Category: Projects

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Using the Trimble R10 with Drones to Develop City Models for Professional Planners

by Ryan Wicks

City and regional planners have the daunting task of developing a vision for the future of both the physical, aesthetic and cultural feel of an area. This often involves engaging multiple parties that have a stake in that future, identifying convergent or divergent needs or desires of those stakeholders, identifying themes within those needs or desires, and developing not just one potential plan, but a multitude of plans that can be considered in comparison. Continue reading “Using the Trimble R10 with Drones to Develop City Models for Professional Planners”

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UMass researchers using radar to detect drones

Drone flights were in support of a project lead by a Collaborative Adaptive Sensing of the Atmosphere (CASA) research team in the UMass Amherst Electrical and Computer Engineering Department (http://www.casa.umass.edu/). The team, led by Krsztof Orzel and Apoorva Bajaj, wanted to test the ability of their weather radar system to track and identify UAS targets. The Trimble ZX5 hexacopter was flown in a variety of patterns and altitudes to test the limits at which the drone could be detected. The drone was also flown simultaneously with the a DJI Spreading Wings 900 (that had been modified with a PixHawk for its flight controller) which was flown by another independent pilot. The simultaneous flights allowed the opportunity to start to get a sense of how easily the weather radar could de-conflict the two signals from each of the drones. By comparing the radar signal log to the flight logs of the multirotor UAVs, the team aims to gain a sense of the accuracy and precision of their radar instrumentation, and in the future they aim to tweak the signal processing algorithms to yield better results. Continue reading “UMass researchers using radar to detect drones”

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Integration of Parametric Design Methods and Building Performance Simulations for High-Performance Buildings

This research project, led by Dr. Ajla Aksamija, investigates how to integrate parametric design methods with building performance analysis procedures for whole building design. High-performance buildings require the use of performance simulations and modeling from early conceptual design, since the impact of design decisions must be understood and evaluated. On the other hand, parametric design methods offer improved ways for exploring building forms, geometric properties, and modeling strategies.The primary benefit of integrating performance-based design with parametric modeling is that multiple iterations and design scenarios can be investigated, thus improving the efficiency of the design process, and reducing the time necessary for investigating impacts of various design decisions on building performance. Continue reading “Integration of Parametric Design Methods and Building Performance Simulations for High-Performance Buildings”

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Measuring Ground-Control Points for Salt Marsh Studies

The Wetland Assessment Program (WAP) at UMass Amherst is an ongoing research program, the main goal of which is to study wetland ecosystems and to develop better tools for monitoring and conservation of these areas. (http://www.umasscaps.org/applications/wetlands-assessment.html) Headed by Dr. Scott Jackson and Dr. Kevin McGarigal for the past decade, WAP is part of the larger Conservation Assessment and Prioritization System (CAPS). The main strategy of the program is to find and measure relationships between Landsat data – which includes land use data, elevation, slope, etc. – and both Indices of Biological Integrity (IBIs) and Indices of Ecological Integrity (IEI’s). The specific sampling and observation methods vary depending on the type of wetland system under consideration. The program has had significant success in finding meaningful and useful patterns for most wetland systems, however success with salt marsh studies has been elusive. Continue reading “Measuring Ground-Control Points for Salt Marsh Studies”

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Students in BCT’s 3D CAD & BIM course participate in library project on maker competencies

As part of this spring’s BCT 420 and ECO 620 courses (both taught by Alex Schreyer, BCT Program Director), students will explore making and digital fabrication, which will inform a curriculum pilot study by the University of Texas on this topic. The UMass library has been chosen as one of several collaborators nationwide and will guide the local implementation of this study. Continue reading “Students in BCT’s 3D CAD & BIM course participate in library project on maker competencies”