This thesis describes the analysis, fabrication and testing of a rotor with extremely flexible blades, focusing on application to a micro-helicopter. The flexibility of the rotor blades is such that they can be rolled into a compact volume and stowed inside the rotor hub. Stiffening and stabilization of the rotor is enabled by centrifugal forces acting on a tip mass. Centrifugal effects such as bifilar and propeller moments are investigated and the torsional equation of motion for a blade with low torsional stiffness is derived. Criteria for the design of the tip mass are also derived and it is chosen that the center of gravity of each blade section must be located ahead of the aerodynamic center. This thesis presents the design of 18-inch diameter two-bladed rotors having untwisted circular arc airfoil profile with constant chord. A systematic experimental investigation of the effect of various blade parameters on the stability of the rotor is conducted in hover and forward flight. These parameters include blade flexibility in bending and torsion, blade planform and mass distribution. Accordingly, several sets of blades varying these parameters are constructed and tested. It is observed that rotational speed and collective pitch angles have a significant effect on rotor stability. In addition, forward flight velocity is found to increase the blade stability. Next, the performance of flexible rotors is measured. In particular, they are compared to the performance of a rotor with rigid blades having an identical planform and airfoil section. It is found that the flexible blades are highly twisted during operation, resulting in a decreased efficiency compared to the rigid rotor blades. This induced twist is attributed to an unfavorable combination of tip body design and the propeller moment acting on it. Consequently, the blade design is modified and three different approaches to passively tailor the spanwise twist distribution for improved efficiency are investigated. In a first approach, extension-torsion composite material coupling is analyzed and it is shown that the centrifugal force acting on the tip mass is not large enough to balance the nose-down twist due to the propeller moment. The second concept makes use of the propeller moment acting on the tip mass located at an index angle to produce an untwisted blade in hover. It is constructed and tested. The result is an untwisted 18-inch diameter rotor whose maximum Figure of Merit is equal to 0.51 at a blade loading of 0.14. Moreover, this rotor is found to be stable for any collective pitch angle greater than 11 degrees. Finally, in a third approach, addition of a trailing-edge flap at the tip of the flexible rotor blade is investigated. This design is found to have a lower maximum Figure of Merit than that of an identical flexible rotor without a flap. However, addition of this control surface resulted in a stable rotor for any value of collective pitch angle. Future plans for increasing the efficiency of the flexible rotor blades and for developing an analytical model are described. / text

A aplicação de técnicas de controle multivariáveis com o auxílio de ferramentas computacionais vem sendo bastante empregada em projetos de sistemas de controle complexos, que tem como base o conceito de variáveis de estado. Neste trabalho, visamos desenvolver um sistema de controle seguidor com realimentação de estados para um protótipo de um sistema de hélices paralelas onde a dinâmica é não linear e possui três graus de liberdade sendo dois graus de liberdade controlados. Serão utilizados dois modelos matemáticos: um modelo linear e um modelo não linear. A representação linear será utilizada para gerar as matrizes de ganho do sistema de controle. O modelo não linear é obtido através de prototipagem virtual no ambiente de desenvolvimento ADAMS®, que utiliza técnicas de modelagem de sistemas multicorpos para a obtenção das equações dinâmicas do movimento. Em seguida o modelo não linear é exportado para o ambiente de simulações em MATLAB®. A simulação é utilizada para verificar se a técnica de controle linear utilizada tem a capacidade de controlar o sistema não linear e analisar o comportamento do conjunto controlador mais a planta não linear já que está sendo feita atribuição de auto-estrutura completa. Os resultados obtidos ilustram o desempenho e a eficiência da metodologia proposta. / The application of multivariable control techniques with the aid of computing tools has been largely used in projects of complex control systems that are based on the concept of state-variables. The objective of this paper is to show the development of a tracking-system with state-feedback for a prototype of a parallel propeller system presenting nonlinear dynamics with three degrees-of-freedom but having only two controlled. Two mathematical models are used: a linear model and a nonlinear model. The linear representation is used to design the gain matrices of the linear control system. The nonlinear model is obtained through the virtual prototyping environment system ADAMS®, using modeling techniques of multi-body systems to obtain the dynamic motion equations. Then, the nonlinear model is exported to SIMULINK® (MATLAB®). The simulation is used to verify if the applied linear control techniques are able to control the nonlinear model and to analyze the system behavior (control system plus nonlinear plant). The design of the control system is done using the entire eigenstructure assignment technique. The results show the performance and the efficiency of the proposed methodology.

Výdrž a účinnost multicopterů jsou z velké části ovlivněny výběrem pohonného systému, zejména pak vrtulí. Avšak u malých bezpilotních prostředků, které většinu času stráví ve visu (např. multicoptery), pracují vrtule při nízkých Reynoldsových číslech, případně i v režimu odtržení. Tyto problémy a efekty spojené s rotací jsou řešeny pomocí korekcí aerodynamických koeficientů a aplikovány na vírovou teorii. Tento přístup vede k významnému zvýšení přesnosti výpočtu leteckých vrtulí. Nicméně pro nulovou rychlost nabíhajícího proudu mají tyto korekce tendenci nadhodnocovat hodnoty tahu vrtule. Pro snížení výpočetní náročnosti a času nezbytného k získání potřebných aerodynamických vlastností pro různá Reynoldsova a Machova čísla jsou použity neuronové sítě. Celý proces je implementován do prostředí MATLAB (včetně grafického rozhraní, neuronových sítí a adaptivních algoritmů) a validován na pěti různých vrtulích k prokázání, že vypočtené výkony vrtulí se shodují s experimentálními daty. Variační počet byl vybrán jako metoda pro návrh optimalizované vrtule, jelikož s jeho využitím lze navrhnout vrtuli s maximálním tahem pro zadaný výkon. Pro ověření zvoleného přístupu byla navrhnuta optimalizovaná vrtule, jejíž koeficient tahu je vyšší než odpovídající vrtule, se kterou je srovnávána, při zachování stejné hodnoty koeficientu výkonu.

This master's thesis deals with the design of foldable propeller for UAVs. The design of the foldalble propeller is created based on theory of propellers and also on tha detail ana-lyzis of existing foldalble propellers with similar dimensions. The propeller is then manufac-tured and tested. One of the part of this thesis also describes design of central hub. At the end the methodical procedure of creating foldable propellers is suggested.

Recent advances in manufacturing and growing concerns on the sustainability of aviation environment have led to a remarkable interest in electrical unmanned aerial systems (UASs) in the past decade. Among various UAS types, the newly designed quadrotor biplane tailsitter class is capable of delivering a wide range of civilian and military tasks, relying on its Vertical Take-Off and Landing (VTOL) capability as well as great maneuverability. Nevertheless, as such UASs employ rotors to generate thrust, and wings to generate lift, and operate at less-understood low to mid-Reynolds flow regime, they experience complicated flight aerodynamics with a noise generation mechanism which is different from common aircrafts. The present work aims at addressing this knowledge gap by studying the aerodynamics and aeroacoustics of a UAS of this type designed by the Army Research Lab. High-fidelity computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations are carried out for a wide range of operating conditions to understand the physics involved in the UAS aerodynamics and characterize its performance. Relying on the CFD results, a physics-informed reduced order model (ROM) is developed based on machine learning algorithms, to predict the propellers effects on the wings and calculate the dominant loads. The results of this study indicate that the UAS aerodynamics is significantly influenced by the propeller-wing interaction, which makes it challenging to estimate the loads by classic methods. The proposed physics-informed ROM shows a promising performance based on its computational cost and accuracy. Additionally, it is found that the aeroacoustics of the UAS is ruled by a two-way mechanism through which the propellers and the structure impose unsteadiness on each other.

The catalogue of observational platforms for space and atmospheric research can be expanded by utilising drones equipped with specialised instrumentation and capable of flying at high altitudes. In this project the requirements for an electric propulsion system applicable to the KTH Royal Institute of Technology ALPHA project are evaluated. A selection of electric motors, propellers and electronic speed controllers are tested to analyse their applicability using two different test setups. The tests include evaluation of propeller characteristics such as thrust and torque generation along with operational angular velocity ranges and the efficiency of brushless DC motors. The results are analysed and extrapolated to approximate the performance in the dynamic environment that the ALPHA aerial vehicle will encounter. From the tested hardware a propeller with a diameter of ten inches and a pitch of seven inches is found to fulfil the requirements. Out of the tested motors, six of them achieve the necessary performance and these are presented with suggestionsfor further analysis. / Mängden observationsplatformar inom rymd och atmosfärisk forskning kan utvidgas genom att använda drönare utrustade med specialicerade instrument som är kapabla att flyga på hög höjd. I detta projekt evalueras kraven på ett elektriskt drivsystem tillämpningsbart p ̊a KTH Royal Institute of Technologys ALPHA projekt. Ett urval av elektriska motorer, propellrar och elektroniska hastighetsregulatorer testas för att analysera deras tillämplighet genom använding av två olika testuppställningar. Testerna inkluderar evaluering av propellrars dragkraft, vridmoment samt operativ spann av vinkelhastighet, men även börstlösa DC motorers effektivitet och prestanda. Resultaten analyseras och extrapoleras för att approximera prestanda i den dynamiska miljön som ALPHA drönaren kommer att möta. Av den testade hårdvaran uppfyller en propeller med en diameter på tio tum och en stigning på sju tum kraven. Av de testade motorerna uppnår sex av dem den prestanda som krävs och dessa presenteras med förslag på vidare analys / Kandidatexjobb i elektroteknik 2022, KTH, Stockholm

<p><p>The thesis project is accomplished during winter and spring 2008 at Karlstad University at the faculty of technology and science. The tutor at Karlstad University is Nils Hallbäck and the examiner is Hans Johansson. Rolls-Royce at Kristinehamn in Sweden is the initiator for the project. The thesis project title is design of the blade bolt joint on Kamewa CPP. CPP stands for controllable pitch propeller. The study include two main aspects which are to analyze if the blade bolt joint which is used today can be applied on a larger propeller and if there are better solutions or other possibilities to join the blade to the hub. First the classification rules of some institutes were studied to find out which limitations there are. Bolted joint has to exceed a minimum bending strength and the bolts have to be made out of steel and their strength has to be at least 10.9. Today Rolls-Royce use ten bolts per propeller, five on each side of the blade. To analyze the strength of the blade bolt joint connection a FEM and an analytic analyze were made and the results compared with each other. Two cases were examined, one for drift and two when hitting an iceberg. The results were similar to each other for FEM and the analytic analyze. At drift all bolts were under the tensile strength of 750 MPa but when using ice loads some bolts started to deform. A new concept for the bolt connection was tested. Again the stress in the bolts stayed under the tensile strength at drift but deformed when applying ice loads. A difference between analytical and FEM analysis was that the stress difference between the bolts were minor in the FEM method. Another concept was only studied with FEM and it had a geometric locking devise combined with the same blade bolt connection as Rolls-Royce use today. At drift the locking devise didn’t support the connection much but when applying ice loads less bolts started to deform and less material in the bolts reached the tensile limit. All three concepts showed stress concentrations at the first two or three threads. The differences between the three concepts weren’t that large and to get better results other possibilities have to be considered. It is important to know how much torque has to be applied on the screw to get the right amount of pretension. Three aspects to consider are to apply the torque without getting any torsion in the screw, to lower the moment with the right coating or lubricant and to avoid the stress concentrations at the threads. Superbolts and clampnuts are two possibilities to avoid torsion in the screws. By using screw thread inserts or tension optimized threads the stress in the thread gets optimized and a coating or lubricant with a low friction coefficient will lower the torque. Three possible solutions are suggested.</p></p> / <p><p>Examensarbetet har utförts på fakulteten för teknik och naturvetenskap under vintern och våren 2008 och är en kurs på 22,5 hp med kurskoden MSGC 17. Handledare på Karlstads universitet är Nils Hallbäck och examinator är Hans Johansson. Rolls-Royce i Kristinehamn är uppdragsgivaren till examensarbetet. Uppgiften är att dimensionera ett bladförband till en stor Kamewa Ulstein CP-propeller. Frågeställningen som ska besvaras är om det går att använda dagens förband och undersöka om det finns bättre alternativ eller andra lösningar på problemet. Det finns inga ritningar på den storleken av propellrar som förbandet ska göras till. Därför måste man skala upp mått från mindre propellrar. Propellerdiameter är 7,7 meter och bladet med fot väger 10 ton efter skalningen. Förbandet ska klara av DNVs (Det Norske Veritas) klassificeringskrav för böjmotstånd och förbandet dimensioneras därefter. För dagens förband behövs det mycket stora skruvar för att klara klassificeringskravet. En analytisk och en FEM-analys genomfördes för att det inte finns något material att jämföra med. Krafter som måste betraktas är centrifugalkraften, tyngdkraften, framdrivningskraften från vattnet samt en isbelastning vid kollision med ett isberg. Framdrivningskraften varierar med 20 % när propellern passerar skrovet. Resultaten från analyserna gav att dagens förband klarar belastningarna vid drift, dock att bultarna börjar deformeras vid belastning med iskraften. I den analytiska analysen antar man att alla delar (bladfot, fläns och nav) är stela och inte deformeras. Dessutom tar man inte hänsyn till böjpåkänningarna som uppstår i skruvarna. Detta tas med i FEM-analysen samt att man räknar med olinjära materialsamband. Därför uppstår det stora spänningsskillnader, upp till 210 MPa, i bultarna vid FEM-analysen vilket inte sker vid de analytiska beräkningarna. Ett antal koncept genererades och två av dessa analyserades närmare. Båda koncepten är optimerade för centrifugalkraften eftersom den utgör den största belastningen under drift om man bortser ifrån förspänningen. Koncept 1 är ett förband som består av 16 bultar per propeller med tre olika storlekar. Enligt FEM analysen fås en jämnare spänningsfördelning över skruvarna än med dagens förband, medan den analytiska metoden ger ungefär samma fördelning som vid dagens förband. Alla skruvar håller sig under sträckgränsen vid drift. Vid isbelastningen uppnås sträckgränsen i många av de mindre skruvarna och skruvarna börjar deformeras plastiskt. I detta avseende stämmer den analytiska lösningen och FEM-analysen överens. Skillnaden är att den analytiska beräkningen visar större spänningsvariation bland skruvarna dvs. att den största och minsta spänningen hos bultarna är högre än vid FEM-beräkningarna. Det andra konceptet som analyserades närmare består av en formlåsning som sitter under bladet tillsammans med samma skruvar som används vid dagens förband. Vid drift märks knappt någon skillnad. Vid isbelastningen så tar formlåsningen dock upp mer spänning och avlastar skruvarna. Färre skruvar deformeras plastiskt. Det finns möjligheter att använda sig av redan befintliga lösningar som Superbolts, clampnuts och andra verktyg. Det som är avgörande för förbandets funktion är ett korrekt åtdragningsmoment. Positivt är att samtidigt kunna förspänna skruvarna utan torsion. En lösning är att ytbehandla skruvarna med en beläggning med känd friktionskoefficient.</p><p>Tre lösningsförslag har tagits fram som ger ett bättre resultat än dagens förband.</p></p>

This degree project has been made in cooperation with engineers working for GM Engineering/Saab Automobile AB in Trollhättan. The given name by Saab for the project is “Fuel efficiency improvements in All Wheel Drive(AWD)-system”. The main tasks of this thesis work were to investigate the size of the power losses in different parts on the propeller shaft, to design a computer program that calculates coordinates and angles on a propeller shaft and to investigate the possibilities to put together a simplified formula that calculates the natural frequencies on a propeller shaft. The main parts of this report are a compilation of the theory about AWD and mostly about the parts on the propeller shaft, and also a description of the developed computer program called Propeller Shaft Calculator. This report doesn’t concern power losses in the different joints because there were no such general equations to be found. The most common way to calculate the power losses inside a joint is to do tests were the power loss is measured at different angles, torque and speed and then use that data to put together an approximated equation. Most of the work on this project has been on theory studies and on programming. The main result of the project is the program Propeller Shaft Calculator. Propeller Shaft Calculator is a program that is designed in Microsoft Excel. All the menus are programmed in the visual basic editor in Excel. The program is supposed to be used as a help while designing new propeller shafts. Propeller Shaft Calculator can calculate all the coordinates, lengths, angles and directions on a propeller shaft. It also calculates natural frequencies, plunge, estimated power loss on the second shaft and angles in the joints. In the program you can choose to do calculations on four different configurations of propeller shafts but can quite easy upgrade the program with more choices. Basically the program works like this: First you choose the right propeller shaft in the main menu. Then you fill out the indata sheet with coordinates, lengths, material data and so on. As you type in the input data the output data will appear in the out-data sheet next to the in-data. Every propeller shaft has also a calculations sheet were more detailed calculations can be found. The program also has a built in help function and a warning function that lights a warning sign next to the values if they are outside the limits.

The thesis project is accomplished during winter and spring 2008 at Karlstad University at the faculty of technology and science. The tutor at Karlstad University is Nils Hallbäck and the examiner is Hans Johansson. Rolls-Royce at Kristinehamn in Sweden is the initiator for the project. The thesis project title is design of the blade bolt joint on Kamewa CPP. CPP stands for controllable pitch propeller. The study include two main aspects which are to analyze if the blade bolt joint which is used today can be applied on a larger propeller and if there are better solutions or other possibilities to join the blade to the hub. First the classification rules of some institutes were studied to find out which limitations there are. Bolted joint has to exceed a minimum bending strength and the bolts have to be made out of steel and their strength has to be at least 10.9. Today Rolls-Royce use ten bolts per propeller, five on each side of the blade. To analyze the strength of the blade bolt joint connection a FEM and an analytic analyze were made and the results compared with each other. Two cases were examined, one for drift and two when hitting an iceberg. The results were similar to each other for FEM and the analytic analyze. At drift all bolts were under the tensile strength of 750 MPa but when using ice loads some bolts started to deform. A new concept for the bolt connection was tested. Again the stress in the bolts stayed under the tensile strength at drift but deformed when applying ice loads. A difference between analytical and FEM analysis was that the stress difference between the bolts were minor in the FEM method. Another concept was only studied with FEM and it had a geometric locking devise combined with the same blade bolt connection as Rolls-Royce use today. At drift the locking devise didn’t support the connection much but when applying ice loads less bolts started to deform and less material in the bolts reached the tensile limit. All three concepts showed stress concentrations at the first two or three threads. The differences between the three concepts weren’t that large and to get better results other possibilities have to be considered. It is important to know how much torque has to be applied on the screw to get the right amount of pretension. Three aspects to consider are to apply the torque without getting any torsion in the screw, to lower the moment with the right coating or lubricant and to avoid the stress concentrations at the threads. Superbolts and clampnuts are two possibilities to avoid torsion in the screws. By using screw thread inserts or tension optimized threads the stress in the thread gets optimized and a coating or lubricant with a low friction coefficient will lower the torque. Three possible solutions are suggested. / Examensarbetet har utförts på fakulteten för teknik och naturvetenskap under vintern och våren 2008 och är en kurs på 22,5 hp med kurskoden MSGC 17. Handledare på Karlstads universitet är Nils Hallbäck och examinator är Hans Johansson. Rolls-Royce i Kristinehamn är uppdragsgivaren till examensarbetet. Uppgiften är att dimensionera ett bladförband till en stor Kamewa Ulstein CP-propeller. Frågeställningen som ska besvaras är om det går att använda dagens förband och undersöka om det finns bättre alternativ eller andra lösningar på problemet. Det finns inga ritningar på den storleken av propellrar som förbandet ska göras till. Därför måste man skala upp mått från mindre propellrar. Propellerdiameter är 7,7 meter och bladet med fot väger 10 ton efter skalningen. Förbandet ska klara av DNVs (Det Norske Veritas) klassificeringskrav för böjmotstånd och förbandet dimensioneras därefter. För dagens förband behövs det mycket stora skruvar för att klara klassificeringskravet. En analytisk och en FEM-analys genomfördes för att det inte finns något material att jämföra med. Krafter som måste betraktas är centrifugalkraften, tyngdkraften, framdrivningskraften från vattnet samt en isbelastning vid kollision med ett isberg. Framdrivningskraften varierar med 20 % när propellern passerar skrovet. Resultaten från analyserna gav att dagens förband klarar belastningarna vid drift, dock att bultarna börjar deformeras vid belastning med iskraften. I den analytiska analysen antar man att alla delar (bladfot, fläns och nav) är stela och inte deformeras. Dessutom tar man inte hänsyn till böjpåkänningarna som uppstår i skruvarna. Detta tas med i FEM-analysen samt att man räknar med olinjära materialsamband. Därför uppstår det stora spänningsskillnader, upp till 210 MPa, i bultarna vid FEM-analysen vilket inte sker vid de analytiska beräkningarna. Ett antal koncept genererades och två av dessa analyserades närmare. Båda koncepten är optimerade för centrifugalkraften eftersom den utgör den största belastningen under drift om man bortser ifrån förspänningen. Koncept 1 är ett förband som består av 16 bultar per propeller med tre olika storlekar. Enligt FEM analysen fås en jämnare spänningsfördelning över skruvarna än med dagens förband, medan den analytiska metoden ger ungefär samma fördelning som vid dagens förband. Alla skruvar håller sig under sträckgränsen vid drift. Vid isbelastningen uppnås sträckgränsen i många av de mindre skruvarna och skruvarna börjar deformeras plastiskt. I detta avseende stämmer den analytiska lösningen och FEM-analysen överens. Skillnaden är att den analytiska beräkningen visar större spänningsvariation bland skruvarna dvs. att den största och minsta spänningen hos bultarna är högre än vid FEM-beräkningarna. Det andra konceptet som analyserades närmare består av en formlåsning som sitter under bladet tillsammans med samma skruvar som används vid dagens förband. Vid drift märks knappt någon skillnad. Vid isbelastningen så tar formlåsningen dock upp mer spänning och avlastar skruvarna. Färre skruvar deformeras plastiskt. Det finns möjligheter att använda sig av redan befintliga lösningar som Superbolts, clampnuts och andra verktyg. Det som är avgörande för förbandets funktion är ett korrekt åtdragningsmoment. Positivt är att samtidigt kunna förspänna skruvarna utan torsion. En lösning är att ytbehandla skruvarna med en beläggning med känd friktionskoefficient. Tre lösningsförslag har tagits fram som ger ett bättre resultat än dagens förband.

<p>This degree project has been made in cooperation with engineers working for GM Engineering/Saab Automobile AB in Trollhättan. The given name by Saab for the project is “Fuel efficiency improvements in All Wheel Drive(AWD)-system”. The main tasks of this thesis work were to investigate the size of the power losses in different parts on the propeller shaft, to design a computer program that calculates</p><p>coordinates and angles on a propeller shaft and to investigate the possibilities to put together a simplified formula that calculates the natural frequencies on a propeller shaft.</p><p>The main parts of this report are a compilation of the theory about AWD and mostly about the parts on the propeller shaft, and also a description of the developed computer program called Propeller Shaft Calculator. This report doesn’t concern power losses in the different joints because there were no such general equations to be found. The most common way to calculate the power losses inside a joint is to do tests were the power loss is measured at different angles, torque and speed and then use that data to put together an approximated equation.</p><p>Most of the work on this project has been on theory studies and on programming. The main result of the project is the program Propeller Shaft Calculator.</p><p>Propeller Shaft Calculator is a program that is designed in Microsoft Excel. All the menus are programmed in the visual basic editor in Excel. The program is supposed to be used as a help while designing new propeller shafts.</p><p>Propeller Shaft Calculator can calculate all the coordinates, lengths, angles and directions on a propeller shaft. It also calculates natural frequencies, plunge, estimated power loss on the second shaft and angles in the joints. In the program you can choose to do calculations on four different configurations of propeller shafts but can quite</p><p>easy upgrade the program with more choices.</p><p>Basically the program works like this:</p><p>First you choose the right propeller shaft in the main menu. Then you fill out the indata sheet with coordinates, lengths, material data and so on. As you type in the input data the output data will appear in the out-data sheet next to the in-data. Every propeller shaft has also a calculations sheet were more detailed calculations can be</p><p>found.</p><p>The program also has a built in help function and a warning function that lights a warning sign next to the values if they are outside the limits.</p>