Master of Arts, Case Western Reserve University, 2011, History

The National Air Races were a series of events that bridged two very different periods of the history of aviation. The event attempted to preserve the glamour and drama that characterized the pioneering days of aviation's history. At the same time, the it purported to be a proving ground for cutting edge aeronautical technology. Despite the claims of the event's management, the National Air Races did not contribute to aviation technology and were unable to overcome their inherent nature as spectacles for entertainment. Aviation was presented as both a thrilling adventure and a burgeoning technology promising speed, reliability and safety. The National Air Races were unable to reconcile these two contradictory characterizations of aviation. During this period, aircraft manufacturing was increasingly dominated by large, well-connected firms. The pilots and aircraft builders who participated in the National Air Races were compelled to build and fly aircraft as entertainers due to a lack of opportunities in the industry. It is generally thought that the Great Depression makes a point of transition between aviation's heroic past and its emergence as a mature industry. The National Air Races demonstrates the resiliency of the idea of aviation as a source of awe-inspiring feats of daring and the irreconcilability of this idea with notions of safety and reliability.

Committee: Peter Shulman PhD (Committee Chair); Miriam Levin PhD (Committee Member); John Grabowski PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: History

PhD, University of Cincinnati, 2023, Engineering and Applied Science: Mechanical Engineering

The aim of this dissertation is to present the development of new approaches to air traffic management for vehicles operating within the national airspace. This dissertation examines air traffic management techniques for both manned commercial aircraft along with small unmanned aerial systems (sUAS). This dissertation starts with the development of a supervised learning algorithm to generate estimated time of arrival for commercial aircraft and covers a unique conflict prediction algorithm for sUAS which is based on near future path predictions. Both contributions assist in air traffic management by minimizing required human intervention. The dissertation culminates with the development of a novel predictive artificial potential field (PAPF) navigation system for sUAS. The PAPF relies upon Interacting Multiple Model (IMM) vehicle predictions and is designed to eliminate the need for human intervention as sUAS operate within the airspace by preemptively rerouting vehicles in real time based on conflicts that will likely happen in the near future. The PAPF system is run completely on-board the sUAS and does not require additional ground based resources. The first element of the dissertation covers the estimated time of arrival (ETA) predictor for commercial aircraft. The ETA predictor focused on aircraft landing at the Dallas Fort Worth airport and used historical flight and meteorological data to train a random forest regressor. The trained algorithm could be implemented to make use of real time data and estimate the remaining flight time once aircraft have entered within a 200 mile radius circle of the airport. The data used is readily available from airport facilities and the aircraft themselves via Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B). This work was supported by NASA Office of STEM Engagement and used historical flight data for aircraft landing at Dallas Fort Worth airport. The second element discussed in the dissertation consists of a (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Manish Kumar Ph.D. (Committee Chair); Michael Alexander-Ramos Ph.D. (Committee Member); David Thompson Ph.D. (Committee Member); Tejas Puranik Ph.D. (Committee Member); Rajnikant Sharma Ph.D. (Committee Member); Zachariah Fuchs Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Mechanical Engineering

Master of Arts, The Ohio State University, 2023, History

John M. Sant was a World War II bomber co-pilot who was shot down over German-occupied Czechoslovakia in 1944. He and the other eight surviving crew members were captured and sent to Stalag Luft I, a German prison camp near the Baltic Sea. Sant spent the next ten months in captivity, keeping a logistical journal of his daily life in the camp. With this journal, along with primary documents, copies of declassified military paperwork, and a typed account of Sant's narrative located in the Skinner Personal Archive as a chronological framework, this thesis constructs a biographical narrative of Sant's life and wartime experiences. Sant's journal provided an indirect glimpse into his inner thoughts. His entries reflect a fear of being overlooked, both during captivity and following release. Sant found solace in escapism through literature and reminisced about home life, emphasizing the importance of morale and interpersonal connections among the POWs. Elements of optimism infuse the passages he chose to copy down, showing his enduring belief in the strength of the Allied forces. The journal also served as a covert way to challenge the authority of the main camp authorities. Sant's hopefulness played a crucial role in maintaining his emotional well-being, a theme more prominent in his post-war writings. The arrival of new prisoners, while disheartening, meant access to more current information. Sant's diary entries not only reflect his emotional state regarding his fellow POWs but also his reaction to news like General Patton's progress in Europe, offering him temporary relief from worries about America's military effectiveness. His aspirations for post-war life served as a comfort and a way to look forward to a future beyond the uncertainty of war. The journal also played a key role in asserting Sant's sense of self-determination under the strict confines of his POW status. While it contained no information unknown to his captors, it provided him with a sense of con (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Randolph Roth (Committee Member); David Staley (Advisor) Subjects: American History; Armed Forces; History; Military History; Military Studies; Modern History

PhD, University of Cincinnati, 2023, Engineering and Applied Science: Aerospace Engineering

Electric propulsion is expected to revolutionize aviation in the following years. Multiple research groups, public agencies and private companies are working towards incorporating electric powered aircraft to the national airspace. The implementation of such technology necessitates increased trust and confidence in its performance from regulators, operators and the end users. This work focuses on enhancing the safety and reliability of emerging electric power technology in airborne vehicles within the context of Advanced Air Mobility and fixed-wing aircraft. Batteries are targeted as the most critical component of the propulsion system of an electric aircraft. Support Vector Machine, Relevance Vector Machine and a Genetic Fuzzy Inference System are presented as viable methodologies to monitor the degradation of a battery in an aviation context. The Support Vector Machine provides the best accuracy, but the errors obtained with Relevance Vector Machine are marginally higher and its training is much faster. The Fuzzy Inference System provides good accuracy with good generalization capabilities and excellent explainability properties. These methodologies can be combined with a Particle Filter algorithm to perform real-time predictions of the End of Life and End of Discharge of battery cells and modules. Further, the Particle Filter provides an assessment of the uncertainty of the prediction in the form of a probability distribution function. This offers an intuitive way for pilots and remote pilots to visualize the remaining flight time. The Particle Filter can also be combined with an electric equivalent circuit model to have very accurate predictions of single discharge cycles in battery modules. We demonstrate that this technique can predict the behavior of faulty battery cells within a module, a critical aspect in large battery ensembles. Another issue encountered in batteries is the possibility of a Thermal Runaway when a cell is overheated. A mo (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Kelly Cohen Ph.D. (Committee Chair); Anoop Sathyan Ph.D. (Committee Member); Catharine McGhan Ph.D. (Committee Member); Donghoon Kim Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Aerospace Materials

Master of Science in Engineering, University of Akron, 2023, Mechanical Engineering

Human factors concerns with automation have emerged as contributing factors in many aviation accidents in the past few decades. Adaptive automation, where a system dynamically assigns tasks to automation or the pilot based on workload, has been proposed as a potential solution to many of these concerns. This study examines how one proposed method of adaptive automation, using physiological data to measure workload, could be implemented using machine learning. Electrocardiogram (ECG), electrodermal activity (EDA), and facial electromyography (fEMG) data was collected at both low and high workload while subjects completed common tasks performed by pilots. This data was used to train binary classification neural networks, with many models achieving high accuracy. The models were then applied to different data with varying workload, achieving poor results. The results of this study identify design requirements for adaptive automation systems using this method, and further study required for practical application.

Committee: Chen Ling (Advisor); Shengyong Wang (Committee Member) Subjects: Aerospace Engineering; Engineering

BS, Kent State University, 2022, College of Aeronautics and Engineering

As the global economy has grown and regions throughout the world have become more connected, air transportation holds a significant role in its ability to bring people and products together. In addition, the air domain is important and essential for the delivery of emergency and humanitarian aid relief. Aircraft can quickly transport medical supplies and organs, especially in situations where access is a problem. However, with these many positives, the aviation domain, unfortunately, has become more stressful for everyone involved. Crew members are expected to have extensive training, as well as the skills and confidence to appropriately handle any situation. Moreover, pilots need to pay attention to weather, airport conditions, state of their aircraft, and also be mindful of other aircraft flying in the vicinity. Flight crew must maintain a constant awareness of any issues to make necessary reforms, and sometimes quick decisions, without hesitation. Terrorism immediately comes to mind for many people in thinking about threats to flight safety. However, psychological problems among pilots may pose additional threats of their own. For clarity, the term “psychological problems” will be used synonymously alongside those of the like such as “mental illness,” “mental health condition,” “psychiatric condition,” and more. Regardless of the terminology used, the idea is to understand the outcome of such can be catastrophic. With cycles of stigma existing in the aviation domain, pilots have been reluctant to disclose mental health problems for fear of losing their certification to fly. Many pilots may be managing depressive symptoms without treatment due to fear of negative career impacts. In fact, experts found, “Underreporting of mental health symptoms and diagnoses is probable among airline pilots due to the public stigma of mental illness and fear among pilots of being ‘grounded' or not fit for duty” (as cited in Wu et al., 2016, p. 2). On the other hand, C (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Jason Lorenzon J.D. (Advisor) Subjects: Psychology; Transportation

Master of Science (M.S.), University of Dayton, 2022, Mechanical Engineering

An understanding of how pilots complete their flight tasks is an essential element of preventing aviation incidents. Disorientation or a loss of control of the aircraft are some direct causes of such events. This study seeks to assess the impact of environmental factors on the ability of general aviation pilots to complete flight tasks. Certified Pilots (n=16) with experience flying a Cessna 172 or similar aircraft participated. They were tasked with flying a virtual model of a Cessna 172 Skyhawk. This was accomplished using X-Plane 11 flight simulation software, Honeycomb Alpha flight controls, and a Saitek throttle quadrant. The software was integrated with an HTC Vive Pro virtual reality headset. Within X-Plane 11, three environmental conditions were created: Clear, Partial Clouds (Partial Cover), and Full Clouds (Total Cover). All weather conditions other than cloud cover were the same across the environments with no wind present. No clouds are present in the Clear environment. Roughly 50% of the ground is obscured by clouds in the Partial Clouds environment. The ground is completely obscured by clouds in the Full Clouds environment. While in an environment, pilots were tasked with performing a series of 500 ft ascents, 500 ft descents, 90° turns to the right, and 90° turns to the left. These tasks were completed above the cloud layers of the environments. During Day A, the pilots flew in each of the environments twice. During Day B, pilots flew in the Full Clouds environment twice and were exposed to hypoxic air during one of those times. The hypoxic air is 10% oxygen and simulates an altitude of approximately 14,000 ft. The pilots were assessed based on their altitude error, heading error, heading rate of change, task duration, and the amount of motor control effort that was required to complete the task. When flying in environmental conditions that have fewer visual cues such as the Total Cover condition, pilots experienced more error a (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Megan Reissman (Advisor); Anne Crecelius (Committee Member); Timothy Reissman (Committee Member) Subjects: Aerospace Engineering; Biomechanics; Engineering; Mechanical Engineering

Master of Sciences, Case Western Reserve University, 2022, EMC - Aerospace Engineering

One of the primary stresses associated with flying high performance aircraft is acceleration, referred to as “G-force”. A critical method to combat the metabolic effects of high-G maneuvers is the Anti-G Straining Maneuver (AGSM), a respiratory technique designed to offset the effects of high-G on the human body. A dedicated and extensive flight test program is carried out to analyze the performance of legacy breathing systems during maneuvers between +3 and +5 G. A pilot mounted sensor package is utilized to obtain metabolic data during individual sorties. Data is recorded for breathing systems holding the pilot breathing mask at 100% oxygen and positive pressure (+2-3 mmHg relative to the cabin) as well as systems following a pressure dependent oxygen dilution schedule at net zero pressure. This data is utilized to characterize the effects of the AGSM on pilot breathing and identify shortcomings in the response to AGSM breathing.

Committee: Paul Barnhart (Committee Chair); Bryan Schmidt (Committee Member); Stephen Hostler (Committee Member) Subjects: Aerospace Engineering; Engineering; Fluid Dynamics; Mechanical Engineering; Physiology

Master of Science, University of Akron, 2021, Mechanical Engineering

Human mistake is responsible for over 60% of all avoidable aircraft disasters. A great number of those incidents could have been saved by well-trained air crew. In several situations, like the occurrence of weather conditions or flight collisions, a better trained flight crew could have saved the incident or accident. Considering that, a suitable and practical training method is crucial for air crew so that they will be able to make quick effective decisions to manage the hazardous conditions. This study focuses on a visualization training tool designed for aviation students. we have developed an AR-based tablet application that provides a 3D training environment for pilots with the abilities of controlling flight direction and altitude. We have also provided artificial weather conditions and flight collisions that happen within the app as critical situations that are to be avoided by the pilot, using the App's controlling system. This interactive app is designed to be used among aviation students that are in need of a practical and user-friendly training tool. Although the beginners in this field might not be able to experience managing real life-flight incidents for learning purpose, they can still be properly trained and examined using the proposed application which simulates the critical flight situations and ways to manage them in the most realistic way. Finally, after evaluating our work with the help of a group of aviation students and after analyzing the data gathered on participants' performances in the game during ten attempts of playing, it can be verified that practicing with our game has made the newcomers make better decisions to avoid the thunderstorm in a safe and time-efficient manner.

Committee: Chen Ling (Advisor); Shengyong Wang (Committee Member) Subjects: Computer Engineering; Mechanical Engineering

Master of Arts, The Ohio State University, 2020, Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies

A little over 4% of women in the United States hold the certification necessary to fly for a commercial airline like Delta, American, or Southwest. Even fewer of that 4% are women of color. The numbers are consistent across the industry, where the majority of positions are still held by white men. Yet, the industry would have you believe it has made great strides in addressing the lack of diversity and inclusion; they do so each year during Black History Month, Women's History Month, and Pride Month, where airlines publish articles or social media about `their all black/all-female/ all LGBTQ flight crew.' Despite the importance of representation when it comes to outreach to younger people, it is not enough for aviation organizations to rely on representation as a means for claiming `achievement' of diverse and inclusive workspaces. I argue that this requires aviation organizations to utilize self-reflexive practices that are not encompassed in representation alone. In order to critically examine why these organizations remain resistant to the inclusion of diverse individuals, this project reflects on the experiences of Black women, working in the field of aviation, through the writings of Black Feminist scholars. Having a more robust understanding of the complex experiences of Black women is imperative if aviation organizations wish to implement structural changes that will ultimately enable them to create, sustain and recruit underrepresented individuals.

Committee: Guisela Latorre (Advisor); Wendy Smooth (Committee Member) Subjects: Womens Studies

Ph.D., Antioch University, 2020, Leadership and Change

Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) is a term used in many industries to describe a company that produces parts and equipment that may be marketed by another manufacturer. In the aviation industry, the aircraft engine OEM refers to the company that manufactures engines powering the aircraft. The OEM manufactures the engine, defines the required maintenance to operate the engines, and recommends product modifications. Product modifications are recommended to improve product safety, durability, reliability, and cost of ownership and are formally communicated through issuance of service bulletins. Properly performing the required maintenance and adopting service bulletins is an important element of maintaining a high standard regarding safety performance. The aircraft engine OEM is the source of knowledge regarding how to properly and effectively perform standard maintenance tasks. The OEM also has information related to service bulletins that is critical to properly assess and adopt service bulletins. This study identifies the critical elements of engagement between aircraft engine OEMs and airlines during two processes. The first process studied was the adoption of service bulletins and included how the airline becomes aware of a service bulletin, how they assess the need to perform the service bulletin, and finally how the airline prepares and executes on the adoption of the service bulletin. The OEM engagement was identified and analyzed during each phase of this process. The second process studied was how the airline identifies when they need support from the OEM to properly complete required maintenance and inspection tasks. OEM engagement was identified and analyzed during this process. Critical elements required for effective and efficient engagement identified in this study are then compared to existing literature on effective interorganizational engagement. Applying the learnings from this study to the more generic process maps developed in previous studies (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Mitchell Kusy Ph.D. (Committee Chair); Elizabeth Holloway Ph.D. (Committee Member); Rajiv Abhimanyu Bissessur Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Communication; Organizational Behavior

Master of Science, University of Akron, 2019, Mechanical Engineering

The main aim of this thesis is to generate different simulation modeling scenarios for performing inspection operations on different Federal Aviation Administration facilities. Different combinations of aircraft and routes are initiated to design different scenarios for performing inspections. For assigning aircraft into the model, a study of FAA current fleet composition is made. To make the model robust, probabilistic distribution is introduced into the modeling approach. For every modeling approach or scenario, a various number of experiments with thousands of replications are created to generate a maximum, minimum and average number of inspections over a year that can be performed through that modeling approach. Furthermore, a comparison of the different modeling approaches is made based on the number of inspections made by each model over a year.

Committee: Shengyong Wang PhD (Advisor); Chen Ling PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Aerospace Engineering; Engineering; Industrial Engineering; Logic; Management; Mechanical Engineering; Statistics; Systems Design; Transportation; Transportation Planning

Master of Science (MS), Ohio University, 2019, Electrical Engineering & Computer Science (Engineering and Technology)

Bird strikes represent a serious economic and safety risk to aircraft operations, especially near airports where aircraft are in critical stages of flight with little room for error. The United States Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) continues to research ways of mitigating the risk to aircraft posed by bird targets which include surveillance of birds with specialized radar systems. This thesis presents an algorithm that can utilize data from an avian radar, Automatic Dependent Surveillance – Broadcast (ADS-B) aircraft positioning data, and other sources to determine which birds constitute a significant risk to aircraft. It is envisioned that this algorithm could be added into a system which then alerts air traffic control (ATC) and/or pilots through communication protocols such as ADS-B and the ATC ground network. For this thesis, avian radar and ADS-B data was analyzed and tested through the prototype algorithm with a simulated aircraft track to illustrate example scenarios of this algorithm working. Additionally, multiple scenarios with a single simulated bird and simulated aircraft track were tested to verify operation of the algorithm when a known collision occurs.

Committee: Chris Bartone Ph.D. (Advisor); Michael Braasch Ph.D. (Committee Member); Frank van Graas Ph.D. (Committee Member); Donald Miles Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Aerospace Engineering; Electrical Engineering; Engineering; Systems Design

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Ohio University, 2019, History (Arts and Sciences)

This dissertation analyzes military innovation through the lens of the US Army's Cold War aviation program and its development of tactical airmobility. Army planners originally conceived of the airmobility concept in the 1950s. Staff officers argued that helicopters allowed ground forces to assault rapidly into enemy territory with personnel, equipment, and supplies to seize and hold key objectives. Beginning in the 1960s, that revolutionary doctrinal concept triggered innovative approaches that transformed the aviation program and its aircraft into a cornerstone of the Army's way of warfare. The rise of the organization and the airmobility concept, therefore, provide a useful case study of modern military innovation. Due to the Army Aviation branch's unique history, this examination adds to existing scholarship on institutions. Despite conflicting pressures internally and dissent externally, the aviation program managed not only to establish itself, but exploited new opportunities, adapted, and reformed in ways throughout the Cold War that guaranteed its continued existence. This dissertation also finds that one of the largest hurdles on the road to an airmobile Army was technology. Until the state of the art met the demands of the concept, doctrinal development stalled. The gas turbine engine fitted to conventional helicopter designs unlocked the potential of an airmobile Army, not an ultra-complicated cutting-edge airframe. Finally, this dissertation asks what role industry plays in the process of innovation. Heretofore unmined archival records from the principal manufacturers that helped make airmobility possible reveals how the helicopter industry grew alongside the Army, partners in progress toward airmobility. Connected from the beginning, they have long considered their successes as mutual accomplishments. As this dissertation demonstrates, understanding the role that technology played in military innovation requires analysis of the relationship (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Ingo Trauschweizer (Advisor); John Brobst (Committee Member); Chester Pach (Committee Member); Matthew LeRiche (Committee Member) Subjects: American History; Armed Forces; Business Administration; History; Military History; Technology

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Ohio University, 2018, Electrical Engineering & Computer Science (Engineering and Technology)

The lack of aircraft state awareness has been one of the leading causal and contributing factors in aviation accidents. Many of these accidents were due to flight crew's inability to understand the automation modes and properly monitor the aircraft energy and attitude state. The capability of providing flight crew with improved aircraft state awareness is essential in ensuring aviation safety. This dissertation describes predictive alerting methods that apply algorithms such as Multiple Hypothesis Prediction (MHP) on aircraft avionics outputs to predict and prevent hazardous conditions. Simulation and Human-In-The-Loop (HITL) studies results are presented to show the effectiveness of the predictive alerting method in aiding flight crew's aircraft state awareness during some of the most confusing aircraft automate modes.

Committee: Maarten Uijt de Haag (Advisor); Frank van Graas (Committee Member); Michael Braasch (Committee Member); Chris Bartone (Committee Member) Subjects: Electrical Engineering; Engineering

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2018, Industrial and Systems Engineering

Simulated crisis training is an invaluable tool that allows practitioners the opportunity to explore their domain's operational space. After which, these training opportunities are followed by a post simulation debriefing which allows for self-reflection. This enhances the experience and in turn grows expertise that is operationally transferrable to dissimilar events. Despite these apparent educational benefits, debriefings are underappreciated, underutilized in addition to instructors frequently encountering barriers to learning. Failure to repair these sessions can hamper effective learning and challenge completion of the learning objectives. Here I report that in a naturalistic research setting, I used a diary study format to collect what were the barriers to learning that instructors faced while teaching. My findings include the discovery of numerous barriers and those mitigation strategies that were successfully employed. This created a teaching atmosphere such that effective self-reflection of the simulator session was possible thereby growing expertise. This is the only known corpus of data that explores to identify post-simulation barriers to learning and successful mitigation strategies. These findings have the potential to increase learning and overall practitioner performance following advanced simulation.

Committee: David Woods (Advisor); Emily Patterson (Committee Member); Mike Rayo (Committee Member) Subjects: Engineering

Master of Science (MS), Ohio University, 2018, Electrical Engineering & Computer Science (Engineering and Technology)

Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (sUAS) are becoming very popular for solving a multitude of problems. As sUAS solutions are applied to more often, it is evident that multiple cooperative sUAS can be beneficial to certain tasks (surveillance, inspection, mapping). Unfortunately, operations involving multiple sUAS are inherently complex, requiring navigation solutions that are very accurate both in a relative and absolute sense for every member of the swarm. This thesis presents a method to use ultra-wideband (UWB) range radios to increase the relative position accuracy (and as a byproduct, absolute position accuracy) of the members of a swarm. A range radio system is also developed and analyzed, allowing simulations for testing this method. Finally, real flight data has been collected using multiple custom-built sUAS platforms and post-processed, allowing the filter to be analyzed using real world data.

Committee: Maarten Uijt de Haag (Advisor); Michael Braasch (Committee Member); Frank Van Graas (Committee Member); Geoffrey Dabelko (Committee Member) Subjects: Electrical Engineering

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 1980, Graduate School

Committee: Not Provided (Other) Subjects: Engineering