[Cad] [motors, power ee, & evs] (Siemens) Electric aircraft: World-record (50kg:260 kW contiunuous) electric motor makes first flight. also, electric dirigibles from 1885?!

[Nancy Ouyang]

www.siemens.com/press/electric-aircraft

*"This is the first time that an electric aircraft in the quarter-megawatt
> performance class has flown."*


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fiu8TFnXYFY

In a big leap for the electrification of aviation, an Extra Aircraft
> aerobatic plane performed its maiden flight with an electric powertrain.
> The crucial component was a world record motor from Siemens. Weighing a
> mere 50 kilograms, the motor has an output of 260 kilowatts, resulting in
> an unparalleled power-to-weight ratio.


Datasheet:
http://www.siemens.com/press/pool/de/feature/2015/corporate/2015-03-electromotor/factsheet-erstflug-weltrekordmotor-d.pdf


https://transportevolved.com/2016/07/08/siemens-showcases-brand-new-electric-motor-thats-super-light-super-powerful-and-perfect-for-electric-airplanes/

> Of course, electric motors have long been used in model planes, but their
> use outside the 1:14th scale aeromodelling arena has been somewhat
> limited due to the mechanics of making a sufficiently large, powerful, &
> lightweight electric motor. And while we’ve seen some very successful
> electric planes take to the sky, most have been custom-made,
> super-lightweight affairs which while impressive, have yet to make their
> mark on a wider scale.


Many of the benefits of electric motive power for aircraft are ones that
> any EV driver will be familiar with: quieter, lower maintenance, greater
> efficiency. Benefits that are shared with the community too in this case –
> as with increasing air travel areas around airports have become
> increasingly polluted – both by noise and by noxious residues from burning
> fossil fuels.
>


> But there are also other benefits that are deeply exciting for
> aeronautical engineers and pilots.




> Unlike fossil fuel powered engines, electric motors really don’t care
> which way is up. They operate the same upside-down as they do the right way
> up — they don’t stall and fuss with fuelling issues when you turn them
> over. They also perform the same at 40,000 feet as they do at 4 feet.
> Traditional engines require complex mixture and timing adjustments to keep
> them performing well in the thin atmosphere in which they spend much of
> their lives.


about the airplane,

> Based on a thoroughly modern, but not deeply exceptional structure – with
> a mixture of a steel fuselage and carbon fibre wings, the Extra is itself a
> popular aerobatic model



> The Extra 330LE, which weighs nearly 1,000 kilograms, serves as a flying
> test bed for the new propulsion system. As an aerobatic airplane, it's
> particularly well suited for taking the components to their limits, testing
> them and enhancing their design.


the future

> Electric drives are scalable, and Siemens and Airbus will be using the
> record-setting motor as a basis for developing regional airliners powered
> by hybrid-electric propulsion systems. "By 2030, we expect to see initial
> aircraft with up to 100 passengers and a range of around 1,000 kilometers,"
> explained Anton.



I love this anecdote about intelligent analysis tools in CAD. (*hi
cad-discuss, that's why you're cc'd :]* )

The end-shield for the motor, for example, was analyzed using a *software
> package* that divided the component into over 100,000 elements, each of
> which was individually further stress-analyzed and subject to* iterative
> improvement loops.* Eventually, the custom software spat out a filigree
> structure that weighs 4.9kg instead of the 10.5kg from the previous design.
>


more about the motor
http://phys.org/news/2015-04-world-record-electric-motor-aircraft.html

Siemens researchers have developed a new type of electric motor that, with
> a weight of just 50 kilograms, delivers a* continuous output of about 260
> kilowatts – five times more than comparable drive systems.* The motor has
> been *specially designed* for use in aircraft. Thanks to its
> record-setting power-to-weight ratio, larger aircraft with *takeoff
> weights of up to two tons* will now be able to* use electric drives for
> the first time.*
>


> New simulation techniques and sophisticated lightweight construction
> enabled the drive system to achieve a unique weight-to-performance ratio of
> five kilowatts (kW) per kilogram (kg). *The electric motors of comparable
> strength that are used in industrial applications deliver less than one kW
> per kg. The performance of the drive systems used in electric vehicles is
> about two kW per kg.* Since the new motor delivers its record-setting
> performance at rotational speeds of just* 2,500 revolutions per minute,
> it can drive propellers directly, without the use of a transmission.*
>
> In the next step, the Siemens researchers will boost output further.
> "We're convinced that the use of hybrid-electric drives in regional
> airliners with 50 to 100 passengers is a real medium-term possibility,"
> said Anton.



this might be what the motor looks like? not sure
https://youtu.be/j3cNLsN-eCM?t=31s
[image: Inline image 1]



about the Siemens and electric dirigibles (?!)

>

Siemens current motor is sufficient to power a small 4-seater aircraft by
> itself. Indeed, it would be “quite racy” suggest Siemens in that
> application. And Siemens is keen to point out that the motor is *nearing
> the power requirements for small regional airliners. *Of course if anyone
> would know about aeronautical electric motors it really ought to be
> Siemens, given that it was its electric motor that (back in 1881) powered
> the *first electric dirigible*
> <https://archive.org/details/lesballonsdirig00tissgoog>*.*


Also check out this amazing scan of an* 1885 book about electric dirigibles*.
(archive.org's ebook software is on-point!)
https://archive.org/details/lesballonsdirig00tissgoog

> Dirigibles: application of electricity to air navigation

by Gaston Tissandier
> Published 1885
> Book digitized by Google from the library of the University of Michigan
> and uploaded to the Internet Archive by user tpb.



Thanks,
--Nancy

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