SAFEDRONE project: development of a UAV -based high-resolution GPR system for IED detection

This contribution presents the main objectives and achievements of the SAFEDRONE project, devoted to the development of airborne-based high-resolution Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) systems for the detection of buried landmines and Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs). The overall goal of the project is to take advantage of the ability of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) to enable a contactless, safe, and fast scanning of the area of interest, together with the capability of Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) systems to provide high-resolution radar images. Down-Looking and hybrid Forward-Looking/Down-Looking architectures have been tested throughout the project in order to determine which of them provides the best detection results (depending on the scenario, and geometry, composition, and depth of the buried targets). To achieve the required accuracy to enable GPR-SAR processing, precise positioning and geo-referring subsystems have been integrated within the UAV. Results of the validation tests conducted in realistic scenarios are presented.