With the expanding electrification in all sectors of transport, it is necessary to look for new efficient solutions for propulsion systems for use in air transport. One of the approaches can be the use of electric ducted fans (EDFs), especially in, but not limited to, the case of unmanned aerial vehicles with vertical takeoff and landing. This concept has been known for several decades but has been used very little and therefore has been almost unexplored. This opens up opportunities for investigating the performance characteristics, electrical consumption or efficient thrust vectoring of EDFs with respect to their design and operational use. The presented study therefore deals with the influence of the EDF design change on its performance characteristics. These design changes mainly concerned the geometry of the cowling, i.e., reduction and increase of outlet cross section, and arrangement of fans, i.e., one- and two-rotor specification. The comparison was based on measuring of vertical thrust and power consumption during static testing. The results showed that the increasing outlet is the most suitable construction for the generation of vertical thrust during static testing, considering the specifically used EDF construction arrangement. Based on the findings, it can also be concluded that EDFs are a suitable option for use in unmanned aircraft as a competition to other propulsion systems.

The subject of this research is the development of ducted propulsion systems as replacements for traditional propeller propulsion systems intended for unmanned aircraft (UA). With the increasing number of operating UA and level of their automation, new possibilities for using UA in a number of applications are emerging. According to current legislation, one of the main limitations of the use of UA to date is the insufficient safety of UA operations over populated areas. Current UA equipped with propeller drive units do not achieve the required safety due to the rotating propeller blades. Ducted propulsion systems eliminate this shortcoming and provide other advantages that find their place mainly in conditions with space limitations. It is therefore necessary to find an optimal solution to these urban traffic problems. It is thus offered as a safety solution when operating in shared spaces near non-involved persons. The proposed specifications in this study are tested and the data subsequently compared with selected reference propeller drives from the point of view of energy consumption and generated thrust value. The aim of this study is to propose an optimal operational specification of the EDPS engine, suitable for UA operation from the point of view of better energy consumption and generated thrust compared to propellant systems. The results of the study prove that EDPS propulsion systems generate more thrust with lower total energy consumption than conventional propeller systems.

The subject of this paper is validating the applicability of a wind wall as opposed to a wind tunnel in testing the performance parameters of a propeller propulsion unit. The primary focus is on unmanned aircraft, a sector experiencing continuous growth and integration into everyday life. This is closely tied to the development of new technologies, particularly in propulsion units, aiming for maximal efficiency and the associated reduction in energy consumption. However, current testing methods for these propulsion units are both costly and time-consuming. Additionally, when utilizing wind tunnels, constraints in terms of space availability pose further challenges. Consequently, verifying the performance parameters of propeller units becomes exceedingly difficult, if not impossible, for many manufacturers and institutions. The implementation of a wind wall would offer an affordable testing alternative, concurrently addressing space constraints when compared to a wind tunnel. This would facilitate further advancements in the realm of unmanned aircraft propulsion. In the presented study, two selected propellers were tested in flow created by wind wall. The acquired data were analysed and subsequently compared with relevant studies focusing on wind tunnel testing. The study's results indicate that the wind wall yields satisfactory results compared to the wind tunnel, suggesting its viability for use, at least in the initial stages of propeller propulsion unit development.