MATLAB-Based UAV Dynamics Configurator and Testbed for COTS Fighter UAV Platform

The increasing number of UAVs performing commercial and amateur flights necessitates the introduction of safe design principles for airborne platform architectures and UAV control algorithms. This article presents an approach to designing such solutions. UAVConfigurator is software designed for simulating the dynamics of a Commercial Off-The-Shelf (COTS) Fighter UAV airframe, developed in the MATLAB/Simulink environment. This application simplifies the design and testing of control software for unmanned systems, and is intended for use by UAV designers, researchers, and students. It serves as a Software-In-the-Loop (SIL) simulator, allowing users to build and test new algorithms in simulated environments before transitioning to real UAVs. The software accurately models UAV dynamics, as confirmed by flight tests, owing to its integration with advanced aerodynamic computations. It includes models of essential UAV components and enables users to simulate sensor failures. Additionally, it features an ISA atmosphere model. The aerodynamics model developed for the airframe enables users to conduct Hardware-in-the-Loop (HIL) simulations without requiring independent calculations of force and moment values, making it a unique tool in UAV simulation. Users also have the flexibility to modify the models of each component, including verifying system performance after using new onboard devices. The presented model allows users to design their own algorithms, coded on the Flight Computer or Mission Computer, to execute missions according to their own ideas.