A Precision Spraying Mission Assignment and Path Planning Performed by Multi-Quadcopters

This paper proposes a hierarchal approach to solving a spraying mission assignment and path planning problem by using multi-quadcopters in an upland area. A mathematical model of the mission assignment and path-planning problem has been established. An inner-and-outer loop structure is employed in the hierarchal approach, in which the inner loop utilizes a genetic algorithm-based Travelling Salesman Problem (TSP) method while the outer loop uses a nonlinear programming method based on the optimal results given by the inner loop. In the end, simulation comparisons to a multi-TSP-based conventional approach have been carried out to illustrate the performance of the proposed approach. Keywords—precision spraying; mission assignment; path planning; multi-quadcopters; Travelling Salesman Problem (TSP)

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