Dubins path generation for a fixed wing UAV

Overview & Synopsis

A path generator is proposed for a fixed-wing Unmaned Aereal Vehicle (UAV). Assuming that the vehicle maintain a constant altitude, and airspeed, and that the UAV is constrained by a turning rate. The Dubins paths serve as a strategy to find the shortest path for the non-holonomic model of the UAV. Dubins paths consist of three path segments which are based on straight lines or arcs of circle of a given radius. The Dubins path generation is combined with a nonlinear Lypaunov-based path-following control. Finally we present a complete simulation environment in which the path generator and path following strategy are validated. As an example of application we propose the scenario in which a missing person is located in some known area and we use the path generator along with this path-following strategy applied to the fixed wing UAV to search and find this person.