Multi-UAV control with the Paparazzi system

We present in this paper two experiments involving multi- UAV control. In the first one, three UAVs flew in formation flight, controlled by a single ground control station. In the second one, two aircraft flying in different places in the world have been controlled from the same GCS somewhere else. The two experiments have been conducted with Paparazzi, The Free Autopilot. Human interactions with the system were complex during these experiments. Controlling three aircraft in the same time in a safe way requires the help of a carefully studied interface. Controlling a UAV from a distant remote place requires to share the control authority between the local and the distant operators. We believe that the human work for UAVs control and command in this context is more similar to the work of an air-traffic controller than to the work of a pilot. The graphical interface of the Paparazzi system has been developed with this purpose in mind.