Aerodynamic analysis of the helicopter rotor using the time-domain panel method

The paper presents the unsteady aerodynamic analysis of helicopter rotor with a panel method based on potential flow theory. The panel method uses the piecewise constant source and doublet singularities as a solution. This potential based panel method is founded on the Dirichlet boundary condition and coupled with the time-stepping method. The present method is used the time-stepping loop to simulate the unsteady motion of the helicopter rotor. And the free wake model is used for the wake simulation. The present method can be solved the threedimensional flow over the complex rotors with less computing time than commercial CFD tools. The results are well matched with the experimental results. That will do much for practical applications such as aerodynamic designs and analysis of helicopter rotor configurations. �� 2010 by the International Council of Aeronautical Sciences - ICAS