Design, Fabrication, Analysis, and Testing of a Micro Air Vehicle Propeller

Propellers are critical for the performance of fixed wing micro air vehicles (MAVs). Due to the low Reynolds number nature of MAV flight, the established propeller design practice needs to be reexamined. Experimental data is required to validate predictions; however, few studies have been conducted because the small dimensions and forces of the propellers make fabrication and reliable testing extremely challenging. The present study describes the development of a fabrication technique and a test stand, and the use of aerodynamic analyses to assess the performance of small fixed pitch propellers. Wind tunnel data for a single prototype propeller showed lower thrust, torque, and efficiency than predicted by commercially available vortex theory codes. Potential explanations for these discrepancies include inaccuracy of the airfoil coefficients, error resulting from approximations in the vortex theory, and inaccuracies related to fabrication. © 2011 by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Inc. All rights reserved