Thrust Allocation Modes Design and Analysis of Propulsion Controlled Aircraft

Propulsion Controlled Aircraft (PCA) is an effective fault-tolerant control strategy when aircraft no longer controllable by normal aerodynamic means. PCA generates yaw torque by adjusting engine thrust to control the lateral/directional movement of aircraft. For large commercial aircraft, there are four engines. Differential thrust not only can be generated by external engine but can also be co-generated by internal and external engines. Therefore, this paper discusses the influence of different thrust allocation mode on PCA system in term of system response and economy. Through simulation and analysis, the optimal thrust allocation mode is obtained.