A Haptic Feedback Method for Improving Quadrotor Drone Operability

Abstract

The control of a quadrotor drone is not easy to get used to, because its operational logic is difficult, figuring out the three-dimensional spatial relationship between the drone and the pilot, or between the drone and obstacles around the drone is tough, and the aerodynamic information around the drone is not available to operators. By the first-person view flight that flies with a drone through a camera attached to the drone, the problem of identifying the three-dimensional spatial relationship is mostly solved, but there is no way to intuitively communicate aerodynamic information around the drone through conventional drone control equipment. To solve this problem, this thesis proposing the drag force acting on drones with haptic feedback so that the pilots could get to know the aerodynamic information around the drones, thereby improving the manipulator's ability to operate the drone. In this thesis, 2-DOF joysticks delivered information on the longitudinal and lateral drag force acting on quadrotor drones to the pilots, and the drone flight task was conducted within the virtual environment to confirm the resulting improvement in flight capability. Experiments showed statistically significant differences in flight paths accuracy, flight time and the number of collisions due to whether or not there was haptic feedback, as well as improvements in the pilot's ability to wind rejection and acceleration control. However, since the experiment was conducted through only one experimental group (haptic feedback on drag force), the results of this thesis cannot be defined as the best way to communicate the aerodynamic information around the drone to the pilot, and are thought to be used only as a preliminary experiment result.