Nonlinear Guidance and Control of Coordinated Unmanned Aerial Manipulators for Delivering a Payload on a Moving Platform

Abstract

In this paper, a system of three unmanned aerial manipulators (UAMs) equipped with robotic arms, moving on a two-dimensional plane and carrying a rigid payload is considered. The system of UAMs is to deploy this payload on a mobile platform which may move with constant velocity or maneuver. A sliding-mode-based guidance law, sourced from existing literature, is integrated with advanced control techniques for the UAVs and their respective manipulator arms. A nonlinear, quaternion-based, control is used to perform attitude control of the UAVs and a feedback linearization law is employed to control the orientation of the manipulator. This integration enables the three UAM system to track the maneuvering platform and deliver the payload accurately from any angle. The novelty of this paper lies in the integration of established guidance laws with advanced control and navigation techniques thereby significantly enhancing the operational capabilities of the UAM system.