Smart Helicopter Blade Using Piezoelectric Actuators for both Cyclic and Collective Pitch Control
Abstract
The present work focuses on the design, construction and testing of a smart actuating system for the cyclic and collective control of helicopter blades for UAV applications. The actuating mechanism consists of a multilayered actuator made of PZT 5H layers bonded together on an aluminum substrate. The design of the actuator was performed using finite element techniques and introducing coupling mechanics in order to improve the simulation capabilities of the numerical tools. The construction and implementation of the smart actuation system are presented and finally static tests were performed (no blade rotation), mostly for the investigation of the cyclic pitch control. The actuation signal send to the piezoelectric actuator was in the frequency domain of 10-15 Hz, that covers the area of 700-750 rpm which is considered as the operational rotational velocity of the blade. The combination of velocity and radius of the rotor (1 m) impose severe loading to the actuator, however, the intelligent use of piezoelectric materials leads to functional structures that fulfill the design requirements.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Oct 01, 2006
- Accession Number
- ADA479895
Entities
People
- F. Buysschaert
- F. Santafe
- G. Giannopoulos
- J. Vantomme
- P. Hendrick
Organizations
- Royal Military Academy