Colorado Space Grant Symposium 2010 Colorado State University Advisor: Dr. Thomas Bradley Team: Derek Keen, Grant Rhoads, Tim Schneider, Brian Taylor, Nick Wagner
Goal: Fly an electrically powered UAV for over 24 hrs. Increased value for research, commercial and military missions Naval Research Lab, and University of Michigan Verify optimization research performed by a team at Georgia Tech System approach, as opposed to Sub-system optimization Construction nearly complete Flight Tests Pending Battery flights for Flight testing and Data collection Final Fuel Cell flight
Electric Motor (Hacker A60-18L) Fuel Cell System Composite Airframe SkinAutopilot System Blue Explorer RC Glider
Design of experiment comparison between conventional and integrated balance of plant design Polar- ization Curve CA BoP Sizing CAs BoP Power Reqd Aircraft Performance CAs Fuel Cell Balance of Plant (BoP) Design Variables n cells A fc BoP Mass & BoP Power Aircraft A – Automotive-type Balance of Plant Design Active-Area-Limited Current Polar- ization Curve CA Fuel Cell Balance of Plant (BoP) Design Variables n cells A fc BoP Mass & BoP Power Aircraft C – Application-Specific Balance of Plant Design Active-Area-Limited Current BoP Sizing CAs Aircraft Performance CAs Current Reqd for Climb
Wing & Tail Assembly From Blue Explorer RC Sailplane Maintained mounting points and CG alignment 4 servos/wing side, 2 servos for tail Fuselage Structure 1” & 0.75” Carbon tube “backbone” Wing, H 2 tank, and Motor mounting brackets shown here Tail “blended” into tube Not shown, servo mounting brackets
Landing Gear Version 1 Two-Wheel taildragger configuration Lightweight composite laminate Mold seen on right, Main gear Low lateral stability Brace sheared off on first flight Version 2 Single main wheel taildragger PVC = heavy, Difficult to balance Final Setup Tricycle configuration More stable and steerable, Lower Drag AoA
IR Sensors Based on difference in IR signatures Earth = Warm (287 K), Sky = Cool (250 K) Provides Roll and Pitch sensing GPS Receiver Provides Heading, Altitude and Velocity sensing Transceiver System 2-Way Communication Between ground station and aircraft Flight diagnostics In-flight mission control Xbee & autopilot transceiver
Paparazzi, open source platform Processing and Servo Control C based language Control algorithms previously developed Necessary to adjust gains and define servo ports Graphical Interface Linux based Displays flight path and flight condition information
Purpose: Provide robust testing system Allow data collection for control and fuel cell adjustments Lithium-polymer batteries Initial System Axi 4130 motor, Jeti Advance 70 A speed controller Current System Hacker A60-18L motor, Phoenix 110 A speed controller.
PEM Fuel Cell, Proprietary Developed by UTRC specifically for this aircraft 33 cell, 1.68 kg system 200 W cruise power, 600 W max power 90% H 2 utilization Hydrogen Storage 9 L composite overwrapped pressure vessel 5000 psi, 3 stage pressure regulation to 1 atm. Custom fitting milled at CSU
Air Supply Provides oxygen for fuel cell Via a filter and a Micronel U51DX 51mm High Performance Radial Blower Chosen based on performance, power usage and weight Provides cooling for electronics and fuel cell Power Management Control board Developed by our team at CSU Controls the air supply blower and the hydrogen purge rate according to the measured current. Includes sensors to determine the health of the fuel cell in flight, Data logger to record these details Telemetry system to send the readings to the ground.
Stability and Control Verification Initial flight test will help to finalize gains for control scheme Stable flight Optimal flight regime for power usage Autopilot control uses Proportional-Integral-Derivative (PID) control Initial values set by simulating on computer and using lessons learned from a training aircraft.
Data Collection Power usage, current required Fuel cell ground testing Tune control board Monitor fuel cell environment to ensure proper operations Flight Tests scheduled for early May Final Fuel cell flight to follow
Complete final fuel cell flight >24hrs (or more) Present work at AIAA JPC/IECE conference Cryogenic Hydrogen storage systems roughly 10 times the power density Spoken with some manufacturers Different power schemes & flight envelope limits Dependent on funding and interest in coming years
A BIG Thank You to: Advisor - Dr. Thomas Bradley, Pilot - Rich Schoonover, United Technologies Research Center (UTRC), CSU COSGC Director - Dr. Azer Yalin, Funded by UTRC and COSGC