Sea recovery system for small UAV

This report explores the feasibility of a new sea arrest system in which a UAV is arrested by a parasail attached to a ship, and aims to obtain the optimal parasail sizing for the system through aerodynamic testing in a wind tunnel. Extensive literature review was conducted to evaluate the advantage...

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Main Author: Muhammad Feroz Muhammad Shaffarudin
Other Authors: Chow Wai Tuck
Format: Final Year Project
Language:English
Published: 2019
Subjects:
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/10356/78460
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Institution: Nanyang Technological University
Language: English
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spelling sg-ntu-dr.10356-784602023-03-04T18:22:38Z Sea recovery system for small UAV Muhammad Feroz Muhammad Shaffarudin Chow Wai Tuck School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering DRNTU::Engineering::Aeronautical engineering This report explores the feasibility of a new sea arrest system in which a UAV is arrested by a parasail attached to a ship, and aims to obtain the optimal parasail sizing for the system through aerodynamic testing in a wind tunnel. Extensive literature review was conducted to evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of current sea arrest systems such as the Skyhook used for the ScanEagle, which illustrates the relevance of having a parasail arrest system in the market. The main advantage of the parasail arrest system is that it is able to accommodate larger UAVs with higher approach speeds. In the experiments, the dimensions of the ScanEagle was used as a reference for the calculations. The rig for the wind tunnel testing was assembled manually, along with a scaled model of the parachute and parasail to be tested. Several setups were used during the wind tunnel testing to ensure the accuracy of the data obtained. The mechanism and aerodynamics of the parasail arrest system was also explained using free body diagrams. Through aerodynamic testing of the parachute and parasail, it was observed that the parasail had a significantly higher drag coefficient compared to the parachute. Based on the scaled down models, the CD value of the parasail was found to be 2.727 compared to that of the parachute which was only 0.645, giving a performance increase of more than 300%. This is beneficial to the system as a higher CD value will lead to a higher drag force experienced, assuming the planform area for the parachute/parasail is the same. The drag force will assist in decelerating the UAV, and having a larger drag force means that a smaller parasail could be used in place of the parachute. Furthermore, due to the airfoil shape of the parasail’s canopy, the parasail experienced lift which will allow it to partially carry the UAV’s weight, thus reducing the impact load during the arrest. This will prevent it from crashing into the ship, therefore ensuring a safe recovery process. As there were additional benefits of using a parasail in the arrest system such as the higher drag coefficient and lift force present, it was concluded that the parasail was a more efficient option to use in the arrest system compared to the parachute. The optimum parasail sizing was then calculated based on the ScanEagle’s dimensions. Bachelor of Engineering (Aerospace Engineering) 2019-06-20T05:05:25Z 2019-06-20T05:05:25Z 2019 Final Year Project (FYP) http://hdl.handle.net/10356/78460 en Nanyang Technological University 80 p. application/pdf
institution Nanyang Technological University
building NTU Library
continent Asia
country Singapore
Singapore
content_provider NTU Library
collection DR-NTU
language English
topic DRNTU::Engineering::Aeronautical engineering
spellingShingle DRNTU::Engineering::Aeronautical engineering
Muhammad Feroz Muhammad Shaffarudin
Sea recovery system for small UAV
description This report explores the feasibility of a new sea arrest system in which a UAV is arrested by a parasail attached to a ship, and aims to obtain the optimal parasail sizing for the system through aerodynamic testing in a wind tunnel. Extensive literature review was conducted to evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of current sea arrest systems such as the Skyhook used for the ScanEagle, which illustrates the relevance of having a parasail arrest system in the market. The main advantage of the parasail arrest system is that it is able to accommodate larger UAVs with higher approach speeds. In the experiments, the dimensions of the ScanEagle was used as a reference for the calculations. The rig for the wind tunnel testing was assembled manually, along with a scaled model of the parachute and parasail to be tested. Several setups were used during the wind tunnel testing to ensure the accuracy of the data obtained. The mechanism and aerodynamics of the parasail arrest system was also explained using free body diagrams. Through aerodynamic testing of the parachute and parasail, it was observed that the parasail had a significantly higher drag coefficient compared to the parachute. Based on the scaled down models, the CD value of the parasail was found to be 2.727 compared to that of the parachute which was only 0.645, giving a performance increase of more than 300%. This is beneficial to the system as a higher CD value will lead to a higher drag force experienced, assuming the planform area for the parachute/parasail is the same. The drag force will assist in decelerating the UAV, and having a larger drag force means that a smaller parasail could be used in place of the parachute. Furthermore, due to the airfoil shape of the parasail’s canopy, the parasail experienced lift which will allow it to partially carry the UAV’s weight, thus reducing the impact load during the arrest. This will prevent it from crashing into the ship, therefore ensuring a safe recovery process. As there were additional benefits of using a parasail in the arrest system such as the higher drag coefficient and lift force present, it was concluded that the parasail was a more efficient option to use in the arrest system compared to the parachute. The optimum parasail sizing was then calculated based on the ScanEagle’s dimensions.
author2 Chow Wai Tuck
author_facet Chow Wai Tuck
Muhammad Feroz Muhammad Shaffarudin
format Final Year Project
author Muhammad Feroz Muhammad Shaffarudin
author_sort Muhammad Feroz Muhammad Shaffarudin
title Sea recovery system for small UAV
title_short Sea recovery system for small UAV
title_full Sea recovery system for small UAV
title_fullStr Sea recovery system for small UAV
title_full_unstemmed Sea recovery system for small UAV
title_sort sea recovery system for small uav
publishDate 2019
url http://hdl.handle.net/10356/78460
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