Lyapunov-Based Formation Controller Design for Fixed-Wing UAVs under Variant Wind Fields

Rotorcraft uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs) have been employed in coastal defense for surveillance tasks; however, the high energy consumption limits their operational range in wide-ranging environments. To address this challenge, a Lyapunov-based formation controller for fixed-wing UAVs is proposed to reduce energy consumption and further expand the surveillance coverage. Furthermore, the windy environment poses a considerable challenge to UAVs, especially those in close formation flight, as minor deviations from the desired position may lead to potential collisions. To mitigate these effects, the wind information estimated by the proposed sliding mode wind observer is incorporated into the formation controller. Finally, the effectiveness of the proposed controller is validated through the software-in-the-loop (SITL) simulation using the open-source PX4 autopilot.