Small Adaptive Flight Control Systems for UAVs Using FPGA/DSP Technology

Presented at the AIAA 3rd "Unmanned Unlimited" Technical Conference, Workshop and Exhibit 20 - 23 September 2004, Chicago, Illinois.Copyright © 2004 by The Authors. Published by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Inc., with permission.Future small UAVs will require enhanced capabilities like seeing and avoiding obstacles, tolerating unpredicted flight conditions, interfacing with payload sensors, tracking moving targets, and cooperating with other manned and unmanned systems. Cross-platform commonality to simplify system integration and training of personnel is also desired. A small guidance, navigation, and control system has been developed and tested. It employs Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) and Digital Signal Processor (DSP) technology to satisfy the requirements for more advanced vehicle behavior in a small package. Having these two processors in the system enables custom vehicle interfacing and fast sequential processing of high-level control algorithms. This paper focuses first on the design aspects of the hardware and the low-level software. Discussion of flight test experience with the system controlling both an unmanned helicopter and an 11-inch ducted fan follow