Automatic landing control of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles on moving platforms

This paper studies the landing control problem for Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) on an oscillating platform such as a ship deck in a rough sea. A full nonlinear mathematical model is first introduced for the UAV in an inertial frame. A Fourier transform based method is then employed for a realistic characterization of the sea motion and the ship dynamics. Finally, a landing control algorithm is developed based on the dynamics of the UAV relative to the ship. The effectiveness of the control algorithm is illustrated through a simulation example.