Omni-Plus-Seven (O7+): An Omnidirectional Aerial Prototype with a Minimal Number of Unidirectional Thrusters
Mahmoud Hamandi, Kapil Sawant, Marco Tognon, Antonio Franchi · 2020
The aim of this paper is to present the design of a novel omnidirectional Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) with seven unidirectional thrusters, called O+7. The paper formally defines the O+design for a generic number of propellers and presents its necessary conditions; then it illustrates a method to optimize the placement and orientation of the platform's propellers to achieve a balanced O+design. The paper then details the choice of the parameters of the O+7UAV, and highlights the required mechanical and electrical components. The resultant platform is tested in simulation, before being implemented as a prototype. The prototype is firstly static-bench tested to match its nominal and physical models, followed by hovering tests in multiple orientations. The presented prototype shows the ability to fly horizontally, upside down and at a tilted angle.