The design and construction of a high endurance hexacopter suited for narrow corridors

We have conceived a novel compound multicopter (helicopter type utilizing multiple different size propellers for separate lift and attitude control) configuration specifically for flight through narrow corridors. Its design combines the contradictory requirements of limited width, high agility and long endurance while carrying a significant payload. This configuration can be scaled for both indoor and outdoor applications. The development is part of a doctoral research in which an autonomous unmanned rotary helicopter is designed, constructed and flight tested for inspecting fruit orchards and vineyards while flying in between the tree rows in outdoor conditions such as wind and gusts. The compound hexacopter configuration combines two large lift propellers, with a constant rotational velocity, with four small control propellers commanded by an autopilot. The autopilot is configured as a quadcopter commanding only the control propellers as only these change the attitude and overall thrust of the hexacopter. The benefit of using large lift propellers is their lower disk loading (thrust divided by disk area) which results in a higher Figure of Merit and lower power consumption compared to the smaller control propellers, while the latter are better suited for outdoor (windy) conditions due to their fast reaction time in spooling up and down. Compared to a standard quadcopter with the same width, payload and battery capacity, the endurance of the compound hexacopter is potentially up to 60% higher. As a concept validator, a small-scale prototype has been designed, constructed and successfully flight tested.