Single Bladed Torqueless Helicopter Design.

摘要

There has been a standing need for small portable strap-on backpack helicopters. This paper describes the steps leading to the design and construction of a working prototype. The prototype has a single rotor blade 12 feet long balanced by a 4 foot spar supporting two counter rotating propellers. A belt power transmission system drives the propellers from a small two-stroke gasoline engine located at the center of rotation of the rotor. The device straps onto the pilot's back, and the pilots's legs act as the landing gear. Empty weight of the machine is 75 pounds and it can lift a total of 270 pounds. Performance figures are calculated to be: Top speed - 48 mph, cruise speed - 38 mph, maximum rate of climb - 420 ft/min., minimum rate of descent (power off) -9.4 ft/sec, and fuel consumption - 1.5 gal/hr. Recommendations for future designs are given in the paper. (Author)