Higher augmented control of a utility helicopter using model following controllers

Abstract

Higher augmented control of a medium sized utility helicopter with fly-by-wire controls is accomplished by implementing translational rate command position hold (TRCPH) type controllers. These control algorithms complements previously designed attitude command attitude hold (ACAH) type inner loops in a cascaded manner. ACAH controllers are based on two different design approach: explicit model following (EMF) and optimal model following (OMF). TRCPH mode is optimized for pilot workload alleviation based on ADS-33E-PRF specifications. Four sample mission task elements (MTEs) are performed in a desktop simulation environment with both EMF and OMF. A modified pilot model and power frequency metric are used to get some sense about qualitative pilot opinion.