www.HumanPoweredHelicopters.org

Engineering

The goal here is to gather information for every step in the design and construction (on the cheap) of your own human-powered helicopter. Please contact me for any additions or corrections.

Computer OS: Your computer probably came equipped with Microsoft Windows XP. There are some great free open-source applications for engineering that can only run on unix-like OSs. In such cases I recommend you use Ubuntu-Linux as a general purpose easy to use OS. There is also CAE Linux specifically for finite element analysis.

Software: Free or low cost software that would be useful for a human-powered helicopter team.

  • LUnix list of CAD and 3D modelers for Linux. This a an excellent and very long list. It is amazing how many free applications there are out there that could be so very useful.
  • CAE Linux: Includes the free Salome (pre- and post-processing) and Code Aster (processing) for finite element analysis (FEA).
  • FElt: A free system for FEA.
  • XFoil: a free program to calculate the performance (velocity distribution) of airfoils of your own design. Written by Mark Drela.
  • Profoil: Airfoil design software for the web. Profoil will generate an airfoil for a given velocity distribution.
  • Prop Designer: This program can be used to design a propeller. The website itself has many links to other websites of interest to human powered propeller designers. The program cannot be used to design a lifting rotor because it requires a forward air speed as an input parameter. But, it could be used for example to design a tip drive propeller.
  • JavaProp: Online program for propeller design. 
  • JavaFoil: Online program for airfoil analysis.
  • Many very useful human powered aircraft related websites are in Japanese. For translation, I recommend using the Firefox browser along with the Translator extension. I've set this extension to translate from Japanese to English by default with one click.
  • FoilSim: This program will calculate the pressure distribution around an airfoil. The purpose of this program seems to be more educational rather than design engineering.
  • PropSim: A program to simulate the performance of a propeller. See article by Theo Schmidt in the IHPVA journal #48 explaining the program. (Where/How can this program be obtained?)
  • XROTOR: Program to analyze rotors. Written by Mark Drela. I suggest you contact Mark Drela and ask him if he would send you a copy for use on a human powered helicopter.
  • The MIT Aerospace Computational Design Laboratory has a list of projects/software that could also be useful.
  • Lifting Line Analysis Spreadsheet: Tom Speer has created an excel spreadsheet where you can enter the parameters of a wing and it will calculate it's aerodynamics based on the "Lifting Line" method. Maybe this could be the basis of a version for rotors.
  • SciLAB: Free mathematical software which could be used to optimize a design and make graphs. 
  • QPROP & QMIL: "QPROP is an analysis program for predicting the performance of propeller-motor combinations. (...) The companion program QMIL generates propeller geometries for the Minimum Induced Loss (MIL) condition." by Mark Drela. (Description, webpage) NEW
  • CFD Wiki: A good starting point to find the right computational fluid dynamics software, both free and commercial. NEW

Expensive Software:

  • EHPIC: Used to optimize rotor aerodynamics. This program is very expensive but it is mentioned here because it was used by the Da Vinci project. The cost is $35K plus $10K a year for technical support. You could try to get some time on it through the generosity of a company or organization which already uses it (NASA, Bell, Universities, etc...) NEW
  • CAMRAD: Used to simulate full rotorcraft aerodynamics. This program was also used for the Da Vinci project. Probably very expensive. You can try to get some time on it donated to you from a sponsor. NEW

Aerodynamics / Propeller design: Internet resources of interest in understanding the physics of HPHs.

  • Wright Brothers Propeller design. The analysis of the performance and how it compares to modern theory and design is interesting. In particular, they mention applicability to human powered aircraft.
  • Supercool Racing Propellers has some articles (1, 2, 3) with an empirical approach to propeller design. They also offer custom design work on propellers. Mr Supercool has told me by email that HPH rotors are outside his field.
  • Nasa website on propeller basics.
  • Blade Theory for predicting propeller performance from the University of Sydney.
  • "Wing Grid" type designs may hold some promise for an HPH. There is a project (called "Joggernaut") description for a fixed wing human powered application. This technology is patented.
  • See How It Flies: An introductory text on aerodynamics. NEW
  • Applied Aerodynamics: an online textbook by Desktop Aeronautics. NEW

Rotor Configuration: You have to choose a rotor configuration. The most well known configuration has a single main rotor overhead and a single tail rotor. But, there are other more energy efficient configurations possible.

Pilot/Engine: You have to choose the pilot, train him (1), design the ergonomics, and prepare him in the time immediately before the attempt and provide him with all he needs in terms of fuel and environment at the moment of the attempt. I will put here all the articles I find on such subjects. But, I hope to get experts from the IHPVA to write short essays on these subjects specifically applicable to the conditions of the Sikorsky Prize.

(1) I write "him" but it could be a "her".

 
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