INDI Control for the ObliqueWing-Quad Plane Drone

A type of UAV sharing the advantages of rotorcraft and fixed wing vehicles is the hybrid vehicle. Hybrid UAVs can take-off and land vertically and fly fast and efficient in forward flight due to the presence of a wing generating lift. However, combining the fixed wing and rotorcraft concept ends up in a multi-rotor with large dimensions when landed, and catching a lot of gust when hovering. Therefore, the oblique wing-quad plane drone has been developed which can rotate its quad arm and wing such that the wing can be aligned with the fuselage in hover. The wing can be rotated to fixed wing position during fast forward flight, stowing away one quad-arm. An INDI inner and outer loop controller has been implemented for this platform. Successful flight tests proved the feasibility of this controller and drone concept which is patent pending NL 2031701, Aeronautical Vehicle and Method of Transitioning between Flight Modes for an Aeronautical Vehicle, April 26th 2022