Overview
THE PEREGRINE is a final year capstone project aiming to design, optimize, build, test and fly an Additively Manufactured Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) with Blended Wing Body (BWB) configuration.
This year, the goal of the BWB UAV project is to design a solar powered variation of the previous year’s Peregrine-1 design. Preliminary analysis of the solar integration with the Peregrine-1 design promises up to 40% increased endurance from the base model. This year’s solar-powered UAV will be designed for high-endurance mapping & observation missions.
The Background
Over the last few decades, aircraft fuel efficiency was mainly improved by applications of refined aerodynamics, composite materials, structural optimization and enhanced engine performance. Yet, a step change towards that goal may be realized through designing novel aircraft configurations as well as considering new, additively manufactured, multifunctional materials and structural systems for significantly reducing green aircraft weight. Aircraft with Blended Wing Body (BWB) configuration are proposed for next generation of airliners, primarily due to their increased fuel efficiency and reduced acoustic footprint.
On the other hand, sustainability of manufacturing process is an important issue in the aspect of green technology to deal with global warming and finite resources. An important measure of sustainability of manufacturing process is the potential for energy saving, material saving, life extension, recycling, part consolidation, and process optimization. Additive manufacturing is being sought in this project as the manufacturing method due to its sustainability and relaxation of manufacturing constraints allowing the manufacturing of very complicated geometries.
The solar system integration promises to further improve energy efficiency, reducing required battery sizes and increasing aircraft performance. This is the next evolution of the BWB UAV project’s objective of pursuing sustainable manufacturing procedures and increasing fuel efficiency.
The Rollout
The funds raised this year will be put towards purchasing and testing of solar power systems and mapping technology. To optimize the solar power integration and flight efficiency, a large amount of funds will be used for Additive Manufacturing materials for the adjusted UAV airframe. The funds will also go towards improving the previous year’s test stand to optimize motor and propeller performance.
The Impact
Solar-powered UAV are not a completely novel concept, many have been studied and built, including sailplane configuration UAVs such as the Sky-Sailor and AtlantikSolar. However, the BWB design of the Peregrine-1 offers a unique advantage of large feasible wing area for solar-cell integration, while achieving the high aerodynamics and maneuverability of a BWB design. Research conducted and data gathered will have long-lasting impact on the aerospace industry as the industry looks towards sustainable flight.