Design
Computer aided design and X-plane flight simulation were used during development. Unlike the twin-boom CarterCopter, the PAV has a single tailboom. A tilting mast allows the rotor to be tilted 15 degrees forward and 30 degrees aft to allow different centres of gravity and wing angle-of-attacks.
Helicopter rotors are designed to operate in a narrow range of rpm. Most aircraft have two energy parameters (speed and altitude) which the pilot can trade between, but Carter technology attempts to use rotor rotation as a third energy parameter.
The purpose of the Slowed Rotor/Compound aircraft is to enhance the flight envelope compared to fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters and traditional autogyros, by minimizing the dangerous areas of the stall speed diagram/Height-velocity diagram as well as moving the speed limit up.
It uses Vernier type controls, and most controls are now automated. Materials used include glass fiber, aluminum, carbon, titanium, and steel.
Suppliers for the aircraft include Blue Mountain Avionics for avionics and air-to-ground video and telemetry, and Sky Ox Oxygen Systems as the PAV is not pressurized. 60 channels of information convey sensor measurements from the aircraft to a ground computer, and 4 video cameras tape the flights. The engine is equipped with a performance enhancement system by Nitrous Express.
Read more about this topic: Carter PAV
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