On the design of rotorcraft landing controllers

Abstract

This paper describes a solution to the problem of landing a helicopter autonomously. The methodology used poses the problem as a discrete time path following control problem where a conveniently defined error state space model of the helicopter is modified to include the aerodynamic effects of flying within close proximity to the ground. An affine parameter-dependent model representation is adopted that describes the helicopter linearized error dynamics for the predefined landing operating region. A state feedback H2 control problem for affine parameter-dependent systems is posed and solved using Linear Matrix Inequalities (LMIs). The resulting nonlinear controller is implemented using the D-methodology and dynamic weights to enforce bandwidth constraints on the actuators. The effectiveness of the proposed controller with and without dynamic weights on the actuation is assessed in simulation using the full nonlinear dynamic model of a small-scale helicopter.