Improving Lidar Based Tracking of UAVs Using an Approach Based on Focusing

This paper presents a novel approach for detecting drones using a lidar sensor integrated on a robotic turret. The turret rotates allowing the sensor to scan the sky, and both hardware components communicate in real-time. When the lidar sensor detects a drone, the detection data is used to dynamically adjust the motion pattern of the turret, allowing the system to capture more data by orienting the lidar sensor towards the drone, eventually improving tracking accuracy thanks to the higher number of detections achieved in this manner. In this paper we also explore different motion patterns for the turret, comparing them on the field to track a drone using the built lidar-turret system.