Flight Time Estimation for Continuous Surveillance Missions Using a Multirotor UAV

Abstract

To achieve the continuous surveillance capable multirotor type solar-powered unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), we develop the photovoltaic power management system (PPMS) which manages power from photovoltaic (PV) modules and a battery pack to support the power of the UAV. To estimate the possible flight time of the UAV, we use the concept of state of charge (SOC) estimation based on the extended Kalman filter (EKF) and complementary filter (CF) and then calculate the possible flight time by using the slope of the SOC graph during hovering flight mode. According to the results, estimated flight time increases up to 54.14 min at 11:00 a.m. and decreases down to 6.70 min at 18:00 p.m.

Keywords

• low-altitude long-endurance (LALE)
• photovoltaic power management system (PPMS)
• unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV)