Results for: bell

Bell Unveils Manufacturing Facility for its Future Vertical Lift Aircraft

12 August 2020 || 3 min read

Bell Textron Inc. unveiled today its new 140,000-square-foot Manufacturing Technology Center (MTC) in Fort Worth, Texas. The MTC is an innovative proving ground where Bell will test and refine technologies and processes—demonstrating manufacturing readiness and ability to successfully build and support Future Vertical Lift (FVL) aircraft. The facility provides capabilities that span all of Bell’s core manufacturing of rotor and drive systems,...

Bell Unveils Manufacturing Facility for its Future Vertical Lift Aircraft

12 August 2020 || 3 min read

Since establishing a footprint in North Texas in 1951, Bell’s facilities have been a hub for new technology in aviation. Many milestones, including first flight of the XV-15, V-22, 609 and 407, took place in the DFW metroplex. According to Bell, building FVL aircraft will require the right blend of investment in manufacturing technology and a quality workforce, as well as strong partnerships with the state and community.

“The MTC is the next step in successfully deploying new manufacturing technologies and processes into Bell’s future factories,” said Glenn Isbell, vice president, Rapid Prototyping & Manufacturing Innovation. “These future factories working together with our teammates and suppliers, will be designed to enable high-quality, high-rate production of the Bell V-280 Valor, Bell 360 Invictus and other future aircraft.”

An artist’s rendering of the potential interior of Bell’s new facility.

Digital connectivity and integration form the backbone of the MTC. The entire facility will be monitored and controlled by its own IT Network; Internet of Things (IoT) devices, and cybersecurity systems that manage the inflow and outflow of materials, as well as the movement of activity throughout the factory. By deploying a networked software infrastructure, the MTC will produce a digital twin of itself that gives managers a common operating picture of the building, the equipment and the processes.

Why it matters: In tandem with its development of Future Vertical Lift aircraft for military applications, Bell has been applying similar technologies to the advancement of urban air mobility vehicles. Notably, the company has already unveiled prototypes of the Bell Nexus passenger eVTOLs as well as the APT cargo eVTOL, which may be developed or produced in facilities like the MCT.

The Bell Nexus, a vertical lift passenger aircraft currently being developed by Bell.

Related:

Source // Bell Flight press release

Bell Partners with Sumitomo and Japan Airlines for Future of eVTOL

15 February 2020 || 3 min read

Bell, subsidiary of Textron Inc, has partnered with two Japanese companies in the development of eVTOL prototypes for the future. This week the company announced partnerships with both Sumitomo Corp. and Japan Airlines as part of its mobility-as-a-service offerings, or MaaS. Bell is no stranger to the aerial mobility space with its extensive industry partnerships with Uber and its most...

Bell Partners with Sumitomo and Japan Airlines for Future of eVTOL

15 February 2020 || 3 min read

Bell is no stranger to the aerial mobility space with its extensive industry partnerships with Uber and its most recent air taxi concept, the Nexus 4EX, unveiled at CES in Las Vegas last month. Bell hopes to better understand infrastructure requirements and regulatory hurdles in the Asian Pacific markets through these key partnerships.

Bell Nexus 4EX prototype unveiled at CES

“We are excited to take this substantial step to bring together an international airline, a major infrastructure provider, and a VTOL OEM to work collaboratively on a more connected mobility future,” said Scott Drennan, vice president of Innovation at Bell, in a prepared statement.

“While we are known for our 80 years of creating vertical lift aircraft that move people, goods, and data, we also want to help shape the operational infrastructure in which they will live,” Drennan added.

Sumitomo is a Japanese conglomerate involved in a multitude of industries including metal products, transporation, infrastructure and more. Japan Airlines (JAL) is one of the country’s leading passenger airlines with several international destinations.

Over the coming months Bell will work alongside the two companies to develop policy and planning recommendations and better understand the transportation needs of urban travelers.

Japan Airlines has partnered with Bell to bring eVTOL to the country

Japan Airlines has partnered with Bell for futureneVTOL services.

Why it matters: The Asia Pacific (APAC) region will be one of the key markets for the commercialization of aerial mobility. The market is already has several competitors such as EHang, and with some of the highest population densities in the world, the mass adoption of eVTOL vehicles is highly likely. Bell’s partnership with these two Japanese companies is one of the earliest in the region and more details are expected to emerge as the partnership grows.

Bell’s Smart City Showcases Urban Air Mobility Operations and Logistics

29 January 2020 || 4 min read

At the Consumer Electronic Show (CES) show in Las Vegas in early January, Bell demonstrated a model-sized cityscape with scale flying versions of its Nexus passenger air taxi and Autonomous Pod Transport (APT) operating with Bell’s AerOS urban air mobility operating system. Calling it a “smart city ecosystem,” Bell president and CEO Mitch Snyder explained, “This year, we’re demonstrating what...

Bell’s Smart City Showcases Urban Air Mobility Operations and Logistics

29 January 2020 || 4 min read

Bell Unveils All-Electric Nexus 4EX at CES 2020

Calling it a “smart city ecosystem,” Bell president and CEO Mitch Snyder explained, “This year, we’re demonstrating what governing, operating, working, and living in a smart city will look like.”

Bell’s service is powered by Bell AerOS, a proprietary system running on Microsoft Azure created to manage fleet information, observe aircraft health, and manage throughput of goods, products and predictive data and maintenance. This digital infrastructure is prevalent in Bell’s Smart City vision at the show and serves the company’s goal of providing Mobility as a Service (MaaS).

Bell has also settled on a smaller version of its Nexus passenger vehicle, with four rotors instead of the six previously shown at CES 2019. The aircraft features Bell’s signature powered-lift concept with four tilting ducted fans that can be configured as hybrid-electric or all-electric. Bell believes this design unlocks the key for all electric technology, but the vehicle will remain “propulsion agnostic” depending on customer needs.

Bell's APT 70 (left) and APT 20 (right) eVTOL prototypes

Bell’s APT70 (left) and APT20 (right). // AIN Online

At CES, the smart city demo included tablet stations where visitors could interact with AerOS, choosing departure and destination, and then watching in real-time how the flying models interacted. The AerOS software constantly assesses demand across the scale-size city and deploys vehicles accordingly, while also taking into account problems that inevitably come up during passenger and cargo flying operations, such as weather events that might require all vehicles to land immediately. AerOS uses goal-seeking optimization algorithms and artificial intelligence to anticipate passenger behavior and desires as determined from the booking engine and the vehicle’s needs for battery recharging to meet the flight schedule. “We are working on modeling simulation tools now. We need to do better than have a good model, but we have tools in-process to refine and update that without an army of PhD data scientists. This solves the digital backbone need of aerial mobility.”

Why it’s important: In a world where nearly 70 percent of the population will be living in urban areas by 2050 and cities are outgrowing their current transportations systems, the need for urban mobility solutions has never been greater. Fortunately, the transportation industry has reached an inflection point, and many of the world’s top minds are working toward solutions for the optimal smart city design. Bell is bringing a clear mission of finding solutions to the infrastructure challenges of tomorrow’s transportation networks.

Sources // AINonline; Bell

Bell Unveils All-Electric Nexus 4EX at CES 2020

08 January 2020 || 4 min read

Bell’s new four-rotor version of its Nexus eVTOL is optimized for intra-urban mobility. The Consumer Electronics Show 2019 was a hotbed for new aerial mobility technologies, and this year is culminating in a similarly exciting event for breakthrough UAM innovations. Last year, we saw the initial unveiling of Bell’s Nexus prototype which featured six ducted fans with variable tilt angles...

Bell Unveils All-Electric Nexus 4EX at CES 2020

08 January 2020 || 4 min read

Bell’s new four-rotor version of its Nexus eVTOL is optimized for intra-urban mobility.

The Consumer Electronics Show 2019 was a hotbed for new aerial mobility technologies, and this year is culminating in a similarly exciting event for breakthrough UAM innovations. Last year, we saw the initial unveiling of Bell’s Nexus prototype which featured six ducted fans with variable tilt angles to facilitate vertical takeoff and landing. The original prototype, now dubbed the Nexus 6HX due to its six hybrid-electric powered rotors, is accompanied by a fully-electric version.

Whereas the Nexus 6HX touts a range of up to 150 miles, the vehicle was originally optimized with inter-urban mobility, which necessitated the use of hybrid-electric propulsion. The specialized Nexus 4EX is instead designed specifically with up to 60-mile intra-urban flights in mind, which enabled the powerplant to be completely reliant on the latest battery technologies.

Bell CEO Mitch Snyder commented on the design choices that ultimately led to a reduced fan count and the hurdle to an all-electric powerplant:

One vehicle was compromising the attributes of each, and so we went at it in a different direction,” said Snyder. “We looked at . . . what was coming from the market and what they wanted. And we were also able to progress our technology further and understand it and say, ‘You know what? I think we can build an all-electrical [aircraft].’

Snyder also spoke about the emphasis Bell is placing on safety, and the path it plans to take to achieve EASA’s level of safety recently identified in its certification standards for small VTOL aircraft. “With this form of transportation, we want to make it safe, we want to make it quiet, [and] we want to make it clean and green,” said Snyder. “And the most important thing here, besides the safety, is we want to make it affordable, [and] accessible to everyone.”

More efficient operation was the driver for fewer ducts in the Nexus design, said Scott Drennan, Bell’s VP of Innovation. Bell Image

Bell is looking to have a certified system ready to serve the public in the middle to late 2020s, with a demonstrator to “come in appropriately” between now and then. In the interim, the company plans to continue technological development in venues such as its Systems Integration Lab (SIL), as well as regulatory development by working with the FAA to level-set all aerial mobility infrastructure to a common vision.

Why it’s important: Original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) are coming to the realization that the demands of an eVTOLs powerplant are largely determined by the missions it is intended to serve. As the industry hones in to what the market is demanding of a new aerial mobility service, more OEMs will under an optimization of their vehicles to make best use of electric propulsion technologies where applicable.

Sources // Bell; Vertical Mag

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Bell APT 70 Autonomous Cargo eVTOL Takes Flight

29 August 2019 || 4 min read

Bell has just achieved the first autonomous flight of its Autonomous Pod Transport (APT) 70 aircraft, and will continue testing throughout the year. The U.S. helicopter and tilt-rotor manufacturer has just shared footage of its cargo eVTOL drone completing a first of many fully autonomous flights. Bell will ramp up flight testing under an experimental type certificate at its facility near...

Bell APT 70 Autonomous Cargo eVTOL Takes Flight

29 August 2019 || 4 min read

Bell has just achieved the first autonomous flight of its Autonomous Pod Transport (APT) 70 aircraft, and will continue testing throughout the year.

The U.S. helicopter and tilt-rotor manufacturer has just shared footage of its cargo eVTOL drone completing a first of many fully autonomous flights. Bell will ramp up flight testing under an experimental type certificate at its facility near Fort Worth, Texas to eventually support missions such as package delivery, medical support, and disaster relief. The vehicle has key design features such as a modular design for rapid battery swap & recharging, and a payload pod that is attached via pylons to two wings, each fitted with electric-powered propellers.

The APT70 is a tail-sitting VTOL with load capacity up to 70lbs, and a top speed up to 100mph. It takes off vertically as does a drone, then rotates to horizontal flight in a bi-plane configuration using its built-in fixed wings. A near-final version of the APT70 will conduct another flight demonstration in 2020 through NASA’s Systems Integration and Operationalization partnership. Meanwhile, the company continues to develop its wider APT family of eVTOL aircraft to achieve varying payload and range capabilities.

Bell’s APT70 (left) and APT20 (right). // AIN Online

According to Bell, next year’s demonstration through the NASA partnership will simulate commercial missions in the U.S. National Airspace System and will include beyond visual line of sight operations. Through this collaboration, NASA and Bell hope to deliver new technologies for unmanned aerial systems including integrated Detect and Avoid (DAA) and Command and Control (C2). Bell is also working with Japanese logistics group Yamato to create an integrated package handling system with the APT 70, and strives to launch commercial operations by the early 2020s.

First flight for the Nexus passenger eVTOL is planned for 2020 and Bell hopes to achieve type certification in 2023. The aircraft design features a central wing, integrated landing skids, and six ducted tilt-rotor fans. It will carry four passengers on flights of up to around 150 miles and at speeds of up to 175 mph. Read more about the Bell Nexus’ technical specifications in the Hangar.

Why it’s important: Bell is expanding its aircraft profile in the urban air mobility industry and demonstrates time and resource investments in both the passenger and cargo sectors. Small-scale cargo transportation has been an area of interest for both the military as well as large online retailers such as Amazon, demonstrating a wide swath of applications for the APT 70 and the company’s future fleet of cargo eVTOLs.

Bell Flight Unveils Nexus Prototype at CES 2019

07 January 2019 || 5 min read

Bell Flight has released its Nexus Air Taxi prototype at CES 2019. The vertical mobility company claims that the Nexus air taxi will weigh roughly 6,000 pounds, be able to fly at 150mph, and have a range of 150 miles. Bell Flight also announced that the air taxi will use augmented reality, as well as intelligent interior design to provide...

Bell Flight Unveils Nexus Prototype at CES 2019

07 January 2019 || 5 min read

Bell Flight has released its Nexus Air Taxi prototype at CES 2019.

The vertical mobility company claims that the Nexus air taxi will weigh roughly 6,000 pounds, be able to fly at 150mph, and have a range of 150 miles. Bell Flight also announced that the air taxi will use augmented reality, as well as intelligent interior design to provide a signature passenger experience that doesn’t compromise safety.

Image // Bell Flight

One of the important design selections that Bell Flight revealed was the decision to use a hybrid-electric propulsion system on the Nexus: featuring 6 ducted fans that have variable tilt angles to facilitate vertical takeoff and landing, as well as accelerated forward flight. The blades will be 8 feet in diameter. The Nexus builds from Bell Flight’s reveal of the passenger cabin of their “Air Taxi” at CES in 2018, which would eventually become the passenger cabin of the Nexus.

There are a few important distinctions that Bell Flight has underscored in the design of the Nexus; namely, the decision to bypass autonomous operation (at least in the early stages of flight operations) and also to use a hybrid-electric propulsion system. Other urban aviation companies are pursuing one of these design selections, but hardly any have down-selected both. The Nexus will carry four passengers and have one pilot, which fits with Uber’s eCRM standards for revenue-generating commercial air taxi operations. A commonly cited shortcoming of many air taxi designs is the passenger capacity – at least 3 (and preferably 4) are needed if a pilot is to be onboard the aircraft in order for commercial operations to prove profitable.

Image // Bell Flight

Additionally, Bell Flight has outsourced a larger portion of their design than many other eVTOL companies have – companies like Garmin, Thales, Moog, and Safran will provide avionics, flight control computers, flight control hardware, and the non-electric propulsion system, along with EPS providing batteries. Lastly, the design also keeps safety in mind: if one of the rotors fails, the aircraft will be able to land itself, and if the gas-turbine should cease operation, the small onboard battery will have enough power to allow the Nexus to land safely as well. Even the battery itself has containment cells that should prevent the spread of any undesired combustion.

Image // Bell Flight

Bell Flight’s experience in mass-producing helicopters and other aircraft will prove valuable as the company begins their production phase. Common among urban aviation manufacturing challenges is complex geometry composite fabrication at scale, as well as integration of entirely new systems, like that of the hybrid electric propulsion planned to be used on the Nexus.

Image // Bell Flight

Why it’s important: Bell Flight has finally released their prototype for their Air Taxi, which was kept under wraps less the release of the cabin mock-up of the then “Bell Air Taxi” at CES in 2018. The company’s announcement that the aircraft will be hybrid-electric, along with the confirmation that Bell Flight will be partnering with a number of well-respected aerospace companies on their eVTOL design adds much-desired clarity and definition to the path forward for Bell.

Learn more about the Bell Nexus here.

Bell Recruits Moog for Air Taxi Flight Actuation

16 December 2018 || 3 min read

Bell has added yet another partner to the growing list that will be developing its Air Taxi. Moog’s role will be to design the Flight Control Actuation System. As a reminder, Bell has yet to unveil the full version of its Air Taxi. For now, it has shown mockups of the planned interior of the aircraft, which was featured with...

Bell Recruits Moog for Air Taxi Flight Actuation

16 December 2018 || 3 min read

Bell has added yet another partner to the growing list that will be developing its Air Taxi. Moog’s role will be to design the Flight Control Actuation System.

As a reminder, Bell has yet to unveil the full version of its Air Taxi. For now, it has shown mockups of the planned interior of the aircraft, which was featured with an immersive VR experience at both CES and South by Southwest earlier this year. Bell has commented that it has not yet unveiled the full aircraft design because it would like to keep its propulsion system design private.

Bell’s Air Taxi interior is impressive, utilizing augmented reality as well as a control panel made up nearly entirely of screens.

Moog, the latest partner to Bell in addition to Safran, Garmin, EPS, and Thales, is an expert aircraft designer and supplier. For over 50 years, Moog Aircraft has provided many kinds of motion control technology ranging in use from commercial aircraft to power-generation turbines and even Formula One racing. While Bell will be responsible for the design, development and production of the VTOL systems, Moog will include providing the all-electric, fly-by-wire actuators and electronics used to direct and control the aircraft’s propulsion system and aero-surfaces.

Bell Partners with Moog Aircraft for Flight Control Actuation Systems

“We are absolutely delighted that Moog has been selected by Bell to partner on this exciting program to explore and develop the on-demand mobility market. –Ralph Elbert, group vice president & GM of Moog Aircraft

“Bell continues to identify solutions and teammates that will achieve new possibilities together,” Scott Drennan, vice president of Innovation at Bell. “Within this collaboration, Moog will ensure an advanced, fully integrated actuation system which will provide a safe, reliable and affordable solution for our aircraft.”

Why its important: With the addition of Moog to its team, Bell has brought the number of partners on its air taxi project up to five. Also included are Thales for flight controls, Garmin for avionics, Safran for hybrid propulsion, and EPS for energy storage. Moog’s long-time expertise will help Bell develop flight technologies that meet cost, performance, weight, and reliability requirements for on-demand urban aviation.

Bell Adds Electric Power Systems as a Partner for its Air Taxi

08 November 2018 || 4 min read

Bell has added yet another company to its growing list of partners for the Bell Air Taxi project. This time, it’s Electric Power Systems (EPS). Bell’s original design for the air taxi was full electric, but since further feasibility analysis, it has made the switch to hybrid electric. Bell also made this move to try to stick to its goal...

Bell Adds Electric Power Systems as a Partner for its Air Taxi

08 November 2018 || 4 min read

Bell has added yet another company to its growing list of partners for the Bell Air Taxi project. This time, it’s Electric Power Systems (EPS).

Bell’s original design for the air taxi was full electric, but since further feasibility analysis, it has made the switch to hybrid electric. Bell also made this move to try to stick to its goal of multi-city testing by 2020.

Electric Power systems is a wide team of consulting engineers with years of experience in design, construction, and periodic maintenance of electric power supply systems. By partnering with EPS, Bell hopes to create the most cost-efficient and reliable battery management system for the upcoming Bell Air Taxi. Said Scott Brennan, Bell’s Vice President of Innovation:

“This collaboration with EPS is intended to further enhance the safety and performance of our aircraft through unique power storage capabilities”

Bell’s Mockup of the Air Taxi’s Control Panel

“As we forge relationships with new teammates, we move one step closer to bringing viable urban air mobility to the everyday commuter.”-Scott Drennan, Bell Vice President of Innovation.

…

As a reminder, Bell is one of the partners for Uber Elevate on the UberAir project. Bell will also be working with Safran for the Air Taxi’s hybrid propulsion system, Garmin for autonomous vehicle management, and Thales for flight control system avionics.

Bell has yet remained somewhat secretive about its air taxi design. While many companies have released mockups and even flight demonstrations of their air taxi concepts, Bell has chosen only to show the interior of the aircraft, saying that for now it would like to keep its propulsion design to itself. However, the air taxi interior shows a very futuristic design featuring augmented reality and a control panel completely made up of screens. Read more about the Bell Air Taxi.

A visual from the VR demonstration of Bell’s Air Taxi experience

Why it’s important: Although Uber Elevate has announced Bell as one of its contractors for UberAir, it will also work with Karem Aircraft, Boeing’s Aurora Flight Sciences, Embraer, and Pipistrel Aircraft. According to Elevate’s website, Uber will work with all of these companies to develop its own (initially piloted) aircraft. It’s still a little unclear how all these companies are working with Uber, but the fact that Bell has consistently been adding more and more partners may suggest that it will be the main producer of UberAir VTOLs. Regardless, Uber is aiming for a strict 2023 operations launch, and will begin flight testing in 2020.

Bell Announces Partnership with Thales for Air Taxi Development

23 October 2018 || 4 min read

This morning (Tuesday October 23rd), Bell Announced a partnership with the Thales Group to further develop flight control systems for its VTOL aircraft, including the Bell Air Taxi. The Thales Group is a high-technology solutions provider specializing in many areas from aerospace to connected cars to deep-sea exploration. Part of its core value is helping to make the world safer...

Bell Announces Partnership with Thales for Air Taxi Development

23 October 2018 || 4 min read

This morning (Tuesday October 23rd), Bell Announced a partnership with the Thales Group to further develop flight control systems for its VTOL aircraft, including the Bell Air Taxi.

The Thales Group is a high-technology solutions provider specializing in many areas from aerospace to connected cars to deep-sea exploration. Part of its core value is helping to make the world safer through the mastery of complex technologies. As noted by Bell, Thales has is a global leader in commercial and military avionics and air traffic management.

“Thales designs systems that strive for the highest standards for future air mobility.”–Bell Press Release October 23rd.

Thales hopes to bring expertise in safety and autonomy to the Bell team. According to Thales Vice President for Avionics in Canada, Michel Grenier: “Thales is playing a leading role in shaping the autonomous world”. While Thales will specifically lead flight controls technology, the other announced partners, Garmin and Safran, will head navigation and propulsion. Thales plans to work with Bell on piloted flight as well as eventual autonomous flight technologies for the air taxi.

Thales reported sales of €15.8 billion in 2017.

As a reminder, Bell has also partnered with Uber Elevate. Uber and Bell hope to reach testing in multiple cities by 2020.

Bell has remained somewhat secretive about its air taxi design. While many companies have released mockups and even flight demonstrations of their air taxi concepts, Bell has chosen only to show the interior of the aircraft, saying that for now it would like to keep its propulsion design to itself. However, the air taxi interior shows a very futuristic design featuring augmented reality and a control panel completely made up of screens.

Bell Air Taxi Concept at CES

The Bell Air Taxi control panel

“Our collaboration with Thales is intended to ensure affordable flight controls system that will be designed to meet the needs of future piloted and fully autonomous on-demand mobility vehicles.” –Scott Drennan

Why its important: Given the trends in Bell’s chosen partnerships, Bell may plan to design its own software for on-demand mobility and airspace management. This gives extra insight into what kind of value Uber adds to the partnership–customer service, management, and intake.

Bell V-247 VTOL Unveiled

03 October 2018 || 4 min read

Bell has just released plans for an autonomous VTOL built for the toughest of Marine Corps missions. The Bell V-247 ‘Vigilante’ is one of the largest unmanned VTOLs ever made. The tilt rotor combat drone is designed for a wide range of purposes including reconnaissance scouting, remote air strikes, cargo delivery, and more. It’s a versatile aircraft, made to launch...

Bell V-247 VTOL Unveiled

03 October 2018 || 4 min read

Bell has just released plans for an autonomous VTOL built for the toughest of Marine Corps missions.

The Bell V-247 ‘Vigilante’ is one of the largest unmanned VTOLs ever made. The tilt rotor combat drone is designed for a wide range of purposes including reconnaissance scouting, remote air strikes, cargo delivery, and more. It’s a versatile aircraft, made to launch from helicopter-carrying amphibious assault ships and more. It has more power and durability than any urban mobility eVTOL with a maximum speed of over 345mph, a maximum altitude of more than 25,000ft, and a payload capacity of 2,000lbs.

Bell exhibited the V-247 to the Marine Corps and the public on September 25th at the Marine Corps Base Quantico in Virginia. Bell has been working on the V-247 since 2016. This was around the same time the Marine Corps announced its MUX ( Marine Air Ground Task Force Unmanned Aircraft System Expeditionary) VTOL program. Bell is currently the top option for the contract with MUX, having already sold its V-22 Osprey into marine use.

A side view of the V-247 mock up

Bell is also working on an air taxi passenger vehicle. It has only revealed the interior of this vehicle for now, saying that it wants to keep its particular propulsion system configuration to itself until a later date. However, Bell has also been working on its FCX-001 concept private passenger helicopter, which is similarly designed for vertical flight by utilizing hybridized propulsion, shape-shifting rotor blades, gull-wing doors, and augmented reality in the cockpit to control the aircraft. Bell is one of the companies working with Uber to develop its on-demand eVTOL network.

The Bell Air Taxi interior concept

The Bell FCX-001 Concept Helicopter

Why it’s Important:
While the Bell V-247 is obviously not designed for urban mobility, the VTOL structural, electrical, and aerodynamic components are similarly relevant to flying cars. Large companies like Bell putting their money into these technologies will make the development of these vehicles more prevalent and rapid. Throughout history, many of the greatest technological innovations have been the result of military research. The development of VTOLs for public use may follow this path as well.

Bell and NASA Partner for UAV Development

09 September 2018 || 3 min read

NASA will be working with Bell Helicopter and others to overcome the current obstacles to commercial UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) operation. On August 29th, it announced funding up to $11 million to work with Bell. NASA names these main obstacles as technological advancements, systems integration, and certification of aircraft and avionics. Through this collaboration, NASA and Bell hope to deliver new technologies for unmanned aerial systems including integrated Detect and Avoid (DAA)...

Bell and NASA Partner for UAV Development

09 September 2018 || 3 min read

Through this collaboration, NASA and Bell hope to deliver new technologies for unmanned aerial systems including integrated Detect and Avoid (DAA) and Command and Control (C2) technologies. Bell seeks to use the technologies it develops alongside NASA in its new Autonomous Pod Transport 70 (APT70). The APT70 is a tail-sitting VTOL with load capacity up to 70lbs, and a top speed up to 100mph. It vertically lifts into the air like a drone, and then rotates into a horizontal flight position to fly like a bi-plane using its built-in fixed wing. A near-final version of the APT70 will conduct a flight demonstration in 2020.

Bell’s Autonomous Transport Pod Prototype

Bell showcased its prototype at XPONENTIAL 2018 aerospace show last May, positioning as having potential military use as well as commercial cargo use. In a military capacity, the ATP could eliminate the need for resupply by vehicle, bringing troops items like goggles, body armor, and batteries.

Bell Autonomous Transport Pod Concept Model

The collaboration between Bell and NASA will be managed at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California. Other partners include Textron Systems, Xwing, and the University of Massachusetts Amherst’s Center for Collaborative Adaptive Sensing of the Atmosphere (CASA). Bell will lead the design, development, production and systems integration of APT, while Textron Systems will supply command and control operations, Xwing will provide detect and avoid technologies, and CASA will provide weather avoidance technology.

Why it’s important: The Bell ATP70 is one of the first unmanned VTOLs featuring a fixed wing. Unlike many existing UAVs that carry payloads, it has the capability of horizontal flight, making it faster and more efficient, and giving it higher range. The development of technology and certifications for unmanned eVTOLs with fixed-wing capabilities paves the way for similar aircraft with passenger carrying abilities.

Bell will also be using the new technologies developed with NASA in its Air Taxi design. Learn more about the Bell Air Taxi here.

Bell’s Patent Application May Reveal Air Taxi Design

16 August 2018 || 2 min read

A patent filed by Bell Flight in January of 2018 may hint at the design of its air taxi concept. US Patent 2018/0208305 shows a three fanned air taxi that has tilting rotors – one on each wingtip and one at the tail of the aircraft – that would enable vertical takeoff and landing. Furthermore, the patent includes provisions for...

The Bell Air Taxi – An Engineer’s View

23 July 2018 || 4 min read

While much fanfare has accompanied the unveiling of the Bell Air Taxi in the past months, hardly any insight has been provided into the technical design process or details of the air taxi. Bell is a partner in the Uber Elevate initiative, who is targeting a 2023 launch. Accordingly, Bell needs to have their air taxi ready for testing in two years. Before...

The Bell Air Taxi – An Engineer’s View

23 July 2018 || 4 min read

While much fanfare has accompanied the unveiling of the Bell Air Taxi in the past months, hardly any insight has been provided into the technical design process or details of the air taxi.

Bell is a partner in the Uber Elevate initiative, who is targeting a 2023 launch. Accordingly, Bell needs to have their air taxi ready for testing in two years.

Before working on Bell’s Air Taxi, Kyle Heironimus, an electric-propulsion lead at Bell, worked on the UH-1 Iroquois, V-22 Osprey and the 505 Jet Ranger X. Here are some excerpts from an interview with Avionics International that describe the design process and details at Bell:

Walk me through your day-to-day at Bell.

I currently function as the Bell air taxi electric-propulsion lead. My typical day is spent interfacing with our multi-disciplinary team within Bell and with a wide range of typical and non-typical aviation suppliers. Right now, I see my job as helping to pull together all of the various technical experts required to bring a hybrid electric propulsion system to life.

Explain the strategy behind the plan to put hybrid-electric propulsion on the air taxi.

We see the flexibility that a hybrid-electric system provides as necessary to build an aircraft that meets the full range of missions that we are going to fly. Of course, battery electric VTOL aircraft are already flying; however, their capabilities are significantly limited by the batteries available today. Simply put, today’s batteries are too heavy for a meaningful VTOL mission. We believe that demonstrating a hybrid-electric propulsion system positions us and our partners to take advantage of the best of current propulsion technology as well as new emerging electric motor and control technology.

Is Bell developing all of the avionics in house or working with vendors?

Bell is working with a variety of industry partners, including our own in-house experts to evaluate the best path forward for the platform. We certainly aren’t the only ones who want to shape this new market.

Heironimus with a Bell 505. Photo courtesy of Bell

Project five years from now: What will be the most significant change?

From my standpoint, increased power and energy density of electric propulsion and control components will be key to unlocking eVTOL. I certainly don’t hold the crystal ball, but in five years I hope to see components and systems reaching weights that are not only economically viable for specific missions, but are so good that they supplant legacy solutions in cost, weight and performance. Bell is well on its way to designing and certifying eVTOL aircraft.

Why it’s important: Bell is a leader in the vertical flight industry, but has kept most of the developments of their Air Taxi under wraps. The only public reveal to date is of their proposed cabin concept, which drew a large amount of attention. If the Uber Elevate goal of 2023 is to be met, expect Bell unveiling their Air Taxi by 2020, at the latest – the quantity of flight testing required to certify and commercially implement these air taxis in urban areas across the world is almost as large a task as successfully designing and manufacturing them.

Learn more about the Bell Air Taxi here.

Source

Avionics International

Bell Nexus

23 June 2018 || < 1 min read

Bell Nexus

23 June 2018 || < 1 min read

Quick Summary

The Bell Nexus is Bell Flight's Air Taxi, of which there are two versions. The 6HX, unveiled at CES 2019, has a range of up to 150 miles and is optimized for inter-urban mobility, which necessitates the use of hybrid-electric propulsion. The all-electric Nexus 4EX, unveiled at CES 2020, is instead designed with up to 60-mile intra-urban flights in mind, which enables the powerplant to be completely reliant on the latest battery technologies.

Bell Flight, a Fort Worth, TX, USA Company

Stage of Development

Preliminary Design

Prototype Build

Flight Testing

Certification

Commercially Operating

Technical Details

Aircraft Type: Winged VTOL

Powerplant: 6HX - Hybrid-Electric; 4EX - All-Electric

Range: 6HX - 150 miles; 4EX - 60 miles

Top Speed: 150 mph

Propeller Configuration: 6HX - 6 tilt-rotors; 4EX - 4 tilt-rotors (all 8ft in diameter)

Passenger Capacity: 1 pilot, 4 passengers

Autonomy Level: Semi-Autonomous

Dimensions: Exact dimensions TBD. Rotors have 8ft Diameter.

Other Information

Key Suppliers: Moog (flight control hardware), Thales (flight control software), EPS (battery), Safran (gas-turbine propulsion system), Garmin (avionics).

Our Take on the Bell Nexus

Bell Flight has released their prototype for their Air Taxi, which was kept under wraps less the release of the cabin mock-up of the then "Bell Air Taxi" at CES in 2018. The company's announcement that the aircraft will be hybrid-electric, along with the confirmation that Bell Flight will be partnering with a number of well-respected aerospace companies on its eVTOL design adds much-desired clarity and definition to the path forward for Bell.

Bell Flight's experience in mass-producing helicopters and other aircraft will prove valuable as the company begins their production phase. Common among urban aviation manufacturing challenges is complex geometry composite fabrication at scale, as well as integration of entirely new systems, like that of the hybrid electric propulsion planned to be used on the Nexus.

References

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Back to The Hangar

Bell and Safran to Collaborate on Hybrid eVTOL Propulsion

20 June 2018 || 2 min read

Bell and Safran announced on Tuesday that they’d be working together on Bell’s new eVTOL system. Bell will be responsible for the design cycle, including manufacturing of the eVTOL, with Safran providing “a disruptive propulsion system”, according to Safran’s press release. Scott Brennan, Bell’s Director of Innovation, commented at a transit conference in Cologne: “This announcement is another proof point...

Bell and Safran to Collaborate on Hybrid eVTOL Propulsion

20 June 2018 || 2 min read

Scott Brennan, Bell’s Director of Innovation, commented at a transit conference in Cologne: “This announcement is another proof point of our commitment to providing transportation of people and logistics in new, innovative and more efficient ways. Our work with Safran is a historical milestone for future transport solutions.”

While the announcement will undoubtedly aid Bell with their propulsion system, not much has been publicly released regarding their VTOL concept since the unveiling of the cabin of their Air Taxi at CES in January 2018 – detailed in TransportUP’s article here. This partnership leverages experience from Safran, but may also be Bell acknowledging the technical difficulties of hybridized eVTOL transport design and searching for heavy hitters in industry to provide a tailor-made solution.

Why it’s important: This announcement marks a large partnership between a propulsion and aerospace design company. While these partnerships are very common in the traditional aerospace industry, many eVTOL manufacturers are opting to insource their propulsion system to maintain complete control over the product that they’re designing. The Bell Safran partnership will certainly bring more experience and focused expertise to the table, but may also induce additional coordination challenges as integration of the eVTOL amplifies any small discrepancies that occurred during the design process.

Source

Safran Press Release

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Bell has just released plans for an autonomous VTOL built for the toughest of Marine Corps missions.

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Quick Summary

Stage of Development

Technical Details

Other Information

Our Take on the Bell Nexus

References

The Latest News from TransportUP

Iris Automation Showcases BVLOS Tech to City of Reno

The Lanciare Firenze Jet-Engine Flying Car Concept

PRICE Systems Joins Access Skyways to Support the Integration of Aerial Mobility

Pipistrel Selects Honeywell’s Compact Fly-By-Wire System for its Nuuva V300 Prototype

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