Feasibility study of embedded wind energy harvesting system for parafoil-payload aircraft

A logistics issue for guided air-drop systems is maintaining batteries inside the airborne guidance unit so that when the system is deployed the batteries are adequately charged to power onboard electronics and actuators. It is typical for a guided air-drop system to be packed and readied for use well before deployment, leading to nonnegligible battery self-discharge. This necessitates a process to both monitor battery life and recharge the systems after a certain time interval. This paper explores, using a small-scale wind turbine system, providing the requisite power for onboard electronics and actuation for a guided air-drop system. Sizing studies are reported to estimate the necessary size of the rotor and generator. Using this information, a full-scale airborne guidance unit was designed, fabricated, and tested in a wind tunnel. Results indicate that a 0.33 m diam turbine system can generate over 3.7 W of continuous power, which is sufficient to provide power to low-power consumption guided air-drop systems, such as a bleed-air actuated system. Copyright © 2018 by David Cleaver. Published by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics Inc.