A method to recognize and track runway in the image sequences based on template matching

The first task of computer vision-based unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV)'s autonomous landing is to recognize and track the runway using computer vision. In this paper, we discussed a simple method to recognize and track the runway in the image sequences using template matching. Firstly, the runway is separated from background using segmentation by threshold. Secondly, template design is initialized according to the characteristics of runway. Lastly, /spl delta/-correlation is used to recognize runway. The experiment indicates that this algorithm is not only fast and accurate but also can satisfy all requirements of UAV's autonomous landing.