Aerodynamic Investigation for a Propeller-Induced Lift-Enhancing Vertical Take-Off and Landing (VTOL) Configuration
Difficulty in thrust-matching between the cruise and vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) phases is one of the prominent issues faced by conventional VTOL fixed-wing drones. To address this issue, a propeller-induced lift-enhancing (PILE) biplane wing VTOL configuration is proposed with the goal of...
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MDPI AG
2024-12-01
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| Series: | Drones |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2504-446X/9/1/20 |
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| author | Hongbo Wang Guangjia Li Jie Li Junjie Zhuang |
| author_facet | Hongbo Wang Guangjia Li Jie Li Junjie Zhuang |
| author_sort | Hongbo Wang |
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| description | Difficulty in thrust-matching between the cruise and vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) phases is one of the prominent issues faced by conventional VTOL fixed-wing drones. To address this issue, a propeller-induced lift-enhancing (PILE) biplane wing VTOL configuration is proposed with the goal of lift enhancement on the wing during the no-forward-speed VTOL phase. Numerical simulation methods are used to study and analyze the aerodynamic characteristics of this configuration in the cruise and VTOL phases. The results show that the favorable inducing effect of the propeller makes the PILE configuration have a good effect of increasing lift and reducing drag compared with a single wing of the same area during the cruise phase, improving the lift-to-drag ratio by 7.27%. During the VTOL phase, the optimal tilt angle of the propeller for the PALE configuration is 70°, matched with an installation angle of 5° for the aided wing. This parameter combination balances the total drag while also achieving a lift-to-thrust ratio of 1.12. As a result, the required thrust of the propeller is reduced under the same take-off weight, which helps to alleviate the thrust-matching problem and enables VTOL with a smaller power cost. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-cbb9510a55354d478520956dd0409bbc |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2504-446X |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-12-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Drones |
| spelling | doaj-art-cbb9510a55354d478520956dd0409bbc2025-01-24T13:29:40ZengMDPI AGDrones2504-446X2024-12-01912010.3390/drones9010020Aerodynamic Investigation for a Propeller-Induced Lift-Enhancing Vertical Take-Off and Landing (VTOL) ConfigurationHongbo Wang0Guangjia Li1Jie Li2Junjie Zhuang3Innovation and Application Center, China Academy of Aerospace Aerodynamics, Beijing 100074, ChinaInnovation and Application Center, China Academy of Aerospace Aerodynamics, Beijing 100074, ChinaSchool of Aeronautics, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xi’an 710072, ChinaSchool of Aeronautic Science and Engineering, Beihang University, Beijing 100191, ChinaDifficulty in thrust-matching between the cruise and vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) phases is one of the prominent issues faced by conventional VTOL fixed-wing drones. To address this issue, a propeller-induced lift-enhancing (PILE) biplane wing VTOL configuration is proposed with the goal of lift enhancement on the wing during the no-forward-speed VTOL phase. Numerical simulation methods are used to study and analyze the aerodynamic characteristics of this configuration in the cruise and VTOL phases. The results show that the favorable inducing effect of the propeller makes the PILE configuration have a good effect of increasing lift and reducing drag compared with a single wing of the same area during the cruise phase, improving the lift-to-drag ratio by 7.27%. During the VTOL phase, the optimal tilt angle of the propeller for the PALE configuration is 70°, matched with an installation angle of 5° for the aided wing. This parameter combination balances the total drag while also achieving a lift-to-thrust ratio of 1.12. As a result, the required thrust of the propeller is reduced under the same take-off weight, which helps to alleviate the thrust-matching problem and enables VTOL with a smaller power cost.https://www.mdpi.com/2504-446X/9/1/20thrust-matchingvertical take-off and landingpropeller-induced lift-enhancingbiplane wingslift-to-thrust ratio |
| spellingShingle | Hongbo Wang Guangjia Li Jie Li Junjie Zhuang Aerodynamic Investigation for a Propeller-Induced Lift-Enhancing Vertical Take-Off and Landing (VTOL) Configuration Drones thrust-matching vertical take-off and landing propeller-induced lift-enhancing biplane wings lift-to-thrust ratio |
| title | Aerodynamic Investigation for a Propeller-Induced Lift-Enhancing Vertical Take-Off and Landing (VTOL) Configuration |
| title_full | Aerodynamic Investigation for a Propeller-Induced Lift-Enhancing Vertical Take-Off and Landing (VTOL) Configuration |
| title_fullStr | Aerodynamic Investigation for a Propeller-Induced Lift-Enhancing Vertical Take-Off and Landing (VTOL) Configuration |
| title_full_unstemmed | Aerodynamic Investigation for a Propeller-Induced Lift-Enhancing Vertical Take-Off and Landing (VTOL) Configuration |
| title_short | Aerodynamic Investigation for a Propeller-Induced Lift-Enhancing Vertical Take-Off and Landing (VTOL) Configuration |
| title_sort | aerodynamic investigation for a propeller induced lift enhancing vertical take off and landing vtol configuration |
| topic | thrust-matching vertical take-off and landing propeller-induced lift-enhancing biplane wings lift-to-thrust ratio |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2504-446X/9/1/20 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT hongbowang aerodynamicinvestigationforapropellerinducedliftenhancingverticaltakeoffandlandingvtolconfiguration AT guangjiali aerodynamicinvestigationforapropellerinducedliftenhancingverticaltakeoffandlandingvtolconfiguration AT jieli aerodynamicinvestigationforapropellerinducedliftenhancingverticaltakeoffandlandingvtolconfiguration AT junjiezhuang aerodynamicinvestigationforapropellerinducedliftenhancingverticaltakeoffandlandingvtolconfiguration |