Multiple Modeling and Fuzzy Switching Control of Fixed-Wing VTOL Tilt-Rotor UAV

Govdeli, Yunus; Tran, Anh Tuan; Kayacan, Erdal

Abstract

This paper presents a detailed aerodynamic modeling technique along with a fuzzy switching multi-model guidance and control strategy for a custom blended wing-body tilt-rotor unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV). The tilt-rotor configuration affects the overall aerodynamic characteristics significantly and hence, a comprehensive mathematical model is required. Thus, after a configuration selection and design process, a 6DOF mathematical model including a thrust model, propeller effects on the wings and free-stream aerodynamics is developed in this work. Due to a higher tendency of inherently unstable motion with increasing rotor angles and rapidly changing aerodynamic characteristics, multiple models are generated to cover the whole tilting regime. For the control of tilting motion, gain-scheduled flight controllers are preferred. While switching between the models, a fuzzy logic based algorithm is employed. The proposed technique is able to successfully control the aircraft for a full flight envelope from hover to landing. It is also evident from the results that, in the same tilting duration, the fuzzy switching algorithm helps the UAV to show a superior tracking performance when compared to the linear switching technique at a fixed tilting rate.

• Presentation Conference Type: Conference Paper (published)
• Conference Name: International Fuzzy Systems Association World Congress
• Start Date: Jun 18, 2019
• End Date: Jun 21, 2019
• Online Publication Date: Jun 11, 2019
• Publication Date: 2019
• Deposit Date: Nov 20, 2023
• Publisher: Springer
• Pages: 270-284
• Book Title: Fuzzy Techniques: Theory and Applications
• ISBN: 9783030219192
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-21920-8_25