{"id":22685,"date":"2014-07-30T13:30:41","date_gmt":"2014-07-30T17:30:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.solidworks.com\/solidworksblog\/?p=22685"},"modified":"2014-07-30T14:10:52","modified_gmt":"2014-07-30T18:10:52","slug":"quadcopter-project-brings-solidworks-mechanical-conceptual-to-the-skies","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.solidworks.com\/solidworksblog\/2014\/07\/quadcopter-project-brings-solidworks-mechanical-conceptual-to-the-skies.html","title":{"rendered":"Quadcopter Project Brings SOLIDWORKS Mechanical Conceptual to the Skies"},"content":{"rendered":"

At the recent SIMULIA Community Conference in Providence, RI, we shared how we transformed a design process with the Dassault Syst\u00e8mes 3D<\/strong>EXPERIENCE Platform and the power of simulation to solve a real problem in the developing world. SOLIDWORKS Mechanical Conceptual<\/strong> was used in the early stage of the design.<\/p>\n

Many of us don\u2019t realize that over one billion people lack regular access to roads.\u00a0 This disconnection to the outside world has a huge impact on transportation, economy, education and most critically health care. The team at SIMULIA was inspired by a Ted Talk by Andreas Raptopoulous<\/a><\/strong> of Matternet\u00a0and we asked ourselves, \u201cCould we redesign an existing drone quadcopter to help deliver medical supplies leveraging the 3D<\/strong>EXPERIENCE Platform?\u201d<\/p>\n

To answer this question, we set the following design goals:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. The quadcopter would have to carry a half-kilogram payload,<\/li>\n
  2. for at least 30 minutes,<\/li>\n
  3. for less than one dollar per flight.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    The SIMULIA team used the new integrated design and simulation apps on the 3D<\/strong>EXPERIENCE Platform including SOLIDWORKS Mechanical Conceptual<\/strong> (SWMC)<\/strong> and Product Design Simulation (PDS)<\/strong> from SIMULIA and powered by the Abaqus solver.\u00a0 The design task was split into three phases:<\/p>\n

      \n
    1. Conceptual design<\/li>\n
    2. Detailed design<\/li>\n
    3. Design for manufacturing<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      Concept Design<\/strong><\/p>\n

      All design challenges have multiple variables that must be taken into account when moving towards an optimal solution.\u00a0 We determined that an optimized rotor\/motor\/battery design was the number one driver of the optimal quadcopter design to maximize life and flight time while minimizing the overall mass.\u00a0 A new set of rotors was designed to optimize lift, and using a potential flow code to analyze a series of rotor\/motor combinations. We applied the analytic and decision support tools within the 3D<\/strong>EXPERIENCEPlatform to effectively weigh the tradeoffs between each of the rotor\/motor\/battery combinations against the mission duration, cost, and maneuverability before deciding upon a final configuration. We then used a 3D printer to rapidly create a physical prototype of the optimized rotor ready for flight tests.<\/p>\n

      \"Sketch<\/a>
      Sketch Mechanism in SOLIDWORKS Mechanical Conceptual<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

       <\/p>\n

      The commercial quadcopter had to be retro-fitted with a gripper\/release mechanism for the delivery of the medical supplies. SWMC <\/strong>enabled us to quickly try out a number of design solutions. With its built-in 2D kinematic modelling capabilities, we quickly zeroed in to the correct concept that met the operational requirements. The 3D model was easily created from the initial 2D sketch and ran through a further set of structural tests. With PDS<\/strong>, we rapidly ensured that the designs met the required strength goals. In PDS, the component stresses and displacements were analyzed to validate that the gripper could endure its operating environment. Once the design was modified to meet the stress requirements, the components were printed in 3D.<\/p>\n

      \"From<\/a>
      From conceptual design to final printing in 3D<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n