Distributed Thrust Allocation for eVTOL Motor-Out Landings
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Solution Overview
Problem
eVTOL multicopters lack the ability to glide in the event of a motor failure, posing safety concerns due to their reliance on rotors for vertical take-off and landing, and existing thrust allocation systems are inefficient and prone to crashes or unsafe landings when motors fail.
Innovation Solution
A distributed flight control system using strictly convex optimization problems with a single solution to generate thrust values, ensuring all flight controllers converge to the same solution, allowing for safer and more controlled emergency landings even with motor failures.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If eVTOL multicopters rely on rotors for vertical take-off and landing, then they can bypass congested freeways and city streets, but they cannot glide in the event of a motor out or other emergency
Solution Approach 1:
The flight control system is segmented into multiple independent flight controllers, each capable of performing thrust allocation calculations. This segmentation allows the system to maintain functionality even when one controller or motor fails, as other controllers can continue to manage the remaining motors to achieve safe landing.
Solution Approach 2:
The system pre-calculates and stores optimal thrust allocation solutions for various motor failure scenarios before emergencies occur. When a motor failure is detected, the system can immediately switch to pre-computed solutions, enabling rapid response and maintaining control without requiring real-time recalculation during the emergency.
2Productivity
If existing thrust allocation systems are used, then the system can operate normally, but they are inefficient and prone to crashes or unsafe landings when motors fail
Solution Approach 1:
The thrust allocation system continuously monitors motor performance and flight conditions, using feedback to adjust thrust distribution in real-time. This feedback mechanism enables the system to detect motor failures early and dynamically reallocate thrust to maintain safe operation, preventing crashes while preserving normal efficiency through adaptive control.
Solution Approach 2:
The system dynamically changes thrust allocation parameters based on flight conditions and motor status. By adjusting thrust distribution parameters in response to detected failures, the system maintains optimal performance during normal operation while automatically adapting to failure scenarios, ensuring both efficiency and safety.
3Reliability
If a distributed flight control system with multiple flight controllers is implemented, then safety is improved through redundancy, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
Each flight controller in the distributed system is designed to perform all necessary flight control functions independently, including full thrust allocation capabilities. This multi-functionality allows any single controller to take over completely if needed, reducing the need for complex inter-controller communication and coordination mechanisms, thereby managing complexity while maintaining high reliability.
Data Source
AI summary
Thrust values for motors in an aircraft are generated where each flight controller in a plurality of flight controllers generates a thrust value for each motor in a plurality of motors using an optimization problem with a single solution. Each flight controller in the plurality of flight controllers passes one of the generated thrust values to a corresponding motor in the plurality of motors, where other generated thrust values for that flight controller terminate at that flight controller. The plurality of motors perform the passed thrust values.