Conceptual design approach for hand-launched miniature unmanned aerial vehicles

A conceptual design approach has been described for a back-packable, hand-launched miniature unmanned aerial vehicle. The design space has been segregated into different areas that are analyzed separately in detail. The initial design phase involves an intellectual process and requires a number of design iterations to be performed. Therefore, low fidelity analyses tools are mostly employed to acquire the initial configuration. Also for low-Reynolds number flows, these methods provide enough accurate solutions. In the present work, Mix 3D panel/Vortex Lattice calculation method has been adopted to perform the aerodynamic performance analysis and the stability analysis. For miniature unmanned aerial vehicles, electric propulsion is more favored due to their compact size, light weight and reduced acoustic signature. Therefore, electric motor and propeller combination analysis is performed to obtain a higher efficiency propulsion system. The outcomes of each design area are then combined to estimate the range and endurance of the designed aircraft configuration.