1 Copyright © 2011 by ASME Proceedings of the ASME 2011 International Mechanical Engineering Congress & Exposition IMECE2011 November 11-17, 2011, Denver, Colorado, USA IMECE2011-62126 DESIGN OF A BLENDED WING BODY UAS WITH HYBRID PROPULSION Jean Koster University of Colorado Boulder, Colorado, U.S.A. Scott Balaban University of Colorado Boulder, Colorado, U.S.A. Derek Hillery University of Colorado Boulder, Colorado, U.S.A. Cody Humbargar University of Colorado Boulder, Colorado, U.S.A. Derek Nasso University of Colorado Boulder, Colorado, U.S.A. Eric Serani University of Colorado Boulder, Colorado, U.S.A. Alec Velazco University of Colorado Boulder, Colorado, U.S.A. ABSTRACT Student engineering teams developed a 3 m scale model aircraft, named Hyperion, inspired after the NASA-Boeing X48-B blended wing body to use as a test bed for advanced technical studies. The design concept includes a novel hybrid gas/biodiesel-electric power train as a green aircraft technology. The hybrid propulsion system allows for new concepts of operation in unmanned vehicles as it can operate in an internal combustion-only, electric-only, or hybrid mode. The aircraft is designed through a collaboration of 3 international universities: the University of Colorado Boulder, the University of Sydney, AUS, and the University of Stuttgart, GER. The Hyperion aircraft has a blended fuselage and wing to utilize advanced aircraft design and aerodynamic efficiency. The flying wing architecture is a fuel efficient platform to demonstrate the latest developments in ‘green’ aircraft technology. The optimal design requires a full systems engineering analysis, including aerodynamic and structural analysis of the vehicle; design of the flight mechanics, navigation, and control systems. The vehicle is fabricated primarily from composite materials. Hyperion’s unique architecture and advanced subsystems establish novel technologies that can be incorporated into UAV, General Aviation, and larger aircraft. INTRODUCTION The goal of the Hyperion project is to conceive, design, implement, and operate an aerial platform to investigate new technologies for improvements in capabilities and efficiencies. The growing UAV and commercial airline industries are forcing improvements to be made in order for the market growth to be sustainable. The newly designed aircraft offers efficiency improvements over conventional designs and serves as a platform for hybrid engine development. This paper highlights the foundational design aspects of the Hyperion aircraft. The project also includes delocalized manufacturing of the composite aircraft. Hyperion has been completely designed, built, and flight-tested in the span of 9 months. The vehicle will continue to be used as a development tool for energy efficient technologies including electric and hybrid propulsion. AERODYNAMIC DESIGN Liebeck and colleagues [1, 2, 3] presented several works on design studies of blended wing body (BWB) aircraft as potential candidates for future large subsonic aircraft. The authors estimate that a reduction of about 30% fuel burn is achievable through the improved aerodynamic efficiency of the geometry compared to the traditional tube and wing design. A thorough aerodynamic analysis of the BWB concept was presented by N. Qin, et al. [4]. The Hyperion aircraft is a test platform for a variety of high-efficiency and cutting edge aircraft design ideas. In order to maximize aerodynamic performance parameters, a flying wing was designed using the NASA/Boeing X-48 as inspiration. The result is a new aircraft entirely, seamlessly blending two different airfoil sections to maximize the lift to