Robust Nonlinear Control of BLDC Motor in Quadcopter Applications

Abstract

This paper describes the development of a nonlinear closed loop motor control system for a quadcopter micro-unmanned aerial vehicle (micro-UAV) platform. Research groups have analyzed the performance of brushless direct current (BLDC) motors with nonlinear effects in various applications, focusing on areas such as friction’s effect on position. This paper analyzes the nonlinear effects of BLDC motors on speed when these motors are used in quadcopter flying robots. Notably, to account for nonlinear torque from the aerodynamic forces on a quadcopter rotor, a Control Lyapunov Function (CLF) approach is used in designing a stable feedback control system. The paper also explains the custom model and simulation of the system built in MATLAB/Simulink used to demonstrate and quantify the successful performance of the design. KEYWORDS: Control Lyapunov Function; Micro-Unmanned Aerial Vehicle; Aerial Robotics; Quadcopters; Nonlinear Motor Control