A Leader-Follower Formation Control of Multi-UAVs via an Adaptive Hybrid Controller

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to offer an adaptive hybrid controller for the formation control of multiple unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) leader-follower configurations with communication delay. Although numerous studies about the control of the formation exist, very few incorporate the delay in their model and are adaptive as well. The motivation behind this article is to bridge that gap. The strategy consists of an adaptive fuzzy logic controller and a Proportional, Integral, and Derivative (PID) controller where the logic controller fines/tunes the PID controller gains. The controller also consists of an integrator that raises the order of the system which helps reduce the noise and steady-state errors. The simulations confirm that the proposed technique is robust and satisfies mission requirements. Moreover, the flying formations of the swarm were created by a B-spline curve based on a simple waypoint. The main contribution of this study is to present a model where the formation remains stable during the whole flight, errors are within the optimal range, and the time delays are manageable.