Design and Development of Micro UAV (Sweeping Wing)

Abstract

Birds fly by making use of a combination of complex wing geometry and a series of mid-flight alterations that enable them to modify their aerodynamic properties. We are designing a Micro UAV that uses an airfoil close to that of a barn owl for its wing. Along with that, the wing sweeps along the length of the UAV to bio-mimic the motion of a bird used during landing. This motion is used to alter the pitch angle. This increases the flexibility that can be achieved close to that of found in birds in nature. Birds sweep and twist their wings mid-flight and specifically during landing and diving to achieve the required motion for smooth flight and transitions. The geometry and wing sweep range of the Micro UAV was designed and tested on Athena Vortex Lattice (AVL). The UAV is built using standard RC configuration geometry and setups with foamboard control surfaces. The sweeping mechanism is achieved using a metal geared digital micro servo along with a to-and-for link mechanism to achieve a range of sweep angles. Furthermore, onboard video feedback is achieved using market available ESP32 Camera module to stream the video over web. Our UAV can be deployed as a surveillance tool in urban setups where higher level of flight control is required.