UAVOS has announced that it has successfully completed testing of the new version of its unmanned helicopter main rotor blades, which are suitable for helicopters with a take-off mass of 50 kg and a rotor diameter of 2600 mm. The composite blades have been improved by gluing metal onto the leading edge of the blades, thereby improving aerodynamic stability and increasing wear resistance against rain, snow, dust and sand.
Helicopter rotor blades operate under very difficult conditions, and are bent, twisted and pulled by strong aerodynamic forces. A successful blade design needs to be strong, light, and highly resistant to environmental wear.
UAVOS’ rotor blades are formed using hot molding of composite prepreg material, manufacturing the blade in a single press die operation. With this method, delamination of the lower and upper planes cannot happen, since there is no glue line.The process results in blades with high aerodynamic characteristics and increased durability that improve the flight parameters of unmanned helicopters, as well as making flights more reliable in severe weather conditions.
Aliaksei Stratsilatau, CEO of UAVOS, commented: “Rotor blade tips spin at near sound speeds. And any object, whether it be dust, sand, grass, snow, ice chips, insects, etc. at such speeds, destroys the leading edge. The new design features upgrades resulting in improved performance envelope and reliability. This approach allows customers to run very lean maintenance programs that require only basic facilities.”
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