Attitude Control of Unmanned Tandem Helicopter with Active Disturbance Rejection Capability

The unmanned tandem helicopter (UTH) is a aircraft variant worth studying. However, developing an accurate dynamic model of the UTH is challenging because of its unique aerodynamic characteristics. Moreover, its dynamic model is nonlinear, coupled, and uncertain, making it highly susceptible to the influence of the external environment. Unmodeled dynamics, system uncertainties affect the flight control of the UTH, thereby increasing the complexity of control. This paper proposes a control scheme based on Active Disturbance Rejection Control (ADRC) to enhance the dynamic performance and robustness of the UTH. Simulation results demonstrate that the UTH control system based on ADRC can effectively cope with the impact of unmodeled dynamics and suppress system uncertainties and external disturbances. The control system of the UTH we designed exhibits good dynamic performance.