# FLOAT Drone: A Fully-actuated Coaxial Aerial Robot for Close-Proximity Operations

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2503.00785 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2503.00785/

## Key facts

- Cited by 1 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- Builds on 15 of its 33 references that are in the map.
- First posted on arXiv 2 Mar 2025.

## Builds on (most cited first, 15 of 15)

- [EGO-Planner: An ESDF-free Gradient-based Local Planner for Quadrotors](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2008.08835/) (2020)
- [Versatile Multi-Contact Planning and Control for Legged Loco-Manipulation](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2308.09179/) (2023)
- [Adaptive Mobile Manipulation for Articulated Objects In the Open World](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2401.14403/) (2024)
- [Whole-Body Control Through Narrow Gaps From Pixels To Action](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2409.00895/) (2024)
- [Whole-Body MPC for a Dynamically Stable Mobile Manipulator](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1902.10415/) (2019)
- [RACER: Rapid Collaborative Exploration with a Decentralized Multi-UAV System](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2209.08533/) (2022)
- [Flying Calligrapher: Contact-Aware Motion and Force Planning and Control for Aerial Manipulation](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2407.05587/) (2024)
- [Voliro: An Omnidirectional Hexacopter With Tiltable Rotors](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1801.04581/) (2018)
- [Ring-Rotor: A Novel Retractable Ring-shaped Quadrotor with Aerial Grasping and Transportation Capability](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2304.03514/) (2023)
- [Sequential Manipulation Planning for Over-actuated Unmanned Aerial Manipulators](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2306.14105/) (2023)
- [Aerial Interaction with Tactile Sensing](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2310.00142/) (2023)
- [Stable Contact Guaranteeing Motion/Force Control for an Aerial Manipulator on an Arbitrarily Tilted Surface](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2301.08078/) (2023)
- [Skater: A Novel Bi-modal Bi-copter Robot for Adaptive Locomotion in Air and Diverse Terrain](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2403.01991/) (2024)
- [AirCrab: A Hybrid Aerial-Ground Manipulator with An Active Wheel](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2403.15805/) (2024)
- [NDOB-Based Control of a UAV with Delta-Arm Considering Manipulator Dynamics](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2501.06122/) (2025)

## Built on by (most cited first, 1 of 1)

- [From Local Whole-Body VLA Behaviors to Scene-Scale Aerial Manipulation](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2609.39670/) (2026)

## Abstract (arXiv)

How to endow aerial robots with the ability to operate in close proximity remains an open problem. The core challenges lie in the propulsion system's dual-task requirement: generating manipulation forces while simultaneously counteracting gravity. These competing demands create dynamic coupling effects during physical interactions. Furthermore, rotor-induced airflow disturbances critically undermine operational reliability. Although fully-actuated unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) alleviate dynamic coupling effects via six-degree-of-freedom (6-DoF) force-torque decoupling, existing implementations fail to address the aerodynamic interference between drones and environments. They also suffer from oversized designs, which compromise maneuverability and limit their applications in various operational scenarios. To address these limitations, we present FLOAT Drone (FuLly-actuated cOaxial Aerial roboT), a novel fully-actuated UAV featuring two key structural innovations. By integrating control surfaces into fully-actuated systems for the first time, we significantly suppress lateral airflow disturbances during operations. Furthermore, a coaxial dual-rotor configuration enables a compact size while maintaining high hovering efficiency. Through dynamic modeling, we have developed hierarchical position and attitude controllers that support both fully-actuated and underactuated modes. Experimental validation through comprehensive real-world experiments confirms the system's functional capabilities in close-proximity operations.