Autonomous icing protection solution for unmanned aircraft rotors

In the project "Autonomous icing protection solution for unmanned aircraft rotors", the ambition was research and development related to how ice builds on the propellers of unmanned aircraft and how this can be mitigated. Ice accreation on the aircraft surfaces is a critical and complex problem for all aircraft operating in atmospheric icing conditions. Icing conditions is a global phenomenon, typically occurring at temperatures between -20 to +5 ºC when the aircraft operates in rain and snow showers or flies through clouds. Conventional aircraft have built-in systems for anti-icing, but these are not technologically transferable due to SWaP parameters. For unmanned aircraft (UAV), ice accretion on the propellers is considered one of the most significant operational risk factors, and today UAVs are grounded if there is a risk of icing conditions due to the risk of losing the aircraft. The project research has brought about knowledge on how the ice accretes on propeller blades under icing conditions, also considering the complexity related to the dynamic conditions that arise from the rapid, rotating propeller movements. This knowledge is reflected in algorithms that, in turn, fund a prototype ice protection solution (IPS) for the propeller. Through iterative development and testing in the lab and icing wind tunnel, the developed IPS prototype meets the challenges related to energy transfer from the engine to the propeller (dynamic) and homogenous and autonomous heat distribution to the propeller blades.

The project has brought forward the first prototype ice protection system for unmanned aircraft ready for industrialization, particularly addressing propeller icing. Handling the icing problem is a key enabler for the complete UAV industry, as operation currently is severely limited by icing conditions - worldwide. Unmanned aircraft as a spearhead for the green change in the aviation industry hence relies on efficient ice protection systems to meet safety requirements. Two patents have been filed as part of the project and the prototype is ready for the next development phase of customer-driven integration as well as flight tests.

UBIQ Aerospace addresses one of the largest problems in the unmanned aircraft industry, in-flight icing. This is done through the development of intelligent icing protection solutions for unmanned aircraft (the D•ICE technology), based on research conducted at the Autonomous Marine Operations and Systems (NTNU AMOS) Research Centre of Excellence at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU). The D•ICE technology for rotors (D•ICEROTORS) enable unmanned aircraft operations that are currently impossible, considering propulsion rotors on fixed-wing unmanned aircraft as well as rotary-wing unmanned aircraft (helicopters and multi-rotors). Present icing mitigation strategies include delaying, moving or cancelling operations, while operations performed during atmospheric conditions conducive to in-flight icing are conducted under the overwhelming risk of crashing the aircraft. Today, some operators experience that more than 50% of their operations are affected by icing, on occasion with devastating consequences. Aside from the large competitive advantage D•ICEROTORS offers, the technology has potentially lifesaving enabling capabilities, as applications of unmanned aircraft are moving into search and rescue, and disaster relief operational fields. The product has many secondary markets, such as manned aircraft and wind energy. Answering the imploring industry, UBIQ Aerospace are looking to validate the technology through a physical prototype. The objective of the proposed project is to assess feasibility of the D•ICEROTORS technology, develop a prototype for validation, with an MVP as the natural final delivery.