Airplane attitude estimation using computer vision: simple method and actual experiments

The development, implementation, and validation of a simple algorithm for airplane attitude estimation, based on a video of the horizon obtained from a camera mounted on the plane, is presented. The method provides absolute attitude estimation, which makes it suitable for the calibration and testing of artificial horizon systems. Solutions for some of the difficulties encountered in the determination of roll and pitch angles are discussed and presented. Experimental results from actual flights in a light aircraft are used to compare estimates obtained by the proposed method with data obtained from a commercial attitude reference system.