Drones: here's how to overcome the annoying "sail effect"

Our multirotors are evolving year after year, with improvements and technical solutions made possible also by aerodynamics and structural analysis studies that were previously completely unavailable.

A step back in history

A few years ago drones were very simple machines, made up mainly of four arms, a central body in aluminium or carbon (which came later) and primitive boards to control these vehicles.

Then, thanks also to the entry of big companies into the market, today drones have become complex, safe, stable machines… although there is still a lot to improve, especially in windy conditions and strong gusts.

Stability first

Thanks to technological evolution, the following have reached the market:

• Stabilization systems able to perform extremely complex calculations in a very short time (see NAZA or PixHawk)
• Quieter, more efficient and higher-performing motors able to ensure greater stability
• Highly efficient GPS antennas and gyroscopes able to keep errors down to a few metres.

And yet in windy conditions our technological gems still struggle… so what can be done?

Here are the solutions to the wind problem

One of the biggest problems to tackle now is wind. In strong gusts our drone tends to tilt in order to face the gust itself. An efficient solution? Certainly… but only if the air can pass from one side to the other. When that doesn't happen, the unwanted effect is precisely the drone's "drifting".

Here are the best solutions today to avoid this phenomenon and make the drone even more stable:

• Use more powerful motors in gusty conditions (but therefore more weight)
• Use open frames rather than closed ones, with unducted propellers (ducting a propeller reduces efficiency)
• Balance the drone by placing the centre of gravity as low as possible
• Use spherical canopies to give the air a quick, "painless" passage, as on our Drone Hunter.
  
  

By following these simple rules your drone will be even more stable, flying better and for longer…

And what type of frame do you use?

Until the next flight!