Experimental pitch control of an unmanned airship with sliding ballast

In this paper, the pitch control of a miniature unmanned airship using a sliding ballast is presented. The sliding ballast design has been developed to address the limited altitude maneuverability of lighter-than-air vehicles by allowing for large changes in vehicle pitch and, when combined with forward facing thrusters, rapid changes in altitude. Using the longitudinal position of the ballast as the control input, the vehicle behavior is simulated under various reference trajectories and wind disturbances. Preliminary experimental flight tests are then performed to evaluate the pitch controller performance.