Autonomous Takeoff and Landing for Quadcopters

Abstract: In this project an automated takeoff and landing system for quadcopters was devised. This will make unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) less dependent of human supervision which could improve for example swarms of quadcopters where humans cannot control all in detail. Quadcopters are used due to their mobility and ability to hover over a specific location, useful for surveillance and search missions. The system is self-contained and real time processing is done on board.

To make the project possible, software for an onboard computer had to be developed and put on the quadcopter. The onboard computer is controlled from a ground station which can give high level commands such as takeoff, land and change altitude.

Experiments were conducted in a laboratory environment to measure the effectiveness of the takeoff, hovering, and landing commands. The parameter used to control the sensor fusion, the time constant in z direction, was found to have an optimal value of 3.0 s. When tracking the desired altitude the root mean square error is in the order of a few centimetres.