VTOL ducted fans project: Cheerson CX10a with a plastic cup

11 Mar 2015

My CX10a's headless mode is not functioning, too bad. Flies ok, even outdoors, flips easy then I want to experiment and see if I can make a glider out of it. Obviously needs wing of some sort and I settled on an annular wing. What I want to do, is to have a vertical take off, power off and it's glide mode, try power on and see what happens, then vertical landing.


CX10a installed on a plastic cup. Plastic cup cut opened at the bottom. Idea is to have a stable planform that allows this nano quad to still be able to VTOL.

Result: Couldn't hover, very unstable.

Observation: Full power and it tips to one side and shoots off.

Methinks: The duct is too long.










Then I trimmed the cup shorter but still cannot hover.

Observation: Cannot takeoff vertically, power seems sufficient now.

Methinks: The propelled air couldn't escape easily from the bottom of the shortened cup, instead, it went out the cup's lipped edge.


Then I cut away two segments from made the bottom of the shortened cup. (I wanted four, but my segments were too big, so I ended with two).

Observation: Now it can hover.

Methinks: Maybe when the duct is too long, or the taper too great, more chances of air spilling out of the lip for take off and maybe the 4 swirling drafts merged into one and therefore no control for hover.

No chance to see it transition to glide mode at home. Will try this weekend at the field if I have a power bank to charge the battery.