Design and experimental testing of safe flight control system for novel vertical take-off and landing aircraft

Abstract

This paper describes the design and flight test of the control system of a novel octocopter with new topology to improve aerodynamic performance and efficiency. The article analyzes the advantages of the new configuration and analyzes the feasibility of the control method which can ensure fault-tolerant control when one rotor of the aircraft stops in theory. The feasibility verification is carried out through a prototype flight test. The power and hardware platform of the octocopter UAV was set up according to the requirements of structural and control system design. Flight tests were carried out multiple times, and the UAV’s redundant actuation was able to successfully stabilize the vehicle, even after a single rotor stopped functioning. Under normal flight conditions, smooth flight and effective control could be ensured for the UAV, while under the condition of a single rotor having stopped functioning, the control method was able to effectively utilize the other seven rotors to provide a proper lift force and to control the aircraft to perform basic motions such as pitch, roll, and yaw.