RU2818981C1 - Method of controlling group of maneuverable unmanned aerial vehicles - Google Patents

Abstract

FIELD: aviation.

SUBSTANCE: invention relates to methods of controlling a group of air targets (AT) based on unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) and can be used in development of control systems based on UAV from universal target-training complex (UTTC). Method consists in the fact that at the first stage, all aerial targets based on UAVs of the future group are output by UTTC operators to the specified area of space, in which transition to control of the whole group is supposed to be carried out with the help of the AT-leader. Flight task (FT) is entered into the AT autopilot in advance. At the second stage, in the OXYZ coordinate system, the current spatial position of the group driven AT in a rectangular coordinate system is determined. At the third stage, the required heading and pitch angles of each AT group are determined. At the fourth stage, the results of numerical solution of the system of equations presented in operator form by the corresponding scheme depending on time are determined for the horizontal plane of motion of the AT-leader. Similarly, for the vertical plane of motion of the AT-leader, the values of the control signal are determined from the results of the numerical solution of the system of equations presented in operator form by the corresponding circuit. At the fifth stage, the current data from the control structure of the AT-leader are used to determine in the control systems of the slave AT values of their angular mismatches relative to the AT-leader. In the pitch control systems of slave ATs, similarly to the control system of the AT-leader, a transition from pitch angle to height control is provided. Sixth stage consists in control of the value of the current inclined distance of the AT-leader to the control point of the FT. Determination of the spatial position of each subsequent control point of the FT is carried out during the time of guidance of the group of AT to the current control point of the required trajectory when performing the manoeuvre corresponding to the given FT.

EFFECT: enabling control of a group of AT based on UAVs from one ground control station, which increases simulation capabilities of the UTTC.

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Description

The invention relates to methods for controlling a group of air targets (AM) based on unmanned aerial vehicles (hereinafter referred to as UAVs) and can be used in the development of AV control systems based on UAVs from the universal target training complex (UMTC).

In such a complex, the flight of a group of VMs based on UAVs is used both in checking and testing all types of anti-aircraft systems of military air defense (AAD), and in conducting various types of training, exercises and live firing by personnel of the crews of combat equipment of anti-aircraft missile systems and systems (SAM). and C), which ultimately makes it possible to increase not only the training of crews, but also the productivity of combat work.

The technical result that can be obtained from the use of the proposed invention is to provide the ability to control a group of VMs based on UAVs from one ground control point (GCP) without changing the total number of members of the GCP crew, and also in the absence of the need for significant hardware modifications as a VM control system , and NPU equipment, which will increase the simulation capabilities of the UMTC.

When simulating real actions of a group of air attack assets (AAF) by a group of aircraft based on UAVs from the UMTC, the invention ensures the prevention of collisions of aircraft with each other, the ability to simultaneously perform maneuvers provided for by the flight mission, as well as maintaining the ability to control a group of aircraft based on UAVs in the event of loss any VM from the group, when simulating maneuvers of real IOS in both horizontal and vertical planes.

Of the known systems for the group use of UAVs, the closest is the method of controlling a group of unmanned aerial vehicles, taking into account the degree of danger of surrounding objects [1].

The essence of the prototype [1] is that for each UAV in its inertial navigation system, its current speed is measured, the direction of its flight is calculated, and with the help of sensors the viewing angle of each potentially dangerous object, the distance to it, the speed of approach to it, and the angular velocity are measured sight lines of this object, based on these measured and calculated values, the coordinates and velocity vectors of each UAV and each object are calculated, the possibility of turning the object on the UAV for each UAV is determined, the flight path and control signal values for each UAV are formed, then the generated trajectory and control signal are transmitted into the control system. The movement of all UAVs is corrected to prevent possible collisions.

The technical features of the VM control systems of specific UMTCs do not allow the use of the prototype without a significant change in the hardware of the VM and NPU, since:

the description of the prototype does not provide the structure of the UAV control system, which implements in practice the proposed algorithm for controlling a group of UAVs, taking into account the ranking of airborne objects (AO) according to their degree of danger;

The presented method, in relation to an individual UAV, involves considering each neighboring UAV as an AV with which there is a threat of collision. This requires an assessment of the parameters of its movement to a possible meeting point, which, when implementing the method in UMTC, requires additional control by the NPU operator or retrofitting each VM with an expensive on-board radar station (radar);

consideration and proof of the method's performance is given only for one flight plane (horizontal), however, when using a UAV as a VM, it is necessary to take into account the technical features of the flight control system when changing altitude.

In this regard, to control a group of VMs from the UMTC, it seems more appropriate to use one of the options for decentralized control of a group of UAVs as part of a local network [2, 3], which allows for the joint functioning of VM control systems based on UAVs, their flight along given trajectories and prevention clashes between them.

To solve the above problems, it is advisable to use one of the varieties of decentralized control of a group of UAVs [2, 3], namely control of a group of UAVs with a leader, which is characterized by a number of information connections and involves the use of control commands generated by the leader for all slave UAVs of the group.

For this purpose, it is proposed to use a special case of implementing the control law for a group of UAVs in the form [2, 3]

Where - inverse matrix of corresponding coefficients that determine the magnitude of control signals;

- management efficiency matrix;

Q _i is the matrix of the corresponding penalty coefficients for the accuracy of control of the UAV-group leader;

- difference in control errors of the UAV leader;

G _j is the matrix of the corresponding penalty coefficients for the accuracy of control of the group's slave UAVs;

- difference in control error values between control objects in the group (leader - follower UAVs).

The use of the control law (1) is due to a number of its advantages, for example, by taking into account errors not only the flight of the aircraft along the required trajectory is ensured, but also the prevention of their collisions.

Thus, from (1) it follows that the required flight trajectory for the VM leader in the group can be formed according to the law

which does not take into account the movement of slave VMs of the group.

To manage slave VMs, it is necessary to ensure the availability of information about their current and required positions relative to the leader VM, as well as relative to each other. In this case, the control law for the remaining VMs in the group should be presented in the form

When synthesizing the control law for a group of aircraft based on relations (2) and (3), the independence of the aircraft control channels in heading ψ and pitch θ is taken into account, and this makes it possible to construct the corresponding structure of the control system for a group of aircraft only for one, for example, a horizontal plane. At the same time, to use it in the second control channel, it is necessary to take into account the features of the formation of a flight task (FP) for the entire group of targets with a leader [4], as well as the technical features of the standard VM control system for the vertical guidance plane.

To carry out the flight of the VM leader, the so-called step-by-step “process of pursuit” by the VM leader of a given point of the flight trajectory is used, the spatial position of which is determined in accordance with the mathematical dependencies of the FZ.

During the flight of the VM leader, ideally, it should follow in space along all points of the reference trajectory of the PV. In this case, the modulus of the speed of approach of the VM leader with each point of the PV remains constant.

This makes it possible to use, when synthesizing control of a group of VMs, the method of proportional-differential guidance of the VM leader to individual points of the PV trajectory, assuming linear, the law of the leader’s approach to each point of the reference trajectory in the form

where r ₀ is the distance from the current position of the VM leader to the control point of the trajectory at the moment the group of VMs begins to control the corresponding interval of the reference trajectory;

- component of the speed of approach of the VM-leader with the control point PV;

t _KT is the current flight time of the leader of the VM group from the moment control begins until he reaches the control point of the reference trajectory.

After the VM-leader passes each control point of the PZ, the data on r ₀ must be updated, and the time t _KT must be counted from it again to obtain a new value of the slant range component r to the next control point of the trajectory.

Under these conditions, as models for changing the kinematic heading angle and the horizontal component of the angular velocity of rotation of the line “VM - control point of the reference trajectory” ω _Г when moving the VM leader, you can use equations of the form

Where - required control acceleration of the VM leader in the horizontal plane;

r is the component of the current range of the VM leader to the control point of the reference trajectory of the PZ.

To build the structure of a control system for a group of targets by a VM leader, it is necessary to transform differential equations (4) and (5) into their operator representation with the replacement of the differentiation symbol with the Laplace transform operator.

In this case, (4) and (5) take the form

Substituting (7) into (6), with the implementation of the corresponding transformations, an expression is obtained for the kinematic heading angle of the VM leader in the operator representation

Thus, as a result of the justification presented above, it is possible to determine the transfer function of the kinematic equation of motion of the VM leader along the required trajectory of the PZ, taking into account the control action for a standard VM control system based on an aircraft-type UAV in the form

Taking into account expression (2) and the results described in [2, 3], we obtain the control law for the VM leader in the group in differential form

where q _ψi and q _ωi are the “penalty” coefficients for the accuracy of the VM leader maintaining the required flight path,

k _i - coefficient that determines the value of the control signal.

From equations (6) and (7) we can obtain an equation for the relationship between angular velocity ω _Г and heading angle ψ _Г

In accordance with the described results, a block diagram that implements the control law in the horizontal plane for the VM-leader control system is shown in Fig. 1.

For the vertical plane, the structural diagram will have a similar form, with the exception of the presence of an additional element that allows the transition from the pitch angle θ to the flight altitude h of the VM leader, which is presented in Fig.2.

The diagram reflects the transition from PZ to taking into account the kinematic equations discussed above in relation to the required pitch angle when managing a group of VMs.

To determine the law for controlling slave VMs based on UAVs in a group, it is necessary to use (3), while data from the structure of the control system of the leader VM is used to control slave VMs in the group in accordance with the relation

Where - the difference in the values of the required control actions of the leader and slave VMs in terms of heading angle;

- the difference between the values of control actions from the output of the circuit that implements the formation of control of the leader VM according to the heading angle and from the output of the corresponding circuit of the control system of the slave VM.

Thus, the block diagrams of the control system for a group of aircraft based on UAVs in terms of heading and altitude, in combination with an unchangeable standard control system for air targets (shown as control loops), have the form shown in Figs. 3, 4.

Thus, the structure of the proposed method can be represented as shown in Fig.5.

The essence of the method lies in the following sequence of actions on a group of VMs based on UAVs:

At the first stage of the method, UMTC operators bring out all VMs based on UAVs of the future group into a given area of space, in which a transition to control of the entire group of VMs with the help of a VM leader is assumed.

The flight task is entered into the VM autopilot in advance (on the ground or in the air) using the appropriate communication channel. In this case, the selected FZ is calculated to the first control point with the determination of its spatial coordinates relative to the spatial coordinates of the VM leader x _VM1 , y _VM1 , z _VM1 , also with the determination of: the initial slant range r ₀ of the VM leader, its heading angles and pitch at the time of starting management of the VM group.

At the second stage, in the OXYZ coordinate system, the current spatial position of the slave VMs of the group is determined in a rectangular coordinate system (x _2,...,n ,y _2,...,n ,z _2,...,n ), their heading angles ψ _VM2...n and pitch θ _BM2,…,n at the moment of starting control of the VM group.

At the third stage, the required values of heading and pitch angles are determined each VM of the group, which represent the corresponding values of these angles in the direction to the control point and are used as input influences when the control system of each VM is working out directions to the control point of the trajectory, the spatial position of which is determined by the PP. As an initial condition for the structure of the VM-leader’s control system, it is accepted

At the fourth stage, for the horizontal plane of movement of the VM leader, the results of a numerical solution of the system of equations are determined, presented in operator form by the dotted part of the block diagram of Fig. 3, depending on the time t _KT , when changing with a step Δt, the linear law of change in the slant range of the VM leader is used to the control point PZ. In this case, based on the angular mismatch between the required value of the heading angle of the VM leader when moving to the control point PZ and its output value, a component of the control signal is formed at the output of the control system for the group of VMs according to the course for VM-leader.

To ensure stability of the approach of the VM leader to the control point PZ, the value of the control signal is adjusted taking into account the value of the angular velocity ω _Г according to the change Similarly, for the vertical plane of movement of the VM leader, the values of the control signal are determined based on the results of the numerical solution of the system of equations, presented in operator form by the dotted part of the block diagram presented in Fig.4.

Control signals for the corresponding guidance planes are used to determine the required heading angles and pitch which are input influences for the standard unchangeable control system of the VM leader in the process of its movement in the direction of a given control point PZ.

At the fifth stage, current data from the control structure of the VM leader in the form are used to determine the values of their angular mismatches in control systems of slave VMs And relative to the VM leader. This ensures the flight of the slave aircraft while maintaining mutual distances to prevent collisions between aircraft during the movement of the entire group to the control point PZ.

In control systems of slave VMs in pitch similar to the VM-leader control system, a transition from the pitch angle is provided to height control

The sixth stage is to control the value r(t _KT ) of the current slant range of the VM leader to the control point PZ. When the value of this range reaches the specified r _min , selected for reasons of maintaining the operability of the control system of the VM leader, the transition to guiding the group of VMs to the next control point of the PV is made.

Determination of the spatial position of each subsequent control point of the FZ is carried out during the time of pointing the group of VMs to the current control point of the required trajectory when performing a maneuver corresponding to the given FZ.

The presented sequence of actions determines the essence of the proposed method of controlling a group of maneuverable unmanned aerial vehicles.

Additionally, it should be noted that in the event of the loss of a VM leader, it is possible to provide for the presence in the control system of each VM of a circuit that implements the control law for the entire group of VMs, which corresponds to the transfer of the functions of the VM leader to the VM closest to it.

This makes it possible to ensure that the configuration of the group of remaining VMs is preserved throughout the entire area of the PP execution.

The simulation results (Figs. 6, 7, 8) using a simulation model [5] show that during the entire flight to the PZ control points, the trajectories of the aircraft do not intersect in the group, therefore, the control method ensures their flight as part of a group without a collision.

This is achieved by taking into account in the group control law for each of the VMs the relative position of the leader VM - slave VMs.

The industrial applicability of the proposed technical solution is confirmed by the possibility of implementing its purpose using standard on-board computing tools, without significant modification of the UAV-based VM control system, since ultimately, when implemented in practice, only additional information is needed about the movement of the UAV-based VM relative to the corresponding control points required flight path.

INFORMATION SOURCES

1. Invention for patent RU 2728197 C1. “A method for controlling a group of unmanned aerial vehicles, taking into account the degree of danger of surrounding objects.”

2. Verba V.S., Tatarsky B.G., Merkulov V.I. and others. “Complexes with unmanned aerial vehicles.” Moscow. Radio engineering. 2016. 822 p.

3. Verba V.S., Tatarsky B.G., Merkulov V.I. and others. “Principles of construction and features of the use of complexes with UAVs.” M.: Radio engineering, 2016. 505 p.

4. Moiseev B.S. "Group use of unmanned aerial vehicles." - Kazan: Editorial and Publishing Center “School”, 2017. 572 p. (Series “Modern applied mathematics and computer science”).

5. Application No. 2021114324/11 (030445). “Simulation model of an air target control system based on an unmanned aerial vehicle from the target complex.”

Claims (1)

A method for controlling a group of maneuverable unmanned aerial vehicles, which consists in the fact that a group of air targets is launched into a given area of airspace while determining the initial slant range r ₀ to the VM leader and its heading angles and pitch with simultaneous determination of the current spatial position of the slave VMs, their heading angles ψ _BM2,...,n and pitch θ _BM2,...,n with their subsequent comparison with the required values of heading and pitch angles each VM of the group, characterized in that the equalities are accepted as the initial condition at the start of control for the control system of the VM leader then for the horizontal plane of movement of the VM leader, depending on time t _KT , when changing with a step Δt, the linear law of change in the slant range is used, based on the angular mismatch between the required value of the heading angle of the VM leader when moving to the control point PZ and its output value at the output of the control system for a group of VMs, a component of the control signal j _Г is formed along the course for the VM leader while ensuring the stability of the approach of the VM leader to the control point PZ by correcting the control signal j _Г by taking into account the value of the angular velocity ω _Г by change similarly, for the vertical plane of movement of the VM leader, the values of the control signal j _V are determined, the control signals j _Г and j _В for the corresponding guidance planes are used to determine the required heading angles and pitch which are input influences for the standard unchangeable control system of the VM leader in the process of its movement in the direction of a given control point PZ, current data from the control structure of the VM leader in the form are used to determine the values of their angular mismatches in control systems of slave VMs relative to the leader VM, thereby ensuring the flight of the slave VMs while maintaining mutual distances that exclude collisions of VMs during the movement of the entire group to the control point PZ, in the pitch control systems of the slave VMs similar to the control system of the VM leader, the transition from the pitch angle is carried out to height control when the value of the current slant range specified r _min is reached, selected for reasons of maintaining the operability of the control system of the VM-leader, the transition to guiding the group of VMs to the next control point of the PV is carried out.

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