Modeling novel methodologies for unmanned aerial systems–Applications to the UAS-S4 Ehecatl and the UAS-S45 Bálaam

The rising demand for Unmanned Aerial Systems(UASs) to perform tasks in hostile environments has emphasized the need for their simulation models for the preliminary evaluations of their missions. The efficiency of the UAS model is directly related to its capacity to estimate its flight dynamics with minimum computational resources. The literature describes several techniques to estimate accurate aircraft flight dynamics. Most of them are based on system identification. This paper presents an alternative methodology to obtain complete model of the S4 and S45 unmanned aerial systems. The UAS-S4 and the UAS-S45 models were divided into four sub-models, each corresponding to a specific discipline: aerodynamics, propulsion, mass and inertia, and actuator. The‘‘aerodynamic" sub-model was built using the Fderivatives in-house code, which is an improvement of the classical DATCOM procedure. The ‘‘propulsion" sub-model was obtained by coupling a two-stroke engine model based on the ideal Otto cycle and a Blade Element Theory(BET) analysis of the propeller. The ‘‘mass and the inertia" sub-model was designed utilizing the Raymer and DATCOM methodologies. A sub-model of an actuator using servomotor characteristics was employed to complete the model. The total model was then checked by validation of each submodel with numerical and experimental data. The results indicate that the obtained model was accurate and could be used to design a flight simulator.

Modeling novel methodologies for unmanned aerial systems – Applications to the UAS-S4 Ehecatl and the UAS-S45 Bálaam

The rising demand for Unmanned Aerial Systems (UASs) to perform tasks in hostile environments has emphasized the need for their simulation models for the preliminary evaluations of their missions. The efficiency of the UAS model is directly related to its capacity to estimate its flight dynamics with minimum computational resources. The literature describes several techniques to estimate accurate aircraft flight dynamics. Most of them are based on system identification. This paper presents an alternative methodology to obtain complete model of the S4 and S45 unmanned aerial systems. The UAS-S4 and the UAS-S45 models were divided into four sub-models, each corresponding to a specific discipline: aerodynamics, propulsion, mass and inertia, and actuator. The “aerodynamic” sub-model was built using the Fderivatives in-house code, which is an improvement of the classical DATCOM procedure. The “propulsion” sub-model was obtained by coupling a two-stroke engine model based on the ideal Otto cycle and a Blade Element Theory (BET) analysis of the propeller. The “mass and the inertia” sub-model was designed utilizing the Raymer and DATCOM methodologies. A sub-model of an actuator using servomotor characteristics was employed to complete the model. The total model was then checked by validation of each sub-model with numerical and experimental data. The results indicate that the obtained model was accurate and could be used to design a flight simulator.