Comparison of Low-Cost Real-Time Processing Platforms for the Development of Small Unmanned Aerial Vehicles Avionics

The use of low-cost digital processing platforms for small and micro unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) has gained recent attention by the research and education communities. In particular, the development of novel real-time control schemes for small and micro UAVs has specific requirements which have to be directly addressed in order to warrant the vehicle integrity. In this article the evaluation and comparison of two popular low-cost digital processing platforms is presented. The comparison is made through the measurement of the real-world capabilities of each platform, evaluating the time consumed in the development and implementation of new algorithms using these platforms.