Browsing by Author "Biczyski, Marcin"

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    Designing low-weight switched reluctance motors for electric multirotor propulsion system
    (Society of Electricity, Electronics and Information and Communication Technologies, 2021-10-21) Biczyski, Marcin; Sehab, Rabia; Krebs, Guillaume; Whidborne, James F.; Luk, Patrick Chi-Kwong
    One of the ways in which we can facilitate the introduction of UAVs, especially autonomous ones, into public airspaces is to increase their safety. Brushless DC motors used for the majority of RC vehicles have multiple vulnerabilities, most of which connected with the reliance on neodymium magnets. To reduce the number of possible points of failure, switched reluctance motor technology is researched as an alternative, because of reliability, robustness and the lack of rare earth materials. To take advantage of these features, a motor design optimization process was adopted, which uses 2D FEM models. These do not capture certain 3D effects, such as end-winding inductance, what has led to considerable decrease in performance when used in a multirotor propulsion chain. The presented approach keeps the 2D-based optimization approach and focuses on improving the performance as a next step in the design process. Four methods are evaluated – two of them aiming at improving the motor’s flux network and two focused on increasing the voltage. Taking into consideration the application, the methods are assessed not only based on performance improvement, but also on predicted platform weight change and price increase.
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    Multirotor sizing methodology with flight time estimation
    (Wiley/Hindawi, 2020-01-20) Biczyski, Marcin; Sehab, Rabia; Whidborne, James F.; Krebs, Guillaume; Luk, Patrick Chi-Kwong
    This paper addresses the need for sizing of rotors for multirotor vehicle applications such as personal air transport, delivery, surveillance, and photography. A methodology for the propeller and motor selection is developed and augmented with flight time estimation capabilities. Being multirotor-specific it makes use of the platform’s simplicity to rapidly provide a set of off-the-shelf components ready to be used in the vehicle. Use of operating points makes the comparison process fast, precise, and tailored to specific application. The method is easily implemented in software to provide an automated tool. Furthermore, clearly defined input and output parameters make it also usable as a module in other multicriteria optimisation algorithms. The new methodology is validated through comparison with a consumer-grade drone and the calculated results are compliant with manufacturer’s specification in terms of maximum hover time.