Actuator fault estimation method using hexacopter symmetry

This paper proposes a method of estimating the actuator faults of a hexacopter without using encoders when one or more of six actuators do not operate normally. In the case of the hexacopter, a Pseudo-Inverse matrix is generally used to obtain the rotational speed of the actuators because the matrix that transforms the rotational speed of the actuators into the thrust and torque of the body coordinate system is not a square matrix. However, the method based on the Pseudo-Inverse matrix cannot detect the actuator faults correctly because the Pseudo-Inverse matrix is approximate. In the proposed method, the actuator faults are estimated by modifying the transform matrix using the property that the actuators of the hexacopter are symmetrical. The simulation results show the effectiveness of the proposed method when faults occur in one or more of the six actuators.