Aerial cooperative transporting and assembling control using multiple quadrotor–manipulator systems

In this paper, a fully distributed control scheme for aerial cooperative transporting and assembling is proposed using multiple quadrotor–manipulator systems with each quadrotor equipped with a robotic manipulator. First, the kinematic and dynamic models of a quadrotor with multi-Degree of Freedom (DOF) robotic manipulator are established together using Euler–Lagrange equations. Based on the aggregated dynamic model, the control scheme consisting of position controller, attitude controller and manipulator controller is presented. Regarding cooperative transporting and assembling, multiple quadrotor–manipulator systems should be able to form a desired formation without collision among quadrotors from any initial position. The desired formation is achieved by the distributed position controller and attitude controller, while the collision avoidance is guaranteed by an artificial potential function method. Then, the transporting and assembling tasks request the manipulators to reach the desired angles cooperatively, which is achieved by the distributed manipulator controller. The overall stability of the closed-loop system is proven by a Lyapunov method and Matrosov's theorem. In the end, the proposed control scheme is simplified for the real application and then validated by two formation flying missions of four quadrotors with 2-DOF manipulators.     

基于SO(3)的多四旋翼无人机编队协同控制

针对多四旋翼无人机系统的编队飞行问题,提出了基于特殊正交群SO(3)的协同控制设计方法.在给出编队空间队形和通信拓扑描述后,建立了多四旋翼无人机系统SO(3)控制模型.由于SO(3)与传统俯仰/偏航/滚转三通道模型具有不同的结构,文中进一步研究了SO(3)中无人机之间相对误差的表示方法,设计了适用于多飞行器的SO(3)控制器实现对编队和姿态的协同控制.推力控制器用于调节无人机的位置与速度,并在此基础上构造旋转矩阵形式的姿态协同指令.文中相应设计了SO(3)姿态控制器用于实现指令跟踪,最后从理论上对协同稳定性进行了分析.提出的控制方法能够使得多四旋翼无人机形成期望的队形,并且保持姿态一致进行稳定飞行.仿真结果验证了本文方法的有效性.     

Leader-follower finite-time formation control of multiple quadrotors with prescribed performance

This paper investigates the leader-follower formation problem for a group of quadrotors. Finite-time control scheme and prescribed performance control method, which are regarded as two highlights, are introduced in this paper. First, a control scheme with prescribed performance is used to control the translational movements to ensure the quadrotors obtain a relative gentle transient process and an adjustable steady-state error bound. Then, the desired orientations for the rotation subsystem provided by translational movements part are stabilised by a fixed-time control law. Finally, by designing a finite-time formation controller, followers can track the desired position and heading angle in finite time, which is important for the practical application. Several simulation results are given to show the effectiveness of the designed control strategy.     

Quaternion-based robust trajectory tracking control for uncertain quadrotors

This paper presents a robust nonlinear controller design approach for uncertain quadrotors to implement trajectory tracking missions. The quaternion representation is applied to describe the rotational dynamics in order to avoid the singularity problem existing in the Euler angle representation. A nonlinear robust controller is proposed, which consists of an attitude controller to stabilize the rotational motions and a position controller to control translational motions. The quadrotor dynamics involves uncertainties such as parameter uncertainties, nonlinearities, and external disturbances and their effects on closed-loop control system can be guaranteed to be restrained. Simulation results on the quadrotor demonstrate the effectiveness of the designed control approach.     

基于图论法的四旋翼三角形结构编队控制

针对四旋翼无人机编队控制,提出了一种基于图论法的四旋翼三角形结构编队.本文将四旋翼无人机编队整体视为一幅有向图,四旋翼为有向图中的点,四旋翼间的距离及通讯状态为有向图的边;结合Leader-Follower理论,通过相应的距离反馈控制律对领航者和跟随者设计不同的控制策略;进而使三架四旋翼无人机彼此间相对的距离收敛到一个稳定的值,最终形成一个固定的三角形结构编队.仿真研究和结果验证了本文提出编队控制策略的有效性和优越性.     

推力矢量可倾转四旋翼自抗扰飞行控制方法

针对常规四旋翼难以实现位置和姿态独立控制问题, 研究了一种具有全向推力矢量的可倾转四旋翼飞行 器系统. 为克服系统的大范围不确定性、强耦合性及外部风扰影响, 设计了基于自抗扰控制(ADRC)技术的飞行控 制器. 通过建立风扰下的系统动力学模型, 分析阵风对旋翼气动力的影响. 接着将系统解耦为六通道单回路结构并 分别设计自抗扰控制器, 引入扩张状态观测器估计系统的内外扰动, 利用非线性状态误差反馈律输出扰动补偿控 制. 在此基础上, 通过变量代换线性化控制分配矩阵, 将控制器输出直接映射到旋翼转速和倾转角. 仿真结果表明, 所设计的自抗扰飞行控制器具有良好的位置和姿态独立控制能力, 能够有效地估计和补偿紊流风扰动, 同时对系统 的部分动力失效故障有较强的鲁棒性.     

四旋翼无人飞行器的轨迹跟踪与滑模事件驱动控制

四旋翼飞行器作为一个典型的欠驱动的系统,具有强耦合、非线性等特性.针对飞行器外部干扰、和通信资源受限条件下的轨迹跟踪控制问题,进行滑模事件驱动控制方法的研究.首先,分析动力学特性,通过时间尺度分解方法将系统解耦成位置子系统和姿态子系统.其次,将位置子系统转化为严格反馈形式,设计反步滑模控制器,实现位置轨迹稳定跟踪;针对姿态子系统存在时变有界扰动及通信受限,设计滑模事件驱动控制律,在抑制干扰的同时实现对虚拟姿态跟踪指令的跟踪.根据Lyapunov分析方法证明了所设计控制器的稳定性,并通过理论分析证明闭环控制系统不会出现Zeno现象.最后,仿真结果验证了滑模事件驱动控制律在存在外部扰动和通信受限时四旋翼无人飞行器轨迹跟踪的鲁棒性.     

具有执行器故障的四旋翼无人机自适应预定性能控制

针对具有执行器故障的四旋翼无人机,提出一种自适应预定性能控制方案.首先,基于内环姿态控制及外环位置控制的双闭环控制策略,将无人机系统解耦为位置子系统和姿态子系统;其次,设计自适应控制方案,对存在的执行器故障参数进行自适应估计,有效地解决了执行器故障下无人机稳定控制问题;然后,提出一种预定性能控制策略,保证系统的暂稳态性能满足预先给定的性能指标;最后,通过仿真实例验证所提出方法的有效性.     

具有时变扰动的四旋翼无人机有限时间预定性能控制

针对外界扰动、模型不确定性以及输出误差约束情况下的四旋翼无人机轨迹跟踪问题,提出有限时间预定性能控制策略.首先,将无人机动力学模型解耦为姿态子系统和位置子系统;其次,引入误差转换函数和性能约束函数,通过合理设计快速终端滑模面,实现转换误差有限时间收敛,从而实现原系统输出误差约束控制;进一步,通过稳定性分析可以得出所设计的控制器能够保证系统有限时间稳定,并且具有良好的暂稳态性能;最后,通过实例仿真验证所设计方法的有效性。     

Distributed finite‐time formation control for multiple quadrotors via local communications

This paper investigates finite‐time formation tracking control problem for multiple quadrotors with external disturbance. The states of the virtual leader are not available to all the followers and the network topology is described by a directed graph. The model of each quadrotor is divided into position subsystem and attitude subsystem. Firstly, novel distributed finite‐time state observers are designed to estimate the relative state errors between followers and the virtual leader. Secondly, the values of these observers are used to design controllers that achieve finite‐time robust coordinated tracking in the position subsystem. Thirdly, the terminal sliding mode disturbance observers and finite‐time attitude tracking controllers are proposed, respectively, in the attitude subsystem to estimate the external disturbance and achieve attitude tracking control. The finite‐time stability analysis of the control algorithms is carried out using the Lyapunov theory and the homogeneous technique. Finally, the efficiency of the proposed algorithm is illustrated by numerical simulations.     

Model‐assisted extended state observer and dynamic surface control–based trajectory tracking for quadrotors via output‐feedback mechanism

In this paper, an output‐feedback trajectory tracking controller for quadrotors is presented by integrating a model‐assisted extended state observer (ESO) with dynamic surface control. The quadrotor dynamics are described by translational and rotational loops with lumped disturbances to promote the hierarchical control design. Then, by exploiting the structural property of the quadrotor, a model information–assisted high‐order ESO that relies only on position measurements is designed to estimate not only the unmeasurable states but also the lumped disturbances in the rotational loop. In addition, to account for the problem of “explosion of complexity” inherent in hierarchical control, the output feedback–based trajectory tracking and attitude stabilization laws are respectively synthesized by utilizing dynamic surface control and the corresponding estimated signals provided by the ESO. The stability analysis is given, showing that the output‐feedback trajectory tracking controller can ensure the ultimate boundedness of all signals in the closed‐loop system and make the tracking errors arbitrarily small. Finally, flight simulations with respect to an 8‐shaped trajectory command are performed to verify the effectiveness of the proposed scheme in obtaining the stable and accurate trajectory tracking using position measurements only.     

输出误差约束下四旋翼无人机预定性能反步控制

针对外界干扰和输出误差约束条件下的四旋翼无人机的跟踪控制问题,提出预定性能反步跟踪控制策略.首先,将四旋翼无人机动力学模型转换为带有外界干扰的严反馈形式;然后,利用反步法设计控制器,通过引入障碍Lyapunov函数保证跟踪误差的预定性能,设计干扰观测器对外界干扰进行估计,并通过滤波器估计姿态子系统中部分虚拟控制输入的导数;通过稳定性分析说明所设计的控制器可以保证跟踪误差的有界稳定性,且跟踪误差一直处于预设边界内;最后,通过仿真验证所设计控制策略的有效性.     

分布式多无人机的时变编队非线性控制设计

研究了基于分布式通信网络的多无人机时变编队控制问题,考虑到外界扰动对多无人机协同编队系统的影响,提出一种新的连续非线性鲁棒编队控制方法.首先基于一致性方法构造了分布式无人机编队误差系统,降低了编队控制器对全局编队信息的要求;然后采用一种基于误差符号函数积分的鲁棒控制算法补偿未知外界扰动的影响,提高了无人机编队系统的鲁棒性,并基于Lyapunov分析的方法,证明了多无人机编队误差的半全局渐进收敛性;最后在四旋翼无人机编队实验平台上进行了多无人机时变编队的实时实验验证,实验结果表明,所提出的分布式编队控制算法可以实现多无人机时变编队控制,且具有较好的协同性能和抗干扰能力.     

Distributed Formation Control of Quadrotor UAVs Based on Rotation Matrices without Linear Velocity Feedback

This paper considers the problem of the formation control for multiple underactuated quadrotor UAVs without linear velocity measurements. The objective of this paper is expected to realize smooth formation performances for a quadrotor group. A distributed formation controller is designed directly using rotation matrices to obviate the singularities associated with the Euler-angles or the ambiguity of quaternions. A two-step procedure is adopted for the control development after transforming the dynamics of each quadrotor into a new form. At first, an intermediary control variable is introduced to achieve the formation control, where some auxiliary systems are designed in the presence of lacking linear velocity measurements. Then, based on the thrust force and reference angular velocity decoded from the intermediary control variable, the torque input of each quadrotor is proposed for angular velocity tracking. The case of formation control with a virtual leader is also investigated, where at least one quadrotor has the information of the leader. The asymptotic stability of the proposed control system is analyzed by Lyapunov-like tools, and the effectiveness of the proposed control method is verified by simulation studies. The simulation results show that the proposed method can guide the quadrotor group to form the desired formation smoothly without linear velocity feedback, which has great potentials for the UAV group to execute the challenging mission in hostile environments.

     

垂直起降无人机基于图像的目标跟踪控制

针对安装有惯性测量单元和摄像机的低成本四旋翼无人机,研究无位置、速度、航向测量情况下的机动目标基于图像的跟踪控制方法.首先,结合无人机的动力学方程在图像空间中推导了系统的误差方程.其次,为克服无航向测量的问题,设计了一种位置控制器,使用图像矩作为反馈输入并输出油门和姿态指令.最后,针对缺少图像速度测量问题,设计了一种super-twisting滑模观测器和控制器,生成的期望姿态和拉力指令无颤振,并通过李雅普诺夫理论证明了控制系统的稳定性.最终无人机通过调整倾斜姿态实现了跟踪飞行,且避免了响应慢的航向调整.跟踪机动目标的仿真结果验证了所提出方法的有效性.     

基于一致性的小型四旋翼机群自主编队分布式运动规划

设计一种小型四旋翼无人机群起飞后自主形成正多边形编队的分布式运动规划方法.在四旋翼无人机的串级控制系统框架下,分布式编队控制器以简化agent模型为基础,同时采用平均一致性算法和有领导一致性算法,共同产生各无人机位置与偏航角的期望轨迹.讨论了达成最终协调目标队形的拓扑条件,并给出一种基于有向Hamilton环的通信拓扑设计方案.最后通过数值仿真验证了所提出算法的有效性.     

Nonlinear robust adaptive hierarchical sliding mode control approach for quadrotors

This paper exploits a nonlinear robust adaptive hierarchical sliding mode control approach for quadrotors subject to thrust constraint and inertial parameter uncertainty to accomplish trajectory tracking missions. Because of under‐actuated nature of the quadrotor, a hierarchical control strategy is available; and position and attitude loop controllers are synthesized according to adaptive sliding mode control projects, where adaptive updates with projection algorithm are developed to ensure bounded estimations for uncertain inertial parameters. Further, during the position loop controller development, an auxiliary dynamic system is introduced, and selection criteria for controller parameters are established to maintain the thrust constraint and to ensure the non‐singular requirement of command attitude extraction. It has demonstrated that, the asymptotically stable trajectory tracking can be realized by the asymptotically stable cascaded closed‐loop system and auxiliary dynamic system. Simulations validate and highlight the proposed control approach. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Dynamic modeling and nonlinear tracking control of a novel modified quadrotor

In this article, a nonlinear tracking controller is designed based on Lyapunov stability for a novel aerial robot. The proposed 6‐rotor configuration improves stability and payload lifting capacity of the robot compared with conventional quadrotors while avoiding further complexities in the robot dynamics and steering principles. The dynamical model of the robot is derived using Newton‐Euler method. The model represents a nonlinear, coupled, and underactuated system. The proposed control strategy includes 2 main parts: an attitude controller and a position controller. Both the attitude and position controls are Lyapunov‐based nonlinear tracking controllers that guarantee the asymptotic convergence of the states' tracking errors to zero. Simulation results are presented to illustrate appropriate performance of the closed‐loop system in terms of position/attitude tracking even in the presence of wind disturbance.     

饱和输入下四旋翼无人机滑模轨迹跟踪控制

为解决四旋翼无人机在饱和输入下的轨迹跟踪控制问题,同时兼顾系统存在的参数不确定性和外部风力扰动影响,设计了一种改进的抗干扰自适应鲁棒滑模控制方法;基于六自由度架构,设计四旋翼无人机简化的系统模型,进而降低控制器设计的复杂程度;引入带有误差信号的滑模函数,设计带有误差信号的饱和补偿自适应控制律,同时增加鲁棒控制项,降低由于饱和输入问题带来的抖振影响,并减小参数不确定和外部风力扰动对系统稳定性的影响;系统模型与抗干扰自适应控制律相结合,形成了改进的抗干扰自适应鲁棒滑模控制策略,实现四旋翼无人机的位置轨迹和姿态轨迹的稳定跟踪;最后通过数值仿真与传统PD控制算法进行仿真比较,验证控制方法的有效性和优越性。