Horizon Aeronautics will release an eVTOL hybrid electric hoverbike that has an amazing variable pitch hemispheric rotor system. The new design promises to provide significant increases in efficiency and thrust for this and other future aircraft.
The Horizon Hoverbike looks like a jet ski and is powered by a compact hybrid-electric system. The aircraft will weigh approximately 380 kg, measure 2,70 meters by 1,20 meters (9 feet long, four feet wide) and will be able to accommodate one to three passengers on board.
Hemispherical rotor: the genesis
Horizon partnered with Blainjett Aviation, an innovative startup of aerodynamic propulsion technology, to develop an innovative solution called Dynamic Variable Pitch (DVP). The patented hemispherical rotor technology allows you to generate higher speeds with a much smaller size.
The Horizon Hoverbike looks like a jet ski and is powered by a compact hybrid-electric system. Credit: Horizon Aeronautics
Instead of adjusting the angle of attack of a helicopter or eVTOL rotor to generate forward thrust, Blainjett's DVP invention adjusts the pitch of the rotor blades over half the arc of the rotors. The idea of hemispherical rotors is perfectly suited to an aircraft such as a flying motorcycle, because it needs to remain upright during flight.
A unique shape: how it works
“When we realized we could arrange the lift rotors in a way that maximizes the available space,” he explains the president of Blainjett Cary Zachary, "We realized we had something unique."
How does the hemispherical rotor principle behind this unique eVTOL work? Instead of having each rotor completely exposed (like on a helicopter, so to speak), half of each multi-bladed rotor “closes” inside the body of the hoverbike. The blades increase in pitch as the hemispherical rotors pass through the outer half, and reduce in pitch as they pass through the fairing inside the hoverbike's body.
In summary? More thrust and energy distribution with fewer hemispherical rotors.
“We are 2-3 times more efficient with 2-3 times greater power density and the same space. There is also a reduction in drag in forward flight,” says Zachary.
