Woodbridge Ewan, Connor Dean T, Verbelen Yannick, Hine Duncan, Richardson Tom, Scott Thomas B
H. H. Wills Physics Laboratory, Interface Analysis Centre, University of Bristol, Bristol, United Kingdom.
National Nuclear Laboratory, Warrington, United Kingdom.
Front Robot AI. 2023 Jun 28;10:1137763. doi: 10.3389/frobt.2023.1137763. eCollection 2023.
Low-cost uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs) are replacing manned aircraft for airborne radiation mapping applications such as nuclear accident response scenarios or surveying ore deposits and mine sites because of their cost-effectiveness and ability to conduct surveys at lower altitude compared to manned counterparts. Both multi-rotor UAVs and fixed-wing UAVs are well established technologies for aerial radiation mapping applications, however, both also have drawbacks: multi-rotor UAVs are very limited in flight time and range, and fixed-wing UAVs usually require facilities for take-off and landing. A compromise solution is introduced in this work, using a fixed-wing vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) UAV that combines the flexibility of a multi-rotor UAV with the range and flight time of a fixed-wing UAV. The first implementation of a VTOL with radiation mapping capabilities is presented, based on a commercial WingtraOne UAV augmented with CsI scintillator and CZT semiconductor gamma spectrometers. The radiation mapping capabilities of the prototype are demonstrated in a case study, mapping the distribution of radionuclides around the South Terras legacy uranium mine in the south of England, United Kingdom, and the results are compared with previous studies using multi-rotor and manned aircraft to survey the same area.
低成本无人驾驶飞机（UAV）正取代有人驾驶飞机用于空中辐射测绘应用，如核事故应急场景或勘测矿床和矿区，这是因为它们具有成本效益，并且与有人驾驶飞机相比能够在更低高度进行勘测。多旋翼无人机和固定翼无人机都是用于空中辐射测绘应用的成熟技术，然而，它们也都有缺点：多旋翼无人机的飞行时间和航程非常有限，而固定翼无人机通常需要起降设施。本文介绍了一种折衷方案，即使用一种固定翼垂直起降（VTOL）无人机，它结合了多旋翼无人机的灵活性以及固定翼无人机的航程和飞行时间。本文展示了具有辐射测绘能力的垂直起降无人机的首次应用，该无人机基于配备了碘化铯闪烁体和碲锌镉半导体伽马能谱仪的商用WingtraOne无人机。在一个案例研究中展示了该原型机的辐射测绘能力，绘制了英国英格兰南部南特拉斯遗留铀矿周围放射性核素的分布情况，并将结果与之前使用多旋翼无人机和有人驾驶飞机勘测同一区域的研究进行了比较。
