Robust Stabilization of an R/c Helicopter

This paper presents robust stabilization for an R/C helicopter whose degree of freedom is reduced by fixing at a (joint) point. In our previous paper, we have achieved stable control for the R/C helicopter using fuzzy model-based nonlinear control. However, after simplifying the nonlinear dynamics, we have replaced the simplified nonlinear dynamics with a Takagi-Sugeno fuzzy model. In this paper, we design a robust fuzzy controller so as to compensate the modeling error for the simplification. A robust stability condition achieveing good speed of response is represented in terms of linear matrix inequalities (LMIs). By simultaneously solving the condition and input constraint condition, we design a robust fuzzy controller that achieves good speed of response with small control effort. The simulation and experimental results illustrate the utility of this approach.