Extended state observer based sliding mode control for a tilt rotor UAV

This paper focuses on the transition flight control for a small tilt rotor unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV). Aiming at the longitudinal model of a tilt rotor UAV, a novel sliding mode control (SMC) method is proposed to guarantee that the states converge to the desired sliding surfaces in finite time. Moreover, extended state observers (ESOs) are provided to enhance the system's robustness to the uncertainties. Simulations show the effectiveness of the proposed approach.