A Virtual–Real Combination Experiment System for Multirotor AAV Assembly and Swarm Cooperation

Contribution: This article presents a virtual–real combination experiment system for multirotor autonomous aerial vehicle (AAV) assembly and swarm cooperation, featuring a novel multirotor AAV assembly and swarm cooperation virtual simulation experiment platform (MAAVASC-VSEP) with physical experiments. The experiment system enhances student engagement with cutting-edge AAV swarm technology. Background: The teaching of AAV swarm technology faces challenges such as complex multidisciplinary integration, abstract concepts, and limited experimental resources. Existing AAV courses often focus on AAV technology, lacking a comprehensive, interdisciplinary approach to swarm technology. Intended outcomes: The experiment system cultivates students’ exploratory thinking and problem-solving skills, helping them understand the fundamental principles of AAV swarm technology and improving multidisciplinary engineering application abilities. Application design: Combining MAAVASC-VSEP with the corresponding physical experiments, the experiment system includes three inquiry-based tasks: multirotor AAV assembly and parameter tuning, AAV swarm link budgeting and networking, and swarm cooperation and obstacle avoidance. Findings: Student performance evaluation and student survey demonstrate that the experiment system effectively improves students’ understanding of AAV swarm technology. Students in the experimental group outperformed students in the comparison group through more fault-tolerant exploratory attempts, indicating the system’s significant effectiveness in fostering self-directed learning and problem-solving skills.