Autonomous Formation Flight of Indoor UAVs Based on Model Predictive Control

This paper presents the autonomous formation flight of indoor UAVs based on Model Predictive Control (MPC). Dynamic model was built for the analysis of the quadcopter platform and the utilization of MPC. Several telemetry modules were tested for its performance for indoor application using MAVLink. The trajectory simulation is performed to verify the effectiveness of the utilized control method. The Vicon motion capture system was employed for tracking quadcopters, recording data and testing the flight formation control. Formation flight experiments are conducted to verify the performance of the MPC for the autonomous formation of UAVs. Finally, the Air Traffic Management (ATM) concept with avoidance, geo-fencing as well as take over control were demonstranted in an indoor simulated environment.

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