PENNSTATE

A Brief Introduction to Helicopters

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Robert L. Roedts II The Pennsylvania State University Rotorcraft Center of Excellence

What is a Helicopter?
Unique Features
Rotating-wing vehicles Ability to hover Land and take-off vertically Fly forward, backward and sideways

Helicopters are closely related to autogyros and tiltrotors.

Motivation
The overall unique aspect of a helicopter is its ability to hover for extended periods of time. The ability to hover it a very useful attribute.
An good example is that of a hummingbird.

Helicopters at Work
With this ability to hover, helicopters can perform a wide range of missions.

Comparison of Fixed-Wing Aircraft and Helicopters

Fixed Wing Aircraft

Comparison of Fixed-Wing Aircraft and Helicopters

Helicopter

Configurations of Rotorcraft
Many different ways to counter Reactive Torque

Other possibilities: Tip jets, tip mounted engines Question: Why do each of these methods work? What are the likely advantages and disadvantages of each?

Configurations of Rotorcraft Main Rotor - Tail Rotor Config.

Configurations of Rotorcraft
Tandem Rotors (Chinook)

Configurations of Rotorcraft
Coaxial Rotors (Kamov KA-52)

Configurations of Rotorcraft
NOTAR Helicopter

Configurations of Rotorcraft
Tilt Rotor (BA 609)

Unequal Lift Distribution

Vtip R V

Vtip R V Vtip R

Lift ~ V2

High-Speed Forward Flight Limitations

As the forward speed increases, advancing side experiences shock effects, retreating side stalls. This limits thrust available. Vibrations go up, because of the increased dynamic pressure, and increased harmonic content. Shock noise goes up. Fuselage drag increases, and parasite power consumption goes up as V3. We need to understand and accurately predict the air loads in high speed forward flight.

Interactional Aerodynamics

There are many ways to deal with these problems. One example would be the airfoil selection.

Rotor Descent States

Ground Interactions

At low forward speeds, less power is required.

Airfoil Design
Rotorcraft present an interesting problem for airfoil design. Fixed Wing Aircraft can be designed for certain conditions. The Rotorcraft environment changes rapidly as the blade travels around the rotor disk.

Airfoil Design
Reynolds Number and Mach Number

Airfoil Design
Four Rules of Rotorcraft Airfoil Design
High CLmax High MDD Good L/D over a wide range of Mach Numbers Low Cm

Design constraints are much narrower for rotorcraft. (I.e.: Cm 0.02)

Early Helicopter Airfoil Design

Initially, symmetric airfoils were used
Low Pitching Moment, Cm Cyclic Pitch

Juan de la Cierva
Autogyros First to use a cambered airfoil
Resulted in a crash in 1939

Crash and low torsional stiffness resulted in universal use of symmetric airfoil until the 1960s.

The 60s & 70s Revolution

Vast Improvements in Modern Computers allowed engineers to utilized them. Panel Methods
Inviscid Solutions but still insightful

Conformal Mapping introduced into computer codes Reintroduction of Cambered Airfoils

Computer design Improved Structures

More concentration on transonic effects

The 60s & 70s Revolution

Example: YAH-64 Apache, 1976
Heavy use of computer during design process.
Reduced amount of wind tunnel testing necessary Design costs and time decrease

Started with a NACA 63A-410 and ended with the HH-02

1980s Airfoil Development

Trailing Edge Tabs
Offset the pitching moment of a cambered airfoil By simple application of thin-airfoil theory, one may see the effect. Research showed that these tabs led to a small increase in drag and little effect on lift.

1990s Development
Change blade geometries British Experimental Rotor Program (BERP)
Developed to deal with tip effects on blade.
Transonic Effects (Advancing Side) High Alpha Stall (Retreating Side)

2000 and Beyond

Morphing Technologies
Gurney Flaps
Keeps flow attached in high alpha conditions.

Unsteady Aerodynamics
Current design methods assume static CLmax & Cm as in a steady flow condition. With blade wake interactions, this is not the case. Current research is concentrated in this area where a N-S solver will be used along side the Eppler code to design airfoils.

References
Gessow, A. and Myers, G.C., Aerodynamics of the Heilcopter, 3rd Edition, College Park Press, College Park, MD, 1999. J. Seddon, Basic Helicopter Aerodynamics, 2nd Edition, AIAA, Washington, DC, 2001. Leishman, J. G., Principles of Helicopter Aerodynamics, 2nd Edition, Cambridge University Press, New York, NY, 2005. McCormick, B. W., Aerodynamics of V/STOL Flight, Academic Press, Inc., New York, NY, 1967. Johnson, W. Helicopter Theory, Princeton University Press, Princeton, NJ, 1980.

Final Thought
Helicopters dont fly. They beat the air into submission. ~ Dr. Ed Smith