Distributed observer-based finite-time control of moving target tracking for UAV formation

Area of Science:

• Robotics
• Control Systems Engineering
• Aerospace Engineering

Background:

• Formation control for multi-UAV systems is crucial for tasks like surveillance and reconnaissance.
• Environmental factors, such as wind, pose significant challenges to maintaining formation stability and accurate target tracking.
• Existing control strategies often struggle with dynamic and unpredictable environmental conditions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate two novel formation control strategies for multi-UAV systems performing moving target tracking in windy environments.
• To address the challenges posed by constant and unknown wind disturbances on system stability and tracking accuracy.
• To ensure global uniform asymptotic stability and global finite-time stability for the multi-UAV system.

Main Methods:

• A distributed dynamic error observer and guidance law for known constant wind disturbances.
• A distributed fixed-time observer and finite-time stable guidance law for unknown wind disturbances.
• Mathematical rigorous demonstration of stability for both control strategies.
• Communication topology modeled using a directed graph.

Main Results:

• The first strategy achieves global uniform asymptotic stability under known constant wind.
• The second strategy achieves global finite-time stability under unknown wind disturbances.
• Both strategies demonstrated excellent performance and reliability in simulations for target tracking in windy conditions.

Conclusions:

• The proposed formation control strategies are effective for multi-UAV moving target tracking in challenging windy environments.
• The developed guidance laws ensure system stability and reliable performance against wind disturbances.
• The study provides a robust framework for advanced multi-UAV coordination in adverse conditions.