A Study on UAV Flight Control System HILS Test Environment

A UAV(Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) flies along pre-programed navigation points(in-flight, take-off, or landing) automatically without pilot input. Even though UAVs fly differently from general piloted aircraft as the pilot controls the aircraft from a ground station through means of a data-link system. Occasionally, the data-link connection can be lost for any number of reasons, in which case, the FLCC(Flight control Computer) must automatically switch to autopilot to continue flying. Hence, the FLCC is a flight-critical component that must be throughly tested and validated. This paper discusses the development of a HILS(Hardware in the Loop Simulation) test environment designed to simulate real flight conditions to verify the FLCC satisfies flying quality requirements and maintains robustness despite any potential malfunctions or emergency situations.