Simulation evaluation of a reconfigurable flight controller of a heli-UAV for extreme maneuvers

Recent advances in software engineering, computer processing and control engineering are creating opportunities for advancing the state-of-the-art in Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle (UAV) operations. Specifically, in order to exploit the full potential of UAV's, they are required to operate in confined air space such as in between buildings close to obstacles, and they are required to perform extreme maneuvers during such operations. A flight controller configured for normal mode of operation may not be effective for control of the vehicle during extreme maneuvers without some sort of control reconfiguration. This paper presents simulation evaluation of a mode transitioning and control reconfiguration strategy based on fuzzy logic for a helicopter UAV in transitioning from a nominal forward speed flight mode to a barrel roll mode and back.