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Light Weight Collective Pitch Control Systems for Swashplateless Rotors

Award Information

Agency:
Department of Defense 		Branch:
Army 		Award ID:
87087 		Program Year/Program:
2008 / SBIR
Agency Tracking Number:
A082-018-0680 		Solicitation Year:
N/A 		Solicitation Topic Code:
N/A 		Solicitation Number:
N/A
Small Business Information
Orbital Research Inc
4415 Euclid Avenue, Suite 500 Cleveland, OH -
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Woman-Owned: No
Minority-Owned: No
HUBZone-Owned: No
 
Phase 1
Fiscal Year: 2008
Title: Light Weight Collective Pitch Control Systems for Swashplateless Rotors
Agency / Branch: DOD / ARMY
Contract: W911W6-09-C-0008
Award Amount: $70,000.00
 

Abstract:

Orbital Research Inc proposes to design and optimize a light-weight swashplateless helicopter rotor collective control system. One enabling technology for swashplateless rotors utilizes on-blade controls to control the lift created by each rotor blade. However, a limitation of on-blade controls is that utilizing the individual blade lift authority for collective blade control diminishes the range available for cyclic blade control. A collective control system that primarily adjusts the root blade incidence angle gives increased lift without reducing the authority of the on-blade controls. To provide reduced complexity and weight Orbital Research proposes utilizing all-electric redundant harmonic drive actuators to drive a single mechanism capable of increasing the root blade incidence while maintaining integrated pathways for access to on-blade control mechanisms. Benefits of the harmonic drive actuators include: 1) No backlash, 2) high torque, and 3) simplicity. Because the harmonic drive actuators consist of DC motors and a low-volume, high-gear-ratio harmonic transmission, they are extremely reliable. This will result in a design with low mass, compact geometry, reduced complexity, easy maintenance and ballistic damage resistance.

Principal Investigator:

Matthew Birch
Sr. Mechanical Engineer
2166490399
birch@orbitalresearch.com

Business Contact:

Joseph Snyder
Vice President
2166490399
snyder@orbitalresearch.com
Small Business Information at Submission:

ORBITAL RESEARCH, INC.
4415 Euclid Avenue Suite 500 Cleveland, OH 44103

EIN/Tax ID: 341672688
DUNS: N/A
Number of Employees:
Woman-Owned: No
Minority-Owned: No
HUBZone-Owned: No