Mixed-Initiative Control of Autonomous Unmanned Units Under Uncertainty

Abstract : The MICA program focused on changing the control and coordination of unmanned aerial vehicles from a need for two to four persons per vehicle to one person controlling five or more vehicles. This program developed techniques for hierarchical control using mixed-initiative planning guidance and control taking a number of kinds of uncertainty into account at a fundamental level. These techniques focused on reasoning about uncertainty, including planning, belief tracking and communications with both human and automation. We developed this control model using Partially Observable Markov Decision Processes. The mixed-initiative interactions enabled users to describe constraints at multiple levels of the planning hierarchy. Techniques include visualization of the environment and optional speech input. The capabilities were demonstrated in a laboratory environment and on the program's Open Experimental Platform.