Robust nonlinear motion control of a helicopter

We consider the problem of controlling the vertical motion of a nonlinear model of a helicopter, while stabilizing the lateral and horizontal position and maintaining a constant attitude. The reference to be tracked is given by a sum of a constant and a fixed number of sinusoidal signals, and it is assumed not to be available to the controller. This represents a possible situation in which the controller is required to synchronize the vehicle motion with that of an oscillating platform, such as the deck of a ship in high seas. We design a nonlinear controller which combines recent results on nonlinear adaptive output regulations and robust stabilization of systems in feedforward form by means of saturated controls. Simulation results show the effectiveness of the method and its ability to cope with uncertainties on the plant and actuator model.