Collaborative Geographic Area Surveillance by System of Drones

The objective of this research is to develop novel models and algorithmic solutions for the surveillance of geo-graphic regions by a collaborative fleet of drones. More specifi-cally, we consider dividing the region of interest into responsibil-ity areas for an individual drone and allow for a certain number of, so called, extra-drones that can change their whereabouts in terms of responsibility areas. We then propose policies for assistance among drones in different regions. The global objective is to also satisfy certain constraints, such as ensuring optimal response time; ensuring minimization of uncovered areas; etc. The work in this thesis is conducted under a supervision of Prof. Goce Trajcevski (Dept. of ECE, Iowa State University), in collaboration with Prof. Ouri Wolfson (Dept. of CS, University of Illinois at Chicago) and Prof. Sushil Jajodia (Dept. of CS, George Mason University).