Rigorous closed-form energy model for arbitrary 3D UAV trajectories

Derive a rigorous closed-form expression for the propulsion energy consumption of unmanned aerial vehicles under arbitrary three-dimensional trajectories q(t), including climbing and descending segments, as a function of the trajectory, to enable principled energy-efficient communication and trajectory optimization beyond the straight-and-level flight models for fixed-wing and rotary-wing UAVs.

Background

The paper presents closed-form propulsion power models for straight-and-level flight of fixed-wing and rotary-wing UAVs and discusses important speeds such as maximum-endurance and maximum-range. It then notes that real missions involve general 3D motion with climbing or descending where energy depends on both velocity and acceleration.

To support energy-efficient UAV communications and trajectory optimization, an accurate energy model for arbitrary 3D trajectories is needed. The authors provide a heuristic approximation and highlight its limitations, emphasizing the lack of a rigorous closed-form expression for general 3D motion and the need to assess the approximation’s accuracy.

References

However, for arbitrary 3D UAV trajectory q(t) with UAV climbing or descending over time, to the authors' best knowledge, no closed-form expression has been rigorously derived for the UAV energy consumption as a function of q(t).

— Accessing From The Sky: A Tutorial on UAV Communications for 5G and Beyond (1903.05289 - Zeng et al., 2019) in Section II-C (UAV Energy Consumption Model), Extensions and directions of future Work