UAV and VTOL Battery Weight and Power Optimization
The latest technology frontier in aviation is the development of electric vertical take-off and landing ( VTOL / eVTOL ) aircraft. These futuristic vehicles operate under electric power and as well as being able to hover, they can take off and land vertically. The electric drive makes them fast and maneuverable. Proposed areas of application include air taxis, delivery services, rapid deployment for civil or medical emergencies, filming and military use.
Introduction
In order to maximize performance in hovering electric aircraft, the weight of the UAV and VTOL battery is an important factor. The current conventional technology in UAV aircraft batteries depends on the LiPO, with applications not only for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) but wherever light-weight batteries are a critical component.
Grepow is a specialist in customized or semi-customized and spot drone batteries, manufactured to the specific requirements of the customer. Grepow UAV batteries are ideal for professional applications in industrial class UAVs and drones. We offer OEM and ODM services and fully integrated battery solutions for specific needs.
As well as the light-weight requirement, drone battery packs demand high levels of specialization, with critical structural design factors including:
- Efficient heat dissipation
- Dust proofing, waterproofing, shock proofing
- Easy plug
The aluminum alloy housing is equipped with heat dissipation channels that provide the required internal heat balance. The resilience sheet returns back automatically to prevent dust from gaining entry to the interior while the silicon seal protects the internal components from moisture. An effective flexible shockproof system is achieved with a sealed circle, silicon injected with a rubber pad at the base.
Smart Battery
Grepow now offers the Tattu plus 1.0 16000mAh 12S compact smart battery, which is a light-weight solution, ideal for drones. This compact version was developed from the original Tattu plus 1.0, to answer the requirement for an even smaller and lighter battery. At just 4250g, the weight of the compact version is almost 500 grams lower than the original version, however, the battery’s energy density had increased by over 15 Wh/kg, which represents a considerable advance in technology.
This light-weight compact product with its high energy density is suited for a wide range of industrial applications. It was originally used on Freefly AltaX drones for filming and photography, but it was later discovered that it is also perfectly suitable for VTOL. Because it can supply power with high current during take-off and landing of the aircraft, the lighter weight reduces the load, so that the UAV maintains a stable flight and prolongs its endurance time.
BMS
Grepow’s BMS is designed specifically for high-rate lithium batteries, which are ideal for intelligent lithium packs for UAVs. The BMS provides security protection, data statistics and intelligent management of 12 cell lithium packs. Grepow’s technology employs the industrial grade ARM-32 bit processor. This matches high-precision AFE front-end acquisition chips to achieve precise measurement and the intelligent management of key parameters like voltage, current, temperature, capacity and the cycle life of each cell.
The BMS features for intelligent flight batteries offered by Grepow include:
- Charge management– with overcharge management and balancing charging
- Discharge management – with over-discharge and overcurrent protection
- Temperature management – High temperature or low temperature protection
Grepow’s customized BMS also provides for short circuit protection, smart storage, high-precision SOC indication, battery health management, communication protocol management and data logging.
Future VTOL Applications
A VTOL aircraft needs to pack a battery system sufficient to power the high voltage motor for the entire flight, including allowing for emergency reserves. It is essential that the battery itself is light-weight while at the same time providing the power and energy demands sufficient for an aircraft to take off, operate, and land. A further consideration is the development of a battery that will achieve an extended ‘cycle life’ before it needs to be replaced.
With weight being such a critical factor for all-electric aircraft, future development of the batteries powering VTOL operation is hinging on the development of a new chemical solution. It’s worth cheering that Grepow has launched the semi solid battery last month, it has an ultra-high energy density of 275~300Wh/Kg. This breakthrough technology improves the performance of all aspects of the battery, not only the extension of the battery life, the cycle life and safety can also bring you a more friendly experience.
Future research and development to meet the power demands of optimal VTOL battery operation will continue to focus on technologies that will increase the energy density of the cell coupled with increasing the power density while continuing to decrease the weight and battery dimensions.
About Grepow
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