Design of a Small Uncrewed Platform for Experimental Remote Sensing

Uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs) have recently become popular for research in addition to recreational purposes. An essential application of UAVs is for flight testing of experimental sensor systems that may be heavier than a corresponding commercial-grade sensor in a prototype stage. However, the available UAVs that can be deployed have some limitations, such as low endurance, low payload capacity, and high weight, which may easily surpass the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) limit of 25 kg (55 lb) for small UAVs (sUAVs) which increases barriers to flight testing. Therefore, this research focuses on designing and developing a small uncrewed platform for experimental remote sensing (SUPER) by adopting a multidisciplinary approach that considers the airframe, propulsion, and control systems for meeting the design requirements. To this end, a hexacopter sUAV is developed, starting from the conceptual design phase to detailed design, fabrication, and testing. Both experimental and computational studies are considered wherever possible. For example, structural analysis based on finite elements and experimental static strength testing have been performed. The general design considerations, the integration of the systems, and the capability and performance of SUPER are presented. This work generally aims to provide the interested reader with standard procedures for designing a low-cost and long-duration UAV.