Bioinspired Drone Actuated Using Wing and Aileron Motion for Extended Flight Capabilities

Abstract

Since the advent of flying machines, engineers have strived to develop aircraft that can fly as flexibly as birds. From the original traditional control surface to the controllable morphing wing design, they all aim to improve the flight performance of drones, including the load capacity, maneuverability and stability. We believe that a single control method has certain limitations. For example, for roll control, the aileron rudder effect will be significantly reduced when flying at a high angle of attack (AOA), and the asymmetric deformation control of a wing is almost useless under the conditions of low-speed and small AOA. Until now, solutions to the above problems have remained largely unexplored. Therefore, the combination of wing deformation and ailerons is proposed to improve the roll control ability of drones. In this research, a new bionic deformable wing drone is designed, which demonstrates the advantages of the combination of ailerons and wing morphing in roll control and verifies that the symmetrical folding of a wing can change the flight envelope. The aerodynamic characteristics of the drone were tested in a numerical simulation, and its flight capabilities for different configurations were characterized in flight experiments.