Varying L0 Path-Following Guidance for Airborne Wind Energy Systems

This paper presents a variable L0 guidance parameter-based path-following method for airborne wind energy systems. The parameter L0 utilizes an exponential function of the cross-track error to govern the converging behavior of the vehicle relative to the desired path. Simulation results are presented utilizing a kite kinematic model. The comparative studies are carried out with respect to the constant L0 based guidance law thus illustrating the efficacy of the proposed method. Results emphasize intelligent choice of L0 parameter for accurate path-following while satisfying design criteria.