Precision Aerial Delivery with a Steerable Cruciform Parachute

Haller, J. O.; Fields, Travis; Yakimenko, Oleg A.

doi:10.2514/6.2017-3539

Cited by 7 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 15 publications

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“…In an effort to capture realistic wind conditions, data gathered in [20] was utilized from a series of balloon ascents and descents, from ∼4,500 to ∼104,500 MSL. These launches took place at various times on the same day, providing the ability to simulate 15.…”

Section: Wind Conditionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Development and Viability of an Inverted Descent Quadrotor for Precision Aerial Delivery

Ward

Fields

2022

AIAA SCITECH 2022 Forum

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The field of Precision Aerial Delivery strives for the highest standard of accuracy, with sights set on delivering payloads from high altitudes to mere feet from goal locations.Quadrotors, due to high maneuverability and precision, are a logical choice to achieve this objective, however current inefficiencies of descent prevent quadrotors from use in Precision Aerial Delivery.Described herein are the development, experimentation and implementation of a near passive, Inverted Descent Quadrotor system. The Inverted Descent Quadrotor allows for high altitude deployment of a quadrotor fitted with standard hardware with the ability to descend more rapidly and with less energy requirement than previously possible. The decreased energy requirement of the Inverted Descent Quadrotor enables quadrotors to be used in high altitude scenarios, for missions that have previously been reserved for guided parachute or parafoil systems. Quadrotor systems thrive in such missions after descent, iii as they accommodate the potential for complex, highly precise activities to be completed once reaching ground.The development process consisted of wind tunnel thrust testing, a proof of concept single axis prototype, a functional Inverted Descent Quadrotor build, real world performance testing and mission simulation. Each stage of development provided valuable insight into the governing dynamics of rapid descent environments and informed the subsequent phases of development.Wind tunnel thrust testing helped to identify a potentially optimal baseline throttle to apply when facing high speed descent to maintain control authority, as well as quantify potential power savings. The single axis prototype proved control potential in an artificial descent environment, further quantified power usage, characterized potential glide performance and suggested control gains for the rapid descent environment. A functional Inverted Descent Quadrotor was then built and tested to prove initial functionality, and verify the results from single axis testing. The system was then tested to quantify control, power and glide performance against various configurations of normal quadrotor descent, as well as current comparable Precision Aerial Delivery Systems. Finally, the Inverted Descent Quadrotor s performance results were extrapolated to simulation to display the increased performance of the Inverted Descent Quadrotor in a mission setting.The Inverted Descent Quadrotor proved to be successful in reducing descent energy, which endowed high precision quadrotor systems the capability for descents far iv higher than previously possible. With far less sensitivity to wind prediction, coupled with the potential for payload capacity, the Inverted Descent Quadrotor showed promise worthy of future development and research.

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Section: Wind Conditionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Development and Viability of an Inverted Descent Quadrotor for Precision Aerial Delivery

Ward

Fields

2022

AIAA SCITECH 2022 Forum

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“…The first requirement that must be taken into account when selecting the parachute type is that it must be steerable. The most known steerable parachutes are the Ram-Air [11] and the Cruciform Parachutes [12]. Cruciform parachutes have a great drag coefficient and are largely used for decelerating big payloads, such as land vehicles and aircrafts.…”

Section: Selection Of the Parachutementioning

confidence: 99%

Development of an Actuator for an Airdropped Platform Landing System

Barbosa

Barcelos

Borges

et al. 2020

2020 IEEE Aerospace Conference

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This work presents an actuation system that aims at improving the maneuvering capability during the landing phase of the LAICAnSat platform. The LAICAnSat is a low-cost, modular platform for high altitude applications, such as remote sensing, telecommunications, research, development and innovation within the aerospace field. The landing system uses a ram-air parachute that is actuated by servo motors located on a pseudo 2U CubeSat platform.

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