Maximizing the throughput of a patrolling UAV by dynamic programming

Abstract

This paper addresses the following base defense scenario: an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) performs the task of perimeter alert patrol. There are m alert stations/sites located on the perimeter where a nearby breaching of the perimeter by an intruder can be sensed and is flagged by an Unattended Ground Sensor (UGS). We assume that the alert arrival process is Poisson. In order to determine whether an incursion flagged by a UGS is a false alarm or a real threat, a patrolling UAV flies to the alert site to investigate the alert. The decision problem for a UAV is to determine, in real-time, which station to head toward next, upon completion of a service, so as to maximize the system throughput or equivalently minimize the mean waiting time of an alert in the system. The throughput is defined as the number of messages/alerts serviced on average in unit time.