Unified UAS Design Tool Toward Optimum Performance and Low Noise

Interest in Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) has exploded in recent years. Most development efforts of small UAS have addressed conventional performance objectives and the important acoustic aspect has often not been considered. The acoustic signature of UAS is, however, a vital aspect that must be dealt with due to its significant impact on operations. However, there is a lack of modeling capability to analyze the combined aerodynamic and acoustic physics to achieve both high performance and low noise. ART proposes to develop a unified tool that supports UAS design to optimize the combined performance and noise targets. The Phase I aims at developing the core capability of the unified tool as proposed, which couples comprehensive rotorcraft analysis with acoustic noise analysis, for noise prediction of Group 1 multirotor UAS. The unified tool will provide the capability of predicting the acoustic effects of changing UAS rotor size, number of blades, tip speed, and loading and offer state-of-the-art modeling and analysis options for the UAS design.