transactions of the institute of aviation

ISSN 0509-6669
No. 1(250), pp. 114-131, Warsaw 2018 eISSN 2300-5408

A Comparison of Helicopter Main Rotor

Features due to Stiffness of
Rotor Blade-Hub Connection

Jarosław Stanisławski
Institute of Aviation, al. Krakowska 110/114, 02-256 Warsaw, Poland
jaroslaw.stanislawski@ilot.edu.pl

Abstract

The paper presents results of simulation calculations concerning an influence of stiffness

of blade-hub connection on rotor loads and  blades deflections in  hover, level flight and  pull up
maneuver. The three versions of rotor are considered with articulated, elastic and stiff connections of
blades and hub. The blades with the same distributions of stiffness, mass and the same aerodynamic
characteristics are applied for all rotor cases. The rotor loads are calculated applying Runge-Kutta
method to solve the equations of motion of deformable blades. According to the Galerkin method,
the parameters of blades motion are treated as combination of considered blade bending and torsion
eigen modes. The results of calculations indicate for possibility to generate the greater rotor control
moments and to improve helicopter maneuverability in the case of applying the non-changed blade
of articulated rotor combined with elastic rotor hub.
Keywords: helicopter, main rotor, blade deformations.

1. Introduction

A main rotor can be considered as a decisive unit of helicopter structure affecting rotorcraft
performance. Rotating blades generate at rotor hub the resultant forces and moments which enable
in-flight balance and  control of helicopter. In the  case of single rotor helicopter scheme, the  tail
rotor must be added to achieve directional control. Among the factors influencing on the level of
rotor loads, it can be noticed: blade geometry, applied airfoils, shaft rotating speed, blade mass
and  stiffness, number of blades, and  type of blade-hub connections. In flight, variable airflow
conditions of blade sections are formed as the resultant velocity of rotor whirling and helicopter flight
speed. Additional a cyclic and collective control of blade pitch affect generation of aerodynamic
and inertial loads, which depend on an azimuthal position of blade on rotor disk. The number of
rotor blades and properties of blade-hub connections strongly influence the level of loads transmitted
 A Comparison of Helicopter Main Rotor Features due to Stiffness... 115

from blades through hub to helicopter fuselage. For an articulated rotor hub the blade is attached
through horizontal hinge (flapping), vertical hinge (lagging) and  axial hinge which allow blade
motion for out-of-plane and  in-plane oscillations and  for change of blade pitch. Applying set of
hinges enables reduction of rotor loads components, pitching and rolling moments, transmitted to
fuselage. Conventional articulated rotor head with built-in hinges demands frequent maintenance
which increases costs of helicopter operation. A complex structure with large amount of component
parts increases mass of articulated rotor. Aim to limit the  deficiencies of articulated rotors, new
designs of hingeless or bearingless rotors were developed with a view to achieve reduction of
weight, maintenance and operational costs.
The descriptive comparison of features for helicopters with articulated rotor head and for
helicopter with elastic elements connecting blades and rotor hub can be found in book issue [1]
of R.W. Prouty’s series of papers published in Rotor & Wing magazine edited by AHS (American
Helicopter Society).
Magnitudes of pitch and roll moments which are generated at rotor hub due to cyclic control of
blade pitch angle and resulting deflections of rotor blade tips plane, are the main factors affecting
helicopter dynamic characteristics. Size of moments generated at the rotor hub determines level of
helicopter angular accelerations achievable during controlled maneuvers. Johnson [2] compared
results of calculations concerning maneuverability of helicopter with articulated and elastic rotor
head. The data received during flight tests of helicopters with different type of rotor head (Puma,
Lynx, Bo-105) were published by G.R.Padfield [3]. The significant feature of hingeless rotor, applied
to the German MBB Bo105 helicopter, is flexibility of the blade root sections attached to central
hub block which enables replacing flapping and  lagging hinges. The BK-117 German-Japanese
helicopter is driven by the similar hingeless rotor system. The French company Aerospatiale, later
branch of the Eurocopter, designed rotor-head of simplified structure Starflex and next Spheriflex [4]
which allow weight reduction and maintenance cost saving. The Starflex rotor comprises a glassfibre
star with flexible arms allowing flap motion and elastomeric bearings for blade pitch and lead-lag
movements. In Spheriflex rotor the  loads of each blade are transmitted to the  hub by a single
spherical elastomeric bearing which permits pitching, flapping and lead-lag motion. The German
MBB firm developed FEL rotor (Fibre Elastomeric Bearing Rotor) with composite structure of hub
and elastomeric bearings which was applied to Tigre helicopter [5]. The Eurocopter accomplished
research program ATR (Advanced Technology Rotor) [6] including tests of bearingless five-bladed
rotor for helicopter of four-ton mass class (EC-145). For the Lynx helicopter the special rotor was
designed in which flap blade motion is permitted due to deflections of star-shaped titanium hub
arms while in-plane motion is governed by stiffness of the circular-section titanium spigots which
connect the blades to the hub [7]. Prediction of rotor dynamics and blade loads can be obtained
using computational methods. For some types of helicopters, the comparison of calculated results
(CAMRAD – Comprehensive Analytical Model of Rotorcraft Aerodynamics and  Dynamics)
and measured data of flight tests or tunnel research was conducted [8] which concerns the changes
of torsion and  bending blade moments for conditions of moderate (μ=0,15) and  high (μ=0,36)
flight speed. The best accordance of the  calculated and  measured results was received for rotor
disk distribution of the out-of-plane blade bending moments. Among designs of the bearingless
116 Jarosław Stanisławski

rotors the  five-bladed rotor MDART (McDonnell Douglas Advanced Rotor Technology) of
the  MD-900 Explorer helicopter can be noticed. A freedom of blade motion for flap, lead-lag
and pitch is provided by carbonfibre flex-beam connecting blade and central hub. Control moments
for blade pitch changes is applied through the sleeve which covers inside the beam connecting
blade and  hub. Using data of MDART rotor an accuracy of calculation methods of UMARC
(University of Maryland Advanced Code) and  DART (Dynamics Analysis Research Tool) was
evaluated for conditions of hover and level flight at speed 360 km/h. The computed values of blade
loads and rotor hub vibration level were compared with data collected during tests in NASA Ames
40×80 feet wind tunnel [9].
The paper presents the results of calculations conducted for three types of rotors: articulated,
elastic and stiff which comprise blade-hub connections of different stiffness. The blades of the same
aerodynamic, mass and stiffness data were assumed for all versions of rotors. The rotor blades of
similar characteristics, with airfoils of the ILH family designed in Institute of Aviation [10], were
applied during ground and flight tests of the ILX-27 helicopter built in Poland [11]. The method of
calculation of rotor loads developed in Institute of Aviation was applied in earlier works [12, 13].
The performed calculations were focused on checking the possibility of usage the blades designed
for articulated rotor, without changes their parameters, as an assembly with modified the  elastic
or stiff rotor head which should improve maneuverability of helicopter in  comparison with one
of articulated rotor. The stiff rotor is treated as the extreme case showing the scale of changes of
blade loads and deformations due to stiffness increase of the blade-hub connections. the computer
simulations were conducted for the following cases of helicopter flight: hover conditions, level flight
at speed of 180 km/h and the final phase of pull-up maneuver at speed of 100 km/h.

2. Method of calculation

The model of the main rotor comprises blades and arms of rotor head. The algorithm of
calculations includes an multi-blade analysis in which, for given moment of time, parameters
of motion and  loads are computed for the  individual blades taking their position at different
azimuth angles on the  rotor disk. A sum of reactions from the  all blades yields the  resultant
loads of the main rotor hub at the concerned moment of time. The physical model of rotor blade
is shown in Fig. 1.
Defining the blade model the following assumptions are applied:
• mass distribution of the  blade is replaced by lumped masses representing inertial features of
corresponding blade segments,
• lumped masses are located at the centers of gravity of blade segments,
• lumped masses are connected with elastic axis which represents torsion and bending stiffness of
blade in thrust and revolution planes,
• rotor hub and blade are connected to each other by articulated joints which can be modified by
introducing the spring elements influencing flap and lead-lag motion of blade,
• blade dampers are applied to limit lead-lag motion of blades,
• in non-deformed state the blade elastic axis is coincident with the blade pitch axis.
 A Comparison of Helicopter Main Rotor Features due to Stiffness... 117

Fig. 1. Physical model of rotor blade with lumped masses along blade elastic axis, blade segment data:
length li , mass mi , second mass moments of inertia Ixi, Iyi, Izi [author]

The mathematical model includes the  equations of motion of the  elastic axes of deformable
blades which can be derived applying Lagrange formula:

i = 1, ... , n , (1)

where
– rotor kinetic energy, – rotor potential energy,
– generalized coordinate, – generalized force,
– number of generalized coordinates.

The potential energy of the elastic axis being subjected to torsion and bending is equal:

. (2)

The torsion and bending moments, acting at cross sections of the elastic axis, can be defined due
to corresponding deformations: twist angle , in-plane y deflections and out-of-plane z deflections:

, , . (3)
118 Jarosław Stanisławski

Substituting equations (3) into formula (2) yields the following form:

. (4)

The kinetic energy of twisted and bent axis can be expressed as follows:

. (5)

After substitution Eqs.(4) and (5) into Eqs.(1) the equations of motion of elastic blade are given
as follows:

, (6a)

, (6b)

, (6c)

where
– shearing forces and  torsion moment of external loads acting on element dx
of blade axis,
– inertial shear forces and  torsion moment without corresponding components
acting on element dx of blade axis.

In the case of the rotating elastic axis, to the equations of motion must comprise components

which consider the  stiffening effects of centrifugal forces. The centrifugal forces acting per unit
length which reduce bending moments of deformed blade axis are equal:

for the out-of-plane case , (7a)

for the in-plane case , (7b)

where

– the centrifugal force for blade cross section in distance r from axis of the rotor shaft.
 A Comparison of Helicopter Main Rotor Features due to Stiffness... 119

The system of equations (6) with added formulas (7) concerns the case of the elastic axis with
the continuous distribution of mass. Solution of this equation system can be found by applying
Galerkin’s method in  which deflections of the  elastic axis y, z, φ are assumed to be equal to
the sums of component deformations deriving from the considered eigen modes of the blade
vibration:

; ; (8)

where
yi1, zi2, ϕi3 – eigen modes respectively for in-plane bending, out-of plane bending and torsion ;
ρi1, δi2, ηi3 – time dependent shares of the each eigen mode which are being determined in computing
process;
I1, I2, I3 – the numbers of considered bending and torsion eigen modes of rotor blade.

Applying the orthogonality relation of eigen modes equations (6) can be transformed to a set of
differential equations which are referred to each of considered the blade eigen modes:
• for out-of-plane bending

, i1 = 1,..., I1 (9a)

• for in-plane bending

, i2 = 1,...,I2 (9b)

• for torsion

, i3 = 1,...,I3 . (9c)

The equations of blade motion (9) are solved by applying Runge-Kutta method. After
computing for a given moment of time the value of the shares for displacements , , ,
velocities , , and accelerations , , the resultant parameters of the blade motion can be
determined. At the next time steps, repeating the cycle of calculation allows to obtain simulated
time-runs of deformations and loads of blades and time-runs of resultant rotor shaft loads.
The aerodynamic forces, acting on the blade segment at a given azimuth position on the rotor
disk, are calculated by applying the  blade element theory. The local angle of attack depends on
temporary blade pitch and on conditions of the cross-section airflow:

, (10)

where
φgtw – geometric twist,
vZ , vX – vertical and horizontal components of airflow,
φ – temporary pitch angle due to deformations and applied control.
120 Jarosław Stanisławski

Pitch angle of a blade element is defined as follows:

, (11)

where
– collective control angle,
– cyclic control angle due to roll and pitch deflection of the swashplate,
– angle of torsion deformation at cross-section of blade,
– coefficient of coupling flapping and blade pitching,
– temporary blade flapping angle at horizontal hinge of rotor head.

3. Comparison of rotor features

For simulation calculations concerning features of rotors with different types of the rotor heads,
were performed for the aerodynamic , mass and stiffness data of blades of light helicopter with mass
of 1,100 kg and with three-bladed articulated rotor is treated as the basic version. It is assumed that
basic rotor will be modified by introducing at position of flap and lead-lag hinges the additional
elements which change the  stiffness of modeled hub arms. For the  all cases of rotor the  radius
is assumed to be the same (R=3.73 m). The same set of blades with unchanged characteristics is
preserved for all variants of rotor hub. Three types of the  main rotor are considered relating to
difference of the blade-hub connection stiffness:
• articulated rotor (ky=kz=0 [Nm/rad] ),
• elastic rotor with spring elements replacing hinges (ky=kz=104 [Nm/rad] ),
• stiff rotor with high stiffness elements of blade-hub connections (ky=kz=108 [Nm/rad] ),
where
ky, kz – stiffness of blade fixing elements in flap and lead-lag hinges respectively.
In the case of elastic rotor the stiffness of blade-hub connection is chosen to move the position of
equivalent horizontal hinge to about 5% of rotor radius (see formula 12) which is in range applied
for existed helicopters with non-articulated rotor hub. The stiff rotor is treated as the boundary case
with extreme localization of equivalent horizontal hinge.
Changes of stiffness of the blade-hub connections influence the frequencies and eigen modes of
rotor blades. The calculated values of the frequencies of rotor blade modes are collected in Table 1.

Table 1. Eigen mode frequencies of rotor blade due to stiffness of the blade-hub connection

Notice: symbols used in Table 1 to sign blade eigen modes are as follows: F – out-of-plane bending mode,
C – in-plane bending mode, T – torsion mode, digits after mode symbol are equal to the number of nodes,
frequency values are related to the nominal rotational speed of rotor shaft ωnom=49.65rad/s
 A Comparison of Helicopter Main Rotor Features due to Stiffness... 121

Considering the blade flap oscillations, the rotor with stiff element connecting blade and hub can
be, as model for analysis, replaced by an equivalent articulated rotor with the  horizontal hinge
located at greater distance l0 measured from the  rotor shaft axis. According to formula [12]
the distance of horizontal hinge, allowing blade flapping, related to rotor radius depends on the value
of frequency of the first out-of plane blade mode:

, (12)

Localization of the equivalent horizontal hinges for the elastic and stiff rotors as well distance of
the real horizontal hinge for articulated rotor are given in Table 2.

Table 2. Localization of real and equivalent horizontal bearings for considered types of rotors (radius R=3.75m)

The rise of pitching and rolling moments generated at rotor head can be expected as the result
of increase the stiffness of the blade-hub connections. Striving to evaluate the range of changes of
the rotor control moments, in channels of helicopter pitch and roll, the simulation calculations were
conducted applying the model of deformable blade. The time-runs of pitching moments for three
types of rotors, calculated at hover conditions with the same swashplate deflection equals 1o related
to its neutral position, are shown in Fig. 2. Due to kinematics of the blade pitch control system,
1o deflection of swashplate generates 1.65o change of blade cyclic pitch. In the case of the elastic
rotor, the swashplate deflection of 1o creates the pitching moments double in size in comparison to
those of the articulated rotor. The pitching moment for stiff rotor, achieved by unitary swashplate
deflection, is greater than level of moments possible to be created for full swashplate deflection
(φsw= 5o) in the case of articulated rotor. Comparing the time-runs of pitching moment for unitary
swashplate deflection, it is noticed the  large oscillations of moments for the  case of stiff rotor
which can be related with too high stiffness of blade-hub connections. Relating to articulated rotor,
introduction of stiffness elements to elastic rotor influences an increase of bending moment at blade
root sections.
The size of bending moments at blade root can be regulated by proper selection of a precone
angle of blade inclination related to plane of rotation and a blade sweep angle related to radial
direction. the distributions of the blade bending moments along radius, for hover conditions, due to
changes of blade precone angle and sweep angle, are presented in Fig. 3 and Fig. 4. An inadequate
selection of the blade precone and sweep angles may lead to a significant increase of loads at blade
root sections. Analyzing the  most common states of helicopter flights the  appropriated angles of
122 Jarosław Stanisławski

Fig. 2. Rotor pitching moment in hover condition due to type of

rotor and pitch deflection of swashplate, (-) control stick pushed
forward, helicopter mass 1,100 kg, three-bladed rotor [author]

blade precone and sweep can be selected for achieving the moderated level of blade loads.

Fig. 3. In hover condition, out-of-plane blade bending moment My

distribution along rotor radius due to blade precone angle (flapping)
[author]
 A Comparison of Helicopter Main Rotor Features due to Stiffness... 123

Fig. 4. In hover condition, in-plane blade bending moment Mz

distribution along rotor radius due to introduced at hub arm
built-in blade sweep angle (lagging) [author]

The features of different type of rotors were compared applying the components of rotor forces, rotor
moments and deflections of blades for level flight at speed of 180 km/h as well for quasi-static state of
final phase of pull-up maneuver at speed of 100 km/h. According to the results of simulation at level
flight conditions, for time-runs of rotor thrust (Fig. 5) and for FFT thrust spectrum (Fig. 6), the similar
character of thrust changes is observed for articulated and elastic type of rotors. In the thrust spectrums
(Fig. 6a and Fig. 6b) appear lines linked with the third and the sixth harmonics of rotor speed which is
typical for the three-bladed rotor. In the spectrum of the stiff rotor thrust (Fig. 6c) exist the components of
lower frequency than the third harmonic of rotor shaft speed which may be evidence of too low damping
of blade oscillations and accompanying blade deflections affecting on increased level of thrust changes.

a) b) c)

Fig. 5. Thrust time-runs for three-bladed rotor in level flight conditions at speed V=180 km/h: a) articulated hub, b)
stiff hub, c) comparison of 19th and 20th rotor revolution results for cases of articulated, elastic and stiff hub [author]
124 Jarosław Stanisławski

For the  stiff rotor the  similar effect is noticed in  spectrum of the  pitching moment (Fig. 8c).
In the case of the articulated and elastic rotor, the time-runs of rotor pitching moments (Fig. 7) show
limited oscillations. Introducing the stiffness element to the blade-hub connections causes an amplitude
growth of the rotor pitching moment (Fig. 8) which can increase vibrations of helicopter structure.
a) b) c)

Fig. 6. Thrust spectrum for three-bladed rotor in level flight conditions at speed V=180 km/h: a) articulated hub,
b) elastic hub, c) stiff hub [author]

a) b) c)

Fig. 7. Time-run of pitching moment for three-bladed rotor in level flight conditions at speed V=180 km/h:
a) articulated hub, b) elastic hub, c) stiff hub [author]

a) b) c)

Fig. 8. Pitching moment spectrum for three-bladed rotor in level flight conditions at speed V=180 km/h: a)
articulated hub, b) elastic hub, c) stiff hub [author]
 A Comparison of Helicopter Main Rotor Features due to Stiffness... 125

Fig. 9. Torsion deflection of rotor blade at tip section in level flight conditions
at speed V=180 km/h, simulation solution for 19th and 20th rotor revolution
[author]

In Fig. 9 the time-runs of torsion deflection at blade tip are presented for considered types of
rotors in level flight at speed of 180 km/h. For articulated and elastic rotor the values of angles of
blade tip deflections include in the range of φtip=-1,2o÷-1,9o. The blade tip deflections for the stiff
rotor cover the greater range of φtip=-0,9o÷-2,4o. The distributions of blade torsion deflection on
rotor disk are shown in Fig. 10a, Fig. 11a and Fig. 11a for the articulated, elastic and stiff rotor
respectively. In the case of articulated rotor, for level flight conditions, the zones of high blade
tip torsion are observed for advancing blade at 45o÷90o azimuth position and for retreating
blade at 225o÷250o azimuth (Fig. 10a). The distribution on rotor disk of the  blade torsional
deflection in the case elastic rotor (Fig. 11a) is similar to one of articulated rotor. The enlarged
zone of the blade azimuth positions with big torsion deflections φtip>-1,8o is found for advancing
blade and  for tip of retreating blade the  zone of torsion deflection values limited to angle of
φtip=-1,3o÷-1,4o is observed. For the articulated and elastic rotors the presented results show
the  similar distributions of the  blade out-of-plane bending moments (Fig. 10b and  Fig.  11b).
The region of blade bending with compressed the lower surface appears near azimuth position
of 90o, the zone of bending with compressed the upper surface is visible for retreating blade.
It should be noted that due to proper selection of precone angle the value of bending moment at
126 Jarosław Stanisławski

blade root is preserved at the low level My<65 Nm. In the case of the stiff rotor in level flight
conditions for the greater tip deflections (Fig. 12a) the blade bending moments, at root sections,
reach huge values (Fig. 12b).

a) b)

Fig. 10. Rotor disk distributions for the case of articulated rotor hub in level flight V=180km/h: a) blade torsion
deflection, b) blade out-of-plane bending moment [author]

a) b)

Fig. 11. Rotor disk distributions for the case of elastic rotor hub in level flight V=180km/h: a) blade torsion
deflection, b) blade out-of-plane bending moment [author]
 A Comparison of Helicopter Main Rotor Features due to Stiffness... 127

a) b)

Fig. 12. Rotor disk distributions for the  case of stiff rotor hub in  level flight V=180km/h: a) blade torsion
deflection, b) blade out-of-plane bending moment [author]

Fig. 13. Rotor thrust for different type of hub during final phase of pull-up
maneuver at speed V=100 km/h, simulation solution for 19th and 20th rotor
revolution [author]
128 Jarosław Stanisławski

The quasi-static state of final phase of pull-up maneuver at speed of 100 km/h was analyzed applying
following input conditions: axis of rotor shaft pitched-up at angle of 15o in respect to the vertical
position, increased blade pitch collective angle, pitch angle of swashplate related to pulled-up cyclic
stick position. For the  pull-up conditions the  size of calculated rotor thrust increased by about 50
percent in comparison to value for level flight conditions (Fig. 5c and Fig. 13). The growth of rotor
loads is accompanied by enlarged blade deflections. It is supposed that in the case of quasi-static state,
the calculated rotor loads could reach higher values compared to real maneuver conditions due to lack
of effects of inertial forces which are generated as results of accelerations acting on helicopter body.
For pull-up simulations, the  similar time-runs of blade tip deflections were received for
the articulated and elastic rotor cases. The comparison of blade torsion deformations for simulation
solutions of the pull-up maneuver for different rotor hubs are presented in Fig. 14. The blades of
the stiff rotor are subjected to clearly bigger deflections. The similarity of blade deflections in pull-up
conditions can be noticed comparing the distributions on rotor disk of the blade torsion deflections
(Fig. 15a and Fig. 15b), where the zone of large deflections is moved to region of retreating blade.
In the level flight at higher speed of 180 km/h the zone of big blade torsion deflections is located at
site of the advancing blade (Fig. 10a and Fig. 11a). In the case of stiff rotor pull-up the biggest blade
torsion deflections are noticed for retreating blade at radius position nearly the blade tip (Fig. 15c).
Analyzing the distribution of blade deflections for the stiff rotor, it can be noticed that after quick

Fig. 14. Blade torsion deflection for different types of rotor hub during final
phase of pull-up maneuver at speed V=100 km/h, simulation solution for 19th
and 20th rotor revolution [author]
 A Comparison of Helicopter Main Rotor Features due to Stiffness... 129

reduction of blade torsion deflections at range of azimuth from 270o to 0o, during following rotation
at area of half of rotor disk (azimuths 0o-90o-180o), the blade torsion oscillations of frequency equals
the first torsion mode (ν/ωnom=6.05) are observed. Increased blade deflections and loads for the stiff
rotor, comparing to articulated and elastic rotors, results in enlarged level of vibrations transmitted
from rotor to fuselage of helicopter.

a) b)

Fig. 15. Rotor disk distribution of blade torsion deflection in final phase of pull-up maneuver at speed V=100 km/h
for different rotor; a) articulated hub, b) elastic hub [author]

Fig. 15c. Rotor disk distribution of blade torsion

deflection in final phase of pull-up maneuver at speed
V=100 km/h for rotor with stiff hub [author]
130 Jarosław Stanisławski

4. Conclusions

In the scope of simulation research of rotor features, the results of calculations allow to

compare the three types of rotors with different stiffness of blade-hub connections: articulated,
elastic and  stiff rotors. The calculations were performed for selected flight conditions of
helicopter: hover, level flight and  pull-up. The set of blades of the  same aerodynamic, mass
and stiffness data was applied for all rotors. Originally the blades were designed for helicopter
with articulated rotor.
The simulations concerning the  elastic rotor indicate that modification of the  rotor head
including the element of blade-hub connection of moderate stiffness results in limited growth
of blade loads and  deflections preserving its size at level similar to the  case of articulated
rotor. The elastic rotor also enables generation at hub larger pitching and rolling moment which
improve control of helicopter especially in phase of maneuvers when the  size of rotor thrust
can be reduced.
Application of elastic rotor may cause the higher level of fuselage vibrations due to increased
components of rotor loads transmitted to non-rotating body of helicopter. In the  same flight
conditions the calculated blade loads and deflections reach the similar level for considered versions
of articulated and elastic rotors. It seems that idea of applying the rotor blade, initially designed for
articulated rotor, as parts of elastic rotor is possible for realization.

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Helicopter Tail Rotor”, Transactions of the Institute of Aviation, No.1(242) , pp. 36-56.

Porównanie własności wirnika nośnego śmigłowca

przy różnej sztywności połączenia
łopaty z głowicą wirnika

Streszczenie

W pracy przedstawiono wyniki obliczeń symulacyjnych dotyczących wpływu sztywności

połączenia łopat z głowicą na poziom obciążeń wirnika i odkształceń łopat w warunkach zawisu,
lotu poziomego i wyrwania. Przyjęto trzy wersje wirnika nośnego z przegubowym, sprężystym
i sztywnym połączeniem łopat i głowicy. Dla wszystkich przypadków wirnika przyjęto łopaty
identycznym rozkładzie sztywności, mas i charakterystyk aerodynamicznych. Obciążenia wirnika
nośnego wyznaczano rozwiązując metodą Runge-Kutta równania ruchu odkształcalnych łopat
z uwzględnieniem metody Galerkina, gdzie parametry ruchu łopat traktowano jako złożenie
giętnych i skrętnych postaci własnych łopat. Wyniki symulacyjne wskazują na możliwość generacji
większych momentów sterujących wirnika i poprawę manewrowości śmigłowca w przypadku
zabudowy niezmienianej łopaty wirnika przegubowego w zespole z głowicą sprężystą.
Słowa kluczowe: śmigłowiec, wirnik nośny, odkształcenia łopat.