Flight Investigation of Effects of Rotor-blade Twist on Helicopter Performance in the High-speed and Vertical-autorotative-descent Conditions
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PROPELLERS, HELICOPTER↗
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Effect of high lift flap systems on the conceptual design of a 1985 short-haul commercial STOL tilt rotor transport
The performances of a derivative concept of a 1985 STOL tilt rotor transport, and of a second concept having a complex mechanical flap system similar to a short field B737 aircraft were compared for a 370 kilometer (200 nautical mile) short haul mission. The flap system of the latter allowed lift to be shifted from the rotor system to the wing, permitting a 26 percent reduction in dynamic component weight, while also permitting the use of a smaller wing. The wing and disc loading of this concept were 5746 (120 psf) and 1915 (40 psf) newtons per square meter, respectively, while the wing and disc loading of the derivative concept were 4788 (100 psf) and 1197 (25 psf) newtons per square meter, respectively. The high lift wing tilt rotor showed slightly improved fuel usage over its entire operating range and about 6 to 8 percent improvement in direct operating costs, resulting from its improved cruise efficiency and reduced weight. Other advantages include improved reliability with potentially reduced maintenance and better riding quality.
Shovlin, M. D.↗
Performance and loads data from a hover test of a full-scale advanced technology XV-15 rotor
A hover test of a full-scale, composite, advanced technology XV-15 rotor was conducted at the Outdoor Aerodynamic Research Facility at Ames Research Center. The primary objective of the test was to obtain accurate measurements of the hover performance of this rotor system. Data were acquired for rotor tip Mach numbers ranging from 0.35 to 0.73. The rotor was tested with several alternate blade root and blade-tip configurations. Data are presented on rotor performance, rotor-wake downwash velocities, and rotor system loads.
Felker, Fort F.↗
Teetered, tip-controlled rotor: Preliminary test results from Mod-0 100-kW experimental wind turbine
Results of tests conducted using the MOD-0 100 kW experimental wind turbine are evaluated. The teetered rotor significantly decreased loads on the yaw drive mechanism and reduced blade cyclic flapwise bending moments by 25 percent at the 20 percent span location when compared to the rigid hub rotor. The teetered hub performed well, but impacted the teeter stops on occasion as wind speed and/or direction varied rapidly. The tip-controlled rotor performed satisfactorily with some expected loss of control when compared to the full span pitchable blade. The performance results indicate that a review of techniques used to calculate rotor power is in order.
Glasgow, J. C.↗
Teetered, tip-controlled rotor - Preliminary test results from Mod-O 100-kW experimental wind turbine
A series of tests is currently being conducted using the DOE/NASA 100 kW Experimental Wind Turbine with a two-bladed, teetered rotor with 30% span tip control. Preliminary evaluation test results indicates that the teetered rotor significantly decreases loads on the yaw drive mechanism and reduces blade cyclic flapwise bending moments by 25% at the 20% span location when compared to rigid hub rotor. The teetered hub performed well but did impact the teeter stops on occasion as wind speed and/or direction varied rapidly. The tip-controlled rotor performed satisfactorily with some expected loss of control when compared to the full span pitchable blade. The performance results indicate that a review of techniques used to calculate rotor power is in order.
Glasgow, J. C.↗
Rotary-wing aerodynamics. Volume 1 - Basic theories of rotor aerodynamics (With application to helicopters). Volume 2 Performance prediction of helicopters (2nd revised and enlarged edition)
Basic theories of rotor aerodynamics are presented and applied to the performance prediction of helicopters. The very simple physicomathematical model of the rotor offered by momentum theory is addressed first, followed by the combined blade-element and momentum theory. Vortex theory is discussed, and a rotor blade is modeled by means of a vortex filament or vorticity surface. Considerations of airfoil sections suitable for rotors are examined. Detailed performance techniques for a single-rotor helicopter in hover, vertical ascent, and forward flight are described, and winged and tandem-rotor helicopter performance calculations are presented as extensions and modifications of single-rotor methodology. Computer data based on the vortex theory are compared with approximate results obtained from the simplified momentum theory and the blade element solution.
Stepniewski, W. Z.↗
Initial Developments Toward an Active Noise Control System for Small Unmanned Aerial Systems
Small unmanned aerial systems have the potential to expand commercial markets from package delivery to infrastructure inspection. Many missions, however, require the vehicles to operate in close proximity to people, where community noise concerns could ultimately limit vehicle acceptability. Therefore, noise control technologies may be needed to achieve an acceptable noise signature and enable widespread use of these vehicles. The purpose of this paper is to assess the feasibility of using loudspeakers attached to the vehicle to actively reduce noise. More specifically, this initial study explores the possibility of using a single loudspeaker to reduce the noise from an isolated rotor. Tests performed in an anechoic chamber with a 7.6 cm diameter speaker and 23.9 cm diameter rotor are used to demonstrate the potential benefits and limitations of the concept. Results confirm that active noise control can work in this application with measured tonal reductions of over 30 dB in specific directions. However, since the radiation characteristics of the speaker are different than the rotor, amplification is observed in other directions. This technology has the potential to create a “cone of silence”, which could be steered during flight operations to minimize the impact on noise sensitive areas.
Schiller, Noah H.↗
Non-linear performance of a three-bearing rotor incorporating a squeeze-film damper
This paper is concerned with the non-linear vibration performance of a rigid rotor supported on three bearings, one being surrounded by a squeeze-film damper. This damper relies on the pressure built up in the squeeze film to help counter-act external forces arising from unbalance and other effects. As a result a vibration orbit of a certain magnetude results. Such vibration orbits illustrate features found in other non-linear systems, in particular sub-harmonic resonances and jump phenomena. Comparisons between theoretical prediction and experimental observations of these phenomena are made.
Holmes, R.↗
Maximum Mean Lift Coefficient Characteristics at Low Tip Mach Numbers of a Hovering Helicopter Rotor Having an NACA 64(1)A012 Airfoil Section
An investigation has been conducted on the Langley helicopter test tower to determine experimentally the maximum mean lift-coefficient characteristics at low tip Mach number and a limited amount of drag- divergence data at high tip Mach number of a helicopter rotor having an NACA 64(1)AO12 airfoil section and 8 deg of linear washout. Data are presented for blade tip Mach numbers M(t) of 0.29 to 0.74 with corresponding values 6 6 of tip Reynolds number of 2.59 x 10(exp 6) and 6.58 x 10(exp 6). Comparisons are made between the data from the present rotor with results previously obtained from two other rotors: one having NACA 0012 airfoil sections and the other having an NACA 0009 airfoil tip section. At low tip Mach numbers, the maximum mean lift coefficient for the blade having the NACA 64(1)AO12 section was about 0.08 less than that obtained with the blade having the NACA 0009 tip section and 0.21 less than the value obtained with the blade having the NACA 0012 tip section. Blade maximum mean lift coefficient values were not obtained for Mach number values greater than 0.47 because of a blade failure encountered during the tests. The effective mean lift-curve slope required for predicting rotor thrust varied from 5.8 for the tip Mach nuniber range of 0.29 to 0.55 to a value of 6.65 for a tip Mach number of 0.71. The blade pitching-moment coefficients were small and relatively unaffected by changes in thrust coefficient and Mach number. In the instances in which stall was reached, the break in the blade pitching-moment curve was in a stable direction. The efficiency of the rotor decreased with an increase in tip speed. Expressed as figure of merit, at a tip Mach number of 0.29 the maximum value was about 0.74. Similar measurements made on another rotor having an NACA 0012 airfoil and with a rotor having an NACA 0009 tip section, showed a value of 0.75. Synthesized section lift and profile-drag characteristics for the rotor-blade airfoil section are presented as an aid in predicting the high-tip-speed performance of rotors having similar airfoils.
Powell, Robert D., Jr.↗
Three-dimensional viscous rotor flow calculations using boundary-layer equations
A three-dimensional viscous-inviscid interaction analysis has been developed to predict the performance of rotors in hover and forward flight at subsonic and transonic tip speeds. The analysis solves the full-potential and boundary-layer equations by finite-difference numerical procedures. Calculations were made for several different model rotor configurations in hover and forward flight at subsonic and transonic tip speeds. The results were compared with predictions from a two-dimensional integral method and with experimental data. The comparisons show good agreement between test data and predictions.
Chen, Ching S.↗
Helicopter rotor induced velocities theory and experiment
An investigation has been performed to assess methods used for rotor inflow modeling. A key element of this assessment has been the recent acquisition of high quality experimental measurements of inflow velocities taken in the proximity of a lifting rotor in forward flight. Widely used rotor performance predictive methods are based on blade element strip theory coupled with an inflow model. The inflow prediction models assessed in this paper include the uniform inflow based on momentum, a skewed disk model, and two methods based on a vortex wake structure.
Berry, John D.↗
Three-dimensional viscous rotor flow calculations using a viscous-inviscid interaction approach
A three-dimensional viscous-inviscid interaction analysis was developed to predict the performance of rotors in hover and in forward flight at subsonic and transonic tip speeds. The analysis solves the full-potential and boundary-layer equations by finite-difference numerical procedures. Calculations were made for several different model rotor configurations. The results were compared with predictions from a two-dimensional integral method and with experimental data. The comparisons show good agreement between predictions and test data.
Chen, Ching S.↗
Three-dimensional viscous rotor flow calculations using a viscous-inviscid interaction approach
A three-dimensional viscous-inviscid interaction analysis was developed to predict the performance of rotors in hover and in forward flight at subsonic and transonic tip speeds. The analysis solves the full-potential and boundary-layer equations by finite-difference numerical procedures. Calculations were made for several different model rotor configurations. The results were compared with predictions from a two-dimensional integral method and with experimental data. The comparisons show good agreement between predictions and test data.
Chen, Ching S.↗
Charts for estimating performance of high-performance helicopters
Theoretically derived charts showing the profile-drag-thrust ratio are presented for helicopter rotors operating in forward flight and having hinged rectangular blades with a linear twist of 0 degree, 8 degrees, and 16 degrees. The charts, showing the profile-drag characteristics of the rotor for various combinations of pitch angle, ratio of thrust coefficient to solidity, and a parameter representing shaft power input, are presented for tip-speed ratios ranging from 0.05 to 0.50. Also presented in chart form are the ratio of thrust coefficient to solidity as a function of angles of attack, as a function of inflow ratio and collective pitch, and as a function of power and thrust coefficients. The charts in this report are considered more accurate than previous ones for flight conditions involving high inflow velocities and large regions of reversed velocity that may be encountered by high-performance helicopters. The charts may be used to study the effects of design changes on rotor performance and to indicate optimum performance conditions, as well as to estimate quickly rotor performance in forward flight. They are also useful in obtaining inflow-ratio and pitch-angle values for use in calculating flapping coefficients and spanwise loadings. The method of applying the charts to performance estimation is illustrated through sample calculation of a typical rotor-performance problem.
Gessow, Alfred↗
Experimental aerodynamics of a rotor entry vehicle.
Aerodynamic performance tests of autorotative unpowered rotor entry vehicle model at various Mach numbers and angles of attack
Levin, A. D.↗
Experimental aerodynamcis of a rotor entry vehicle.
Aerodynamic performance tests of autorotative unpowered rotor entry vehicle model at various Mach numbers and angles of attack
Levin, A. D.↗
The effect of helicopter main rotor blade phasing and spacing on performance, blade loads, and acoustics
The performance, blade loads, and acoustic characteristics of a variable geometry rotor (VGR) system in forward flight and in a pullup maneuver were determined by the use of existing analytical programs. The investigation considered the independent effects of vertical separation of two three-bladed rotor systems as well as the effects of azimuthal spacing between the blades of the two rotors. The computations were done to determine the effects of these parameters on the performance, blade loads, and acoustic characteristics at two advance ratios in steady-state level flight and for two different g pullups at one advance ratio. To evaluate the potential benefits of the VGR concept in forward flight and pullup maneuvers, the results were compared as to performance, oscillatory blade loadings, vibratory forces transmitted to the fixed fuselage, and the rotor noise characteristics of the various VGR configurations with those of the conventional six-bladed rotor system.
Gangwani, S. T.↗
Structural Analysis of Load-Bearing Components in Mars Science Helicopter
The successful demonstration of powered flight on Mars by Ingenuity has led to the development of next generation Martian rotorcraft. As technology advances from a technology demonstrator to possible expanded planetary science investigations, the potential to fly a high payload carrying rotorcraft relies on the capability to analyze and validate the structural integrity of the vehicle in addition to the rotor aerodynamic performance. The Mars Science Helicopter (MSH), a next generation hexacopter concept, is an example of a proposed vehicle that would perform science investigations independent of a land-based vehicle. To ensure the feasibility and viability of MSH mission performance, it is critical to mature the structural design of vehicle concepts to bridge the gap between the best practices of the spacecraft and aircraft communities. MSH was analyzed under operational and 26G quasi-static launch loads with different rotor arm and frame designs. Structural analysis results showed that rotor arms could be stiffened for significantly improved structural performance with minimal mass penalty, while the rotorcraft frame exhibited a more complex relationship between mass and launch load stresses due to the mass-dependent launch loads.
Vehicle↗