Control-oriented modeling of a helicopter UAV with a Bell-Hiller stabilizer mechanism

We derive a control-oriented model for a helicopter UAV whose complexity is sufficiently low to be usable for model-based control design yet which accurately reflects the dominant physics. The model consists of rigid-body dynamics coupled with simplified models of its subsystems: main rotor, Bell-Hiller system and tail rotor. The Bell-Hiller system is shown to provide a derivative feedback action in flight. The physical parameters of the resulting model are directly identified through a series of measurements explained throughout.