Distributed Electric Propulsion and Flight Control Concept to Meet EASA SC-VTOL-01 10‐9 Catastrophic Failure Criteria

Abstract

The objective of the current work was to develop an all-electric distributed propulsion and flight control (DPFC) architecture that will have no more than 10‐9 catastrophic failures per flight hour (pfh). The DPFC architecture was broken into four system design teams: (i) electrical power and distribution system, (ii) drive and power system, (iii) thermal management system, and (iv) flight control system. System designs were updated and iterated upon, working with reliability and safety analysis teams to develop compliant designs. The firm designs were reflected in a preliminary system safety assessment (PSSA) for initial verification of compliance. Additionally, design and analysis excursions are presented in which aircraft attributes were modified to investigate sensitivities to propulsion type, number of rotors, and control schemes. Excursion results found that all aircraft evaluated likely have paths to comply with the stringent, probabilistic catastrophic failure criteria. However, stability and control models showed large power transients that must be addressed, and PSSA results show that future work is needed in single load path structures, high voltage power storage and distribution, and motor/rotor overspeed protection.