| dc.description.abstract | The quadrotor aircraft has seen a growing interest in the research community over
the past few years, with a focus on modeling and control however. Early rotating
wing aircraft pioneers designed similar four-rotor aircraft with varied success over a
number of years. With the introduction of new lightweight sensors for measuring
the attitude and angular velocity of a rigid body, model sized versions of traditional
helicopters with autonomous capabilities have emerged, with the advantage of vertical
take-off and landing (VTOL) over fixed wing aircraft. The quadrotor aircraft, with
its symmetrical design, has a potential advantage with respect to the traditional
helicopter in terms of maneuverability and mechanical simplicity. In fact, autonomous
unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV’s) have gained popularity for their numerous potential
applications where human interaction is difficult or hazardous. Attitude stabilization,
which could be considered the most important component for flight control, is essential
for autonomous or even pilotable aircraft such as the quadrotor, as their designs are
inherently unstable. As the literature suggests, a number of control algorithms have
been proposed for the attitude control of a rigid body. In this thesis, a control strategy
for the attitude stabilization of the quadrotor aircraft as well as some simulation and
experimental results are presented. | |
