Design Of Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Research Articles

Design and Control of a Novel Coaxial Tilt-Rotor UAV

In this article, the design and control of a new coaxial tilt-rotor unmanned aerial vehicle (CTRUAV) are presented. The CTRUAV is an electric-powered unmanned aerial vehicle with a special configuration, which is composed of two pairs of tiltable coaxial rotors and a rear rotor. A CTRUAV prototype has been designed by 3-D computer-aided design software and constructed according to the designing scheme. The dynamic model of a CTRUAV is derived by utilizing the Euler–Lagrange equation, which considers the special features of the coaxial rotors and air drag forces on the CTRUAV. An adaptive controller is developed to realize motion control for the CTRUAV. The adaptive controller includes two subcontrollers: an inner-loop attitude controller and an outer-loop velocity controller. The stability of the resulting closed-loop CTRUAV system is analyzed via the Lyapunov method. Finally, several simulations and real experimental tests are implemented to validate the effectiveness of the developed CTRUAV system.

Energy-Efficient Trajectory Optimization for UAV-Assisted IoT Networks

In this paper, we propose and study an energy-efficient trajectory optimization scheme for unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) assisted Internet of Things (IoT) networks. In such networks, a single UAV is powered by both solar energy and charging stations (CSs), resulting in sustainable communication services, while avoiding energy outage. In particular, we optimize the trajectory design of UAV by jointly considering the average data rate, the total energy consumption, and the fairness of coverage for the IoT terminals. A dynamic spatial-temporal configuration scheme is operated for terminals working in the discontinuous reception (DRX) mode. The module-free, action-confined on-policy and off-policy reinforcement learning (RL) approaches are proposed and jointly applied to solve the formulated optimization problem in this paper. We evaluate the effectiveness of the proposed strategy by comparing it with other dynamic benchmark algorithms. The extensive simulation results provided in this paper reveal that the proposed scheme outperforms the benchmarks in terms of data transmission, energy efficiency and adaptivity of avoiding battery depletion. By deploying the proposed trajectory scheme, the UAV is able to adapt itself according to the temporal and dynamic conditions of communication networks.

A Modular Multirotor Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Design Approach for Development of an Engineering Education Platform.

The development of multirotor unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) has enabled a vast number of applications. Since further market growth is expected in the future it is important that modern engineers be familiar with these types of mechatronic systems. In this paper, a comprehensive mathematical description of a multirotor UAV, with various configuration parameters, is given. A modular design approach for the development of an educational multirotor platform is proposed. Through the stages of computer-aided design and rapid prototyping an experimental modular multirotor (EMMR) platform is presented. Open-source control system and a novel EMMR enable students to create and test control algorithms for various multirotor configurations. The presented EMMR platform is suitable for students to expand their educational objectives in aerial robotics and control theory.

Joint Mechanical Design and Flight Control Optimization of a Nature-Inspired Unmanned Aerial Vehicle via Collaborative Co-Evolution

In this work, a collaborative co-evolution approach is adopted to solve a joint physical design and feedback control optimization problem of a nature-inspired Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV). Unlike traditional multirotors and fixed-wing aircraft, lift is achieved by spinning its entire body with attached aerofoils around a central axis and positional control is attained through regulation of 2 sets of independent aerodynamic surfaces and thrusters. The collaborative co-evolution process consists of 2 `species,' the first consisting of the mechanical design variables and the second consisting of Proportional-Integral-Derivative (PID) and central pattern generator (CPG) controller variables. Each species have their own respective individual Evolutionary Algorithm (EA) solvers, Covariance Matrix Adaptation-Evolutionary Strategy (CMA-ES) and Parameter Exploring Policy Gradients (PEPG). In each optimization iteration, the parameters of one species is combined with representatives with the highest fitness from the other species and fed into a shared model for fitness evaluation, with each species taking turns to send a representative. Detailed performance comparison in trajectory tracking and power consumption between the proposed jointly optimized system against a design-only optimized, control-only optimized and unoptimized baseline were conducted. It was found that configurations with optimized designs would draw on average 18% less power than the non-optimized designs, and configurations with optimized controllers reduce error by 56% on average. The best performing configuration is the one with jointly optimized mechanical design and controller which outperforms all other configurations individually and collectively.

Altitude Control Design and Performance Validation for Unmanned Aerial Vehicle with a Single Ducted-Fan

In this paper, the authors propose a novel control method for altitude control of aerial vehicle by extending the sliding mode law with fuzzy law and feedback control (F-SMFC). The key issue in the sliding mode control method is to suppress the chattering phenomenon. By providing a new control strategy, the solutions of the problems such as governing the chattering phenomenon and arbitrarily exploiting the numeric control by the fuzzy law were obtained. Also, it was shown that the F-SMFC method can cope with the unknown physical parameter of the system. The proposed control method was applied to the altitude control of the single ducted-fan unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV). Both simulation and experimental results were demonstrated to validate effectiveness and satisfactory performances of the proposed controller.

Primary parameters design method for distributed electric propulsion unmanned aerial vehicle

Distributed electric propulsion technology brings new ideas to the design of unmanned aerial vehicle(UAV), such as improving aerodynamic efficiency and propulsive efficiency, and new concept of vertical/short takeoff and landing configurations. However, compared with conventional UAV, the propulsion system of distributed electric propulsion UAV is more complex, which brings difficulties and challenges to the design of distributed electric propulsion UAV. Based on its special aerodynamic/propulsive coupling characteristics, this paper studies the design method and process of primary parameters of distributed electric propulsion UAV. A short takeoff and landing UAV with distributed electric propulsion system is taken as an example for the conceptual design and primary parameter design, and the influence of design parameters on the takeoff mass and endurance is analyzed. Finally, the validity of the established design method is verified by the flight test of the prototype. Results indicate that the distributed electric propulsion system accounts for more than 20% of the takeoff mass; the electric ducted fan efficiency, mass specific power of the motor, mass specific power of the electronic speed controller and the resistivity of power wires are the most significant design parameters that affect the performance of the UAV; with the improvement of technologies, the takeoff mass is expected to be reduced by more than 20%, and the endurance is expected to be increased by more than three times.

Design and Implementation of a Mechatronic System for Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVS)

The design and implementation of mechatronic systems for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) have gained significant attention in recent years. Mechatronics combines mechanical, electrical, and computer engineering principles to create integrated systems with enhanced functionality and performance. This paper presents a comprehensive study on the design and implementation of a mechatronic system specifically tailored for UAVs, with a focus on improving their flight capabilities, autonomy, and overall operational efficiency.The development of UAVs has revolutionized various industries, including aerial surveillance, disaster management, agriculture, and delivery services. However, there are several challenges associated with their design and operation. This research aims to address these challenges by proposing a mechatronic system that integrates advanced sensing, actuation, and control technologies. This research presents a comprehensive approach to the design and implementation of a mechatronic system for UAVs. The integration of mechanical, electrical, and computer engineering principles enables the development of enhanced flight capabilities, autonomy, and operational efficiency. The proposed system addresses the challenges associated with UAV design and operation, making significant contributions to the field of unmanned aerial vehicles. Future work can focus on further optimizing the mechatronic system and exploring additional applications in different domains.

Decentralized sampled-data fuzzy controller design for a VTOL UAV

This study focuses on a sampled-data fuzzy decentralized tracking control problem for a quadrotor unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) under the variable sampling rate condition. To this end, the overall dynamics of the quadrotor is expressed as a decentralized Takagi–Sugeno (T–S) fuzzy model interconnected with each other. Although the proposed decentralized control technique divides the overall UAV control system into attitude and position subsystems, the stability of the entire control system is guaranteed. Besides, in this paper, the model uncertainty, interconnection, and reference trajectory are considered as disturbances acting on the tracking error. To attenuate these disturbances, a novel sampled-data tracking control design technique is derived based on a linear reference model to be tracked and the time-dependent Lyapunov–Krasovskii functional (LKF). By doing so, both the stability of the tracking error dynamics and the minimization of tracking performance are guaranteed. Also, the proposed tracking control design method is derived as a linear matrix inequality (LMI)-based optimal problem. Finally, a simulation example is provided to demonstrate the effectiveness and feasibility of the proposed design methodology.

Design of Dual Copter for Surveillance Applications

In this paper, an innovative design model of autonomous aerial vehicle is designed and fabricated with dual rotor setup. Nowadays, innovative unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are widely required for surveillance, monitoring, data collection, reconnaissance and generally in places where humans face hazardous. In this model and design of UAVs, aero dynamic principles are adopted through reasonable design considerations and assumptions. Most of the researchers and academicians are currently pursuing research on AVs with various structures, wing designs, fabrication methods, controllers and materials to increase the efficeincy as well as for various applications. In this proposed work, an effort is made to design and fabricate the dual copter with wide moving ranges for surveillance applications in military intelligence system. This proposed design will be suited for all environmental conditions to collect the data as well as monitoring the system. Dual copter chassis are fabricated using 3D printer after the validation and analysis the proposed design using Solidworks CAD tool. The chassis are fabricated with the provision of space where the required sensors, actuators and controllers can be assembled. Lithium polymer batteries are employed to achieve the better performance for copter. The fabricated setup is integrated with radio frequency controller to achieve the flight control through RF transmitter. Hence the performance of the fabricated device is validated and analyzed through various performance measures of dual copter.

Rationale for the type of unmanned aerial vehicle for trichogramma settlement

Annotation Purpose. Improving the quality of distribution of technological material on the field surface by substantiating the rational type of unmanned aerial vehicle. Methods. Analytical study of the design of unmanned aerial vehicles. Theoretical study of the movement of a particle of technological material. Results. The application of mineral fertilizers and plant protection products against pests by unmanned aerial vehicles is one of the most promising technologies today. Depending on the type of unmanned aerial vehicle, their advantages and disadvantages are determined, which directly affect the quality of the technological operation. Theoretical studies of the motion of a particle of technological material from the dosing and scattering device to the soil surface depending on the type of aircraft, which established the influence of air flows on the quality of distribution of technological material on the field surface. According to the results of field tests of the dosing and scattering device, the performance of the aircraft is determined depending on its type. Conclusions 1. An analysis of unmanned aerial vehicles has shown that multicopters and aircraft have both advantages and disadvantages. Aircraft have higher speed and performance, and multicopters have greater flight stabilization. 2. When applying technological material by multicopters, the quality of distribution is lower in comparison with airplanes due to squatting by air currents of propellers. 3. With increasing speed from 5 to 15 m/s at a height of 5 m, the width of the grip increased from 6 m to 7 m, which increased by 116.6 %. At a displacement of 15 m, the width of the grip increased by 125 %. 4. When changing the height of movement of the dosing and spreading device from 5 to 15 m at a speed of 5 m/s the width of capture increased from 6 m to 8 m, i.e. by 132.4 %, and at a speed of 15 m/s the width of capture increased from 7 m to 10 m, which corresponds to 141.6 %. 5. As a result of the industrial inspection of the dosing and scattering device for settling the trichogram, it was found that the productivity of the aircraft is 2 times higher compared to the multicopter, due to the speed and is 120 ha/h. Keywords: trichogramma settlement, agricultural multicopter, unmanned aerial vehicle, biological plant protection, settlement rate, capture width.

ОСОБЕННОСТИ ПРОЕКТИРОВАНИЯ АЭРОФОТОСЪЕМОЧНЫХ РАБОТ С БЕСПИЛОТНОГО ВОЗДУШНОГО СУДНА

The existing publicly available programs for the design of unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) flights assume an initial level of personnel training and do not provide for a detailed study of the aerial pho-tography project (APP) in terms of photogrammetric and visual (photographic) quality of photographic materials, requirements of regulatory documents for the accuracy of the final product. In order to achieve the topographic quality of the APP with UAV, it is necessary to take into account a number of its features. The paper considers the issues of determining the optimal duration of the aerial photog-raphy day and the effective image format when using interchangeable lenses. It also provides the rec-ommended procedure for calculating the parameters of the topographic APP, taking into account the data of the exposure triangle "shutter speed - aperture - photosensitivity (ISO)", requirements for the maximum quality and theoretical resolution of the "lens - digital image" system. The technique of de-termining the position of high-rise objects relative to the boundaries of the depth of field (DOF) at giv-en exposure parameters of the camera and the possibility of their correction is described. Based on the theoretical provisions, the author has developed a program that allows it possible to carry out the com-prehensive design of aerial photography works with UAVs, including consumer cameras to obtain re-sults of topographic quality. According to the results of the carried out research, it was concluded that an iterative approach to the design of APP parameters is necessary based on the data on shoot location, the customer's requirements for accuracy, the characteristics of the UAV, and the used photographic equipment.

Penetration Planning and Design Method of Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Inspired by Biological Swarm Intelligence Algorithm

Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are gradually used in logistics transportation. They are forbidden to fly in some airspace. To ensure the safety of UAVs, reasonable path planning and design is one of the key factors. Aiming at the problem of how to improve the success rate of unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) maneuver penetration, a method of UAV penetration path planning and design is proposed. Ant colony algorithm has strong path planning ability in biological swarm intelligence algorithm. Based on the modeling of UAV planning and threat factors, improved ant colony algorithm is used for UAV penetration path planning and design. It is proposed that the path with the best pheromone content is used as the planning path. Some principles are given for using ant colony algorithm in UAV penetration path planning. By introducing heuristic information into the improved ant colony algorithm, the convergence is completed faster under the same number of iteratives. Compared with classical methods, the total steps reduced by 56% with 50 ant numbers and 200 iterations. 62% fewer steps to complete the first iteration. It is found that the optimal trajectory planned by the improved ant colony algorithm is smoother and the shortest path satisfying the constraints.

Trans-Domain Amphibious Unmanned Platform Based on Coaxial Counter-Propellers: Design and Experimental Validation

The rapid evolution of the Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) industry has significantly increased interest in UAV design with trans-domain capabilities. It is still a major challenge to achieve miniaturization and enhance the maneuverability and underwater reliability of trans-domain UAVs. In this paper, a novel bullet shape Trans-Domain Amphibious Vehicle (TDAV) is proposed which achieves free trans-domain motion and has the advantages of small size, high maneuverability and high reliability for both rotary-wing UAV and Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV) operation. Compared with traditional amphibious machines, the TDAV design is streamlined and thus inherits the advantages of both the Bamboo Dragonfly and underwater AUVs. The proposed TDAV has a coaxial counter-propeller-tilting platform which satisfies the power and small diameter fuselage requirements, and the blades fold to reduce underwater drag and facilitate transportation. Further, a stable and efficient trans-domain attitude adjustment system is presented which effectively realizes trans-domain attitude switching. Based on the characteristics of the symmetric TDAV body, a rudder blade allocation algorithm is proposed to realize free movement in water. Finally, an improved particle swarm optimization algorithm is used to obtain suitable hierarchical fractional-order PID parameters. Both simulation and outdoor tests were performed and the results demonstrate that the proposed TDAV achieves outstanding performance in terms of lift altitude, trans-domain attitude switching time, and free trans-domain movement in both water and air.

Differentially flat trajectory generation and controller design for a quadrotor UAV

A control strategy of differentially flat trajectory generation and a backstepping controller for tracking the desired trajectory are developed for a quadrotor unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV). A glob...

Transceiver Design for Full-Duplex UAV Based Zero-Padded OFDM System With Physical Layer Security

In this paper, multi-antenna transceiver for zero-padded orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) system is designed at mmWave by integrating full-duplex unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) into the terrestrial cellular networks. Assuming that there exist no direct communication links between the ground base station (GBS) and the mobile users due to unexpected blockages from high storied buildings in urban area, the UAV applies decode-and-forward cooperative strategy on the received OFDM signals transmitted from GBS and re-transmits to the ground mobile users and passive eavesdropper. In this proposed system, intertwining logistic map (ILM)-cosine transform aided encryption algorithm combined with artificial noise enhancing physical layer security (PLS) is introduced. Also walsh-hadamard transform technique integrated with QR-decomposition based zero forcing (ZF) block diagonalization (QR-ZF-BD) precoding for multi-user interference reduction and non-iterative clipping and filtering technique for peak to average power ratio (PAPR) reduction are utilized. In addition, Low density parity check (LDPC) and repeat and accumulate (RA) channel coding with cholesky decomposition based ZF and minimum mean square error signal detection schemes for improved bit error rate (BER) are also introduced. Numerical results demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed system in terms of PLS for color image transmission at high order digital modulation (16-PSK and 16-QAM). At the complementary cumulative distribution function of probability level 1-6%, the estimated PAPR is found to have value of 6 dB.The three users achieve BER <inline-formula xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$= 1\times {10}^{-4}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> at signal-to-noise ratio of 1.5 dB, 4 dB and 6 dB under RA channel coding and 16-QAM digital modulation.

Solution Representation Learning in Multi-Objective Transfer Evolutionary Optimization

This paper presents a first study on solution representation learning for inducing greater alignment and hence positive transfers between distinct multi-objective optimization tasks that bear discrepancies in their original search spaces. We first establish a novel probabilistic model-based multi-objective transfer evolutionary optimization (TrEO) framework with solution representation learning, capable of activating positive transfers while simultaneously curbing the threat of negative transfers. In particular, well-aligned solution representations are learned via spatial transformations to handle mismatches in search space dimensionalities between distinct multi-objective problems, as well as to increase the overlap between their optimized search distributions. We then showcase different algorithmic instantiations and case studies of the proposed framework in applications spanning continuous as well as discrete optimization; illustrative examples include multi-objective engineering design and route planning of unmanned aerial vehicles. The experimental results show that our framework helps induce positive transfers by unveiling useful but hidden inter-task relationships, thus bringing about faster search convergence to solutions of high quality in multi-objective TrEO.

User involvement before the development of an indoor RPAS for the creative industries

This paper presents user needs and preferences gathered prior to the development of an indoor remotely piloted air system. A literature review was carried out to analyse previous studies about the involvement of users in the design of indoor unmanned aerial vehicles. Subsequently, the results of these user needs obtained from three focus groups held in European countries (Belgium, Spain and United Kingdom) are presented here. Through a content analysis of the information obtained in the focus groups, 40 codes and 4 variables were defined and used to examine the differences between types of users and their previous experience with drones. The literature review gave support to the results obtained through users’ involvement in the features to be included in a new unmanned aerial vehicle. Non-parametric tests and qualitative comparative analysis were used to analyse the information gathered in the focus groups. The results revealed few differences between artists working in creative industries and drone operators working for the creative industries. These differences affected features such as detecting and avoiding obstacles, which requires the inclusion of sensors. In addition, previous experience with drones was found to be a sufficient condition to explain greater concerns over safety, ethical and security issues in indoor environments.

Design of Patrol Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Based on MPU9250

To improve the attitude control accuracy of quadcopter UAVs, a patrol UAV with STM32 as the main controller and MPU9250 as the attitude detection module is designed in this paper. For attitude control part, a kind of attitude control algorithm which preprocesses by extended Kalman filter algorithm is designed and then a cascade PID control algorithm is adopted. The test flight results show that the UAV can achieve functions of lifting, rolling, pitching, yawing and hovering.

Three-Dimension Trajectory Design for Multi-UAV Wireless Network With Deep Reinforcement Learning

The effective trajectory design of multiple unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) is investigated for improving the capacity of the communication system. The aim is for maximizing real-time downlink capacity under the coverage constraint by reaping the mobility benefits of UAVs. The problem of three-dimension (3D) dynamic movement of UAVs under coverage constraint is formulated as a Constrained Markov Decision Process (CMDP) problem, while a constrained Deep Q-Network (cDQN) algorithm is proposed for solving the formulated problem. In the proposed cDQN model, each UAV acts as an agent to explore and learn its 3D deploying policy. The aim of the proposed cDQN model is for obtaining the maximum capacity while attempting to guarantee that all ground terminals (GTs) are covered. In order to satisfy the coverage constraint, a primal-dual method is adopted for training primal variable and dual variable (lagrangian multiplier) in turn. Furthermore, in an effort to reduce the action space of the cDQN algorithm, prior information is utilized for eliminating the invalid actions by the action filter. Experiment results demonstrate that the cDQN algorithm is capable of converging after some training steps. Additionally, the UAVs are capable of adapting the movement of GTs under the coverage constraint according to the 3D deploying policy derived from the proposed cDQN algorithm.

Design and field campaign validation of a multi-rotor unmanned aerial vehicle and optical particle counter

Abstract. Small unmanned aircraft (SUA) have the potential to be used as platforms for the measurement of atmospheric particulates. The use of an SUA platform for these measurements provides benefits such as high manoeuvrability, reusability, and low cost when compared with traditional techniques. However, the complex aerodynamics of an SUA – particularly for multi-rotor airframes – pose difficulties for accurate and representative sampling of particulates. The use of a miniaturised, lightweight optical particle instrument also presents reliability problems since most optical components in a lightweight system (for example laser diodes, plastic optics, and photodiodes) are less stable than their larger, heavier, and more expensive equivalents (temperature-regulated lasers, glass optics, and photomultiplier tubes). The work presented here relies on computational fluid dynamics with Lagrangian particle tracking (CFD–LPT) simulations to influence the design of a bespoke meteorological sampling system: the UH-AeroSAM. This consists of a custom-built airframe, designed to reduce sampling artefacts due to the propellers, and a purpose-built open-path optical particle counter (OPC) – the Ruggedised Cloud and Aerosol Sounding System (RCASS). OPC size distribution measurements from the UH-AeroSAM are compared with the cloud, aerosol, and precipitation spectrometer (CAPS) for measurements of stratus clouds during the Pallas Cloud Experiment (PaCE) in 2019. Good agreement is demonstrated between the two instruments. The integrated dN∕dlog (Dp) is shown to have a coefficient of determination of 0.8 and a regression slope of 0.9 when plotted 1:1.