An overactuated aerial robot based on cooperative quadrotors attached through passive universal joints: Modeling, control and 6-DoF trajectory tracking
Open accessAbstract
This article discusses a novel aerial robot architecture that overcomes the underactuation of conventional multirotor systems without adding dedicated rotor tilting actuators. The proposed system is based on four quadrotors cooperatively carrying a central body to which they are attached through passive universal joints. While conventional parallel axis multirotors are underactuated, the proposed mechanism makes the system overactuated, enabling independent position and orientation control of the main body. This implies that the payload can be carried in the minimum drag orientation, it enables take-off and landing on inclined surfaces and it provides thrust-vectoring capabilities to the system, leading to high control authority. A detailed dynamic model is derived making use of Lagrangian formalism and a hierarchical control law based on such model is proposed to stabilize the system. This control law is designed to ensure good tracking while minimizing power consumption. The proposed control law and the capabilities of the architecture are evaluated in simulation and in outdoor experimental flights, where the aerial robot shows autonomous tracking of the six degrees of freedom (DoF) of the main body, an inherently unfeasible maneuver for conventional underactuated multirotors.
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High-redundancy actuators, often bioinspired, retain functionality with a 0.3 failure threshold.
“High-redundancy actuators, often bioinspired, retain functionality with a 0.3 failure threshold [3]”
From Hybrid Fault-Tolerant Control in Cooperative Robotics: Advances in Resilience and Scalability (2025) · cites this paper as [3]
Physical validation of fault-tolerant control strategies for cooperative robotics is limited to approximately 23% of reported strategies, with the rest tested only in simulation.
“Despite their computational complexity and limited physical validation (approximately 23% [3])”
From Hybrid Fault-Tolerant Control in Cooperative Robotics: Advances in Resilience and Scalability (2025) · cites this paper as [3]
High-Redundancy Actuation retains capacity in UAV swarms when paired with sensor redundancy such as Inertial Measurement Units at 100 Hz and LiDAR for rapid fault detection.
“HRA, detailed in Section Key Technical Methods in Hybrid FTC, retains capacity in UAV swarms when paired with sensor redundancy, such as Inertial Measurement Units (IMUs) at 100 Hz and Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) for rapid fault detection [3,27].”
From Hybrid Fault-Tolerant Control in Cooperative Robotics: Advances in Resilience and Scalability (2025) · cites this paper as [3]
Approximately 23% of reported fault-tolerant strategies have been physically validated.
“The field remains constrained by limited physical validation-approximately 23% of reported strategies [3]-prompting a need for future efforts to bridge simulation and practice.”
From Hybrid Fault-Tolerant Control in Cooperative Robotics: Advances in Resilience and Scalability (2025) · cites this paper as [3]
Reinforcement learning exploration risks necessitate extensive validation.
“However, exploration risks necessitate extensive validation [13], a concern given the limited physical testing in the field [3].”
From Hybrid Fault-Tolerant Control in Cooperative Robotics: Advances in Resilience and Scalability (2025) · cites this paper as [3]
Hybrid FTC strategies integrate passive fault-tolerant control's durability with active fault-tolerant control's responsiveness, addressing complex fault profiles across cooperative robotics.
“Hybrid FTC strategies integrate PFTC's durability with AFTC's responsiveness, addressing complex fault profiles across cooperative robotics [3,29,30].”
From Hybrid Fault-Tolerant Control in Cooperative Robotics: Advances in Resilience and Scalability (2025) · cites this paper as [3]
Mechanical redundancy approaches face limitations such as a 20% mass increase affecting mobility or complex fabrication needs.
“These approaches, while effective in predictable settings, face limitations such as a 20% mass increase affecting mobility [3] or complex fabrication needs [14].”
From Hybrid Fault-Tolerant Control in Cooperative Robotics: Advances in Resilience and Scalability (2025) · cites this paper as [3]
Bioinspired actuators, such as tensegrity designs with a 0.5 stiffness ratio, reduce downtime in agriculture.
“Bioinspired actuators, such as tensegrity designs with a 0.5 stiffness ratio, reduce downtime in agriculture [3]”
From Hybrid Fault-Tolerant Control in Cooperative Robotics: Advances in Resilience and Scalability (2025) · cites this paper as [3]
The literature suggests a shift toward integrated validation frameworks and benchmarks to align simulation-based gains with physical outcomes, addressing the current 23% validation limit.
“The literature suggests a shift toward integrated validation frameworks and benchmarks to align simulation-based gains-like those in Construction 5.0 [12]-with physical outcomes, addressing the current 23% validation limit [3].”
From Hybrid Fault-Tolerant Control in Cooperative Robotics: Advances in Resilience and Scalability (2025) · cites this paper as [3]
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Self-citation
- Authors
- Iriarte, I., Gorostiza, J., Iglesias, I., Lasa, J., Calvo-Soraluze, H., & Sierra, B.
- Affiliations
- Tecnalia (ES)
- University of the Basque Country (ES)
- Corresponding author
- Iriarte, Imanol
- Venue
- Robotics and Autonomous Systems
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2024-10
- Volume
- 180
- Pages
- 104761
- ISSN
- 0921-8890 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W4400944019
- Cited by
- 8
- References
- 33
- Citations by year
- 2026: 5 · 2025: 3
- FWCI
- 1.25
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- hybrid
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Robotics and Autonomous Systems (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- TECNALIA Publications (Fundación TECNALIA Research & Innovation) (submittedVersion, public-domain)
- Funders
- Eusko Jaurlaritza (KK-2022/00051)
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Engineering › Control and Systems Engineering › Adaptive Control of Nonlinear Systems
- Physical Sciences › Engineering › Control and Systems Engineering › Robotic Mechanisms and Dynamics
- Physical Sciences › Computer Science › Computer Networks and Communications › Distributed Control Multi-Agent Systems
- Keywords
- thrust vectoring, hierarchical control, Lagrangian dynamic modeling, power consumption minimization, autonomous flight
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