학술논문

Aerodynamic Force Control for Tilt-Wing eVTOL Using Airflow Vector Estimation
Document Type
Periodical
Source
IEEE Transactions on Transportation Electrification IEEE Trans. Transp. Electrific. Transportation Electrification, IEEE Transactions on. 8(4):4163-4172 Dec, 2022
Subject
Transportation
Aerospace
Components, Circuits, Devices and Systems
Power, Energy and Industry Applications
Propellers
Aircraft
Estimation
Aerodynamics
Force control
Transportation
Blades
Aircraft control
force control
motion control
observers
parameter estimation
Language
ISSN
2332-7782
2372-2088
Abstract
Research and development are active in electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft. In particular, tilt-wing eVTOL aircraft receives much attention as one of the most efficient configurations; however, they are likely to be unstable during the transition from hover to cruise because the lift and thrust have limitations depending on the airflow and tilt angle. This study proposes a new aerodynamic force control method using airflow vector estimation. The airflow vector is estimated by combining motor current, rotational speed, and Pitot-tube measurements. Aerodynamic force control is achieved through the proper design of a feedback controller using disturbance observers (DOBs) to cope with propeller-wing interference caused by the propeller slipstream. This method takes advantage of the motor control performance and is unique in which it monitors the airflow vector and actively changes the tilt angle to quickly obtain the desired acceleration. The effectiveness of the method is verified via simulations and experiments in a wind tunnel.