An aircraft compensates for asymmetry of engine failure by drawing part of the energy produced by the still-operating engine to generate thrust at the tip of the opposite wing. For example, the left engine drives its own thrust on the left wing, but a portion of the energy the left engine produces is delivered at a propeller at the tip of right wing. Similarly, the right engine drives its own thrust on the right wing, but a portion of the energy the right engine produces is delivered at a propeller at the tip of the left wing. In this way, every pair of engines and opposite tip thrust generators are intrinsically balanced. In the event of one engine failure, no yaw moment will be noticed.

An unmanned aerial vehicle comprising at least one rotor motor. The rotor motor is powered by a micro hybrid generation system. The micro hybrid generator system comprises a rechargeable battery configured to provide power to the at least one rotor motor, a small engine configured to generate mechanical power, a generator motor coupled to the small engine and configured to generate AC power using the mechanical power generated by the small engine, a bridge rectifier configured to convert the AC power generated by the generator motor to DC power and provide the DC power to either or both the rechargeable battery and the at least one rotor motor, and an electronic control unit configured to control a throttle of the small engine based, at least in part, on a power demand of at least one load, the at least one load including the at least one rotor motor.

An unmanned aerial vehicle comprising at least one rotor motor. The rotor motor is powered by a micro hybrid generation system. The micro hybrid generator system comprises a rechargeable battery configured to provide power to the at least one rotor motor, a small engine configured to generate mechanical power, a generator motor coupled to the small engine and configured to generate AC power using the mechanical power generated by the small engine, a bridge rectifier configured to convert the AC power generated by the generator motor to DC power and provide the DC power to either or both the rechargeable battery and the at least one rotor motor, and an electronic control unit configured to control a throttle of the small engine based, at least in part, on a power demand of at least one load, the at least one load including the at least one rotor motor.

A hybrid power drive system for an aircraft comprises a rotor that receives power and a first power drive sub-system including at least one engine in connection with the rotor is configured to provide a first power to the rotor. Further, the hybrid power drive system also includes a second power drive sub-system connected in parallel to the first power drive sub-system. The second power drive sub-system is configured to provide a second power to the rotor a second power drive sub-system connected in parallel to the first power drive sub-system and configured to provide a second power to the rotor when the first power provided by the first power drive sub-system is less than a power demand of the rotor.

A vertical take-off and landing aircraft using a hybrid electric propulsion system includes an engine, a generator that produces electric power using power supplied by the engine, and a battery that stores the produced electric power. A motor receives the electric power stored in the battery and electric power produced by the generator but not stored in the battery and provides the power to a thrust generating apparatus. A controller selects either silence mode or normal mode, and determines the amount of electric power stored in the battery and the amount of electric power not stored in the battery from the electric power supplied to the motor. In the silence mode, the controller supplies only the electric power stored in the battery and controls a duration by adjusting output power of motor. In the normal mode, the controller supplies electric power not stored in the battery.

An aeronautical propulsion system including a turbine engine having a fan and an electric motor drivingly coupled to at least one of the fan or the turbine engine. The aeronautical propulsion system additionally includes a fuel cell for providing electrical energy to the electric motor, the fuel cell generating water as a byproduct. The aeronautical portion system directs the water generated by the fuel cell to the turbine engine during operation to improve an efficiency of the aeronautical propulsion system.

A rotor system for a rotorcraft includes a first rotor assembly defining a rotation axis, a second rotor assembly offset from the first rotor assembly along the rotation axis, and a drive system connected to the first and second rotor assemblies. The drive system includes a first electric motor disposed along the rotation axis and operably connected to the first rotor assembly, and a second electric motor disposed along the rotation axis and operably connected to the second rotor assembly to rotate the second rotor assembly about the rotation axis independent of rotation of the first rotor assembly about the rotation axis.

A method of and system for operating a hybrid-electric propulsion system is provided. The system has a thermal engine and an electrical propulsion subsystem having a plurality of components. The method includes providing a set of original engine ratings for operating the hybrid-electric propulsion system, the original engine ratings are based on one or more first performance/capability parameters of an original electrical propulsion subsystem component; replacing the original component with an alternative component, the alternative component having one or more second performance/capability parameters, wherein the second performance/capability parameters are different from the first performance/capability parameters; producing a set of alternative engine ratings based on the second performance/capability parameters; and operating the hybrid-electric propulsion system using the set of alternative engine ratings.

A hybrid powerplant is provided for an aircraft. This hybrid powerplant includes a housing, an electric machine, a machine fluid circuit, a heat engine and a geartrain. The housing includes a machine containment zone and an engine compartment outside of the machine containment zone. The electric machine is arranged within the machine containment zone. The machine fluid circuit services the electric machine. The machine fluid circuit extends in the machine containment zone and is arranged outside of the engine compartment. The heat engine is arranged within the engine compartment. The geartrain is operatively connected to the electric machine and the heat engine.

A hybrid propulsion aircraft is described having a distributed electric propulsion system. The distributed electric propulsion system includes a turbo shaft engine that drives one or more generators through a gearbox. The generator provides AC power to a plurality of ducted fans (each being driven by an electric motor). The ducted fans may be integrated with the hybrid propulsion aircraft's wings. The wings can be pivotally attached to the fuselage, thereby allowing for vertical take-off and landing. The design of the hybrid propulsion aircraft mitigates undesirable transient behavior traditionally encountered during a transition from vertical flight to horizontal flight. Moreover, the hybrid propulsion aircraft offers a fast, constant-altitude transition, without requiring a climb or dive to transition. It also offers increased efficiency in both hover and forward flight versus other VTOL aircraft and a higher forward max speed than traditional rotorcraft.