• Journal of Hydrogen and New Energy
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• v.34 no.6
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• pp.758-766
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• 2023

Multi-copter of unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) was initially developed as strategic technology in the only military field, but it is developing into an industrial field with a wide range of applications in the civil sector based on the development and convergence of aviation technology and information and communication technology. Currently, the degree of utilization of multi-copter is increasing in various industries for the purpose of performing classic tactical missions, logistics transportation, farm management, internet supply, video filming, weather management, life-saving, etc, and active technology development responding to market demand. Existing commercial multi-copter mainly use an electric energy propulsion system consisting of an electric battery and a brushless direct current (BLDC) motor. It is the limitations for usage in the flying time (up to 20 minutes) and payload (less than 20 kg). this study aims to overcome these limitations and expand the commercialization of engine-powered multi-copter of UAV in various industries in the futures.

• Advances in aircraft and spacecraft science
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• v.9 no.3
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• pp.195-215
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• 2022

The increasing interest in CubeSat platforms ant their capability of enlarging the frontier of possible missions impose technology improvements. Miniaturized electrical propulsion (EP) systems enable new mission for multi-unit CubeSats (6U+). While electric propulsion systems have achieved important level of knowledge at equipment level, the investigation of the mutual impact between EP system and CubeSat technology at system level can provide a decisive improvement for both the technologies. The interaction between CubeSat and EP system should be assessed in terms of electromagnetic emissions (both radiated and conducted), thermal gradients, high electrical power management, surface chemical deposition, and quick and reliable data exchanges. This paper shows how a versatile CubeSat Test Platform (CTP), together with standardized procedures and specialized facilities enable the acquisition fundamental and unprecedented information. Measurements can be taken both by specific ground support equipment placed inside the vacuum facility and by dedicated sensors and subsystems installed on the CTP, providing a completely new set of data never obtained before. CTP is constituted of a 6U primary structure hosting the EP system, representative CubeSat avionics and batteries. For the first test campaign, CTP hosts the ambipolar plasma propulsion system, called Regulus and developed by T4I. After the integration and the functional test in laboratory environment, CTP + Regulus performed a Test campaign in relevant environment in the vacuum chamber at CISAS, University of Padua. This paper is focused on the test campaign description and the main results achieved at different power levels for different duration of the firings.

• Journal of Electrical Engineering and Technology
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• v.3 no.2
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• pp.224-234
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• 2008

Multi-phase machines can be used in variable speed drives. Their applications include electric ship propulsion, 'more-electric aircraft' and traction applications, electric vehicles, and hybrid electric vehicles. Multi-phase machines enable independent control of a few numbers of machines that are connected in series in a particular manner with their supply being fed from a single voltage source inverter(VSI). The idea was first implemented for a five-phase series-connected two-motor drive system, but is now applicable to any number of phases more than or equal to five-phase. The number of series-connected machines is a function of the phase number of VSI. Theoretical and simulation studies have already been reported for number of multi-phase multi-motor drive configurations of series-connection type. Variable speed induction motor drives without mechanical speed sensors at the motor shaft have the attractions of low cost and high reliability. To replace the sensor, information concerning the rotor speed is extracted from measured stator currents and voltages at motor terminals. Open-loop estimators or closed-loop observers are used for this purpose. They differ with respect to accuracy, robustness, and sensitivity against model parameter variations. This paper analyses operation of an MRAS estimator based sensorless control of a vector controlled series-connected two-motor five-phase drive system with current control in the stationary reference frame. Results, obtained with fixed-voltage, fixed-frequency supply, and hysteresis current control are presented for various operating conditions on the basis of simulation results. The purpose of this paper is to report the first ever simulation results on a sensorless control of a five-phase two-motor series-connected drive system. The operating principle is given followed by a description of the sensorless technique.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Aeronautical & Space Sciences
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• v.49 no.1
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• pp.53-61
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• 2021

This paper is a preliminary study for the development of a drone for inspection inside a boiler in a thermal power plant, which is a high-temperature environment, and validated whether the drone can fly normally through a high-temperature environment simulation using AirSim. In a high-temperature flight environment, the aerodynamic characteristics of the air density and viscosity are different from room temperature, and the flight performance of the drone is also changed accordingly. Therefore, in order to confirm the change of the aerodynamic characteristics of the propeller according to the temperature change, the propeller analysis and thrust test through JBLADE, and the operation characteristics prediction through the electric propulsion system performance prediction model were performed. In addition, the analysis and performance prediction results were applied to AirSim for simulation, and the aircraft redesigned through the analysis of the results. As a result of the redesign, it was confirmed that about 65% of the maximum power used before the redesign was reduced to 52% to obtain the necessary thrust when hovering in an environment of 80℃.

• Journal of Advanced Navigation Technology
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• v.25 no.1
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• pp.29-39
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• 2021

As a means of solving traffic congestion in the downtown of large city, the interest in urban air mobility (UAM) using electric vertical take-off landing personal aerial vehicle (eVTOL PAV) is increasing. eVTOL configurations that will be used for UAM are classified by lift-and-cruise, tilt rotors, tilt-wings, tilted-ducted fans, multicopters, depending on propulsion types. This study tries to perform preliminary conceptual design for a given mission profile using reverse engineering techniques by taking the multicopter type Airbus's CityAirbus as a basic model. Wetted area, lift to drag ratio, drag coefficients were calculated using the OpenVSP which is an aerodynamic analysis software. The power required for each mission section of CityAirbus were calculated, and the corresponding battery and motor were selected. Also, total weight was predicted by estimating component weights of eVTOL.

• Journal of Advanced Navigation Technology
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• v.26 no.3
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• pp.144-160
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• 2022

Research on urban air mobility (UAM) is being actively conducted as a method of next-generation transportation. eVTOL, an airplane to be used for urban air mobility, is classified into a complex type, a tilt rotor type, a tilt wing type, a tilt duct fan type, and a multicopter type according to the propulsion method. In this study, conceptual design was performed for the next generation eVTOL of the new tilt rotor type in accordance with the existing design requirements. The aerodynamic analysis programs of OpenVSP and XFLR5 were used to perform aerodynamic analysis. The power required for each flight mission stage was calculated, the battery and motor were selected accordingly, and MTOW (Maximum Take-Off Weight) was predicted by estimating the weight of each component.

• Journal of Aerospace System Engineering
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• v.16 no.6
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• pp.54-63
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• 2022

Recently, electric propulsion aircraft with various propeller mounting positions have been under construction. The position of the propeller relative to the wing can significantly affect the aerodynamic performance of the aircraft. Placing the propeller in front of the wing produces a complex swirl flow behind or around the propeller. The up/downwash induced by the swirl flow can alter the wing's local effective angle of attack, causing a change in the aerodynamic load distribution across the wing's spanwise direction. This study investigated the influence of the distance between a propeller and a wing on the aerodynamic loads on the wing. The swirl flow generated by the propeller was modelled using an actuator disk theory, and the wing's aerodynamics were analysed with the VSPAERO tool. Results of the study were compared to wind tunnel test data and established that both axial and spanwise distance between the propeller and the wing positively affect the wing's lift-to-drag ratio. Specifically, it was observed that the lift-to-drag ratio increases when the propeller is positioned higher than the wing.