Control design oriented modeling of an on-ground aircraft

The aim of this paper is to present a simple yet accurate design-oriented on-ground aircraft model, during the roll-out and take-off phases between 40 and 100 knots, with 3 degrees of freedom (DOF). The proposed model takes into account the effects of aerodynamics, thrust and tire-ground interaction, both laterally and longitudinally, under several runway states. The on-ground dynamics of the aircraft can be controlled by engines thrust, rudder deflection, nose wheel steering and (differential) braking, whose physical limitations are considered. It is validated against an in-house high-fidelity Airbus simulator. A complete set of numerical values representative of a commercial aircraft is included, as well as design objectives, so as to provide the control community with a challenging benchmark.