Design and Fabrication of a Low-Cost, Low-Speed, Self-Deploying sUAS Motor Glider
Open Access
- Author:
- Jones, Thomas
- Graduate Program:
- Aerospace Engineering
- Degree:
- Master of Science
- Document Type:
- Master Thesis
- Date of Defense:
- January 26, 2023
- Committee Members:
- Michael Andrew Yukish, Thesis Advisor/Co-Advisor
Simon W Miller, Committee Member
Jacob Langelaan, Professor in Charge/Director of Graduate Studies
Julia Cole, Thesis Advisor/Co-Advisor - Keywords:
- sUAS
UAS
self-deployment
self-deploying
unmanned aerial system
motor glider
low-cost
low-speed
unmanned aircraft
L/D ratio
lift-to-drag ratio - Abstract:
- A design study was conducted to explore the space of combining light-weight, low-cost, slow-flying, and self-deploying features into small unmanned motor gliders. This study specifically focused on developing the structures, mechanisms, and layout/sizing necessary to rapidly fabricate a functional, unfolding, conventional fixed-wing configuration. As some current small fixed-wing unmanned aircraft systems are designed for high efficiency gliding, self-deployment or low-cost manufacturing separately, this thesis is unique in the combination of the three with discussion of the resulting trade-offs necessary. Pursuit of low-speed performance provides another unique design challenge. Current self-deploying small unmanned aircraft platforms are relatively high speed with high wing loading on smaller wings that are easier to stow and deploy. The push for low speeds requires lightweight structures and deployment mechanisms to reach extremely low wing loadings. By having an aircraft that can achieve all three goals, new opportunities open up for efficient platforms that can pack into small spaces without excessive cost to produce. Some potential applications include extraterrestrial fixed-wing flight, swarming technologies, or agricultural and construction surveys with extended time on station. To investigate this unique design space, a series of aircraft with different mechanisms and devices was developed to try and yield the best performance characterized by highest lift-over-drag ratio and lowest airspeed. Key trade-off decisions explored were weight, cost, ease of fabrication, lift-over-drag ratio, and flight speed. Multiple aircraft were produced that were able to fly below 20 ft/s with the slowest being 16.2 ft/s combined with a lift-over-drag ratio of approximately 7.1 while weighing 1.84 lbs. The final iteration of aircraft incorporated a two-stage folding wing with root sweep and tip folding plus a telescoping fuselage. This design achieved an average lift to drag ratio of 6.6 at an airspeed of 18.8 ft/s while only weighing 2.52 lbs. A design study that sweeps across different aircraft planforms, wing loadings, and airspeeds is also presented using data from a representative airfoil. This data is used to predict vehicle performance for a larger range of aircraft than what was constructed. Recommendations for best practices and general lessons learned for this vehicle type are discussed.