This thesis explores the use of velocity information obtained by a Global Positioning System
(GPS) receiver to close the aircraft’s flight control loop. A novel framework to synthesize
attitude information from GPS velocity vector measurements is discussed. The
framework combines the benefits of high-quality GPS velocity measurements with a novel
velocity vector based flight control paradigm to provide a means for the human operator or
autopilot to close the aircraft flight control loop. Issues arising from limitations in GPS as
well as the presence of a human in the aircraft control loop are addressed.
Results from several flight tests demonstrate the viability of this novel concept and show
that GPS velocity based attitude allows for equivalent aircraft control as traditional attitude.
Two possible applications of GPS velocity based attitude, an autopilot and a tunnelin-
the-sky trajectory guidance system, are demonstrated in flight. Unlike traditional autopilot
and trajectory guidance systems, these applications rely solely on the information
obtained from a single-antenna GPS receiver which makes them affordable to the larger
General Aviation aircraft community. Finally, the impact of GPS velocity based flight control
on the instrumentation architecture of flight vehicles is investigated.Rockwell-Collins, NASA/FAA Joint University Program for Air Transportation, Draper Laborator
