GRVC-Simulator of Multirotors: Design and Application in Classroom

Abstract

The use of multirotors has grown significantly in recent years. Understanding their operation and control is essential to continue developing the field of multirotors. Because of this, it is essential to introduce multirotor control in engineering classes in a simple and effective way. However, most multirotor simulators are designed for high-level applications, making it difficult to study low-level controllers. In addition, many of them require a strong programming background. This paper presents the design and application in classroom of a multirotor simulator. The simulator developed in this work allows the easy understanding of the control of a multirotor, as it is developed in block structure using Matlab-Simulink. In addition, the block structure of the simulator allows to easily modify any part of the simulator, such as the system dynamics or the platform controller. Finally, this work presents the use of the simulator in a classroom of the University of Seville, being of great help in a practical session of introduction to multirotor control. The simulator has also helped in the development of some students’ coursework.