Approved for public release, distribution is unlimited / Once the military helicopter pilot deploys aboard a naval vessel he leaves behind all training platforms, short of the actual aircraft, that present enough fidelity for him to maintain the highest levels of readiness. To that end, this thesis takes a preliminary step in creating a trainer that places the pilot in an immersive and familiar environment to exercise myriad piloting tasks as faithfully and as rigorously as in actual flight. The focus of this thesis it to assess the viability of an chromakeyed augmented virtual environment (ChrAVE) trainer embedded into a helicopter for use in maintaining certain perishable skills. Specifically this thesis will address the task of helicopter low-level land navigation. The ChrAVE was developed to substantiate the viability of having embedded trainers in helicopters. The ChrAVE is comprised of commercial off the shelf (COTS) equipment on a transportable cart. In determining whether a system such as the ChrAVE is viable as a laboratory for continued training in virtual environment, the opinion of actual pilots that were tasked with realistic workloads was used. Additionally, empirical data was collected and evaluated according to the subject pool's thresholds for acceptable low-level navigation performance. / Captain, United States Marine Corps

[pt] Nos últimos anos, os avanços mais recentes em robótica e suas aplicações têm sido usados para reduzir a carga de trabalho e os requisitos de mão-de-obra, melhorando o ambiente, a saúde e a segurança, particularmente nos sistemas de produção agrícola. Robôs autônomos fazem parte de tal inovação tecnológica e os robôs móveis com esteiras, em particular, têm sido amplamente utilizados em campos agrícolas em todo o mundo, já que suas esteiras proporcionam uma grande área de contato em solos úmidos e terrenos irregulares, evitando que o robô fique preso e melhorando a sua mobilidade. Neste trabalho, aborda-se a modelagem e o controle de robôs móveis com esteiras (Tracked Mobiler Robots, TMRs) para executar tarefas de vigilância em campos agrícolas. A metodologia proposta considera que o modelo cinemático do TMR são incertos devido ao escorregamento inerente entre as esteiras e o terreno. Para lidar com as incertezas de modelagem e perturbações externas, utiliza-se uma estratégia de controle robusto baseada na abordagem de modos deslizantes. Uma interface de usuário móvel (Mobile User Interface, MUI) baseada no sistema operacional Android é desenvolvida para controlar o robô movél com esteiras de forma manual ou autônoma. A partir da MUI, o operador humano pode visualizar as informações capturadas de sensores externos e internos. Simulações numéricas em MATLAB são realizadas para verificar o desempenho do controladores, bem como validar o modelo cinemático do robô, em diferentes configurações iniciais. / [en] In recent years, the latest advances in robotics and its applications have been used to reduce the workload and manpower requirements, improving the environment, health and safety (EHS) conditions, particularly in agricultural production and farming systems. Autonomous robots are part of such technological innovation and Tracked Mobile Robots (TMRs), in particular, have being widely used on agricultural fields around the world, since their tracks provide a large contact area on the wet soils and irregular terrains avoiding the robot to get stuck. In this work, we address the modeling and control design of tracked mobile robots (TMRs) able to perform surveillance tasks in agricultural fields. The proposed methodology considers that the kinematic models of the TMRs are both uncertain due to the inherent slippage between the tracks and the terrain. To deal with the modeling uncertainties and external disturbances, we use the sliding mode control (SMC) approach. A Mobile User Interface (MUI) based on Android operating system. is developed to control the TMR manually or autonomously. By using the MUI the human operator can visualize the information captured from external and internal sensors. Numerical simulations in MATLAB are carried out to verify the performance of the controller as well as validate the robot kinematic model under different configurations.

Tracked vehicles are designed to operate in various terrains, ranging from soft mud to hard tarmac. This wide range of terrains presents significant challenges for the suspension system, as its components must be suitable for all types of terrain. The selection of these components is crucial for minimizing acceleration levels within the vehicle, ensuring that personnel can comfortably endure extended durations inside. BAE Systems Hägglunds AB develops and produces an armored tracked vehicle called the CV90. Within the CV90’s suspension system, a key component known as the torsion bar, a rotational spring, plays a primary role in reducing the vehicle’s motion. The CV90 vehicle has seven wheels on each side, with each wheel having its dedicated torsion bar. To measure the whole-body vibration experienced within the vehicle, a measurement called the Vibrational Dose Value (VDV) is utilized. The main objective of this thesis is to develop a data-driven model to optimize the suspension system by identifying the combination of torsion bars that generates the smallest VDV. The data used for optimization is based on simulations of the CV90 vehicle in a virtual environment. In the simulation, the CV90 vehicle, with its full dynamics, is driven over a specific virtual road at a particular velocity. The simulation itself cannot be manipulated; only the input values can be adjusted. Thus, we consider the simulation as a black box, which led us to implement the black-box optimization algorithm known as Particle-Swarm. In this thesis, four different roads, each with velocities ranging from four to seven different levels, were provided to the optimization model. The results show that the model identifies a combination of torsion bars that generates a small VDV for all combinations of velocities and roads, with an average VDV improvement of around 20% - 60% compared to a reference case. Since this thesis serves as a proof of concept, the conclusion is that the devised method is effective and suitable for addressing the problem at hand. Nonetheless, for seamless integration of this method into the tracked vehicle development process, further research is necessary.