1 research outputs found
Evaluating eVTOL Network Performance and Fleet Dynamics through Simulation-Based Analysis
Urban Air Mobility (UAM) represents a promising solution for future
transportation. In this study, we introduce VertiSim, an advanced event-driven
simulator developed to evaluate e-VTOL transportation networks. Uniquely,
VertiSim simultaneously models passenger, aircraft, and energy flows,
reflecting the interrelated complexities of UAM systems. We utilized VertiSim
to assess 19 operational scenarios serving a daily demand for 2,834 passengers
with varying fleet sizes and vertiport distances. The study aims to support
stakeholders in making informed decisions about fleet size, network design, and
infrastructure development by understanding tradeoffs in passenger delay time,
operational costs, and fleet utilization. Our simulations, guided by a
heuristic dispatch and charge policy, indicate that fleet size significantly
influences passenger delay and energy consumption within UAM networks. We find
that increasing the fleet size can reduce average passenger delays, but this
comes at the cost of higher operational expenses due to an increase in the
number of repositioning flights. Additionally, our analysis highlights how
vertiport distances impact fleet utilization: longer distances result in
reduced total idle time and increased cruise and charge times, leading to more
efficient fleet utilization but also longer passenger delays. These findings
are important for UAM network planning, especially in balancing fleet size with
vertiport capacity and operational costs. Simulator demo is available at:
https://tinyurl.com/vertisim-visComment: Accepted to AIAA SciTech Forum 202