The objective of this ARP project is to investigate and develop efficient ad hoc networking and collaborative navigation techniques for the applications of autonomous UAV networks. It enables us to understand the potentials of autonomous UAV network applications and to build expertise in this new domain of knowledge. The project is perceived to serve as a crucial building block for future R&D programs in autonomous UAV network applications. The anticipated results from this research is expected to lead to a series of future research projects over the following 10 years on the use of fully autonomous networked UAVs for applications such as surveillance, reconnaissance, search and rescue missions and public safety applications.

The Mobile ad hoc and Sensor Network Systems group leads the project and will participate in the following areas:

• Novel cooperation and adaptive cognitive networking strategies for self-organizing UAVs. Cognitive networking will incorporate parameters from other protocol layers (cross-layering approach) to intelligently choose optimum routes through the network.
• The techniques will take into consideration a set of attributes (e.g. the rate of change of connectivity of a host, and relative UAV locations) and can be used to optimize the process of message delivery.
• Development of MAC protocols that allow for traffic prioritization, reduced transmission latency and improved response time and reliability for autonomous UAV operations.