System identification and control of a small-scale paramotor

Abstract

This paper presents a methodology for the system identification of a light weight, small-scale parafoil suspended motorized aircraft, known as a paramotor. The study is concerned with the acquisition of linear models describing both the lateral and longitudinal dynamics of the aircraft, with an emphasis on practical techniques that can be implemented in the real world. The mathematical models developed in this paper are first validated by comparison with real flight data, before being employed in the design of a guidance, navigation and control system, the performance of which is demonstrated by real autonomous flight tests.