A Simple Optimization Method for Tuning the Gains of PID Controllers for the Autopilot of Cessna 182 Aircraft Using Model-in-the-Loop Platform

Currently, there is a growing demand for automatic control systems for unmanned aerial vehicles due to the numerous civil and military applications. An unmanned aerial vehicle has sophisticated and complex controllers that are used to stabilize it, which composes the autopilot. In autopilots, PID controllers are commonly used, and various techniques are applied to tune their gains. In this paper are proposed optimization procedures of gains for the designed PID controllers from the transfer functions simulated in the Matlab/Simulink software, establishing a model-in-the-loop system, for the autopilot of the Cessna 182 aircraft. In this context, results of simulations are obtained to prove the effectiveness of using these proposals for optimization. They offer a simple, effective, systematic and replicable way to obtain the gains and dispense the use of classical methods of determination of gains for control loops, as well as the trial and error method.