Derivation and Flight Test Validation of Maximum Rate of Climb during Takeoff for Fixed-Wing UAV Driven by Propeller Engine

Abstract

In recent years, the use of fixed-wing Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) has expanded, and the use of fixed-wing UAVs is expected to expand due to their usefulness for long-range operations. Different from manned aircraft, no provision is required regarding climb angle at takeoff for fixed-wing UAVs. Therefore, fixed-wing UAVs can take off by taking advantage of their performance. In addition, propeller engines are the propulsion device currently used by most fixed-wing UAVs. However, the thrust force generated by a propeller engine decreases as its airspeed increases. In such circumstances, this paper describes how to derive a maximum rate of climb in which the characteristics of the propeller engine are taken into account, with the aim of reducing takeoff time by maximizing the rate of climb during takeoff. The derivation uses optimization problems with a dependency of the thrust force on the airspeed. After the derivation of the maximum rate of climb, we first checked whether the maximum rate of climb obtained for the mass system was feasible for takeoff at the rate of climb by using a 6-DOF flight simulation, and then confirmed its validity through flight experiments.