A Compiler Framework for Proactive UAV Regulation Enforcement
Huaxin Tang, John Henry Burns, Alexander Strong, Yu David Liu · 2024
In the rapidly evolving landscape of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), regulation enforcement is critical. Unfortunately, existing practices are largely manual and reactive in nature. We present Themis1, a novel compiler-directed approach for automated and proactive regulation enforcement. By expressing regulations through a specification language and integrating their enforcement into the compilation process, Themis enables safe and regulation-compliant UAV flights by enforcing prohibited and restricted areas, avoiding flights over humans, and managing maximum limits of altitude and speed. Our framework features a bidirectional interface that allows the concrete algorithms used for enforcement to be customized. Our evaluation shows Themis-compiled autopilots can adhere to regulatory constraints amidst complex flight conditions, while significantly reducing the burden of UAV operators.