The kinematics of the swashplate mechanism of a VTOL unmanned aerial vehicle

The kinematics of the swashplate mechanism of an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (U AV) is discussed in this paper. The UAV under study, known as the CL-327 Gu ardian, is currently under production by Bombardier Services, Defence. It i s considered to be the world's most versatile and advanced UAV system capab le of Vertical Take Off and Landing (VTOL). The steering control mechanism used in all helicopters, including the CL-327, is a complex closed kinemati c chain often called the swashplate mechanism. In this paper a detailed kin ematic analysis of the particular design used for the swashplate of the CL- 327 is discussed.