The Kuhn-Munkres algorithm for efficient vertical takeoff of UAV swarms

The field of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) is gaining momentum thanks to the amazing capabilities of these flying devices. In particular, small aircrafts using vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) are among the preferred solutions in the civilian sector thanks to their low cost, simplicity of operation, and the ability to carry powerful sensing devices. When combined to create a swarm, the potential of such UAVs is further extended by allowing to perform more complex missions efficiently. However, as the number of UAVs involved becomes higher, many issues arise that can result into mission failures. In this paper, we specifically address the swarm takeoff problem from an optimization perspective. We propose a new takeoff scheme based on the Munkres algorithm that solves the assignment problem in polynomial time. Our evaluation studies the taking off complexity of large swarms and analyze the computational and quality trade-off of our proposal. Experiments show that the Munkres algorithm offers optimal solution with a low computation overhead.