Banking Turn of High-DOF Dynamic Morphing Wing Flight by Shifting Structure Response Using Optimization

TL;DR

The paper tackles the challenge of controlling a high-DOF morphing-wing MAV (Aerobat) with limited actuation to achieve agile 3D maneuvers. It develops a cascade flight dynamics model that separates actuators into generators and regulators and couples this with a collocation-based optimization controller for fast 3D path tracking. Key contributions include formalizing the actuator-splitting $u=[u_{Reg}^\top,u_{Gen}^\top]^\top$, and implementing a polynomial-collocation framework with a 5-step horizon that embeds full nonlinear dynamics. Simulation results demonstrate successful banking maneuvers and adaptive, asymmetric gait patterns, highlighting a practical pathway toward hardware-enabled, untethered flight of dynamic morphing wings.

Abstract

The 3D flight control of a flapping wing robot is a very challenging problem. The robot stabilizes and controls its pose through the aerodynamic forces acting on the wing membrane which has complex dynamics and it is difficult to develop a control method to interact with such a complex system. Bats, in particular, are capable of performing highly agile aerial maneuvers such as tight banking and bounding flight solely using their highly flexible wings. In this work, we develop a control method for a bio-inspired bat robot, the Aerobat, using small low-powered actuators to manipulate the flapping gait and the resulting aerodynamic forces. We implemented a controller based on collocation approach to track a desired roll and perform a banking maneuver to be used in a trajectory tracking controller. This controller is implemented in a simulation to show its performance and feasibility.

Figures (7)

• Figure 1: Cartoon idealization of Aerobat performing sharp banking turns.
• Figure 2: Shows the computational structure used in Aerobat and the proposed low-power actuators' locations within the structure (regulator). Also shows the relevant joints (shoulder and elbow) that generate the resulting flapping gait (generator).
• Figure 3: Top view snapshots of the simulation showing the trajectory of the banking turn.
• Figure 4: Plots of the robot's position and orientation states versus time in the simulation. The robot has successfully tracked the desired roll to perform the banking maneuver and generated a steady change in the robot's heading.
• Figure 5: Plots of the robot's generator trajectories (shoulder and elbow joint angles) and regulator lengths versus time in the simulation. The plots show how the asymmetric flapping gait and regulator actions between the left and right wings that allow the robot to perform the banking maneuver.