Abstract
This paper describes a model preditictive control scheme for the horizontal flight guidance of an unmanned powered paraglider (PPG). These aircraft are characterized by their comparatively high wind-to-airspeed ratio and slow, nonlinear flight dynamics. The proposed control scheme consists of two cascaded loops: The inner loop is the heading controller, which is implemented using conventional feedback control; the outer loop controls the horizontal flight path and is implemented using a model predictive controller. Due to the high wind-to-airspeed ratio, wind needs to be taken into account during prediction. To this end, we adopt a simple and robust wind estimation, based only on inertial velocities and heading information. To solve the computationally demanding nonlinear, constrained optimization problem we use a domain-specific heuristic enabling the implementation on a microcontroller. The control scheme is validated using simulations and flight tests, demonstrating good, reproducible flight path following capabilities.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Astrom KJ, Wittenmark B (2008) Adaptive control, 2 edn. Dover Publications, New York
Cumer C, Toussaint C, Le Moing T, Poquillon E, Coquet Y (2012) Simulation of generic dynamics flight equations of a parafoil/payload system. In: 2012 20th mediterranean conference on control & automation (MED)
Grüne L, Pannek J (2011) Nonlinear model predictive control. Springer, London
Hur G, Valasek J (2003) System identification of powered parafoil-vehicle from flight test data. In: AIAA atmospheric fligth mechanics conference and exhibit
Jann T (2001) Aerodynamic model identification and GNC design for the parafoil-load system ALEX. In: 16th AIAA aerodynamic decelerator systems technology conference and seminar
Joos A, Fichter W (2011) Parallel implementation of constrained nonlinear model predictive controller for an FPGA-Based onboard flight computer. Springer, Berlin
Ochi Y, Kondo H, Watanabe M (2009) Linear dynamics and PID flight control of a powered paraglider. In: AIAA guidance, navigation and control conference
Rogers RM, et al. (2002) Aerodynamic parameter estimation for controlled parachutes. In: AIAA atmospheric flight mechanics conference and exhibit
Rossiter JA (2003) Model-based predictive control. Taylor & Francis Inc., London
Slegers N, Costello M (2005) Model predictive control of a parafoil and payload system. J Guid Control Dyn 28(4)
Slegers N, Kyle J, Costello M (2006) Nonlinear model predictive control technique for unmanned air vehicles. J Guid Control Dyn, vol 29
Slegers N, Brown A, Rogers J (2015) Experimental investigation of stochastic parafoil guidance using a graphics processing unit. Control Eng Pract, vol: 36
Toglia C, Vendittelli M (2010) Modeling and motion analysis of autonomous paragliders. Department of computer and system sciences Antonio Ruberti technical reports, 2(5)
Watanabe M, Ochi Y (2007) Modeling and motion analysis for a powered paraglider (ppg). In: SICE, 2007 annual conference, IEEE, pp 3007–3012
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2018 Springer International Publishing AG
About this paper
Cite this paper
Binz, F., Hartmann, P., Moormann, D. (2018). Nonlinear Model Predictive Flight Path Control for an Unmanned Powered Paraglider. In: Dołęga, B., Głębocki, R., Kordos, D., Żugaj, M. (eds) Advances in Aerospace Guidance, Navigation and Control. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-65283-2_20
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-65283-2_20
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-65282-5
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-65283-2
eBook Packages: EngineeringEngineering (R0)