Conceptual Design, Fabrication, and Performance Evaluation of Electric and Fuel Cell Hybrid Mini UAV

ABSTRACT The increasing demand for longer endurance and environmentally friendly propulsion systems has accelerated research on hybrid energy solutions for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). In this study, an electric fixed‐wing mini UAV concept has been designed, fabricated, and tested to assess its potential for enhanced flight performance and endurance. Additionally, detailed model of the electric and fuel cell powertrains is developed in the MATLAB/Simulink environment to simulate the power flow, energy management, and flight dynamics for the aim of enhancing endurance and energy efficiency. The developed hybrid architecture successfully integrates a 100 W fuel cell with a 4S1P type 10,000 mAh Li‐Po battery to provide superiority over all‐electric systems. Flight tests are performed for the evaluation of the performance of the electric system about power distribution, efficiency, and endurance. According to the simulation results, the fuel cell hybrid configuration provided approximately 40% improvement in flight endurance compared to the purely electric configuration. The results indicate that the proposed conceptual design offers a promising approach for extending the operational range and energy efficiency of small‐scale UAV systems.