Design and Development of a Controllable Wing Loading Unmanned Aerial System

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Design and Development of a Controllable Wing Loading Unmanned Aerial System DESIGN AND DEVELOPMENT OF A CONTROLLABLE WING LOADING UNMANNED AERIAL SYSTEM By GARRET OAKLEY CASTOR Bachelor of Science in Aerospace Engineering Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering Oklahoma State University Stillwater, Oklahoma 2017 Submitted to the Faculty of the Graduate College of the Oklahoma State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of MASTER OF SCIENCE December, 2019 DESIGN AND DEVELOPMENT OF A CONTROLLABLE WING LOADING UNMANNED AERIAL SYSTEM Thesis Approved: Dr. Andy Arena Thesis Adviser Dr. Rick Gaeta Dr. Kurt Rouser ii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I must first start by saying that the work done to make this project successful was in no- way possible by one person. This project started with a team of 4 graduate students headed by Dr. Andy Arena, with many others joining along the way. I cannot take all the credit for this project as a whole. I would like to thank Aron, Jeff, and Thomas, the other 3 of the original 4-man team. These 3 guys are responsible for making a wild idea turn into a fully functional and flight-proven aircraft. All 3 were heavily involved with all major decisions concerning designing, manufacturing, and testing the aircraft. I would also like to thank Marc Hartman who was the pilot willing to struggle with us along the way and fly our crazy, untested airplane. I also have to thank ‘The Don’, Dr. Andy Arena, because he’s the man that started this whole operation. Without his constant guidance, brilliance, and forgiveness when we made really dumb mistakes, we wouldn’t have been able to pull it off. Collin Boettcher is another man that deserves many thanks. I couldn’t tell you exactly what his job description is, but he definitely had a hand in everything required to build and fly this airplane. Without Mr. Boettcher, we would have been hopelessly lost with things from trying to buy parts and jet engines to convincing the sponsors to keep funding the project. iii Acknowledgements reflect the views of the author and are not endorsed by committee members or Oklahoma State University. Name: GARRET OAKLEY CASTOR Date of Degree: DECEMBER, 2019 Title of Study: DESIGN AND DEVELOPMENT OF VARIABLE WING LOADING UNMANNED AERIAL SYSTEM Major Field: MECHANICAL AND AEROSPACE ENGINEERING Abstract: Vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) unmanned aerial systems (UAS) offer all the benefits of wing borne flight without the need for conventional takeoff and landing (CTOL) infrastructure. There exists many effective VTOL UAS that utilize battery- powered rotors to provide vertical thrust. The problem with the existing UAS is that the VTOL capability is achieved at the sacrifice of speed, fuel/payload, and operational flexibility. Also, many of these UAS must transition from hover to horizontal flight which is both complex and risky. The current research explores a new type of point launch and landing system that utilizes only liquid fuels, i.e. no electric powered rotors. Instead of exposed rotors, the new configuration has a turbojet engine mounted vertically inside the fuselage to provide vertical thrust. With the turbojet being ‘hidden’ from the freestream air, it mitigates the drag seen from the other configurations’ rotors, allowing a higher top speed. Also, the new configuration bypasses the hover and transition phases of flight. The vertical turbojet effectively changes the weight of the aircraft which allows it to have controllable wing loading (CWL), and therefore variable stall speed. With the jet at full power, the aircraft weighs virtually nothing and can takeoff from the launchpad with almost no airspeed. Likewise, on landing, the aircraft can slow to almost zero airspeed and land with little to no rollout. The CWL configuration has proved it possible to have approximately a 95% reduction in landing distance. This paper describes the study, design, manufacturing, and testing of the point launch and landing CWL configuration. Two commercial off the shelf (COTS) UAVs were retrofitted with a CWL system to test the validity of the idea and the necessary systems. Following the proof of the idea, a composite UAS with a maximum takeoff weight of 50 lb. was designed, manufactured, and flown. It successfully demonstrated both a point launch and point landing while being capable of reaching speeds of up to 100 mph, more than double the top speed of some other VTOL UAS in its weight class. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER PAGE I. INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................... 1 BENEFITS OF V/STOL ............................................................................................................. 3 DRAWBACKS OF V/STOL ...................................................................................................... 3 V/STOL CONFIGURATIONS .................................................................................................. 4 TAIL-SITTER........................................................................................................................ 4 TILT-WING ........................................................................................................................... 5 TILT-ROTOR ........................................................................................................................ 6 SUBMERGED FAN .............................................................................................................. 7 DIRECT THRUST ................................................................................................................. 8 V/STOL REQUIREMENTS ....................................................................................................... 9 IMPLEMENTATION PROBLEMS ......................................................................................... 10 FULL-SCALE V/STOL AIRCRAFT STUDY ......................................................................... 15 UAS V/STOL AIRCRAFT STUDY......................................................................................... 19 RESEARCH GOALS ............................................................................................................... 24 OUTLINE ................................................................................................................................. 26 II. DESIGN OF THE LOCUST ................................................................................................ 27 INITIAL DESIGN REQUIREMENTS .................................................................................... 27 MISSION .................................................................................................................................. 28 INITIAL DESIGN CONFIGURATION .................................................................................. 29 PROOF OF CONCEPT ............................................................................................................ 32 LOCUST INTERNAL LAYOUT ............................................................................................. 38 PROPULSION SYSTEMS ....................................................................................................... 41 MAIN ENGINE ................................................................................................................... 41 v CHAPTER PAGE LIFT JET .............................................................................................................................. 44 THRUST VECTORING CONTOL SYSTEM .................................................................... 46 AERODYNAMICS AND SIZING ........................................................................................... 48 STATIC STABILITY .......................................................................................................... 48 CONTROL SURFACE SIZING .......................................................................................... 52 CFD STATIC STABILITY ................................................................................................. 54 CFD DRAG STUDY ........................................................................................................... 57 WING SPAR SIZING AND TESTING ................................................................................... 58 ELECTRICAL SYSTEM ......................................................................................................... 60 LANDING GEAR DESIGN ..................................................................................................... 63 JET EXHAUST BAY HATCH SYSTEM ................................................................................ 69 STRUCTURAL CONFIGURATION....................................................................................... 71 MASS PROPERTIES ............................................................................................................... 74 III. LAUNCH AND RECOVERY ............................................................................................ 76 THE LAUNCH CRATE ........................................................................................................... 76 GROUND CONTROL STATION............................................................................................ 79 TAKEOFF ................................................................................................................................ 80 LANDING ...............................................................................................................................
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