myCopter: Enabling Technologies for Personal Air Transport Systems

This paper describes the European Commission Framework 7 funded project myCopter (2011-2014). The project is still at an early stage so the paper starts with the current transportation issues faced by developed countries and describes a means to solve them through the use of personal aerial transportation. The concept of personal air vehicles (PAV) is briefly reviewed and how this project intends to tackle the problem from a different perspective described. It is argued that the key reason that many PAV concepts have failed is because the operational infrastructure and socio-economic issues have not been properly addressed; rather, the start point has been the design of the vehicle itself. Some of the key aspects that would make a personal aerial transport system (PATS) viable include the required infrastructure and associated technologies, the skill levels and machine interfaces needed by the occupant or pilot and the views of society as a whole on the acceptability of such a proposition. The myCopter project will use these areas to explore the viability of PAVs within a PATS. The paper provides an overview of the project structure, the roles of the partners, and hence the available research resources, and some of the early thinking on each of the key project topic areas

Development of an Active Flap Rotor Model

The research organizations ONERA and DLR initiated a common programme supported by Eurocopter (EC) and Eurocopter Deutschland (ECD) as industry partners within the Active Blade Concept (ABC). The content is to investigate in theory and experiment the possible benefits and the phenomena associated with an actively controlled flap located at the trailing edge of a helicopter rotor blade. The main focus is put on the reduction of vibration and noise radiation of the complete helicopter rotor and the expansion of the flight enve-lope by the use of multi-frequency higher harmonic flap control. The first phase of the research programme was dedicated to the numerical assessment of flap geometry, radial location, and optimal control inputs. The simulations showed best results for a 15% chord flap, with different optimal radial locations, depending on the distur-bance considered. A more inboard flap location is most suitable for vibration reduction, while for noise reduction the best results were obtained with a more outboard position. The design, manufacturing and experimental wind tunnel testing of a 4-bladed Mach-scaled rotor model in high speed and descent flight is realized during the second phase

Evaluation of ADS-33E Cargo Helicopter Requirements Using a CH-53G

Flight tests with a Sikorsky CH 53G of the German Federal Armed Forces were conducted in Germany under the U.S./German Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for Cooperative Research in Helicopter Aeromechanics to evaluate the cargo helicopter requirements of the U.S. Army Aeronautical Design Standard-33 (ADS-33E-PRF). The tests were carried out by the Wehrtechnische Dienststelle 61 (WTD 61, the German Armed Forces Technical and Airworthiness Center for Aircraft and Aeronautical Equipment), the German Aerospace Center (DLR), and the U.S. Army Aeroflighdynamics Directorate (AFDD). Quantitative data for hover and 100 knot forward flight were gathered. Five test pilots flew the Mission Task Elements in good visual environment and gave handling qualities ratings for thirteen Mission Task Elements as listed in ADS-33E-PRF, including the evaluation of handling qualities with an external slung load. The objective of this test was to evaluate the applicability of the ADS-33E-PRF cargo helicopter requirements using a helicopter with conventional main and tail-rotor configuration. Assessing the related handling qualities of the CH-53G is the means to do so, not the objective. This paper describes the test set-up, the main pilot comments and handling qualities ratings, and the initial results and lessons learned with respect to ADS 33E PRF

Evaluation of Aeronautical Design Standard-33E Cargo Mission Requirements - Flight Tests with a CH-53G -

Flight tests with a Sikorsky CH 53G cargo helicopter of the German Army were performed in Germany to evaluate the applicability and repeatability of the Aeronautical Design Standard (ADS)-33E-PRF cargo helicopter mission handling qualities requirements. These requirements were developed from flight tests with a CH-47D, a tandem-rotor cargo helicopter. The objective of the CH-53G tests was not to check the helicopter against ADS 33, but to use it as a testbed to corroborate the findings of the CH-47D tests and identify any fundamental differences or tandem rotor biases. The tests were carried out by the Wehrtechnische Dienststelle (WTD) 61, the German Aerospace Center (DLR), and the U.S. Army Aeroflighdynamics Directorate (AMRDEC). Quantitative data were gathered in hover and 100 knots forward flight for all axes. Five test pilots returned Cooper-Harper Handling Quality Ratings (HQRs) for 13 Mission Task Elements (MTEs), flown in Good Visual Environment (GVE), including four with an externally slung load. This paper describes the CH-53G quantitative criteria results and the comparisons with the qualitative results

US / German Project Agreement on Advanced Technologies for Rotorcraft (ATR), 3rd Semi-Annual Meeting, 27-28 October 2016

On Thursday and Friday, 27nd and 28th October 2016, the third semi-annual meeting of the US-German Project Agreement (PA) on “Advanced Technologies for Rotorcraft (ATR)” was held in Bückeburg, Germany. The purpose of the meeting was for reporting the status of the two technical tasks conducted under the PA, and for proposing future topics

ADS-33E-PRF - Aeronautical Design Standard, Performance Specification, Handling Qualities Requirements for Military Rotorcraft

Beitrag zu Ausbildungskurs von Testpiloten (TB2). Vermittlung von Hintergrundinformation zu Hubschrauberflugeigenschaften und der Spezifikation ADS-33-E-PRF. Quantitative und qualitative Bewertungsmethoden der Hubschrauberflugeigenschaften

US / German Project Agreement on Advanced Technologies for Rotorcraft (ATR), 5th Semi-Annual Meeting

Minutes of the 5th Semi-Annual Meeting of the US-German Project Agreement on Advanced Technologies for Rotorcraft (ATR), held in Koblenz on 19 September 2017

US-German Project Agreement Advanced Technologies for Rotorcraft (ATR), Minutes of the 1st Meeting, 22 October 2015

On Thursday, 22 October 2015, the first meeting of the US-German Project Agreement (PA) on “Advanced Technologies for Rotorcraft (ATR)” was hosted by the Institute of Flight Systems (FT) of the German Aerospace Center (DLR). The meeting was held at the DLR Research Center in Braunschweig, Germany. It was the kickoff meeting for the PA ATR

US / German Project Agreement on Advanced Technologies for Rotorcraft (ATR), Minutes from the 9th Semi-Annual Meeting, 24 September 2019

Minutes of the 9th Semi-Annual Meeting of the US-German PA ATR that took place in Munich on September 24, 2019