Mechanical model and control of an autonomous small size helicopter with a stiff main rotor

Journal of Field Robotics

Maza

et al. 2011

333

159

It is generally accepted that systems composed of multiple aerial robots with autonomous cooperation capabilities can assist responders in many search and rescue (SAR) scenarios.In most of the previous research work, the aerial robots are mainly considered as platforms for environmental sensing and have not been used to assist victims. In this paper, outdoors field experiments of transportation and accurate deployment of loads, with single/multiple autonomous aerial vehicles are presented. This is a novel feature that opens the possibility to use aerial robots to assist victims during the rescue phase operations. cooperative sensing, using several different sensor types. The system supports several forms of cooperative actuation as well, ranging from the cooperative deployment of small sensors/objects to the coupled transportation of slung loads.Within this paper the complete system is described, outlining the used hardware and software framework, as well as the used approaches for modeling and control. Additionally, the results of several flight field experiments are presented, including the description of the worldwide first successful autonomous load transportation experiment, using three coupled small size helicopters (conducted in December 2007). During these experiments strong steady winds and wind gusts were present. Various solutions and lessons learned from the design and operation of the system are also provided.

Section: Modelingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Controller Designmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The details of the presented control algorithms can be found in (Kondak et al, 2006;Kondak et al, 2007;Bernard and Kondak, 2009;Bernard and Kondak, 2010).…”

Section: Controller Designmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Autonomous transportation and deployment with aerial robots for search and rescue missions

Bernard

Journal of Field Robotics

Maza

et al. 2011

333

159

“…The key element is the orientation controller in the inner loop. The rotation dynamics for a single helicopter, represented by two rigid bodies for the fuselage and the main rotor, can be expressed (see Kondak et al (2006)) by the following equations: Block D in Fig. 5 only accounts for the rotational dynamic of the manipulator without an arm.…”

Section: Orientation Controllermentioning

confidence: 99%

Closed-Loop Behavior of an Autonomous Helicopter Equipped with a Robotic Arm for Aerial Manipulation Tasks

International Journal of Advanced Robotic Systems

Krieger

Albu-Schäffer

et al. 2013

This paper is devoted to the control of aerial robots interacting physically with objects in the environment and with other aerial robots. The paper presents a controller for the particular case of a smallscaled autonomous helicopter equipped with a robotic arm for aerial manipulation. Two types of influences are imposed on the helicopter from a manipulator: coherent and non-coherent influence. In the former case, the forces and torques imposed on the helicopter by the manipulator change with frequencies close to those of the helicopter movement. The paper shows that even small interaction forces imposed on the fuselage periodically in proper phase could yield to low frequency instabilities and oscillations, so-called phase circles.

A Slung Load Transportation System Based on Small Size Helicopters

Bernard

Autonomous Systems – Self-Organization, Management, and Control

Hommel

2008

The paper surveys a slung load transportation system using small size helicopters. Some typical real world applications are presented and the problems arising from the attachment of slung loads to the helicopter fuselage are discussed. An overview of the existing solutions to these problems is given and a new approach developed in our group for slung load transportation using one or multiple coupled small size helicopter is presented. Possible application for slung load systems composed of one or multiple helicopters are discussed.