mltv
Member
Since Electric Planes range is limited, it make sense to tackle short range solution. EVTOL is meant to replace helicopters. Taking care of more urban commute solution. So it needs to land on helipads.
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Electric planes
- Thread starter doug
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- Electric Vehicles
JRP3
Hyperactive Member
On the other hand most people are flying RC drones and not planes for a reason.
EVer Hopeful
Active Member
Interesting point
I just figured that VTOL required all the lift to be generated by the battery as opposed to a "normal" take off where lift was generated by airflow and it required less juice
JRP3
Hyperactive Member
Indeed but the advantages of electric flight are VTOL and maneuverability so it makes sense to leverage those where possible until energy density improves.
EVer Hopeful
Active Member
and theoretically, you could have a physical connection to ground power that disconnects at say 50 or 100 feet to help with that phase of the flight. Might not be the most practical (or safest) thing, but it's a possibility
fholbert
Active Member
We're a lot ways from serious electric aircraft flight.
www.popsci.com
NASA kills its electric plane program before aircraft ever leaves the ground
The agency announced that it has decided not to fly its experimental electric plane, the X-57, because of safety concerns.
www.popsci.com
JRP3
Hyperactive Member
Seems more like incompetent engineering than anything, building reliable electric motors and inverters is solved technology:We're a lot ways from serious electric aircraft flight.
NASA kills its electric plane program before aircraft ever leaves the ground
The agency announced that it has decided not to fly its experimental electric plane, the X-57, because of safety concerns.
I think VTOL is the area where electric can best compete with conventional aircraft. With its heavy and low-energy-density "fuel" supply (batteries) electric aircraft have very limited range. But having multiple motors controlled by a computer is easier with electric than with internal combustion. Helicopters are extremely difficult to fly. Computerized quad- or octo-copters are very easy to fly. Probably the only advantage an electric aircraft has over ICE-aircraft, for the general market that's not concerned about the environment, is the ease of operation of a quad- or octo-copter. And the ability to land and take off vertically opens up the one market where range is less of an issue: flying within cities.
Of course, the more aircraft there are flying low over cities, the more likely it is that someone on the ground gets killed by a falling aircraft, possibly because two of them collide.
Just like the huge cruiseliners, they should be series hybrids like locomotives, and the GM's Volt. Small ICE generating electricity, used by electric propeller motors.
It's not the reason I think you're implying (efficiency?). Quadcopters are completely idiot-proof. RC planes require a bunch more skill. RC helicopters, even more so.
Quad copters are dead easy to control with a modern flight controller which senses pitch, yaw and roll. RC helicopters can be controlled in by a similar flight controller, but requires complicated linkage and moving parts, whereas a 4 rotor drone is just controlling the speed of the 4 motors. RC planes have the disadvantage of always needing forward motion for lift.
On a human scale, helicopters and 4 rotor systems require an immense amount of power, which batteries cannot contain at the moment. A normal helicopter is about 3x as expensive to run per hour than an airplane, mostly because of fuel costs. However, for an airplane you need room for a runway to take off and land. Having a helicopter with wings would give you the best of both worlds (VTOL and energy efficiency as an airplane) except that big rotor on top is literally a drag at high speeds.
Long story short: if you can fit a wing on a 4 rotor VTOL and can tuck the 4 rotors away during horizontal flight, you're golden.
I'm looking at Beta Technologies since their model got included in X-Plane 12.
Buckminster
Well-Known Member
That’s why I like lilium. Cruise efficiency should be optimised.
https://investors.lilium.com/Lilium_Company_Presentation_June_2023
btw has anyone here been in a jetson one yet?
thinkin of puttin down a deposit for an 2024 order but not sure yet...
thinkin of puttin down a deposit for an 2024 order but not sure yet...
I see no place for fuel on this very inefficient aero design.
Please let us know how it works out.
It's the catch 22 of aviation... With better aero, weight goes up.
This will probably be good for a 10-15 minute flight, so not really suitable for commutes.
However, I can imagine a future where landing a manned drone will be as easy as landing a pro/consumer drone: just point the stick downwards and sensors and the flight controller will figure it out themselves.
But I do wonder how the FAA will handle redundancy in manned drones. It's OK to have only one flight controller and non-redundant sensors in a toy drone, but how do we go about with manned drones?
JRP3
Hyperactive Member
Straight line flight with no traffic lights or stop signs would probably equate to 20-30 minutes conventional commute. Charging at the destination could make it work.
EVer Hopeful
Active Member
Is it even legal to take off and land these things in populated areas like cities? And what happens to the regulations the first time two of these collide, crash, and kill someone on the ground, or fall onto somebody's house? I would vote to ban flying these things over my city.
Yes, I'm sure people said the same about early airplanes, but there's a reason it's illegal to fly low over houses. The difference is that airplanes, by law, only approach the ground near airports. Both helicopters and airplanes require all sorts of certifications and licensing for pilots. This contraption is intended to take off and land in people's yards, and supposedly requires no license to fly.
Yes, I'm sure people said the same about early airplanes, but there's a reason it's illegal to fly low over houses. The difference is that airplanes, by law, only approach the ground near airports. Both helicopters and airplanes require all sorts of certifications and licensing for pilots. This contraption is intended to take off and land in people's yards, and supposedly requires no license to fly.
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