PARIS - This week at the Paris Air Show, MagLev Aero co-founders and father-and-son duo Rod and Ian Randall debuted their state-of-the-art propulsion system for electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft using an unlikely energy source: magnets, Jack Daleo reports for Flying. Continue reading original article.
The Military & Aerospace Electronics take:
26 June 2023 - MagLev Aero's innovation enables a large rim-driven circular rotor that maximizes efficiency and control for quiet vertical lift and high-speed cruise. The MagLev HyperDrive platform leverages the magnetic levitation suspension principles found in high-speed maglev trains, using a magnetic bearing to support a many-bladed rim. Permanent magnets in the passive electrodynamic suspension, combined with segmented motor control, enable highly redundant and highly efficient distributed electric propulsion around the perimeter of the rim drive. This allows the MagLev HyperDrive propulsor to safely operate with high hover lift efficiency and lower blade loading at slower speeds, as well as reduced noise levels during hover, surpassing traditional helicopters and multi-rotor eVTOLs.
"The eVTOL industry has achieved many important milestones in the pursuit of urban air mobility. MagLev Aero's breakthrough technology is poised to extend these successes with a ground-up designed electric propulsion platform that is purpose-built for ultra-low noise in vertical takeoff and landing, as well as cruise, and will allow industrial design that provides for a compelling user experience," said Rod Randall, MagLev Aero's co-founder and chairman. "We believe our HyperDrive innovation applies to a variety of sizes, configurations and use cases, and we look forward to working with OEMs and other partners to bring our technology to market."
Jamie Whitney, Senior Editor
Military + Aerospace Electronics
