Study and Implementation of the Transition Between Vertical and Horizontal Flight in Tilt Rotor Drones to Increase Efficiency of Power Consumption

Abstract

Our team developed a simulation which models the transition between vertical and horizontal flight for a bi-rotor tilt rotor drone. We specifically focused on improving the power consumption by studying the impact of transition profile shape and duration. Then, we constructed a half-wing test tilt rotor test article in order to conduct validation testing in the University of Michigan 5- by 7-foot wind tunnel. Finally, the project manager of the team, Nicholas Mellanby, constructed a prototype of this drone for implementation of the study findings.