Student Research Paper Conference Vol-2, No-29, July 2015

Design and Analysis of Catapult Launched

Mechanism for UAV
1 2
Imran Tariq , Muhammad Noman Arshad
Department of Aeronautics & Astronautics
Institute of Space Technology
Islamabad, Pakistan
1
imran.ist@live.com
2
noman.arshad7@gmail.com

Abstract—This paper covers the theoretical design and device, it should have the possibility to be set up and to launch
fabrication of catapult launched mechanism for Unmanned a UAV within fifteen minutes and it should cover the small
Aerial Vehicles (UAV). Many types of catapult launching volume. These are the main factors which need to be
devices have been developed so far but this paper emphasizes on considered and incorporated into the conceptual design of
the packable, easy to carry and portable launching device. After launching device. The total cost of launching device and
analyzing the pros and cons of different types of launching maintenance cost is also important for commercial point of
devices, Bungee Cord Mechanism is selected which is not as view.
good as modern Launching Devices, however, it has much
practical implications and advantages like: easy maintenance, II. METHODOLOGY
lesser components and easy assembly. After structural (bending
and weight) analysis of various materials like wood, iron, steel, A. Assumptions
brass and heat treated Aluminum Extruded Channel. From the I. Mass of elastic cord is neglected
analyzed materials heat treated Aluminum Extruded Channel is
selected for main railing. Takeoff Velocity, acceleration, II. System is considered as dynamic system because
displacement and time are calculated after obtaining partial the UAV and the cradle travel linearly on the
differential equations from the mathematical modeling of the inclined plane.
system. Analysis of the effect of the aerodynamic lift and drag
forces on the mathematical and mechanical/physical models is III. Mass of rollers is neglected. Actually these
done also. Tradeoff study of displacement, velocity and neglected masses exist in dynamic system but
acceleration with respect to stiffness of the cord is done to effects are compensated by the energy reserve in
obtain a range of bungee cord elasticity for practical purpose. the elastic cords.
Adjustable wheel base cradle assembly is designed to carry
IV. Elastic cord friction over the roller is neglected.
different type of UAVs to meet the general customer
requirements. Lock Mechanism for the cradle when bungee is
The reason is that the rollers are small in size and
stretched. Lock mechanism is designed on the basis of pistol are given its own rotation due to which friction
trigger principle. Detailed 3D design was done before force of elastic cord over the rollers considerably
manufacturing. Results obtained after the manufacturing of reduces and is neglected.
final product are comparable with our theoretical design which V. Tension in elastic cord (T) and horizontal reaction
proves the concept of launching UAVs in short time and force (Rx) are coplanar to the inclined plane
effectively provide the takeoff velocity within 10 feet. because tension and horizontal component of
reaction force acts on the same inclined plane.
Keywords—UAV,LaunchingDevice(LD),Catapult, Similarly, vertical component of reaction force
Mathematical Model. and normal reaction acts in same direction that‟s
why Rz and N are collinear.
I. INTRODUCTION
VI. Frictional force work is neglected. The reason is
UAV catapult is a device used to launch the Unmanned that when the UAV slips off the cradle, friction
Aerial Vehicle. Numerous systems of launching devices have force works which is comparatively small due to
been made for UAVs so far. As the size, ranges value and short run distance and that‟s why it is neglected.
performance of UAVs increases so new ways are being All these neglected friction forces are
developed to ensure the safety and cost-effectiveness of launch compensated by the energy reserve in the elastic
and recovery systems. During their use, merits and demerits of cords.
each individual launching device were observed. By seeing our
requirements and affordable conditions, this headed to the VII. Stiffness of elastic cords is constant because it
result that a launching mechanism should be light weight, depends upon material.
minimum man power must be required to operate the launching

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 Design and Analysis of Catapult Launched Mechanism for UAV
VIII. UAV drag and lift force is neglected. This In y-direction:
assumption is taken into account in order to
simply the mathematical equations used below. Then,
Primarily, this lifting force (Rz) and drag force
(Rx) reduces the sliding frictional force (Fµ) to ̈ ( )
some extent. As we know that above equation is non-homogenous whose
IX. Propeller pulling force or thrust (T) is constant solution is:
because value of thrust decreases as speed ( )
increases so average constant value of thrust is
assumed. √ √

B. Mathematical Modeling ( )
As,

Initial Conditions are: , ,

̇
( )

Figure 1 FBD of Launcher

By putting the values of constants and by simplifying, we get
the equation:
( ) [ ( ) ] √

( )
By differentiating, we get the velocity eq.
̇( ) [ ( )

]√ √
As final conditions are:

( )
So,
( ) ( )
Figure 2 Schematic Diagram of LD √
( )
Eq. of motion of free particles in a vector form is: By differentiating the velocity equation, we get the
acceleration eq.
---------- (a)
( ) ̈( )
̇
( ) ( ̇) [ ( )

] √

III. THEORETICAL DESIGN

A. Known Parameters
Few of the parameters were known to us by our design
requirement and the software tools like Pro-E designing used
Now, by applying the assumptions i.e. neglecting Rx
to determine the weight of the subassemblies of the model.
and putting

Table 1 (Known Parameters)

As, the particle motion is linear so by taking
projections on “x” and “y” axis, Variables Values Remarks
Hence, Thrust (T) 1-8lbf Available UAVS in
the UAV Lab
In x-direction: Bungee Stiffness 0.675lbf/ft Manufacturer‟s Data
̈ Aluminum –Steel Static 0.35 From Literature
Frictional Coefficient

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 Design and Analysis of Catapult Launched Mechanism for UAV
Aluminum –Steel 0.25 From Literature
Dynamic Frictional
Coefficient
Initial Distance Zero Initial Condition
Mass of cradle 4.4lbs Pro-E Weight
Estimation
Mass of UAV 4.4-11lbs Assumption
B. Analysis
i. Velocity Vs Time Graph:

By putting the values of all variables in velocity equation we

get this graph. Figure 4 (Characteristic Curve between Acceleration and Time)

C. Trade off Study

i. Velocity Vs Time Graph (By varying Thrust):

By varying thrust values we get following graph between

velocity and time from velocity equation

Figure 3 (Characteristic Curve between Velocity and Time)

Above graph shows that the moment the cradle is released the
cradle moves with the velocity and after 0.5 seconds it reaches
to 17ft/s (which is the takeoff velocity for the small UAV‟s[])
which means that it will cover 8.5ft. So, by adding safety
factor of 0.15 we get the length of the railing to be the 10ft. It
Figure 3 (Graph of Velocity Vs Time with Variation in Thrust
comes to rest after 1.4 seconds. The maximum velocity which
can be obtained using stiffness 6.75lbf/ft and thrust an average However, the thrust affect is very little we should mainly
of 4lbf is 34ft/sec theoretically. This Velocity is enough for a focus on the bungee cord stiffness variation
small UAV weighing 25lbs to takeoff within the railing
distance. ii. Velocity Vs Time Graph (By varying Stiffness):

ii. Acceleration Vs Time Graph: By varying stiffness value from 2-12lbf/ft, we get the
following graph between velocity and time.
By putting the values of all variables in velocity equation
we get this graph.
The acceleration at first which the cradle has to face is around
9.9ft/sec2. It then decelerates and after 2.5sec approximately
approaching towards zero. This exposure to such a great value
of acceleration will cause the structural failure. So, we will
have to think about the structures integrity as well. The
variation in the thrust from .4-8lbf with the thrust of 18N the
max velocity achieved along with the stiffness of 6.75lbf/ft is
35ft/s and it can be improved by the combination of both the
parameters

Figure 4 (Graph of Velocity Vs Time with Variation in Thrust

Above graph shows that the minimum stiffness

2lbf/ft meets our desired velocity 15ft/s. The increase in the
stiffness will enhance our design. So, the prototype must have
an option to add up the cords in parallel to increase the
stiffness and increase the weight range.

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 Design and Analysis of Catapult Launched Mechanism for UAV
IV. SIMULATIONS Velocity of the cradle shoots to 15.75ft/s in 1.3 seconds and
when the cradle is reached to its constrain (as mentioned
A. Pro E Mechanica Analysis
earlier ) 9.8ft it stops and comes to rest.
i. 3DModeling
Using Pro-E application Mechanism the catapult was designed
by parts in the Pro-Engineer WF5.0. Then parts were
assembled in the assembly module. The Assembly of catapult
is shown below (Figure 11)

Figure 14 (Acceleration Vs Time)

Table 2 (Output Parameters listed from Fig 13 & 14)

Time(s) Velocity ft/s Acceleration ft/s2

0 0 6.8
Figure 5 (Pro-E 3D Model of Catapult) 0.4 0.75 3.6
ii. Initial Setup (Mechanism Definition) 0.8 6.5 2.5
In Pro-E Mechanism the assembly was taken and the initial 1.2 15.25 1
condition, joints, 3D roller frictional contacts and the elastic 1.3 15.75 0
chord replaced with the springs with the equivalent elastic
constants (2lbf/ft). Initial condition was input as the initial
V. PROTOTYPE
time and velocity are zero. The max translational limit was set
to 9.8feet (as our railing is 10feet). The gravity and ground
affects were enabled. Illustration of the above mentioned i. Manufacturing
Mechanism is shown in Figure 12. Prototype of the catapult was fabricated using the Institute of
Space Technology Workshop facility and bungee cord with
desired stiffness was attached to the prototype as shown in
(Figure 15)

Figure 12 (Pro-E Mechanism Definition)

iii. Dynamic Analysis

Dynamic Analysis setting was done and analysis was run with
the force direction in the positive Z-Axis. The cradle Figure 6 (Fabrication of Catapult Mechanism)
accelerated and achieved the desired velocity. Graphs between
Velocity/Acceleration Vs time were plotted. ii. Testing
Several tests were done using the desired bungee stiffness for
a 2 kg aircraft and 2kg cradle weight (using electronic
balance) with no thrust and distance covered (9.8ft) by the
cradle with respect to time was observed. Data obtained from
the best three test glides is listed below Table 3

Table 3 (Testing Results)

Observation Time(s) Velocity ft/s

1 0.8785 11.16
2 0.8244 11.89
3 1.0049 9.75
Figure 13 (Velocity Vs Time)
4 0.9874 9.92

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 Design and Analysis of Catapult Launched Mechanism for UAV
VI. CONCLUSION
Theoretical design, simulations and the Testing comparison REFERENCES
leads us to the summary of the catapult design which we can
[1] Analysis of a UAV Bungee Cord Launching Device by Zoran Novaković
offer for our customers. The summary of the Launching & Nikola Medar Scientific Technical Review, 2013,Vol.63,No.3,pp.41-
device is given as below 47
[2] HESLEHURST,R. Development and Evaluation of Conceptual Design of
Table 4 (Catapult Specification) Bungee, 2010, School of Engineering and Information Technology,
University College, UNSW ADFA
Length of Railing 10ft [3] RAYMER,D.P.: Aircraft Design: A Conceptual Approach, 4th ed
Velocity 5-15ft/s [4] FRANCIS,J.: Launch System for Unmanned Aerial Vehicles for use on
Acceleration 6-12ft/s2 RAN Patrol Boats, Final Thesis Report 2010, SEIT,UNSW
UAV Weight Range Less than 17.6lbs [5] MCDONNELL,W,R.: United States patent application publication,
“Launch and recovery system for unmanned aerial vehicles”, 2006
Total Weight 22lbs
Cord Stiffness 2-12lbf/ft [6] HIBBELER, R.C.: Engineering Mechanics Dynamics, 2nd edition
Prentice Hall, Singapore, 2004, Chaps. 12, 14

The UAV mass will define your launching speed and the [7] Sandow Technic" catalogue of bungee cords.pdf
(www.sandowtechnic/elastomers/histartsiliconerubber.pdf)
stiffness cord selection. The theoretical design may not
be reliable due to idealization. However, the practical [8] Jane„s. Unmanned Aerial Vehicles and Targets, Issue 29, 2007, Launch
and Recovery Chapter.
and simulation results show that for every kg we have to
add 2lbf/ft of stiffness. Moreover, an alternate option is to
enhance the cord tension by making the length of the
bungee cord short enough to its manufacturer’s
datasheet up to allowable extension.

VII. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
We are thankful to the supervisors and pay our sincere
gratitude to Mr. Izhar Hussain Kazmi (Asst.Professor,
Department of Aeronautics & Astronautics-IST) and Mr.
Salman Nazir for their guidance and expert advice regarding
the project design, modeling, analysis, manufacturing and
accomplishment of our research paper.

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