Global Adaptive Output Feedback Tracking Control of an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle

An output feedback (OFB) dynamic inversion control strategy is developed for an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) that achieves global asymptotic tracking of a reference model. The UAV is modeled as an uncertain linear time-invariant (LTI) system with an additive bounded nonvanishing nonlinear disturbance. A continuous tracking controller is designed to mitigate the nonlinear disturbance and inversion error, and an adaptive law is utilized to compensate for the parametric uncertainty. Global asymptotic tracking of the measurable output states is proven via a Lyapunov-like stability analysis, and high-fidelity simulation results are provided to illustrate the applicability and performance of the developed control law.