In-flight estimation of center of gravity position using all-accelerometers

Yazan Mohammad Al-Rawashdeh; Moustafa Elshafei; Mohammad Fahad Al-Malki

doi:10.3390/s140917567

In-flight estimation of center of gravity position using all-accelerometers

Sensors (Basel). 2014 Sep 19;14(9):17567-85. doi: 10.3390/s140917567.

Authors

Yazan Mohammad Al-Rawashdeh¹, Moustafa Elshafei², Mohammad Fahad Al-Malki³

Affiliations

¹ Department of Systems Engineering, King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals, Dhahran 31261, Saudi Arabia. g201203500@kfupm.edu.sa.
² Department of Systems Engineering, King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals, Dhahran 31261, Saudi Arabia. Shafei@mit.edu.
³ Technical & Industrial Services Co., Dammam 31493, Saudi Arabia. mfmalki@ieee.org.

Abstract

Changing the position of the Center of Gravity (CoG) for an aerial vehicle is a challenging part in navigation, and control of such vehicles. In this paper, an all-accelerometers-based inertial measurement unit is presented, with a proposed method for on-line estimation of the position of the CoG. The accelerometers' readings are used to find and correct the vehicle's angular velocity and acceleration using an Extended Kalman Filter. Next, the accelerometers' readings along with the estimated angular velocity and acceleration are used in an identification scheme to estimate the position of the CoG and the vehicle's linear acceleration. The estimated position of the CoG and motion measurements can then be used to update the control rules to achieve better trim conditions for the air vehicle.