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SoLong Solar-Electric UAV 48 hour flight
http://www.acpropulsion.com/products-drivesystem.html Drive Systems Since 1992, AC Propulsion has been a leader in development of drive systems which lead the industry in power density and efficiency. Products ranging from 80kW to over 200kW (268 hp) motor output have been built for spirited driving while maximizing vehicle range. Our custom designed induction motors feature high efficiency over a broad operating range, thus achieving drive cycle efficiency comparable to the best PM machines. Smooth and comprehensive energy recovery is provided through traction-controlled regenerative braking. ACP technology includes drive systems that feature an Integrated "Reductive" Charger that delivers up to 18kW of charge power for reduced charger cost, reduced weight and reduced charge time. AC Propulsion designs and engineers drives systems for OEM vehicle companies. Our latest generation is designed to meet the stringent demands of customers for performance, reliability, environmental ruggedness and cost. Our sister company, eMotor Advance, located in Beijing, China, is prepared to provide serial production units to customers worldwide. drive system engine overview Dynamometer Testing Gen 2 Motor Gen 4 Motor with Integrated Inverter Motor with Top Mount Integrated Inverter ================================================== ================= http://machinedesign.com/news/solar-...-days-straight Solar-powered UAV flies two days straight An electric-motor driven UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) recently completed a 48-hr nonstop test flight using only solar energy. Aug 18, 2005 Machine Design Staff | Machine Design INSHARE COMMENTS 0 The SoLong unmanned aerial vehicle from AC Propulsion recently flew over 48 hr nonstop fueled only by solar energy. The plane sports a wingspan of 4.75 m and weighs 12.6 kg. The SoLong unmanned aerial vehicle from AC Propulsion recently flew over 48 hr nonstop fueled only by solar energy. The plane sports a wingspan of 4.75 m and weighs 12.6 kg. The two-day test demonstrated the feasibility of sustainable flight using solar-electric power. The test flight of the SoLong solar-powered aircraft by AC Propulsion Inc., San Dimas, Calif., was more a test of endurance for its seven ground-based pilots than the craft. The fatigued team, lead by AC Propulsion's chief engineer and SoLong's designer Alan Cocconi, brought the flight to a successful touchdown 48 hr and 11 min after takeoff. The 48-hr mark was mere formality as SoLong could stay flying indefinitely. Power from 76 SunPower Corp. (Sunnyvale, Calif.) solar cells supply the plane's energy. Power distribution among the onboard systems is controlled by management software developed by Cocconi. During daylight flight the nominal 225-W solar array powers all systems and recharges 120 Li-ion cells from Sanyo Corp. The Li-ion cells fulfill the craft's energy demand at night. Propulsion comes from a high-efficiency electric motor driven by a split-phase power controller developed by AC Propulsion. A variable-pitch propeller fine-tunes thrust for different rpm and power settings using a load cell for in-flight thrust measurements. An earlier 24-hr test flight showed the original battery reserve couldn't keep the craft airborne. "We split the first test flight's night in two, flying midnight to midnight," said Cocconi. "We were getting enough solar energy during the day but we didn't have quite enough battery to take us through the night." The Sanyo cells pack 220 W-hr/kg and have a charge-discharge efficiency of over 95%. "That made the difference," Cocconi stated, allowing the SoLong to pass the 48-hr mark. Twelve PIC18 microcontrollers from Microchip Technology Inc., Chandler, Ariz., control and monitor all vehicle systems. Systems under control of the PICs include the autopilot, motor drive, power tracker, six servomotors, the battery monitor, and a tracking downlink antenna. For example, the autopilot controller decodes 13 PWM control signals from the uplink receiver, inputs serial data from the GPS module, and monitors 23 analog sensor channels. Data from all systems and a live video feed from the "cockpit" telemeter to the pilots on the ground. Two servo positioners driven by another PIC18 microcontroller keep the telemetry-link antenna pointed towards the same ground position. The PIC18 computes servosettings using signals from the plane's autopilot and GPS. Efficiency is the key to SoLong's success. Even so, the energy budget required riding thermals with the motor off as much as possible during the day. The variable-pitch propeller folds flat against the fuselage during motor-off flight to minimize drag. SoLong pilots must always try to bank energy, either in the form of stored solar-electric power or aircraft altitude. Pilots draw against either to keep the plane in the air when conditions turn sour. MAKE CONTACT: AC Propulsion Inc., (909) 592-5399, acpropulsion.com Microchip Technology Inc., (480) 792-7200, microchip.com Sanyo Corp., (619) 661-4888, sanyo.com SunPower Corp., (408) 991-0900, sunpowercorp.com ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- http://aviationweek.com/awin/solong-...ys-aloft-48-hr SoLong Solar-Powered Drone Stays Aloft for 48 Hr. SoLong airplane, with lithium-ion batteries to store energy, flies through two nights on solar power. Better batteries are soon to come. Jun 27, 2005 MICHAEL A. DORNHEIM | Aviation Week & Space Technology People have long dreamed of perpetual flight, and the tipping point was reached earlier this month when a solar-powered drone stayed aloft for 48 hr. It showed that enough energy could be stored during the day to fly the aircraft at night, for at least several days. All that's needed are small, near-term improvements in technology to tip this feat into flights lasting reliably for months. One application, albeit much harder, would be as a radio tower in the sky, giving line-of-sight ... THIS CONTENT REQUIRES SUBSCRIPTION ACCESS ================================================== =============================== https://xpda.com/junkmail/junk173/AC...2005-06-05.pdf AC Propulsion’s Solar Electric Powered SoLong UAV June 5, 2005 Alan Cocconi with SoLong at El Mirage Dry Lake in California Steve Neu SoLong landing at the end of its 48 hour flight at Desert Center 441 Borrego Court San Dimas, CA 91773 909 592 5399 www.acpropulsion.com AC Propulsion SoLong UAV June 5, 2005 Background AC Propulsion is a small R&D and manufacturing company specializing in high performance electric drives and vehicles. Since 1991 most of the projects have been automotive, and AC Propulsion has established itself as an industry leader in the field of high performance AC drives and integrated battery-charging systems. The self funded SoLong UAV project builds on this electric propulsion expertise and has produced a small, inexpensive and rugged UAV that has demonstrated multi-day solar powered flight on June 1-3, 2005. Applications The long endurance electric powered SoLong is a unique platform that can be adapted to a variety of remote sensing applications. Its moderate size, the quiet and clean electric propulsion and GPS navigation make it a practical alternative to other available UAVs. The airframe and propulsion system can be easily scaled up or down to accommodate various missions and the R&D effort is continuing towards a fully autonomous UAV data gathering “appliance” with automated launch and recovery. AC Propulsion is eager to find partners and or customers for non-military applications. SoLong specifications Wingspan 4.75m Wing area 1.50 m2 Mass 12.8 kg Power sources 120 Sanyo 18650 LI-Ion cells and 76 Sunpower A300 solar cells Solar panel nom. power 225 W Battery mass 5.6 kg Max motor power 800W Min electrical power for level flight 95W Stored energy 1200Wh Speed range 27 to 50 mph Max. climb rate 2.5 m/s Control and telemetry range 8,000 m 2 AC Propulsion SoLong UAV June 5, 2005 SoLong takes off from a simple wheeled dolly, lands on its belly skid Avionics (above) and propulsion battery (below) fit within 15 cm diameter fuselage. Propeller folds during non-powered flight 3 AC Propulsion SoLong UAV June 5, 2005 Construction Fuselage Kevlar epoxy monocoque with carbon boom. Wings Carbon, Kevlar and glass epoxy composite sandwich with molded in place solar cells using CNC machined aluminum molds. Propeller Molded carbon epoxy with an in-flight adjustable pitch hub and a load cell for inflight thrust measurement. 225 W solar array is molded into the wing surface CNC-machined wing molds provide accurate profile For construction of wing and bonding of solar cells 4 AC Propulsion SoLong UAV June 5, 2005 Avionics 2.4 GHz video and data downlink with 23 channels of telemetry plus GPS nav. data (position, velocity, waypoints etc.) AC Propulsion developed autopilot with differential pressure for wing leveling, 3 axis gyros, accelerometers, and barometric pressure for stability augmentation and pitot pressure for airspeed hold. Ublox OEM GPS module for position information Microchip 8 bit processor running assembly language code for all control and navigation processing. High efficiency AC Propulsion developed digital amplifiers for the 6 control surface servos Propulsion AC Propulsion 9 phase motor drive with 88% minimum DC to motor shaft efficiency over the 60 to 800W range. Kontronik Tango 45-06 3 phase brushless ironless motor with 4.2:1 planetary gear reduction turning a 23 inch folding, variable pitch propeller. 30 volt Li-Ion battery pack of 120 Sanyo 18650 cells 76 Sunpower A300 solar cells. AC Propulsion 300W 4 phase peak power tracker weighing 100g and operating at 98% efficiency. 5 AC Propulsion SoLong UAV June 5, 2005 Ground Station A 5ft by 8ft utility trailer with GPS aimed tracking downlink antenna and 3 computer screens display live video feed and flight instruments, GPS waypoints and altitude coded flight path overlaid on a moving topo map or satellite imagery, and the third is multi function backup. The UAV flight and navigation is controlled using a modified RC model transmitter. The flight and landing is controlled from inside the trailer. Navigation waypoints can be downloaded before flight or set and moved while airborne. Telemetry allows display and monitoring of solar power capture, energy use, battery state of charge and real-time propulsion efficiency. Ground station trailer with 2 axis tracking antenna 6 AC Propulsion SoLong UAV June 5, 2005 Flight screen with live video feed, instrumentation and telemetry Navigation screen displays waypoints and flight path. Trace color indicates rate of climb. 7 AC Propulsion SoLong UAV June 5, 2005 Flight Tests The present prototype has had over 60 flights and 250 hours since July 2004 and is the latest of a series of UAVs designed and flown since 1983 by Alan Cocconi, chairman of AC Propulsion. The SoLong has been operated safely in winds of up to 30 mph and has been flown for many hours at night and has landed in full darkness with only runway marker lights. SoLong flew continuously for 48 hours and 11 minutes on June 1-3, 2005, demonstrating sustainable solar electric flight. 48 hour flight pilots. From left to right:, David Fee, Jerry Bridgeman, Alan Cocconi, Chuck Grim, “RCDave” Freund and Steve Neu Contact Information AC Propulsion 441 Borrego Ct San Dimas CA 91773 Tel: (909) 592 5399 Email: Website: acpropulsion.com 8 ================================================== =========== http://www.alternative-energy-news.i...lane-concepts/ THE 10 BEST SOLAR AIRPLANE CONCEPTS Posted in Solar Power | Transportation Solar Airplane Concepts Recently we posted an article announcing the production of a portable solar charger for airplane avionics. At the end of that article we asked if you thought airplanes could one day be powered by solar. Since then we discovered a whole slew of existing solar airplane concepts and projects that we thought we’d share with you. Click through the following links to visit the related websites. At the bottom of this article you’ll find another opportunity to vote your opinion and leave your comments about the feasibility of solar powered flight. Helios The Helios Prototype solar-electric flying wing was one of several remotely piloted aircraft, also known as uninhabited aerial vehicles or UAVs, that were developed as technology demonstrators under the now-concluded Environmental Research Aircraft and Sensor Technology (ERAST) project. Prior to its loss in an in-flight mishap in June 2003, the Helios Prototype set a world altitude record for propeller-driven aircraft of almost 97,000 feet. Pathfinder Pathfinder was first developed for a now-cancelled classified government program in the early 1980’s to develop a high-altitude, long-endurance aircraft for surveillance purposes. Known as the HALSOL (for High-Altitude SOLar) aircraft, its eight electric motors — later reduced to six — were first powered by batteries. After that project was cancelled, the aircraft was placed in storage for 10 years before being resurrected for a brief program under the auspices of the Ballistic Missile Defense Organization (BMDO) in 1993. With the addition of small solar arrays, five low-altitude checkout flights were flown under the BMDO program at NASA Dryden in the fall of 1993 and early 1994 on a combination of solar and battery power. Centurion The Centurion is a lightweight, solar-powered, remotely piloted flying wing aircraft that is demonstrating the technology of applying solar power for long-duration, high-altitude flight. It is considered to be a prototype technology demonstrator for a future fleet of solar-powered aircraft that could stay airborne for weeks or months on scientific sampling and imaging missions or while serving as telecommunications relay platforms. Although it shares many of the design concepts of the Pathfinder, the Centurion has a wingspan of 206 feet, more than twice the 98-foot span of the original Pathfinder and 70-percent longer than the Pathfinder-Plus’ 121-foot span. Hy-Bird The “Hy-Bird” project plans to fly around the world with a 100% clean electric airplane powered only by renewable energies: solar energy and hydrogen. The goal is to design an airplane, which will use only renewable energies with no greenhouse gas emission, and, to decrease dramatically noise pollution, which airplanes do normally engender.Indeed, photovoltaic cells affixed on the wing and on the horizontal tail will supply sufficient energy for the take off and for on-board power supply. Besides, a fuel cell will fuel the aircraft for cruise flight. An electric engine (more silent than heat engines) will propel Hy-Bird. Inhabitat Article Solar Impulse After four years of research, studies, calculations and simulations, the Solar Impulse project has entered a concrete phase with the construction of an initial prototype with a 61-metre wingspan, referred to by its registration number “HB-SIA”. Its mission is to verify the working hypotheses in practice and to validate the selected construction technologies and procedures. If the results are conclusive, it could make a 36-hour flight – the equivalent of a complete day-night-day cycle – in 2009 without any fuel. EcoGeek Article Solar Challenger Eric Raymond’s dream of a solar powered airplane began in 1979, when Larry Mauro demonstrated his solar powered ultralight glider, named SOLAR RISER. Eric began construction of his design in late 1986. Progress was slow until 1988, when support was found in Japan. With the help of Sanyo and several other corporations the SUNSEEKER was test flown at the end on 1989 as a glider. The motor and prop mechanism were not satisfactory, so an A.C. brushless motor and a folding prop were installed. After many long test flights, a series of flights were initiated across the country. During August of 1990, The SUNSEEKER crossed the country in 21 flights, with 121 hours in the air. Sky Sailor The Sky-Sailor would be carried to Mars in a small aeroshell that would be attached to a carrier spacecraft. Upon reaching the red planet, the aeroshell would be released for direct entry into the Martian atmosphere. From this point, the operations could be decomposed in different phases. It can cover a distance of ~1700 km during a 12-hour period. This allows the airplane to reach many different areas of interest. The exploration mission will end when the airplane crashes normally due to the batteries life cycle and dust deposition on solar panels. Solong Solar UAV The SoLong is an electric-powered UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) that collects solar energy from photo-voltaic arrays laminated into its wings. It uses energy so efficiently that it can fly all night on energy it gathers from the sun during the day. Remaining aloft for two nights is the milestone for sustainable flight. One night is possible just by discharging the batteries, but two or more nights means that the plane has to fully recoup and store the energy used at night while flying in the sunlight the following day. Once that is achieved, the cycle can repeat continually, and keep the plane airborne indefinitely. Solar Powered Plane Called the Zephyr, it’s an aircraft that can fly continuously using nothing but solar power and “low drag aerodynamics”. The combination of solar panels on the upper wing surface and rechargeable batteries allows Zephyr to be flown for many weeks and even months. The first flight trial of the Zephyr were conducted recently by QinetiQ in White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico. Two aircraft were flown for four and a half and six hours respectively, the maximum flight times permitted under range restrictions. Venus Explorer Concept A Venus exploration aircraft, sized to fit in a small aeroshell for a “Discovery” class scientific mission, has been designed and analyzed at the NASA Glenn Research Center. For an exploratory aircraft to remain continually illuminated by sunlight, it would have to be capable of sustained flight at or above the wind speed, about 95 m/sec at the cloud-top level. The analysis concluded that, at typical flight altitudes above the cloud layer (65 to 75 km above the surface), a small aircraft powered by solar energy could fly continuously in the atmosphere of Venus. At this altitude, the atmospheric pressure is similar to pressure at terrestrial flight altitudes. On Sun, 25 Sep 2016 07:54:42 -0700 (PDT), wrote: HELLO SIR|GE i saw ur plane it seems to be very nice implementation but whether ur plane motor(800watt) produced enough thrust to encounter 12 kg weight.i hope best reply from u. |
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