ILA presents itself as a platform for cutting-edge aerospace technologies, and one of the innovations looking to take off at the show is a vertical thrust vectoring hybrid rotor.
Its developer, Bavarian aviation technology house Bauhaus Luftfahrt , and Munich-based consultancy Atena Engineering, which built the prototype, say the hybrid is an alternative to the helicopter or tiltrotor for vertical take-off aircraft and combines two systems: the cycloidal propeller and the Flettner rotor (named after its inventor Anton Flettner, who used the principle to power a ship in the 1920s). The former provides the control and propulsion, whereas the latter ensures lift.
A small model of the hybrid rotor is being unveiled in the International Suppliers Centre in hall 11. A particular challenge, say the developers, was to not only control the huge gyroscopic forces that a rapidly rotating cylinder generates but to use them for flight navigation.
Dr Jost Seifert of Bauhaus Luftfahrt says the special characteristics of the hybrid rotor make it an attractive technology for a variety of uses. "A use in the military sector for drones and unmanned aerial vehicles would ultimately also lead to its application to passenger transportation," he says. Initially, the rotor could be used to power aircraft up to 5t.
Bauhaus Luftfahrt was founded by EADS, Liebherr Aerospace and MTU Aero Engines together with the state of Bavaria. The non-profit organisation aims to develop "sustainable, innovative solutions for future air travel and air transportation".
Source: Flight Daily News
