Research & Development
» Damage Tolerance
» The Green Rotorcraft
» Clean Sky Third Call for Proposals
» GRC1 – Innovative Rotor Blades
» GRC2 – Drag Reduction of Airframe and Non Lifting Rotating Systems
» GRC3 – Integration of Innovative Electrical Systems
» GRC4 – Integration of a Diesel Engine on a Light Helicopter
» GRC5 – Environment-Friendly Flight Paths
» GRC6 – Eco-Design for Rotorcraft
» GRC7 – Technology Evaluator for Rotorcraft
» Contact Us
Innovative Rotor Blades
The activities regarding this project aim at the development of active and passive technologies to provide the greatest possible reduction of these two parameters.
The first stage of this project is the continuation of FP6 FRIENDCOPTER Integrated Project, where fuel consumption is reduced by reducing power, through the use of active twist providing more optimal blade twist distributions in both hover and cruise. In FRIENCOPTER the active twist blade system was tested at model scale, being this further investigated here by demonstrating the technology at full scale.
The second stage is based on new technologies. The aim is to reduce rotor noise and fuel consumption by means of a variation in rotor speed (dual speed), optimum platform (lower drag, less noise), laminar flow airfoils (lower drag) and an active rotor system to preserve rotor aerodynamic performance and dynamic attributes to maintain stall envelopes and contain vibration.
AgustaWestland is highly involved and is the leader of the Innovative Rotor Blades project: an exhaustive review on active and passive blade technologies will be conducted and new active rotor concepts will be studied; the new technologies developed will be demonstrated on various levels of system integration, being AgustaWestland responsible for the testing of single active blade on whirl tower to confirm performance of active system, and also for flight tests on existing blades fitted with laminar flow covers.
The first stage of this project is the continuation of FP6 FRIENDCOPTER Integrated Project, where fuel consumption is reduced by reducing power, through the use of active twist providing more optimal blade twist distributions in both hover and cruise. In FRIENCOPTER the active twist blade system was tested at model scale, being this further investigated here by demonstrating the technology at full scale.
The second stage is based on new technologies. The aim is to reduce rotor noise and fuel consumption by means of a variation in rotor speed (dual speed), optimum platform (lower drag, less noise), laminar flow airfoils (lower drag) and an active rotor system to preserve rotor aerodynamic performance and dynamic attributes to maintain stall envelopes and contain vibration.
AgustaWestland is highly involved and is the leader of the Innovative Rotor Blades project: an exhaustive review on active and passive blade technologies will be conducted and new active rotor concepts will be studied; the new technologies developed will be demonstrated on various levels of system integration, being AgustaWestland responsible for the testing of single active blade on whirl tower to confirm performance of active system, and also for flight tests on existing blades fitted with laminar flow covers.
