A distributed dynamic BWB layout eVTOL with deflectors

Abstract

This invention relates to the field of electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft, and discloses a distributed power BWB (Body-Wing-Body) layout eVTOL with a deflector, comprising a fuselage, nacelle, wing, deflector, power unit, and V-tail. The nacelle houses several tandemly distributed power units, and the deflector is positioned in front of the rear air intake lip of each power unit. The wing and nacelle are connected via a wing-nacelle blending section, and the nacelle is connected to the fuselage. The wing and fuselage adopt a BWB blended wing-body layout, and the V-tail is mounted at the rear of the fuselage. This invention innovatively solves the power-to-weight ratio problem under battery energy density limitations through the deep integration of the BWB configuration and the tandem distributed power system with deflectors. This solution achieves lower cruise drag, a lighter structure, and better system redundancy while balancing vertical takeoff and landing and high-efficiency cruise performance. This aircraft is particularly suitable for urban air traffic and short-haul logistics applications, and has broad development prospects.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft, specifically a distributed power BWB layout eVTOL with deflectors. Background Technology

[0002] With the rapid development of Urban Air Mobility (UAM), electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft, due to their rapid and safe vertical takeoff and landing capabilities and efficient cruise performance, have become a key development direction for future urban air mobility. The energy density of current battery technology is the core bottleneck limiting the development of eVTOL aircraft. This makes traditional solutions using a single high-power motor and fan impractical due to insufficient power-to-weight ratio and excessively bulky systems.

[0003] The current mainstream eVTOL distributed propulsion schemes often arrange multiple power units in parallel along the wing span. However, this brings inherent disadvantages such as huge cruise drag, a fragmented overall structure, and difficulty in weight control. Furthermore, BWB (Bound Wing) layout aircraft have excessively long takeoff distances, and the short fuselage and insufficient space result in poor longitudinal static stability. In addition, in eVTOL forward flight (cruise) mode, traditional ducted power units face a key aerodynamic challenge. Due to the sharpness of the rear lip of traditional air intakes, flow separation is prone to occur. Flow separation creates a wide turbulent wake region, generating significant pressure drag, which limits the improvement of its effective thrust coefficient and leads to a significant decrease in the lift-to-drag ratio of the entire power unit, reducing the total pressure recovery coefficient and directly affecting the aircraft's cruise economy and range.

[0004] To address the problems mentioned above, those skilled in the art have proposed a distributed dynamic BWB layout eVTOL with a deflector. Summary of the Invention

[0005] The purpose of this invention is to provide a distributed dynamic BWB layout eVTOL with a deflector plate to solve the problems mentioned in the background art.

[0006] To achieve the above objectives, the present invention provides the following technical solution: A distributed-powered BWB layout eVTOL with deflectors includes a fuselage, nacelle, wing, deflectors, power unit, and V-tail. The nacelle has leading and trailing edges at its front and rear ends, respectively. The wing and nacelle are connected by a wing-nacelle blended section. The nacelle is connected to the fuselage. The wing and fuselage adopt a BWB blended wing-body layout. The V-tail is installed at the rear of the fuselage. The V-tail and wing provide flight stability and controllability.

[0007] As a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the nacelle is equipped with a plurality of power units that are connected in series along the longitudinal direction of the fuselage, and the plurality of power units are arranged symmetrically along the longitudinal axis of the fuselage.

[0008] As a preferred embodiment of the present invention, a guide vane is provided in front of the rear edge air intake lip of the power unit.

[0009] As a preferred embodiment of the present invention, an embedding part is provided inside the fuselage, and the nacelle is partially embedded inside the fuselage through the embedding part to reduce the frontal area, reduce cruise drag, and improve the lift-to-drag ratio.

[0010] As a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the leading edge of the wing is provided with a swept-back section, and a winglet is installed at the end of the wing away from the fuselage.

[0011] As a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the V-shaped tail fin is provided with a swept-back section at the leading edge of the V-shaped tail fin.

[0012] The present invention has the following advantages: In terms of power system layout, this invention innovatively adopts a longitudinal tandem distributed power layout. This layout highly integrates multiple power units along the longitudinal direction of the aircraft into a compact power nacelle. Compared with the traditional distributed layout along the wingspan, this design not only greatly simplifies the connection structure between the power system and the airframe and enhances the overall structural strength, but also creates a smaller frontal area and a more streamlined overall profile. The direct advantage of this layout is that it effectively reduces the induced drag and external drag of the aircraft during the cruise phase, providing a foundation for significantly improving the overall lift-to-drag ratio and is a key element in achieving efficient and agile flight.

[0013] This invention utilizes high-performance, low-drag deflector technology. This deflector precisely regulates the exhaust flow of the preceding fan, eliminating rotation and unevenness, and providing stable and efficient airflow for the following fan, thereby solving the problem of cumulative efficiency losses and significantly improving the efficiency of the propulsion system. Simultaneously, it suppresses flow separation within the intake device itself, improving the lift-to-drag ratio and thrust. Ultimately, the application of deflector technology significantly improves the efficiency and reliability of the propulsion system, providing a key technological guarantee for achieving rapid adaptation, flexible operation, and superior performance in aircraft.

[0014] This invention, by combining an innovative aerodynamic layout with an advanced distributed propulsion system, provides a high-performance distributed propulsion BWB layout aircraft with significant technical effects and advantages. It employs a unique aerodynamic configuration design, featuring a large swept wing and a V-tail, ensuring longitudinal static stability. The use of winglets reduces induced drag, improves the cruise lift-to-drag ratio, and enhances roll stability. Combined with the V-tail design, it avoids the reduction in tail control efficiency caused by the fan drawing in air in front of the tail, significantly improving flight stability and maneuverability. Furthermore, the distributed propulsion layout addresses the shortcoming of excessively long takeoff and landing distances in BWB layout aircraft, providing strong support for stable flight in complex environments. Attached Figure Description

[0015] Figure 1 This is a top view of a distributed power BWB layout eVTOL with a deflector.

[0016] Figure 2 A front view of a distributed power BWB layout eVTOL with a deflector.

[0017] Figure 3 A side view of a distributed power BWB layout eVTOL with a deflector.

[0018] Figure 4 This is an isometric view of a distributed power BWB layout eVTOL with a deflector.

[0019] In the diagram: 1. Wing; 2. Wing leading edge swept section; 3. Wing nacelle blend section; 4. Deflector; 5. Nacelle leading edge; 6. Fuselage; 7. V-tail leading edge swept section; 8. Winglet; 9. Nacelle trailing edge; 10. V-tail; 11. Embedded section; 12. Nacelle; 13. Power unit. Detailed Implementation

[0020] The technical solution of the present invention will be further described in detail below with reference to specific embodiments.

[0021] Please see Figures 1-4A distributed power BWB layout eVTOL with deflectors includes a fuselage 6, a nacelle 12, a wing 1, a deflector 4, a power unit 13, and a V-tail 10. The nacelle 12 has a leading edge 5 and a trailing edge 9 at its front and rear ends, respectively. The deflector 4 is arranged in front of the air intake lip at the trailing edge of each power unit 13. The wing 1 has a leading edge swept section 2 at its leading edge, and a winglet 8 is installed at the end of the wing 1 away from the fuselage 6. The V-tail 10 has a leading edge swept section 7 at its leading edge. The wing 1 and the nacelle 12 are connected by a wing-nacelle blending section 3. The nacelle 12 is connected to the fuselage 6. The wing 1 and the fuselage 6 adopt a BWB wing-body blended layout. The V-tail 10 is installed at the rear of the fuselage 6. The V-tail 10 and the wing 1 provide flight stability and controllability.

[0022] By smoothly integrating the cabin into the fuselage 6 and wing 1 through the BWB layout, cruise drag is significantly reduced while ensuring the longitudinal static stability of the aircraft, resulting in a larger cruise lift-to-drag ratio.

[0023] The wing 1 and nacelle 12 are connected by the wing-nacelle fusion section 3 and then smoothly integrated with the fuselage 6 to form an aerodynamic shape with a smoother overall profile and a smaller frontal area. This layout significantly reduces the increase in drag caused by directly embedding the fan into the aircraft, improves the cruise lift-to-drag ratio, and effectively solves the problems of excessively long takeoff and landing distances and poor longitudinal static stability caused by the short fuselage 6 in BWB layout aircraft.

[0024] The large swept wing 1 moves the aerodynamic center behind the aircraft's center of gravity to ensure longitudinal static stability. The winglets 8 design reduces induced drag, improves the overall lift-to-drag ratio, and provides some roll control. The V-tail 10 significantly improves handling performance.

[0025] In one embodiment, the nacelle 12 is equipped with a plurality of power units 13 that are longitudinally connected along the fuselage 6 and are arranged symmetrically along the longitudinal axis of the fuselage 6.

[0026] The power system employs a longitudinally tandem distributed power unit 13, which can be an electric ducted fan. Multiple power units 13 are symmetrically arranged along the longitudinal axis of the fuselage 6 and integrated into a common air intake device with a continuous and smooth external air intake lip. This longitudinally distributed design can highly coordinate thrust and aerodynamic layout, effectively improving aerodynamic efficiency. At the same time, the system has high redundancy and safety. Even if a single power unit 13 fails, the other power units 13 can still operate stably. By redistributing the thrust of the remaining power units 13 through the flight control system, the aircraft can still maintain normal flight. In addition, this layout can adapt to various flight modes such as vertical takeoff and landing, hovering, and efficient cruise, providing superior performance support for the aircraft.

[0027] By employing multiple smaller, lighter, and more efficient power units 13, the takeoff weight is increased, and the aerodynamic load is distributed to address the power-to-weight ratio challenge of the aircraft in different phases such as vertical takeoff and landing, hovering, and cruise. At the same time, even if the fans are directly embedded in the aircraft in a tandem configuration, it will inevitably cause an increase in drag. Therefore, the BWB layout can reduce the increased drag caused by the fan embedding due to its smooth, streamlined aerodynamic shape.

[0028] The BWB layout integrates two or more power units 13 one after the other along the flight direction into a compact power nacelle 12. Compared to a design that is spread out along the wingspan, the core advantage of this highly integrated tandem design is that it not only has a more concentrated and compact structure, which helps to optimize load transfer and control weight, but also forms a smoother overall aerodynamic shape and reduces the frontal area in order to reduce flight drag during the cruise phase.

[0029] In one embodiment, a guide vane 4 is provided in front of the rear edge air intake lip of the power unit 13. The power unit 13, combined with the optimized air intake device with guide vane 4, finely regulates the wake of the front fan and evens out the velocity distribution of the incoming flow, providing an ideal air intake environment for the rear fan and significantly improving power output efficiency and total pressure recovery.

[0030] By arranging one or more optimized high-efficiency, low-drag deflectors 4, the external airflow is effectively guided to smoothly conform to the outer wall of the duct, thereby effectively suppressing or completely eliminating the flow separation phenomenon at the rear lip, improving the lift-to-drag ratio, increasing static thrust, and significantly reducing weight. Therefore, the energy efficiency of eVTOL during the cruise phase can be significantly improved, which can be directly converted into longer range and endurance. This design not only solves the problem of "1+1<2" efficiency superposition loss between tandem fans, but also significantly reduces pressure drag, meeting the requirements for efficient airflow capture and low noise during vertical takeoff and landing and horizontal cruise.

[0031] In one embodiment, an embedding part 11 is provided inside the fuselage 6, and the nacelle 12 is partially embedded inside the fuselage 6 through the embedding part 11 to reduce the frontal area, reduce cruise drag, and improve the lift-to-drag ratio.

[0032] The design of embedding the nacelle 12 into part of the fuselage 6 not only makes the structure more compact and helps to optimize load transfer and control the overall weight, but also further reduces the frontal area and reduces the drag of the entire aircraft. The layout of the V-tail 10 cleverly avoids the problem of reduced control efficiency caused by the fan drawing in air in front of the tail. With the support of advanced flight control algorithms, the aircraft can quickly switch between different flight phases, significantly improving control sensitivity and roll stability.

[0033] It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the present invention is not limited to the details of the exemplary embodiments described above, and that the invention can be implemented in other specific forms without departing from its spirit or essential characteristics. Therefore, the embodiments should be considered in all respects as exemplary and non-limiting, and the scope of the invention is defined by the appended claims rather than the foregoing description. Thus, all variations falling within the meaning and scope of equivalents of the claims are intended to be included within the present invention. No reference numerals in the claims should be construed as limiting the scope of the claims.

[0034] Furthermore, it should be understood that although this specification describes embodiments, not every embodiment contains only one independent technical solution. This narrative style is merely for clarity. Those skilled in the art should consider the specification as a whole, and the technical solutions in each embodiment can also be appropriately combined to form other embodiments that can be understood by those skilled in the art.

Claims

1. A distributed power BWB layout eVTOL with a deflector, comprising a fuselage (6), a nacelle (12), a wing (1), a deflector (4), a power unit (13), and a V-tail (10). The nacelle (12) has a leading edge (5) and a trailing edge (9) at its front and rear ends, respectively. The wing (1) and the nacelle (12) are connected by a wing-nacelle blending section (3). The nacelle (12) is connected to the fuselage (6). The wing (1) and the fuselage (6) adopt a BWB wing-body blending layout. The V-tail (10) is installed at the rear of the fuselage (6). The V-tail (10) and the wing (1) provide flight stability and controllability.

2. The distributed dynamic BWB layout eVTOL with guide vanes according to claim 1, characterized in that, The nacelle (12) is equipped with several power units (13) that are longitudinally connected along the fuselage (6), and the power units (13) are symmetrically arranged along the longitudinal axis of the fuselage (6).

3. The distributed dynamic BWB layout eVTOL with guide vanes according to claim 2, characterized in that, A guide vane (4) is provided in front of the air intake lip at the rear edge of the power unit (13).

4. The distributed dynamic BWB layout eVTOL with guide vanes according to claim 1, characterized in that, An embedding part (11) is provided inside the fuselage (6). The nacelle (12) is partially embedded inside the fuselage (6) through the embedding part (11) to reduce the frontal area, reduce cruise drag, and improve the lift-to-drag ratio.

5. The distributed dynamic BWB layout eVTOL with guide vanes according to claim 1, characterized in that, The wing (1) has a leading edge swept section (2) at the front end, and a winglet (8) is installed at the end of the wing (1) away from the fuselage (6).

6. The distributed dynamic BWB layout eVTOL with guide vanes according to claim 1, characterized in that, The V-shaped tail fin (10) is provided with a V-shaped tail fin leading edge swept section (7) at the front end.

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