An Approach for Power Optimization of Tethered UAV

Abstract

This research paper addresses the power optimization problem of a tethered quadcopter for mini payload long time hovering is expected. Tethered quadcopters are unmanned aerial vehicles with ability of vertical takeoffs, landings and hovering at a desired location. Since the vehicle is tethered, it has no flight time restrictions that the battery operated unmanned aerial vehicle has, and so suitable for long time uninterrupted applications. In already existing tethered UAV's the power consumption is not optimum due to the lack of proper knowledge about the power parameters like voltage, current and throttle level. So we concentrated on finding the optimum value of parameters to be fed to the quadcopter for a particular payload value. I. Introduction Unmanned Aerial Vehicles are used in many research applications in scientific community. The use of battery powered unmanned aerial vehicles are quite common among hobby flyers and aerial photographers. The main problem with battery operated aerial vehicle is its flight time. A tethered UAV is capable of solving this issue. The word tethered means tied to a rope or more making restricting the movements. A tethered UAV consists of all the basic components a normal UAV needs except an onboard power source. Tethered UAV serves as an in-the -air platform for many applications while the power required for motors to generate lift is supplied by the external power source. Though the movements of such a UAV are restricted, it can be applied on long endurance required applications such as Surveillance, communication etc. The power supply for such a system is given by a UPS assembly which is capable of varying its output voltage and current depending upon load. Garuda Aerospace has designed and developed a tethered UAV, a quadcopter with the specifications detailed in this paper.