Modelling and Control of a Virtual Skydiver

An innovative approach of gaining an insight into motor skills involved in human body flight is proposed. Body flight is the art of maneuvering during the free fall stage of skydiving, which is a rapidly developing sport. The key idea is creating an autonomous system capable of performing skydiving maneuvers in a virtual way, and turning it into a powerful tool for improving instruction methods. Towards this goal, the Skydiver Simulator is developed, comprising Biomechanical, Aerodynamic, and Kinematic Models, Dynamic Equations of Motion, and a Virtual Reality Environment. A Two-Input-Two-Output controller is designed to track the desired inertial motion, producing commands in terms of limbs movements. The natural kinematic redundancy of the human body is resolved by introducing movement patterns, constructed according to ergonomic considerations and empirical knowledge of how skydiving maneuvers are performed. The controller is designed with the use of Quantitative Feedback Theory, providing robustness for dealing with plant non-linearities and inaccurate execution of the movement patterns. The skydiver simulator allowed reconstruction of many challenging aspects of body-flight observed by practicing skydivers. The virtual skydiver, comprising a controller and a guidance algorithm, was shown to autonomously perform meaningful body flight missions.