Controller performance for quad-rotor vehicles based on sliding mode control

This study applies a sliding mode control (SMC) strategy for a robust controller of a quad-rotor vehicle. First, a controller combined with a nested control loop and an SMC is introduced, because a quad-rotor vehicle has only four control inputs although the vehicle has six degrees of freedom. The control performance for the feedback gains in the nested loop is investigated in numerical simulations. Subsequently, the effects of practical system limitations (control cycle and rotor dynamics) on the control performance are examined. Finally, the robust performance of the SMC strategy on a quad-rotor vehicle is discussed.