Cooperative drone transport — ARMADA project (LS2N)
Multiple drones carrying a shared payload through a deformable net — a problem where classic model-based control breaks down.
Context
The ARMADA project at LS2N explores cooperative aerial transport: several drones carrying a single shared payload suspended in a deformable net. The elastic coupling between the vehicles makes the system hard to model, and a classic model-based controller struggles to keep the formation stable. I took over an existing research controller that was unstable in flight and reworked it from the ground up.
What was delivered
I migrated the controller from Python to C++ and replaced the rigid-model approach with a model-free design: per-drone PD control combined with a Moving Horizon Estimation observer that estimates the net disturbances in real time. The work was validated first in Gazebo simulation, then in real indoor flights in the LS2N arena.
- Up to 4 drones carrying a 1 kg shared payload.
- Full pick-up-and-deposit cycles while holding formation within ±15 cm.
- Real indoor flights in the LS2N arena, backed by Gazebo simulation.
A research paper on this work is currently being written; photos and flight video will follow its publication.
Tech stack
C++ control stack running on ROS2, with Gazebo for simulation. This engagement is part of long-term work on low-level UAV control — a C++ and ROS2 stack, Gazebo simulation across multiple vehicle types, and fleet-control applications built on top.