Modeling, System Measurements and Controller Investigation of a Small Battery-Powered Fixed-Wing UAV

Abstract

In this paper, a complete set of nonlinear modeling and controller design process for a small electric fixed-wing unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) is presented. The nonlinear mathematical model and aerodynamic model of the small fixed-wing UAV are derived. The computational fluid dynamics (CFD) method was used to obtain the aerodynamic coefficients of the UAV, and the models of propulsion system components were established through experiments. Since the linearized and decoupled model of the fixed-wing UAV has a large error, a nonlinear model is established based on Simulink, which is utilized to design and verify the control algorithms. Based on the established nonlinear model, a stability controller, path following controller and path management controller of the aircraft are set up. The results indicate that system parameters of the aircraft can be quickly acquired and an efficient and practical model can be established by the methods. In addition, the controller designed and applied in this paper has good performance and small steady-state error, which can meet the basic flight mission requirements, including stability of flight attitude, path following and switching of different waypoints. These modeling and control methods can also be employed in other small battery-powered fixed-wing UAV projects.