Specialists from the Perm Military Institute of the National Guard Troops of the Russian Federation have developed a method for autonomous control of copter-type UAVs, according to the Rospatent database. The invention is intended for flights along a given route without constant operator control.
Before the flight, the barometer is set to zero altitude – the base pressure at takeoff level. Then, an array of points that the drone must sequentially fly around is set. During the flight, the inertial navigation system calculates the current coordinates, compares them with the set ones, calculates errors, and sends corrective signals to the motor control unit. The drone sequentially passes all route points.
This approach allows the drone to move autonomously, independently correcting deviations, which reduces the operator's workload and increases the accuracy of task execution. The development can be used in military, reconnaissance, and civilian missions where autonomous drone movement is required in the absence of satellite navigation signals. The technology is also applicable for electronic warfare suppression, for cargo delivery in urban areas, in mountainous terrain, and forests where navigation is unstable.