Experimental Validation of an Effective Control Mechanism to Enable Flapping Wing Rotor Stable Flight

Abstract

Design and implementation of an effective control mechanism is the key to enable the controlled flight of flapping wing rotor micro aerial vehicles (FWR-MAVs). In order to address this open challenge, in this paper, a triple-wing FWR-MAV with its particular control system is proposed. The corresponding experimental study of the vehicle is conducted. As a result, the triple-wing propulsion system demonstrates advantages in both lift generation and flight stability based on the force measurement. The control torques of the proposed FWR-MAV are generated by a particular slip flow rudder mechanism. The effectiveness of such a design combination has been validated experimentally. A series of flight tests are conducted, including sustained hovering and forward-backward maneuvering. To the best of our knowledge, such a design yields the world’s first FWR-MAV capable of sustained controlled flight.