Faulhaber: Efficient Drive Technology Compact Electric Drives Control Flight Attitude

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FAULHABER Drive Systems

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The hybrid airships from the Italian manufacturer Flo Fleet S .r. l., Sesto San Giovanni (MI) / Italy, autonomously control and regulate their flight attitude with compact, networked electric drives from Faulhaber.

It is not always necessary to completely reinvent the wheel. Sometimes it can make sense to take a fresh look at existing inventions, compare them with the state of the art and adapt them to current challenges. This can result in innovative and sustainable technologies. This is demonstrated by the airship concept of the Italian company Flo Fleet S. r. l. The aircraft are particularly efficient and autonomous.

View from Above

It makes sense to monitor and check the condition of a large number of technical installations in the public infrastructure from above. This applies, for example, to electricity pylons, pipelines, power plants and solar fields. In crisis situations, such as collapsed bridges, landslides and floods, it can be equally helpful to obtain an overview from a bird's eye view or even carry out search operations. Geophysical surveys, cartography, the monitoring of rail and road infrastructure and agriculture also benefit from the "view from above". In sport, for example, cycling races and sailing competitions also benefit from a better overview from the air. In the past, drones, helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft were usually used for this purpose. However, these present a number of difficulties. They require a lot of energy, have a limited range and sometimes interfere with the sensors used for measuring.

That is why the technicians and engineers at Flo Fleet S. r. l. have revised the concept of classic airships (also known as zeppelins after the world-famous German designer) and optimized it for the aforementioned fields of application in line with the latest findings. The company has developed an innovative hybrid airship that combines aerostatics and aerodynamics. Its wing-like shape and reinforced fabric construction enable it to maintain flight through aerostatic and aerodynamic thrust. This design solves the landing problems of traditional airships and makes it possible to adapt to different loads carried simply by changing the angle of attack.

Versatile Fleet

The Italian company now has three airships of different dimensions and load capacities. They are between 26 ft and 59 ft long and carry additional loads of between 20 lb and 220 lb. Depending on the respective application, the airships can be individually equipped with suitable sensors and the necessary measuring devices. The variants differ not only in their length, but also in their appearance. Depending on the version, they are similar to a classic airship. All versions use helium inside for buoyancy, which, unlike hydrogen, is non-flammable and therefore offers greater safety. Propulsion is provided by the aerodynamic shape of the aircraft in combination with eight thrusters. The hybrid design ensures high stability and precision. It enables the airships to maintain a constant altitude and maneuver reliably even in windy conditions. The flight altitude can be set and regulated between 16 ft and 3,300 ft depending on the application. The angle of attack is used to adjust the flight altitude to the respective payload. Solar panels on the top ensure the necessary energy supply. Depending on the environmental conditions, the aircraft can cover almost 4,350 miles with a battery life of one week. At around 19 mph, the speed is slower than that of drones or airplanes. However, numerous applications benefit from this in particular. In addition, a low flight altitude is difficult to achieve with airplanes, but is required for many applications.

Steer With Thrusters

Controlling airships with their dimensions reliably, even in windy conditions, is anything but trivial and places high demands on the control system and drive technology used. Andrea Cecchi, CEO of Flo Fleet, explains: "Due to the sensitivity of an airship to wind and its large dimensions, precision and controllability are crucial. Since the first prototypes, it has been a challenge to find industrial solutions that combine precision, speed and low weight—the latter being particularly important in aviation." That sums up the requirements for the drive technology used. The low weight and dimensions of the drive technology used were a particularly important requirement. In addition, the drive had to be easy to integrate into the aircraft's control system via standardized communication interfaces.

Compact, Complete Drive System

A motion control system from Faulhaber's "BX4" series was chosen to stabilize the aircraft and align the propellers. Eight thrust nozzles are permanently and precisely controlled in order to maintain the flight attitude or initiate course changes. With a length of 2.0 inches and a diameter of 0.9 inches, the drive is very compact and weighs just 2.7 oz. Nevertheless, it delivers up to 18 mNm nominal torque at up to 6700 min^-1 idle speed. It requires very little power. It has an RS232 or CANopen interface as standard. The Italians integrate the drives into their airship control system via CAN. Andrea Cecchi explains: "The alignment of the thrusters is crucial, as it stabilizes the airship and determines its flight path. The motors used for this must work reliably, be lightweight and save energy. Faulhaber's propulsion systems achieve all of this. However, one of the main reasons for our choice was the integrated motion controller. This means that the motor and driver are better protected and the standardized cabling provides additional system safety."

Compact, Lightweight, Efficient

With the motors used, Flo Fleet was able to halve the energy consumption for the thrust direction, reduce the weight by 40 percent and reduce the size by 60 percent. In addition, closed-loop control and on-board diagnostics shorten the integration time and enable predictive maintenance. Native support for industrial bus systems such as CAN or CANopen and EMC compatibility simplify certification and cabling. In addition, preconfigured motion profiles enable fast and reproducible reactions—a decisive advantage for critical flight maneuvers. The drives thus support an innovative airship concept.

(kmu)