Application of a ground based minicomputer system for real time, closed loop control of remotely piloted aircraft models used in stall/spin research

The paper describes a minicomputer-based, real-time closed loop remote control system at NASA Langley outdoor facility which is used to determine the stall/departure/spin characteristics of high-performance aircraft. The experiments are conducted with 15% dynamically scaled, unpowered models that are dropped from 3000 m and ground controlled. The effects of time delays and sampling rates on the stability of the control system and the selection of digital algorithms to meet frequency response and real time constraints are examined. Also described is the implementation of the modular software for the flexible programming of multi-axis control laws.