A vision-based method for parachute morphology and motion parameters measurement

The parachute recovery system requires continuous improvement to meet the increasingly stringent performance requirements. Measuring parachute morphology and motion parameters during descent is essential for parachute performance and stability analysis. This paper presents a vision-based method for measuring the morphology and motion parameters of parachutes and designs a self-observing system for parachute testing. The system employs four synchronized cameras, with two cameras capturing the performance of the parachute during its operation, and the other two estimating the 6D pose of the load. By integrating the data from four synchronized cameras, we can achieve a more accurate and comprehensive understanding of the parachute’s working condition during descent. Through the accuracy verification experiments and outfield airdrop experiments, the system is verified to have high measurement accuracy and practicability. The experiments show that the RMSE of the feature point location of the parachute measured by our method is 2.78 mm.