Nonlinear Model Predictive Attitude Control for Fixed-Wing Unmanned Aerial Vehicle

Abstract

Exploiting the physical limitations on the maneuverability of a fixed-wing Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) and simultaneously respecting its flight envelope and actuator constraints is a demanding task, for which Nonlinear Model Predictive Control (NMPC) is well-suited. This paper presents an NMPC for attitude control of a fixed-wing UAV, which is based on the vehicle model in the wind-frame formulation and includes critical flight variables such as relative speed and angle of attack in its control objective and constraint formulation. The proposed controller is evaluated in a simulation study and compared against a set of conventional PID controllers.