Vector Field Based Sliding Mode Control of Curved Path Following for Miniature Unmanned Aerial Vehicles in Winds

In this paper, a curved path following control algorithm for miniature unmanned aerial vehicles（UAVs） in winds with constant speed and altitude is developed. Different to the widely considered line or orbit following, the curved path to be followed is defined in terms of the arc-length parameter, which can be straight lines, orbits, B-splines or any other curves provided that they are smooth. The proposed path following control algorithm, named by VF-SMC, is combining the vector field（VF） strategy with the sliding mode control（SMC） method. It is proven that the designed algorithm guarantees the tracking errors to be a bounded ball in the presence of winds, with the aid of the Lyapunov method and the BIBO stability. The algorithm is validated both in Matlab-based simulations and high-fidelity semi-physical simulations. In Matlab-based simulations, the proposed algorithm is verified for straight lines, orbits and B-splines to show its wide usage in different curves.The high-fidelity semi-physical simulation system is composed of actual autopilot controller, ground station and X-Plane flight simulator in-loop. In semi-physical simulations, the proposed algorithm is verified for B-spline path following under various gain parameters and wind conditions thoroughly.All experiments show the accuracy in curved path following and the excellent robustness to wind disturbances of the proposed algorithm.

Launching an unmanned aerial vehicle remote sensing data carrier:concept,key components and prospects

Unmanned aerial vehicles(UAV)based remote sensing is an emerging and important data source.Recently,the use of UAVs for remote sensing applications has been rapidly growing owing to their greater availability and the miniaturization of sensors.UAVs are surpassing satellites and aircraft in remote sensing data supply for many local requirements.In comparison with satellite remote sensing data,most UAV remote sensing data is characterized by high resolution,small coverage area,and heterogeneous multi-sources.However,UAVs lack a unified space–time framework and standardized data process.This paper describes a UAV remote sensing data carrier that can be used as an e-commerce platform for data sharing among registered members and a mission planner for new data acquisition.To the best of our knowledge,the data carriers described herein,are the first of their kind.Through seamless docking with UAVs,the data carrier will form a national UAV network,capable of dynamically obtaining very-high-resolution UAV remote sensing images.In practice,a pilot retrieval system of UAV meta data has been developed to provide a catalogue of data product services.