GUIDANCE, NAVIGATION, AND CONTROL OF A QUADROTOR DRONE WITH PID CONTROLS

The threat of drones in sensitive airspace is a growing issue. Drone detection currently focuses on security threats of undesired surveillance. In this thesis, we seek to determine whether a supervisory controller applied to a quadrotor drone will suffice as a feasible option for an autonomous drone. This is achieved by applying a proportional and derivative control law, programmed within MATLAB, to a pre-built simulation model and implemented on the Parrot Mambo Drone for experimental flights. The analysis is accomplished by comparing the performance and accuracy of the simulated trial flight, an experimental flight on the Parrot Mambo Drone with no altitude change, and an experimental flight with adjustments in all six degrees of freedom on the Parrot Mambo Drone. The results show that with a supervisory controller applied to a quadrotor drone, the drone can perform the desired tasks autonomously at a higher standard than without a supervisory controller applied. The proportional and derivative controls implemented on the Parrot Mabo Drone for the experimental flights have the best performance of the control law investigated.http://archive.org/details/guidancenavigati1094566063Captain, United States Marine CorpsApproved for public release. distribution is unlimite