In this work, a six degree of freedom (6 DoF) dynamic model is developed for an aircraft utilizing distributed electric propulsion (DEP). The autonomous testbed for artificial intelligent research (@AIR) unmanned aerial system (UAS) uses six tractor electric motors distributed along the leading edge of the main wing and one pusher electric motor mounted to the fuselage. In addition to dramatic reduction in energy required per passenger-mile, DEP concept can allow for several added capabilities on an aircraft such as shortening takeoff distance, adding new propulsors for controlling an aircraft, and increasing the adaptability of an aircraft (e.g., to failure of control surfaces or motors). Modeling the propulsive forces and moments of the DEP motors was done using thrust data available on the manufacturer website. A method was developed for modeling the changes in aerodynamic forces and moments due to operation of the DEP motors. The method is based on modeling the changes in dynamic pressure along the span of the wing due to operation of the DEP motors. Experimental data was gathered using a pressure sensor to model the changes in dynamic pressure across the span of the wing at different DEP motor throttle settings. The @AIR UAS was flight tested with specific flight maneuvers to study the possibility of using the DEP motors for lateral/directional control of the aircraft. Flight test data was used to improve, validate, and verify aircraft’s dynamic model. Inaccuracies were present in the simulation results in this work as could be expected since low fidelity methods were used in the simulator development. However, depending on the application and the desired level of accuracy, the presented modeling methods may provide a lower cost alternative that is of practical use. The developed simulator may be useful for developing controllers that utilize the DEP motors for controlling the aircraft.
Flight Test Validation Verification of @AIR Distributed Electric Propulsion Aircraft Dynamic Model *
2022-06-21
1533434 byte
Aufsatz (Konferenz)
Elektronische Ressource
Englisch
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