Large foundation models empowering ummannod aerial vehicle intelligence: Progress, applications and perspectives

Large Foundation Models (LFMs), represented by large language models, vision language models, and vision foundation models, are driving a new wave of intelligent evolution for Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs). Focusing on this trend, the key characteristics and general capabilities of relevant models are first summarized, followed by a categorization of the mainstream embodied architectures driven by them. A comparison is conducted regarding the adaptability and trade-offs of different architectures within the high-dynamic and strongly constrained scenarios of UAVs. Secondly, an analysis is provided on how various LFMs reshape the four core functional elements of UAVs, including perception, planning, control, and interaction, through mechanisms such as open-world understanding, task-level semantic planning, embodied reasoning control, and multi-modal interaction. Furthermore, focusing on high-level cognitive functions driven by LFMs, the mechanisms, implementation pathways, technical limitations, and evaluation paradigms of reasoning, memory, reflection, and imagination in coping with complex UAV scenarios are discussed. The empowerment patterns and frontier progress of LFMs in four typical decision-making tasks are then summarized, including vision-language navigation, active target search, semantic delivery, and swarm intelligent coordination. Finally, core challenges regarding safety risks and protection mechanisms, engineering implementation, and edge deployment are discussed, envisioning future directions in efficient foundation intelligence, the perception-to-cognition transition, and ubiquitous industrial collaboration.