Low-Cost High-Endurance Solar-Powered Unmanned Aerial Vehicle

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jesus G. Rosales ◽  
Andreas Gross
Keyword(s):  
Unmanned Aerial Vehicle ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Aerial Vehicle ◽  
Solar Powered

scholarly journals Automatic Control and Model Verification for a Small Aileron-Less Hand-Launched Solar-Powered Unmanned Aerial Vehicle

Electronics ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 364 ◽  
Author(s):  
An Guo ◽  
Zhou Zhou ◽  
Xiaoping Zhu ◽  
Xin Zhao ◽  
Yuxin Ding
Keyword(s):  
Control System ◽  
Unmanned Aerial Vehicle ◽  
Flight Control ◽  
Aerodynamic Force ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Model Verification ◽  
Force Coefficient ◽  
Aerial Vehicle ◽  
Solar Powered ◽  
Actuator Module

This paper describes a low-cost flight control system of a small aileron-less hand-launched solar-powered unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV). In order to improve the accuracy of the whole system model and quantify the influence of each subsystem, detailed modeling of UAV energy and a control system including a solar model, engine, energy storage, sensors, state estimation, control law, and actuator module are established in accordance with the experiment and component principles. A whole system numerical simulation combined with the 6 degree-of-freedom (DOF) simulation model is constructed based on the typical mission route, and the parameter precision sequence and energy balance are obtained. Then, a hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) experiment scheme based on the Stewart platform (SP) is proposed, and three modes of acceleration, angular velocity, and attitude are designed to verify the control system through the inner and boundary states of the flight envelope. The whole system scheme is verified by flight tests at different altitudes, and the aerodynamic force coefficient and sensor error are corrected by flight data. With the increase of altitude, the cruise power increases from 47 W to 78 W, the trajectory tracking precision increases from 23 m to 44 m, the sensor measurement noise increases, and the bias decreases.

Parameter analysis of power system for solar-powered unmanned aerial vehicle

2021 ◽  
Vol 295 ◽  
pp. 117031
Author(s):  
Chaoyu Zhang ◽  
Chengming Zhang ◽  
Liyi Li ◽  
Qingbo Guo
Keyword(s):  
Power System ◽  
Unmanned Aerial Vehicle ◽  
Parameter Analysis ◽  
Aerial Vehicle ◽  
Solar Powered

scholarly journals Design of a Hand-Launched Solar-Powered Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) System for Plateau

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 1300 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xin Zhao ◽  
Zhou Zhou ◽  
Xiaoping Zhu ◽  
An Guo
Keyword(s):  
Low Temperature ◽  
Conceptual Design ◽  
Unmanned Aerial Vehicle ◽  
Design Method ◽  
Structure Design ◽  
Control Law ◽  
Trajectory Tracking Control ◽  
Plateau Area ◽  
Aerial Vehicle ◽  
Solar Powered

This paper describes our work on a small, hand-launched, solar-powered unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) suitable for low temperatures and high altitudes, which has the perpetual flight potential for conservation missions for rare animals in the plateau area in winter. Firstly, the conceptual design method of a small, solar-powered UAV based on energy balance is proposed, which is suitable for flight in high-altitude and low-temperature area. The solar irradiance model, which can reflect the geographical location and time, was used. Based on the low-temperature discharge test of the battery, a battery weight model considering the influence of low temperature on the battery performance was proposed. Secondly, this paper introduces the detailed design of solar UAV for plateau area, including layout design, structure design, load, and avionics. To increase the proportion of solar cells covered, the ailerons were removed and a rudder was used to control both roll and yaw. Then, the dynamics model of an aileron-free layout UAV was developed, and the differences in maneuverability and stability of aileron-free UAV in plateau and plain areas were analyzed. The control law and trajectory tracking control law were designed for the aileron-free UAV. Finally, the flight test was conducted in Qiangtang, Tibet, at an altitude of 4500 m, China’s first solar-powered UAV to take off and land above 4500 m on the plateau in winter (−30 °C). The test data showed the success of the scheme, validated the conceptual design method and the success of the control system for aileron-free UAV, and analyzed the feasibility of perpetual flight carrying different loads according to the flight energy consumption data.

Design and development of solar powered unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) for surveying, mapping and disaster relief

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Karthik ◽  
S. Usha ◽  
B. Predeep ◽  
G. R. Sai Saran ◽  
G. Sridhar ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Unmanned Aerial Vehicle ◽  
Disaster Relief ◽  
Design And Development ◽  
Aerial Vehicle ◽  
Solar Powered

scholarly journals Suitability of a Non-Dispersive Infrared Methane Sensor Package for Flux Quantification Using an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle

Sensors ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (21) ◽  
pp. 4705 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adil Shah ◽  
Joseph Pitt ◽  
Khristopher Kabbabe ◽  
Grant Allen
Keyword(s):  
Unmanned Aerial Vehicle ◽  
Mole Fraction ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Methane Flux ◽  
Gain Factor ◽  
Measured Signal ◽  
Allan Deviation ◽  
Methane Sensor ◽  
Aerial Vehicle ◽  
Flux Quantification

Point-source methane emission flux quantification is required to help constrain the global methane budget. Facility-scale fluxes can be derived using in situ methane mole fraction sampling, near-to-source, which may be acquired from an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) platform. We test a new non-dispersive infrared methane sensor by mounting it onto a small UAV, which flew downwind of a controlled methane release. Nine UAV flight surveys were conducted on a downwind vertical sampling plane, perpendicular to mean wind direction. The sensor was first packaged in an enclosure prior to sampling which contained a pump and a recording computer, with a total mass of 1.0 kg. The packaged sensor was then characterised to derive a gain factor of 0.92 ± 0.07, independent of water mole fraction, and an Allan deviation precision (at 1 Hz) of ±1.16 ppm. This poor instrumental precision and possible short-term drifts made it non-trivial to define a background mole fraction during UAV surveys, which may be important where any measured signal is small compared to sources of instrumental uncertainty and drift. This rendered the sensor incapable of deriving a meaningful flux from UAV sampling for emissions of the order of 1 g s−1. Nevertheless, the sensor may indeed be useful when sampling mole fraction enhancements of the order of at least 10 ppm (an order of magnitude above the 1 Hz Allan deviation), either from stationary ground-based sampling (in baseline studies) or from mobile sampling downwind of sources with greater source flux than those observed in this study. While many methods utilising low-cost sensors to determine methane flux are being developed, this study highlights the importance of adequately characterising and testing all new sensors before they are used in scientific research.

scholarly journals Simulation of UAV Systems

10.14311/754 ◽  
2005 ◽  
Vol 45 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
P. Kaňovský ◽  
L. Smrcek ◽  
C. Goodchild
Keyword(s):  
Dynamical System ◽  
Unmanned Aerial Vehicle ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Design Tool ◽  
Inertial System ◽  
Principal Function ◽  
Low Weight ◽  
High Bandwidth ◽  
Aerial Vehicle ◽  
Selection Of

The study described in this paper deals with the issue of a design tool for the autopilot of an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) and the selection of the airdata and inertial system sensors. This project was processed in cooperation with VTUL a PVO o.z. [1]. The feature that distinguishes the autopilot requirements of a UAV (Figs. 1, 7, 8) from the flight systems of conventional manned aircraft is the paradox of controlling a high bandwidth dynamical system using sensors that are in harmony with the low cost low weight objectives that UAV designs are often expected to achieve. The principal function of the autopilot is flight stability, which establishes the UAV as a stable airborne platform that can operate at a precisely defined height. The main sensor for providing this height information is a barometric altimeter. The solution to the UAV autopilot design was realised with simulations using the facilities of Matlab® and in particular Simulink®[2]. 

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