P.J.K. Koh, S.K.Y. Lim, J. Wang

In recent developments for electric Vertical Take-off and Landing (eVTOL) aircraft, there has been an influx of designs employing multiple stationary hover rotors mounted on longitudinal booms. Such layout is quite common among lift cruise eVTOL configurations as shown in Figure 1. What is common among these eVTOL aircraft is their hover rotors only spins during hovering flight. As the aircraft transitions into forward flight, the hover rotors stop spinning, reducing the power required. Two-bladed propellers are commonly used for the hover rotors as the blades can be aligned parallel to the boom in forward flight to minimize drag. There is limited published research on the aerodynamic characteristics of boom mounted hover rotor configurations as they are not commonly found on conventional airplanes. Therefore, this paper examines how the longitudinal boom and boom-mounted hover rotors affects the aerodynamic performance of an aircraft. This involves the characterisation of the fundamental parameters that affects the performance and design of the booms and non-rotating hover rotors. Wind tunnel testing have been conducted to evaluate the aerodynamic performance of booms and boom-mounted hover rotors at their component level. Subsequently, additional studies such as the placement and size variation of fixed hover rotors were conducted to determine the directions to achieve an optimal configuration. Finally, experimental data are compared with analytical estimation using a component drag build up approach to provide comprehensive comparison between both experimental and analytical models. The results provide beneficial findings for eVTOL aircraft designers, researchers, and the VTOL industry to advance eVTOL designs with longitudinal booms and boom-mounted hover rotors.

49th European Rotorcraft Forum 2023, Bückeburg, 2023

Conference Paper

englisch

21,0 x 29,7 cm, 16 Seiten

DGLR-Bericht, 2023, 2023-01, 49th European Rotorcraft Forum 2023 - Proceedings; S.1-16; 2023; Deutsche Gesellschaft für Luft- und Raumfahrt - Lilienthal-Oberth e.V., Bonn

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2023