Comparative Study on Effect of Material on structural Performance of a Quadcopter Drone with ‘X- Frame’

Abstract

Drones have become most important parts of the day-to-day life from a hobby to serious research. But, the operation and maintenance cost of these drones is very high due to multiple failures while flying. The most common component that experience heavy loads and undergo failure is frame of the drone. Hence, there is a need to address the best shape and material that can be used to reduce the operation cost due to catastrophic failures. The present work deals with design of a micro-drone frame which must withstand a load of at least 2 kgs. The ‘X’-shaped frame, were modelled and analysed at various load conditions for glass fiber, carbon fiber, aluminum alloy, and plastic materials. The results obtained for the different materials were compared and it was observed that carbon fiber is the preferred material for load-bearing applications but the cost for manufacturing and maintenance is very high. Aluminum alloy shows good strength and is cost effective. The ease of manufacturing and make it more suitable for drones. Plastic, though flexible and easy to fabricate, does not meet the required strength to weight ratio.