Propulsion and Power Supplies for Unmanned Vehicles. Volume I. Engines for Small Propeller-Driven RPVS

Abstract

In this report engines in the power range up to 100 hp are studied for application into small propeller-driven RPVs. From an inventory of existing engines, it is found that a number of two-and four-stroke piston engines in this power class are available, but most of them will not fulfill the requirements for RPV-applications with respect to reliability, quality control, noise vibrations, etc. Up till now no other types of shaft-power engines are available for application to small RPVs although turboshaft engines and possibly also electrically-driven propellers might offer advantages for some missions. For payloads between 10 and 50 kg and flight endurances of up to 3 hours some parametric calculations are presented for fixed-wing rotary-wing vehicles, to illustrate vehicle sizes and engine power requirements. Some recommendations are given for the future development of piston-and turbo-shaft engines suitable for propeller-driven RPVs, emphasizing the need for Demonstrator Engine Programs. Data on actual and projected engines and some typical specifications are added in appendici. (Author)

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Nov 01, 1977
Accession Number
ADA049375

Entities

Organizations

  • AGARD

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Air Platforms
  • Autonomy
  • Energy and Power Technologies
  • Ground and Sea Platforms

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Aircraft Equipment
  • Aircraft Industry
  • Aircrafts
  • Airframes
  • Auxiliary Power Units
  • Birds
  • Carburetors
  • Gas Turbines
  • Helicopters
  • Ignition
  • Ignition Systems
  • Propulsion Systems
  • Remotely Piloted Vehicles
  • Test And Evaluation
  • Turbines
  • Turboshaft Engines
  • Unmanned Vehicles

Fields of Study

  • Engineering

Readers

  • Aerospace Engineering
  • Electrical Engineering
  • Systems Analysis and Design

Technology Areas

  • Autonomy