Optimization of a UAV for Wildfire Management

Abstract

Wildfires pose a significant environmental risk, cause substantial economic damage, and are a danger to human life. Uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs) have the potential to support hotshot crews to combat wildfires more effectively. UAVs are valuable due to their low cost and high maneuverability. UAVs with the ability to carry large payloads can effectively transport fire retardant or propellant to create controlled burns remotely, mitigating the risk of uncontrolled wildfires. A UAV designed for this application should be able to carry a large payload, have enough battery capacity to remain in flight for the extent of a mission, and be rigid enough to resist vibration. The UAV must be large enough for the propellers and electrical components needed to lift the payload. The goal of this project is to design a conceptual model of an octocopter UAV and to examine the design space to find an optimal solution. The UAV has a 2-meter wheelbase and is designed to carry a 45kg payload. The UAV model is an 1/8-symmetric sector model of the full UAV, represented as a finite element model, and is used to estimate the deflection, stress, fatigue life, frequency response, and damage. The UAV is modeled as a 3D Timoshenko beam finite element model. The mass and mass moment of the UAV are minimized using non-linear programming.