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Actuators
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Fault-Tolerant Control for Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs)
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Fault-Tolerant Control for Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs)

A special issue of Actuators (ISSN 2076-0825). This special issue belongs to the section "Aircraft Actuators".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 May 2024) | Viewed by 10560

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Xuerui Wang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology, Delft, The Netherlands
Interests: non-linear control; aerial robotics; aeroservoelasticity; morphing; reinforcement learning
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) have demonstrated their ability in various indoor/outdoor applications, such as package delivery, construction monitoring, firefighting, search and rescue, etc. They are also essential in achieving urban air mobility (UAM). Due to their relative mechanical simplicity and the potential growth of the market, safety issues are of critical concern. Faults, including actuator and sensor faults, can occur during air operations, inducing loss of control in flight. Improving the resilience of UAVs under fault cases, and especially during high-speed flight conditions, is a central concern for future applications. Fault-tolerant control, which is capable of automatically tolerating faults, while maintaining stability and desirable performance, has great potential to tackle in-flight UAV faults.

The aim of this Special Issue is to collect research progress on UAV fault-tolerant control algorithm design, implementation, and validation. Papers are welcome on topics that are related, but not limited, to the following:

  • Unmanned aerial vehicle;
  • Fault-tolerant control;
  • Flight control system;
  • Fault detection and isolation;
  • Urban air mobility;
  • Actuator and sensor faults.

Dr. Xuerui Wang
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Actuators is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • unmanned aerial vehicle
  • fault-tolerant control
  • flight control system
  • fault detection and isolation
  • urban air mobility
  • actuator and sensor faults

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Published Papers (6 papers)

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Research

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23 pages, 5628 KiB  
Article
Research on an Ice Tolerance Control Method for Large Aircraft Based on Adaptive Dynamic Inversion
by Feihong Jiang, Xiaoxiong Liu, Tongwen Chen and Kecheng Li
Actuators 2024, 13(6), 227; https://doi.org/10.3390/act13060227 - 18 Jun 2024
Viewed by 754
Abstract
Considering the effect of icing on aircraft control performance, this paper proposes an adaptive dynamic inverse ice tolerance control method based on piecewise constant. A control allocation algorithm is introduced to compensate for the change of control surface performance caused by icing. This [...] Read more.
Considering the effect of icing on aircraft control performance, this paper proposes an adaptive dynamic inverse ice tolerance control method based on piecewise constant. A control allocation algorithm is introduced to compensate for the change of control surface performance caused by icing. This method can achieve satisfactory disturbance estimation accuracy under a given sampling time, and thus ensure a closed-loop system error within an acceptable range. The proposed design method is applied to the design of a flight control law for a transport aircraft, aiming to solve the problem of ice-tolerant flight control, reduce the influence of icing conditions on controllability and safe flight of the transport aircraft, and thus improve the flight quality of the transport aircraft. The simulation results are verified under the influence of both standby ice type and failure ice type, and the interference effect on aircraft aerodynamic parameters is further added. The simulation results show that adaptive dynamic inverse control based on piecewise constant can overcome the influence caused by icing and aerodynamic parameter interference, achieve accurate tracking of command, and provide excellent fault tolerance and robustness, which ensures that the transport aircraft can achieve the desired control performance and safe flight capability. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fault-Tolerant Control for Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs))
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16 pages, 4207 KiB  
Article
Quadcopter Trajectory Tracking Control Based on Flatness Model Predictive Control and Neural Network
by Yong Li, Qidan Zhu and Ahsan Elahi
Actuators 2024, 13(4), 154; https://doi.org/10.3390/act13040154 - 18 Apr 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1345
Abstract
In this paper, a novel control architecture is proposed in which FMPC couples feedback from model predictive control with feedforward linearization. The proposed approach has the computational advantage of only requiring a convex quadratic program to be solved instead of a nonlinear program. [...] Read more.
In this paper, a novel control architecture is proposed in which FMPC couples feedback from model predictive control with feedforward linearization. The proposed approach has the computational advantage of only requiring a convex quadratic program to be solved instead of a nonlinear program. Feedforward linearization aims to overcome the robustness issues of feedback linearization, which may be the result of parametric model uncertainty leading to inexact pole-zero cancellation. A DenseNet was trained to learn the inverse dynamics of the system, and it was used to adjust the desired path input for FMPC. Through experiments using quadcopter, we also demonstrated improved trajectory tracking performance compared to that of the PD, FMPC, and FMPC+DNN approaches. The root mean square (RMS) error was used to evaluate the performance of the above four methods. The results demonstrate that the proposed method is effective. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fault-Tolerant Control for Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs))
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17 pages, 7139 KiB  
Article
Adaptive Nonsingular Fast-Reaching Terminal Sliding Mode Control Based on Observer for Aerial Robots
by Pu Yang, Yan Xuan and Wanting Li
Actuators 2024, 13(3), 98; https://doi.org/10.3390/act13030098 - 29 Feb 2024
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1840
Abstract
In this article, an observer-based adaptive non-singular fast-reaching terminal sliding mode control strategy is proposed to tackle the problem of actuator faults and uncertain disturbance in aerial robot systems. Firstly, a model of an aerial robot system is established through dynamic analysis. Next, [...] Read more.
In this article, an observer-based adaptive non-singular fast-reaching terminal sliding mode control strategy is proposed to tackle the problem of actuator faults and uncertain disturbance in aerial robot systems. Firstly, a model of an aerial robot system is established through dynamic analysis. Next, an adaptive observer, combined with a fast adaptive fault estimation (FAFE) algorithm, is proposed to estimate system states and actuator failure and compensate for faults in a precise and prompt manner. In addition, a non-singular fast terminal sliding surface is defined, taking into account the fast convergence of the tracking errors in order to provide appropriate trajectory tracking results. Since the upper bounds of the disturbances caused by the manipulator of the system in practice are unknown, the control approach may benefit from the addition of an adaptive control strategy that can suppress the influence of uncertain disturbances. The Lyapunov stability theory demonstrates that tracking errors are able to converge stably and quickly. In the end, the contrast experiment is conducted to exhibit the effectiveness of the proposed control strategy. The results demonstrate quicker convergence and improved estimating accuracy. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fault-Tolerant Control for Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs))
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16 pages, 3747 KiB  
Article
An ADS-B Information-Based Collision Avoidance Methodology to UAV
by Liang Tong, Xusheng Gan, Yarong Wu, Nan Yang and Maolong Lv
Actuators 2023, 12(4), 165; https://doi.org/10.3390/act12040165 - 6 Apr 2023
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2315
Abstract
A collision avoidance method that is specifically tailored for UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles) operating in converging airspace is proposed. The method is based on ADS-B messages and it aims to detect and resolve conflicts between UAVs. The proposed method involves two main steps. [...] Read more.
A collision avoidance method that is specifically tailored for UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles) operating in converging airspace is proposed. The method is based on ADS-B messages and it aims to detect and resolve conflicts between UAVs. The proposed method involves two main steps. First, a UAV conflict-sensing scheme is developed, which utilizes ADS-B information flow path and analyzes the message format information. Second, an unscented Kalman filter is used to predict UAV trajectories based on the acquired ADS-B information. The predicted information is then used to determine potential conflict scenarios, and different deconfliction strategies are selected accordingly. These strategies include speed regulation, direction regulation, and compound deconfliction, and are mathematically validated using the velocity obstacle method. The feasibility and effectiveness of the proposed method are evaluated through simulation, and it is concluded that the method can significantly improve the conflict resolution capability of UAV flights. This research provides a valuable contribution to the field of UAV collision avoidance, and can serve as a theoretical foundation for further advancements in this area. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fault-Tolerant Control for Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs))
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16 pages, 1133 KiB  
Article
Nonlinear Robust Fault-Tolerant Tracking Control of a Tri-Rotor UAV against Actuator’s Abnormal Behavior
by Wenlai Ma, Minghua Hu, Wei Hao, Haijun Wang and Peiyu Wang
Actuators 2023, 12(4), 140; https://doi.org/10.3390/act12040140 - 26 Mar 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1467
Abstract
In this paper, a new nonlinear robust fault-tolerant tracking control method is proposed for a tri-rotor unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) under unknown abnormal actuator behaviors together with unknown external disturbances. The actuator anomalies are modeled as time-varying multiplicative parameters to improve the model [...] Read more.
In this paper, a new nonlinear robust fault-tolerant tracking control method is proposed for a tri-rotor unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) under unknown abnormal actuator behaviors together with unknown external disturbances. The actuator anomalies are modeled as time-varying multiplicative parameters to improve the model accuracy. The control system is decoupled into two parts, including the inner-loop attitude control and the outer-loop position control. The radial basis function neural network (RBFNN) is utilized in the outer loop to estimate the actuator anomalies and external disturbances, and then the state feedback controller is employed for the position tracking of the UAV. Then, the robust integral of the signum of the error (RISE) controller is designed for the inner loop to compensate for actuator anomalies and external disturbances. The composite stability of the closed-loop system and the asymptotical tracking performance are proved via a Lyapunov-based stability analysis. Numerical simulations based on the proposed fault tolerant control (FTC) scheme as well as the comparison results with a sliding mode-based FTC method validate the effectiveness and better performance of the proposed control design. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fault-Tolerant Control for Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs))
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Review

Jump to: Research

12 pages, 333 KiB  
Review
A Survey of Optimal Control Allocation for Aerial Vehicle Control
by Till Martin Blaha, Ewoud Jan Jacob Smeur and Bart Diane Walter Remes
Actuators 2023, 12(7), 282; https://doi.org/10.3390/act12070282 - 11 Jul 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1924
Abstract
In vehicle control, control allocation is often used to abstract control variables from actuators, simplifying controller design and enhancing performance. Surveying available literature reveals that explicit solutions are restricted to strong assumptions on the actuators, or otherwise fail to exploit the capabilities of [...] Read more.
In vehicle control, control allocation is often used to abstract control variables from actuators, simplifying controller design and enhancing performance. Surveying available literature reveals that explicit solutions are restricted to strong assumptions on the actuators, or otherwise fail to exploit the capabilities of the actuator constellation. A remedy is to formulate hierarchical minimization problems that take into account the limits of the actuators at the expense of a longer computing time. In this paper, we compared the most common norms of the objective functions for linear or linearized plants, and show available numeric solver types. Such a comparison has not been found in the literature before and indicates that some combinations of linear and quadratic norms are not sufficiently researched. While the bulk of the review is restricted to control-affine plant models, some extensions to dynamic and nonlinear allocation problems are shown. For aerial vehicles, a trend toward linearized incremental control schemes is visible, which forms a compromise between real-time capabilities and the ability to resolve some nonlinearities common in these vehicles. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fault-Tolerant Control for Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs))
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