TY  - JOUR
A1  - Götten, Falk
A1  - Finger, Felix
A1  - Havermann, Marc
A1  - Braun, Carsten
A1  - Marino, M.
A1  - Bil, C.
T1  - Full configuration drag estimation of short-to-medium range fixed-wing UAVs and its impact on initial sizing optimization
JF  - CEAS Aeronautical Journal
N2  - The paper presents the derivation of a new equivalent skin friction coefficient for estimating the parasitic drag of short-to-medium range fixed-wing unmanned aircraft. The new coefficient is derived from an aerodynamic analysis of ten different unmanned aircraft used for surveillance, reconnaissance, and search and rescue missions. The aircraft is simulated using a validated unsteady Reynolds-averaged Navier Stokes approach. The UAV’s parasitic drag is significantly influenced by the presence of miscellaneous components like fixed landing gears or electro-optical sensor turrets. These components are responsible for almost half of an unmanned aircraft’s total parasitic drag. The new equivalent skin friction coefficient accounts for these effects and is significantly higher compared to other aircraft categories. It is used to initially size an unmanned aircraft for a typical reconnaissance mission. The improved parasitic drag estimation yields a much heavier unmanned aircraft when compared to the sizing results using available drag data of manned aircraft.
KW  - Parasitic drag
KW  - UAV
KW  - CFD
KW  - Aircraft sizing
Y1  - 2021
U6  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s13272-021-00522-w
SN  - 1869-5590 (Online)
SN  - 1869-5582 (Print)
N1  - Corresponding author: Falk Götten
VL  - 12
SP  - 589
EP  - 603
PB  - Springer
CY  - Berlin
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Hammer, Thorben
A1  - Quitter, Julius
A1  - Mayntz, Joscha
A1  - Bauschat, J.-Michael
A1  - Dahmann, Peter
A1  - Götten, Falk
A1  - Hille, S.
A1  - Stumpf, E.
T1  - Free fall drag estimation of small-scale multirotor unmanned aircraft systems using computational fluid dynamics and wind tunnel experiments
JF  - CEAS Aeronautical Journal
N2  - New European Union (EU) regulations for UAS operations require an operational risk analysis, which includes an estimation of the potential danger of the UAS crashing. A key parameter for the potential ground risk is the kinetic impact energy of the UAS. The kinetic energy depends on the impact velocity of the UAS and, therefore, on the aerodynamic drag and the weight during free fall. Hence, estimating the impact energy of a UAS requires an accurate drag estimation of the UAS in that state. The paper at hand presents the aerodynamic drag estimation of small-scale multirotor UAS. Multirotor UAS of various sizes and configurations were analysed with a fully unsteady Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes approach. These simulations included different velocities and various fuselage pitch angles of the UAS. The results were compared against force measurements performed in a subsonic wind tunnel and provided good consistency. Furthermore, the influence of the UAS`s fuselage pitch angle as well as the influence of fixed and free spinning propellers on the aerodynamic drag was analysed. Free spinning propellers may increase the drag by up to 110%, depending on the fuselage pitch angle. Increasing the fuselage pitch angle of the UAS lowers the drag by 40% up to 85%, depending on the UAS. The data presented in this paper allow for increased accuracy of ground risk assessments.
KW  - Multirotor UAS
KW  - Drag estimation
KW  - CFD
KW  - Wind tunnel experiments
KW  - Wind milling
Y1  - 2023
U6  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s13272-023-00702-w
SN  - 1869-5590 (Online)
SN  - 1869-5582 (Print)
N1  - Corresponding author: Thorben Hammer
PB  - Springer
CY  - Wien
ER  -