Motion control analysis of a quad rotor system part I — Experiments

Quad rotors are vertical takeoff and landing systems (VTOL) which are most commonly used in surveillance, search and rescue operations, aerial photography and in automated applications. Ready to fly (RTF) quadcopter systems are now available in markets which are primarily used for various civilian applications in such a way that even a beginner without any knowledge of such systems can operate on it. The objective of the present work differs from such RTF systems. The paper focuses on assembling a quadcopter system using standard components and flying it in a stabilized manner using manual control. The stabilized flight data is acquired using a standard DAQ which is an integral part of the flying system. In part II of this work the data acquired as voltage signals which are the input to the four motors which control the flight are given as input for a mathematical model developed using MATLAB Simulink. The results of experiments carried in Part I is compared with the model developed in Part II. The logged data could be used to study the stabilization process of the flight controller which is a primary requirement for automation of the system without relying on a manual control. This will be a source for future work for complete automation of a stable flight quadcopter. The data logged during flight time is presented.