Re:Amazon Shows Off New Prime Air Drone with Hybrid Design
by zootam on Sunday November 29, 2015 @10:13PM
(#10647439)
its a delicate and complex balancing act of weight, lift, drag, and thrust of both the airframe and any rotors, and the power output and energy stored aboard the craft.
longer wingspan means greater lift, allowing more payload, but also means more drag, and the additional payload and longer wings also increase the mass of the craft- leading to greater power requirements, which means more powerful motors, larger rotors, and larger batteries, which are also heavier.
The point is, drone/aircraft design and logistics like this cannot be solved with a simple answer like "longer wingspan".
How much longer? What about all the cascading effects on all the other aspects of the craft? This all needs to be addressed and optimized to be implemented properly.
longer wingspan means greater lift, allowing more payload, but also means more drag, and the additional payload and longer wings also increase the mass of the craft- leading to greater power requirements, which means more powerful motors, larger rotors, and larger batteries, which are also heavier.
The point is, drone/aircraft design and logistics like this cannot be solved with a simple answer like "longer wingspan".
How much longer? What about all the cascading effects on all the other aspects of the craft? This all needs to be addressed and optimized to be implemented properly.