FlightGear application for flight simulation of a mini-UAV

Abstract

This paper presents using of FlightGear application for flight simulation of a mini-UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle). The first part of the paper is about general information of UAVs and about the fundamentals of airplane flight mechanics. The main section summarizes the information about FlightGear application and describes a way of using the application to simulate a mini-UAV. The process of altitude change by using autopilot has been simulated. In the created simulation, three stage cascade controller was used for an altitude control. Heading was controlled by 2 stage cascade PID (Proportional-Integral-Derivative) controller. An automatic throttle system was applied for a velocity control. The setting of all controllers is included in the description of the simulation. Finally, the results of FlightGear simulation are discussed.