Static and dynamic balancing of helicopter tail rotor blade using two-plane balancing method

Abstract

Balancing is a rotating component is critical in any mechanism. Devoid of proper balancing, any vehicle-be it in air, land or sea, it will affect stability, control and safety. The same goes for rotor crafts. Imbalance of the helicopter tail rotor system leads to vibrations in the entire vehicle and may cause accident. Typically, for the tail rotor of a helicopter, the blade is a source of vibration on the tail boom. This not only causes inconvenience to the pilot but also reduces the life span of the helicopter. There is a certain amount of vibration in the helicopter rotor systems especially the tail rotor. Hence, balancing procedure for rotating mass was conducted to reduce the vibration. This research focuses on balancing of the tail rotor for UTM Single Seat Helicopter. Experiments have been conducted in order to study the vibration level of the tail rotor. Adding and removing masses separately on the tail rotor exhibited different vibration levels. The responses were analyzed and used for balancing the tail of rotor system. The balancing effort was considered successful, although there was still some residual unbalance in the tail rotor.