Aerospace Engineers have designed and successfully tested a more efficient wind sensor for drones, balloons and other autonomous aircraft
FREMONT, CA: Anemometers, wind sensors, are used to track the direction and speed of the wind. Better wind sensors are required as demand for autonomous aircraft grows to help these aircraft sense weather changes and carry out safer takeoffs and landings. Such improvements might make it easier for individuals to access their local airspace, whether it be for passengers flying on unmanned aircraft in the future or for drones delivering items. Using airspace effectively to move or carry objects has significant socio-economic ramifications. However, whether the vehicle is manned or unmanned, exact wind readings must be supplied in real-time to operate these flying things. Accurate wind measurements are necessary for energy predictions and wind turbine performance optimisation, in addition to assisting flying objects in navigating vast distances.
Although the methods used by conventional anemometers to obtain their data differ, they have drawbacks. Many types of anemometers are inappropriate for tiny aircraft because they can be costly to manufacture, waste large quantities of energy, and have high aerodynamic drag, which means the instrument opposes the aircraft's passage through the air. However, compared to typical models, the anemometer used by the Ohio State team is lightweight, low-energy, low-drag, and more sensitive to changes in pressure.
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The instrument was constructed from "smart materials," substances with controlled properties that enable them to sense and react to their surroundings. The team used the electrical polymer polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF). PVDF has the potential to be piezoelectric, meaning that it could produce electrical energy in reaction to pressure. PVDF is a material that is frequently used in architectural coatings and lithium-ion batteries. This energy can be used to power the device. The recorded voltage or capacitance change on the flexible PVDF film can be utilised to calculate the wind speed.
The PVDF sensor is mounted on an airfoil that mimics an aeroplane wing to reduce aerodynamic drag. Because it can freely rotate like a wind vane, the airfoil can determine the wind's direction. But to determine how their device will function when exposed to Earth's atmosphere, researchers devised a two-pronged experiment. The pressure sensor's sensitivity was initially assessed in a closed container. After that, the sensor was attached to an airfoil and tested in a wind tunnel. The results showed how well the sensor measures both pressure and wind speed. By determining the airfoil's absolute orientation concerning the Earth's surface, a tiny digital magnetic compass integrated inside the airfoil provides precise wind direction data.
