Feedback Linearization approach for Standard and Fault Tolerant control: Application to a Quadrotor UAV Testbed

Abstract

In this paper the control problem of a quadrotor vehicle experiencing a rotor failure is investigated. We develop a Feedback linearization approach to design a controller whose task is to make the vehicle performs trajectory following. Then we use the same approach to design a controller whose task is to make the vehicle enter a stable spin around its vertical axis, while retaining zero angular velocities around the other axis when a rotor failure is present. These conditions can be exploited to design a second control loop, which is used to perform trajectory following. The proposed double control loop architecture allows the vehicle to perform both trajectory and roll/pitch control. At last, to test the robustness of the feedback linearization technique, we applied wind to the quadrotor in mid flight.