Tail Rotor Design

Part II: Structural Dynamics

R. W. Balke
Assistant Dynamics Group Engineer

R. L. Bennett
PhD, Aeromechanics Engineer

T. M. Gaffey
Group Engineer VTOL Dynamics

R. R. Lynn
Chief of Research and Development
Bell Helicopter Company
Fort Worth, Texas

In this Part I1 of Tail Rotor Design, the structural dynamics

of stiff inplane tail rotor configurations are considered. First, the
placement of blade natural frequencies, the method of calculation and the interaction between the natural frequencies and the
forcing functions are discussed in detail. Specific design guidelines are presented for two, three, and four blade rotors.
Second, the theoretical structural loading of a tail rotor is
treated and comparisons of theory and test results are given.
Finally, several aeroelastic phenomena associated with tail
rotors are discussed, including "tail wagging," flutter and divergence, and blade motion stability. Throughout the text, specific problems which have been encountered are noted.

NOTATION

(see Part I for notations not given here)

tip-path-plane lateral flapping
centrifugal force
flapping inertia
mac
mean aerodynamic chord
n
an integer
R
rotor radius
V
helicopter forward speed
B
flapping angle
AL
perturbation lift
@
perturbation flapping angle
A@
perturbation pitch change
a3 = pitch-flap coupling angle, positive if pitch is
decreased when the blade flaps up
p
= advance ratio, V/aR
b,

CF
Ip

=
=
=
=
=
=
=
=
=
=
=

Presented a t the 25th Annual National Forum of the American

Helicopter Society, May 1%9.

air density
rotor tip speed
= main rotor rpm
= tail rotor rpm
= fixed system excitation frequency
= natural frequency in the rotating system
= fundamental drive system natural frequency
= static feathering natural frequency

aR

a,,

a,,
w,
w,
w,

woo

NATURAL FREQUENCIES

FORMANY YEARS, it was considered acceptable tail

rotor design practice merely to avoid the coincidence
of blade natural frequencies with rotor excitation frequencies within the flight operating regimes. Because of
the inadequacies of this approach in explaining the
overall behavior of a tail rotor, it was necessary to engage in lengthy and expensive test programs to insure
the integrity of the hardware. Recent studies have
shown that in addition to the aerodynamic excitahion
frequencies the effects of the main rotor, tail rotor
mounting, and transient loading must be considered
in defining the proper frequency placement. Also these
items must he considered when interpreting test data.
With these items considered in the initial design stage
future development should be less costly and time consuming.
I n the ensuing discussions, the term harmonic is used
to denote frequencies which are integer multiples of
the tail rotor rotational speed. The term nonharmonic
relates to the noninteger frequencies.

OCTOBER

1970

TAIL ROTOR DESIGN

PAn'l'

Uppel Frequency Limit

Based on a review of flight data taken during tlic

development of the UH-1 and other Bell Helicopter
Co. helicopters, it has been found that oscillatory structural loading of the tail rotor is not significant a t frequencies greater than 150 Hz. This corresponds to 5
per rev for the UH-1 tail rotor. Since the upper frequency limit will vary depending on tail rotor diameter
and number of blades, it is suggested and bclieved to be
conservative that the per rev limit of 5 be used in future
tail mtor blade design. Bell studies indicate that i t is
generally adequate to considcr only the first four lower
modes of the tail rotor. This is somewhat less than the
5 per rev or the 150 cps limit.
Figure 1 illustrates the above. Presented are typical
tail rotor blade bending moment amplitude spectra
11lots through 200 1-12 using a system with unattenuated
response througli 400 Hz. Principal excitation and
natural frequencies are noted. Above 100 Hz, for this
case, the higher frequency modes are suppressed by
structural and air damping.

Aequency Placelnent
General Considerations. There are five gencral constraints on tail rotor frequency placement. These involve consideration of: (1) resonant amplification; (2)
mounting isotropy; (3) fixed-rotating system transfer;
(4) fixed system excitation; and (5) main rotor aerodynamic excitations.
Resonant Amplification. W~tliin the upper frequency limit, tail rotor forcing functions and natural
frequencies must not be coincident for any possiblc
steady-state operating conditions. This includes not
only the normal flight operating regimes and extremities of rotor spced and pitch, but also such conditions as
ground idle.
For a seesaw two-bladed rotor system with high outof-plane rigidity, the first collective mode can easily
fall coincident with 2-per-rev tail rotor excitations
within the ground idle range. Under certain wind and
pitch conditions, this can result in damaging structural
loads which significantly reduce the rotors' fatigue life.
Mounting Isotropy. During the development of the
UH-1, it was discovered that out-of-balance or -track,
static phenomena in the rotating system produced large
2-per-rev loading of the blade. This was found t o be
rclated to anisotropy or the nonsymmetrical deflection
cliaracteristics of the tail rotor mounting which is a
function of rotor speed. The unbalance produced a
steady forcc in the rotating system which resnltcd in
1-per-rev fixed system motion. The elliptical hub motions a t 1-per-rev produced 2-per-rev accelerations in
the rotating system. As the blade natural frcquency was
close t o 2-per-rev, high structural loads resulted from
the nonisotropy in combination with the m~balance.

11:

STRUCTURAL DYNAMICS

17

Figure 1shows that tail rotor inplane 2-per-rev loading

exists cvcn for a well balanced rotor.
Fixed-Rotating System Transfer. Inplane accelerations in tlie rotating system with a frequency ratio
o,./ntr, can transfer into the nonrotating system a t a
, f 1. Similarly, moper-rev frequency of W
tions in tlie fixed system transfer into the inplane rotating system a t a per-rev frcquency ratio of (o,/Ot,)
=k 1. Accelerations a t these frequencics are related t o
the cyclic modes. Symmetrical out-of-plane accelerations in the rotating system transfer directly to the
fixed system and vice versa without change in frequency. These are related to the collective modes.
B y considering these freqnency transfers, a simple
out-of-balance can procluce 0, 2, 4, 6 . . . per-rev cyclic
excitations in the rotating system. Due t o system damping, the energy of the higher modes is usually nil unless
tlie frequency transfer is reinforced by system resonances. Thus it is clear, homever, that the louver evenharmonic transfer frequency can be amplified by the
cyclic mode tail-rotor natural frequencies which are located to avoid the odcl pcr-rev forcing functions of tlie
two-bladccl rotor. This phcnomcnon should bc considered in design and during test.
Fized System Excitation. Bell studies show significant contributions of steady state and transient
fixccl system excitation t o tail rotor loading. Fuselage
and fin accelcrations are particularly important when
their effectsare amplified by the hladc response.
Steady amplitude fuselage response is forced a t frequencies equal to the main rotor speed (n,,) and mnltiples of the blade passngc frequency (nbn,,,,, where n is
an integer and b is the number of main rotor blades).
Unless tlie fuselage responsc to a given main rotor frequency a t the tail rotor location is qnite small, accelerations a t that frequency will be transferred into the tail
rotor system. Stl~~cturally
borne main rotor excitations
transfer directly, om,and nbn,,,,, for the symmetrical
out-of-plane situation and a t in,,, f n,,l and
InbCl,3,, zk R,,I for thc cyclic inplane case.
Transient fuselage response that is caused by gusts
or rapid manenvers occurs a t all the lourer values of
of,, the natural modes of vibration of the fuselage.
Consequently, the tail rotor is subjected to transient
accclcrations a t those frequencies. These fixed system
excitations are reflected into the tail rotor rotating
system, as described before, to produce transient inplane blade structural loading with frequencies of
Jot, +. nt,J,and transient out-of-plane loacls a t frequencies of w,,,
The forced and free fuselage vibrations give rise t o
tail rotor hub response which is generally a spatial
motion resolvable into vertical and horizontal components. Therefore, thcse motions may affcct both the
inplanc and out-of-plane bladc loading. Generally,
the situation is aggravated because for a11 of the lower

.
JOURNAL O F T H E ABIEIIICAN HELICOPTER SOCIETY

RALKE, B E N N E W , GAFFES AND IdYNS

240

8 )

OUT OF PLANE AT 0 . 2 2 R ;

1 0 8 KNOTS LEVEL FLIGllT

a,,.

= 2 7 . 5 11%

n=3

b)

OUT O F PLANE AT 0 . 2 2 R ;

LEFT TURN ENTERED FROM 1 0 8 KNOTS:

a,,

= 2 7 . 1 HZ

n=3

120

1 S T OUT OF PLANE SYMMETRIC

2ND OUT OF PLANE SYMMETRIC

1 S T BEAM ASYMMETRIC

60
40

0
FREQUENCY - HZ
C )

IN PLANE AT 0 . 0 5 ~ ; 108 KNOTS LEVEL FLIGHT;

400

n,

= 27.5 HZ

n=1

320
240

n=3

n=3

160

-&

,I

1=1
T&7

n=1

n-2

20

40

60

80

FREQUENCY

t:

8
C1

100

d)

240

120

140

160

180

200

180

200

HZ

IN PLANE AT 0 . 0 5 ~ : LEFT TURN ENTERED FROM 1 0 8 KNOTS;

ntr

= 27.1 HZ

.=I

n.2

v
LST OUT OF PIANE ASYllMETRIC
n=3

n= 2

FIGURE
1.

20

40

60

80
100
120
140
HZ
FREQUENCY
Tail-rotor blndc bending moment n~nplitudespectra l>lots for UH-1E helicaptcr.

160

fuselage niorles, the tail rotor is locatetl a t or near an

antinode. Thus, significant transient tail rotor hub
accclerations occur for essentially all fuselage natural
frequencies and significaut steady amplitude responses
occur for most main rotor excitations in the lowfrequency range. Since good design practice requires
placement of the fuselage natural frequencies so as to
avoid coinciclencc with the primary liiain rotor forcing
frequencies, tlie transient respouse occurs a t frequencics
between tlie n.,, and ?~bn,~,,
excitations.
With numerous natural frcquencics in close proximity to the tail rotor rotational s1,eeds and higher
harmonics, the possibility of "beating" phenomena
should be considered. For instance, drivc systcm, fusclage and rotor flapping frequencies can interact to produce non-harmonic beating. I11 some cases, beating
modcs can couple strongly, producing subharmonic
aeroelastic problems such as "tail wagging" discussed
latcr. Otlier beating phenomena occur and dissipate a t
random, suggestive of gust distnrbances. This has little
implication with respect to structural dcsign other than
that its recognition is necessary for ]~ossiblelater corrective action.
Main Rotor Aerod?lnaoaic Excitations. Figurc 1
shows the existcnce of main rotor I-, 2-, 4-, and 6-perrev frcquencies in tail-rotor loads during steady state
and maneuver flight. Also the data show the existcnce
of a main rotor 3-per-rev reflected in the rotating system. During maneuvers, the tail rotor out-of-plane
loads occurring a t main rotor 2-per-rev and the inplane
loads associatcd with the main rotor 3-per-rev are
most significant. Analytical studies discussed later
show most of these occurrences and indicate a cause to
be the main rotor wake a t the tail rotor location. The
relative contrib~~tion
of tlie aerodynamic and fuselage
cffects is unknown.
F ~ g n r c10, in a later section, shows calculated tail
rotor spectra with and mithout main rotor wake included. These main rotor aerodynamic effects shonld
be ack~iowlcdged in tail rotor design by avoiding
placement of tail rotor natural frecluencies coincident
with the first scveral main rotor liarmonics (n,,,,, nbn,,,,,
Inn.,, -c a,,(, and \nhR,, & n,,l for n = 1, 2, and 3).
Additional work is required to define the number of
harmonics that should be considered as a function of
~iumbcrof main rotor blades, tail rotor location and
the pertinent tail rotor parameters. I n Ref. 1, i t is
noted that high inplane stresses and low bladc life will
result due to aerodynamic effects if the inplane natural
frequency is located a t bn,?,, n,.
The UH-I series uses a noninteger gcar ratio bctween
the main and tail rotors. With a nonintegcr ratio, the
relative position of the main and tail rotor blades continuously changes, placing them in close proximity
about I/second. During many of the tests with this
machine unusual tail rotor loading lias been observed

as spikes in tllc blade out-of-plane tracc n~bichsometimes occur n'hen the blades are in closest proximity.
The loading varies from flight t o flight and even during
the same flight, so a definite cause-effect relationship
has been elusive. The loading is important, howcver,
and mnst be includcd in the aircraft's fatigue spectrum.
Tlie phenomenon is presented here as a matter of record
and to alerl tcst and stluctures personncl to its existence.
F~eqz~encu
Placenaent Design Guides. Followillg are
the frcquency placement guides developed for tlie general case of tail rotor design.
(A) For conventional semi-rigid tail rotor design
and construction methods, all vibration modes occurring bclow 150 Hz should be considered.
(B) IIrit1iin this frequency limit, tail rotor natural
frequcncies should not be coincident with nor in close
proximity to exciting force frequcncies for any steady
state operating conditions including ground idle specd.
(C) I n acldition to the tail rotor per-rev frcquencies,
an attcmpt should he made to avoid natural frequencies
coincident mith the excitation sources s l i o ~ nin Tablc I
for values of n and i of 1 and 2, a t least.
The above general rules are illustrated for a t~vobladed rotor by Fig. 2.
Test Dntn and Compavisons. For the tcst case
-shown by Fig. la a n d l o n,,, = 5.4 Hz, a,, = 27.5 Hz
and the principal main rotor induced vibrations a r t
given by n = 1,2, 3, and 4. Based on these frequencies
and using Table I, steady state tail rotor inplane bending moments a t frequencies of 5.9, 16.7, 22.1, 32.9, 38.3,
43.7, 49.1, 54.1, 59.9 and 70.7 Hz would he anticipated.
Similarly steady state out-of-plane moments a t 5.4,
10.8,21.6,32.4, and 43.2 Hz could be expected.
Tlie turo principal UH-1E vertical fuselage motles
(i = 1 and 2) are located a t 6.7 to 7.0 and 15.0 to 15.9
Hz depending on gross wciglit, ballast and fuel loading.
TABLE I

Summary of Excitation Sources

Sarrrce anisotropy
and urnbalance

nbn,.

n l ~ d emode?
innlane cvelic

collective
Inplane cyclic

F~.eqoencies

and out-of-t~.nck
Fixed system excitation

Steady state

1,

Ont-of-nlnne

UP.

collect,ivc
Main rotor

nbn,,

+ n,, /

neradynxmio

nQntr+ S2w

escitation

nbn

....n...

Inplsne cyclic
Out-of-nlnne
collective

RALICE, BENNETT,

JOUIINAL OF T H E A M E R I C A N HELICOPTER SOCIETY

GAFFES AND LYNN

mode varying from 88.3 to 96.6 over the normal collective pitch and rotor speed rangc, and the first outof-plane collective mode which varies from 35.0 t o
36.7 Hz. The conclusion is simply that these nonharmonic frequencies must not be coincidcnt with the
natural frequencies of the blade.
A detailed examination of the harmonic and nonharmonic conteut of out-of-plane bendiug moment
traces for a typical rotor as a function of flight speed
is given by Fig. 3. The nonharmonic frequencies match
those listcrl above within the accuracy of the equipment
used to screen the data. Significantly, the magnitude of
the nonharmonic moments is generally the same order
as those of the harmonic moments.
Significance. The implications of the many aerodynamic and dynamic excitation sources are far
reaching. Wind tunnel tests of isolated tail rotors
cannot be cspcctcd to produce structural loading data
representative of actual flight conditions; the need to
introduce significaut structural damping in the rotor
blade design is readily apparent; flight-test tail rotor
str~~ctnl.al
data will vary, dependent on main-rotor
balance and track and the particular response charnctcristics; for n~eaningfultail-rotor structural anal-

'

300

2!

8
5
:

200

"

100

% NORMAL O R R A T I N 3 SPEED

AIRSPEED

KN

AIRSPEED

KN

FIGURE
2. Excitnbion sources of a typical tmo-blncled stiff

inldnue rotor.

Based on Table I, for the left turn shown in Figs. I b

and id, with n,,,. = 5.3 Hz and at,= 27.1 Hz, transient
inplane hcnding moments a t frequencies of 12.5, 20.4,
33.8, and 42.5 would be anticipated duriug the maneuver and intermittently during level flight in response to
gusts. Similarly, transient out-of-plane response could
be expcoted a t 6.7 and 15.0 Hz.
A review of Fig. 1 shows that a number of these do
in fact occur and are quite significantparticularly a t
44 Hz where the tail rotor first illplane cyclic natural
frequency is near 3n,,
n, a t 43.7 Hz. Other frequencics of interest include the first drive system torsional mode, o,,a t 3.3 Ha, the first out-of-planc cyclic

Typical harmonic and nonhnrmanic bending moments

airspeed for UII-1E.

FIG~IRE
3.
1.8

OCTOBER

1970

'TAIL ROTOR DESIGN PART 11:

21

STHUCTURAL UYNAIIICS

yses, fuselage response characteristics must be included. Finally, an attempt sl~ouldhe made in defining the configuratio~lto increase the isotropy of the
tail rotor mounting. If this cannot be donc, some form
of tail rotor isolation may be desirable to attenuate
fixed system responses and increase the isotropy.
Specific Requirements, Two-Bladed Rotor. For a
two-bladed tail rotor, as indicated in Fig. 4, I-, 3-,
and 5-per-rev tail-rotor frequencies must be avoided
by thc cyclic modes and 2-, 4-, and 6-per-rev hy the
collective modes. AtIargins of 0.10-per-rev are ncccssary
dcpending on the modes. Usually greatcr nlargins are
required for tbe lower I~armonics.The shaded regions
in Pig. 4 show margins of 0.25-per-rev. An attempt
sllonld be made to avoid natural frequencies coinci-

25

50

75

% N O W OPEPATIffi SPEED

100

FIUUHI.;
5. St~.onpbcam-chord coupling with blade pitch due to
close proximity of out-of-plnnc a ~ l dill plan^ mnd~s.

b)

CYCLIC MODES

% W O W L OPERATIEX: SPEED

F~oune4. Typical frequency plots for an

bladed tail rotor.

inplane

stiff Lwo-

dcnt \\,it11 the other significant excitations discussetl

earlicr.
I n the exanlple of Fig. 4, two near resouant conclitions are shown: the first inplane cyclic mode with
2-per-rev in the overspeed range (A), and the first
out-of-plane collcctivc mode with 2-per-rev a t ground
idlc (B). As shown on the figurc, these conditions
sl~oulclnot be a problcm; llowever, they do require
attention during developmental testing.
A further constraint that exists for tlle two-bladed
rotor is that tllc first inplane symmetrical mode and
out-of-],lane S-ing mode must be separated from one
another so that in- and out-of-plane coupling is reduced and the variation in natural frequency with
collective. pitch is minimized. The consequences of
placing these modes close togcthcr are shown by
Fig. 5. For the case shown, the natural frequency of
both modes vary ovcr 12 Hz (12 to 19%) as the
collective pitch is changed from 0 to 15'. This broad
spread in frequency wit11 normal collective pitch values
makcs it very difficult to avoid resonances and other
source excitations cven with small rotor speed variations.
This situation can be avoided simply in theory.
I n practice it is difficult because, for a practical system, the simultaneous avoidance of all of the cyclic
excitation sources is more of an art- than a science.
The preferred approach, wliich is different to that
discussed above, involves placing the S-ing mode below
3-per-rev and the inplane mode well above 3-per-rev.
This is desirahle as it tends to decouple the frequencies
with bladc pitch, thus reducing the frequency variatio~l
and permitting better placement. The inplane, out-of-

BALKE, BEUNETT,

22

GAFFET A N D LYNN

JOURNAL OF THE AAIEKICAN HBLICOPTER SOCIBTY

25

50

75

100

R N O W OPERATINO SPEED

earlier. Figure Ga illustrates the cyclic frequency plots

for a three-bladed rotor. Since less coupling exists,
location of both the first bcam and chord cyclic modes
betwecn 2- and 4-per-rev is preferred although the
boundary conditions make this less tractable. Placement of the collective modes, Fig. Gb, is not a difficult
task whcn only the tail rotor aerodynamic excitations
are considered. Higllcr blade natural frequencies are
dictated, however, by the other excitation sources.
Pour-Bladed Rotov. For a four-bladed gimballed
rotor, the placement of the cyclic modes is also t h ~
most difficult. With this configuration, the rigid or
"scissoring" modes mnnst also be treated. Figure 7 shows
a typical frequency plot for a stiff inplane four-blader1
rotor. Typical fixed system and aerodynamic source
excitations are shown to illustrate the proble~n of
frequency placement.
Significant 2-pcr-rev inplane forces occur in multibladed rotors that are not gimbal mounted. These are
the Coriolis forces due to 1-per-rev flapping. For stiff
inplane designs, the resulting 2-per-rev loads will be
high and modes subject to this excitation must bc
kept well clear of 2-per-rev. I n a three-bladed rotor
this is the first inplane cyclic mode; for a four-bladed
rotor, it is the inplane scissoring mode. I n four-blade.1
rotors, relief from the Coriolis loading may be gained
by allowing diffcrential action between the two pairs of
blades. Fignre 7c shows these rigid modes for the case
wherc 2-per-rev resonance occurs a t operating rpln
(A). With proper design this situation can be avoidcrl
Frequency Detevmination

PIOURE
6. Typical frequency plots for an i11plnnc stiff threebladcd tail rotor.

plane coupling also causes the S-ing modc frequency

to decrease with pitch, thus moving the system away
from resonance a t high pitch. Another approach t o
separate the first S-ing and inplane symmetric modes
involves placing the S-ing mode well above 3-per-rev
and the inplane mode below 3-per-rev. This has been
done successfully using high beam stiffness inboard.
Three-Bladed Rotor. For three-bladed gimballed
rotors, many of the same considerations apply. The
placement of the cyclic modes is again the most difficult since 1-, 2-, 4-, and 5-per-rev must be avoided
as well as the other forcing function frequencies noted

A discrete element analysis for a rotating beam such

as Myklcstad's2 or i h a t of Ref. 3 gives satisfactory results for purposes of frequency determination providing a sufficient number of blade segments is used,
inplane-out-of-plane coupling is included and the
proper elemental stiffness parameters are used. Torsional coupling for the rigid inplane design has been
found to be of small consequence.
I n using such analytical techniques, care must be
taken to obtain the proper effective stiffness across the
grip-yoke bearing region. I n x series of similar designs, where empirical data are available t o definc
radial hearing stiffness, good correlation between calculated and measured frequencies has been achieved
for the first two collective and cyclic modes.
With each change in hearing design or arrangement,
new elnpirical factors must be determined to obtain
correct frequencies from the analysis. The empirical
factors must account for complexities such as bearing
play and centrifugal stiffening. Other empirical factors may be necessary to account for hub impedance
and isotropy. Often these effects are quitc nonlinear.
The principal problem in calculating exact frequencies is the definition of the above effect- which are

OCTOBER

1970

'PALL LlOTOR DESIGN PART 11:

STKUCTZTHALDYNAXICS

23

F ~ a m s7. Frequency plots far an inplane stiff iour-bladed tail

rotor.

oat amenable to precise analysis. For this reason, a

very useful design technique is to incorporate provisions for varying the effective stiffness across the
huh region (e.g., bearing spacing). These same factors
often negate the value of nonrotating frequency response tests or measured whirl stand rlata. Blade frequcncics should be dcterrnined by slolv rpm sweeps
with the helicopter on the ground, noting bending
moment response to determine the crossover points
where the blade frequency is coincident with ~.otorexcitation frequencies.
STRUCTURAL LOADING

Excessive structural loading of tlie tail rotor has

been a problem during tlie developmcnt of many single

rotor he1icol)ters. Due to the high rotatiolial speeds

common to most designs, tlie number of loading cycles
accumulates rapidly on a tail rotor. This can lead to
short service life if the system stresses are not below
the component's endurance limit. Efficient and effective
design practice requires analytical techniques capable
of predicting accurately the structural loading.

Anall~ticalApproach and iltethods

The primary objective of this alialytical effort a t
Bell is to develop a time-variant aeroelastic-rotorresponse program capable of predicting the structural
loading and behavior of a tail rotor during steadystate and accelerated flight conditions. Although the
program is in its early stages of development ant1

24

BALKE, BENNETT, GAFFEY AND LYNN

JOURNAL OF THE AhlERlCAN HELICOPTER SOCIETY

u
H

41

STEADY

A CALCULATED
MEASURED

TRUE AIRSPEED, KN
F~ounc8. Comparison of calculated and test UH-1 tail rotor
bending moments.

there are many improvclncnts yet to he made, the

results obtained and the ease with wl~ichthey may be
interpreted portend an extremely useful computer routine for design and research purposes. I n the following
paragral~hs,the dynamic and aerodynamic aspects of
this simulation technique are discussed in general terms
to acquaint tlle reader with the items considcrcd and in
somc cases, to state n ~ h y certain apl)roaches were
adopted.
D?~710?1aics.The analytical technique used is commonly referred to as the modal approach. This method,
which is derived in Refs. 4 and 5, involves the simnltancous time variant solution of a system of equations
representing the selected normalized modes of vibration which are treated as input variables. The input
elastic modes and frequencies are obtained by the
Myklestad technique mentioned earlier.
I n a n earlier section the upper frequency limit for
conventional tail rotor design was defined to be 150
Hz for medium size helicopters. This usually requires
the first four lower modes be considered. The effect of
varying the number of modes was investigated by

simulating the behavior of a main rotor in a wind tunnel. Up to eight modes were used in the analysis. The
results showed tbat such items as flapping, power, etc.,
were not appreciably affected by the number of modes
used. Structural loads were found to vary only slightly
as thc ntnnbcr of modes were increased above four. A
typical out-of-plane blade bending moment varied only
10% as the nodes were increased from 4 to 7. The investigation indicated that inclusion of the first four
modes was sufficient for representation of steady state
main rotor behavior. Based on this main rotor study
and a review of the test data presented herein, it is believed that the tail rotor is adequately represented by
considering only the first four modes. This numhcr is
used in the analytical results presented herein.
Aero~lyna~~aics,
The aerodynamic behavior is simulated by use of classical techniques with the local
blade segment aerodynamic coefficients defined as a
function of Mach number and angle of attack, and
the inclusion of such effects as main rotor wake, rigidbody fuselage yaw motions, fin interference, induced
flo~v, and elastic feedback velocities. Time varying
lift ancl drag forces are calculated for each of 40
blade segments (tip to tip) for the two-bladed rotors
studied. These forces are used in conjunction with
the input normal mode shape to define the time
dependent forcing functions.
The cffects of blade segment aerodynamic pitching
moments and velocities associated with elastic motion of the fuselage are not included in the aerodynamic simulation. Recent work by PaulT has indicated that nonlinear destabilizing aerodynamic pitching moments ran produce a self-excited tip path planc
oscilla.tion a t advancing tip Mach numbers greater
than 0.92 for certain blade configurations. Recent
modifications of the Bell program have included the
effects of the aerodynamic pitching moment. The
effects of the elastic fuselage lnotions are expected to
be small from the aerodynamics standpoint; however,

P,

P
4

"

STEADY
A Calculated

-Measured

OSCILLATORY
A Calculated
---Measured

TRUE AIRSPEED, KN
F l o u n ~9. Control loads.

OCTOBER

1970

TAIL ROTOR DESIGN PART 11:

STRUCTURAL DYNAMICS

LST BM COL

,t

n=3
w

LEGEND
v

n=3

2ND BM CYCL

-WITH

VQtr

WAKE

v%r

WITHOTIT w
WAKF
- - - - WITHOUT
~rn

V%,

Qtr

VnbQm,

__---0

20

40

60

80

LOO

120

140

FREQUENCY, HZ

FIGURE
10. C~lclllatedeffect of main rotor make on tail rotor bending moment frequency spectrum.
they are expected to produce major changes in the blade
loading because of dynamic considerations.
The main rotor wake simulation is based on a
digital program developed a t the Cornell Aeronautical
L a h ~ r a t o r yFor
. ~ this work, the CAL computer routine
was modified to produce the instantaneous in- and
out-of-plane velocity resulting from the main rotor
a t each of the 40 tail rotor stations. In the calculation,
one main rotor revolution is divided into 30" increments. At cach of the main rotor azimuth positions, the
location of each tail rotor segment is computed hased
on an assumed "starting" azimuth relationship between the main and tail rotors. Two waks vortices
arc taken from each main rotor blade. Knowing the
position of the wake vortices and the tail rotor segments, the contribution of each vortex to the total
flow a t a given tail rotor senment is calculated.
Analytical and Test Results

i
l
I

C o m ~ u t e dand measured tail rotor loading- for a

UH-1D are shown as a function of airspeed by Figs. 8
and 9. For these calculations, the tail rotor thrust was
established by the measured tail rotor root collective
and zero yaw angle was assumed. The main rotor wake
does not produce significant changes in the stlvctural
loading on the rotor, however, it does alter the frequency content of that loading.
The frequency content of the calculated UH-1D
tail rotor inplane bending moment during a left turn a t
108 knots is shown in Fig. 10. Theoretically, the
transient response must contain the forcing function
frequencies and the natural frequencies of the rotor.

In Fig. 10 the natural frequencies and some of the

forcing function frequencies are apparent. When the
main rotor wake effects are included, the main rotor
I-, 2-, and 4-per-rev components are seen. These result from considering only two vortices from each
blade. A strong nonharmo~iicresulting from main rotor
3-per-rev being reflected into the tail rotor rotating
a,, 44 Hz) is also seen to result
system (3n.,,
from the main rotor wake. A physical explanation of
this has not evolved. As noted earlier, that frcquency
appears in the flight test data.
Analytical Effects of St?.uctural Damping. It is
suggested in an earlier section that structural damping
can significantly affect the nonharmonic structural
loading of a tail rotor. This has been investigated
analytically by simulating a left turn a t 108 knots and
observina- the freouency
of the innlane bend. spectrum
.
ing moment. From this study two principal frequencies
are listed in Table I1 below: the first frequency cor-

TABLE I1
Effect of Structural Damping'
Structoral
damp ill^
(% critical)
n
"."n
0.5
5.0

Structural loading (in.-lb)

1st inplane
cyclic frequency

Tail rotor
1-per-rev

m7fi

""."
2480

9~02

1390

2480
2500

-A"-

a I t is seen that as Lhe damping is increased, even b y small

amounts, the transient structural loading is significl~ntlyreduced.

26

RALKE, BENNETT,

GAFFEY AND LYNN

JOURNAL O F THE AbIERICAN HELICOPTER SOCIETY

FIGURE
11. Oscillagraph trace

of tail !r,ag.

responds to the natural frequcncy of the first inplane

cyclic mode, the major component of the total transient
loading; the second frequency is thc 1-pcr-rev forcing
function.
Frequency placement has been a primary design
tool used t o avoid or reduce oscillatory load levels.
The above indicates that much future research and
development effort should be directed toward increasing
the structural damping in tail rotor blades. Whenever
a practical method for increasing structural damping
is achieved, a new tool will be available to reduce
oscillatoly loading.

latcral bending-torsion mode. This coupling produces

a sensation in the cabin that the tail boom is "wagging;" hence, the name.
A similar phenomenon which has been encountered
is related to the engine exhaust. For certain conditions,
the hot engine cxhaust impingcs on the tail rotor
causing oscillatory thrust and flapping. This has often
been mistakenly identified as tail wagging; however,
it is of very Ion. amplitude and disappears a t higher
speeds or if the helicopter is yawed. Minor changes in
the engine exhaust nonzle have corrected this situation.
Tail wagging nonnally increases in amplitude as
airspeed increases so that the crew is alertetl before
the amplitude reaches a dangerous level; how eve^., in
several cases it was encountered without warning, and
appeared to bc divergent. An oscillograph recording
of one occurrence of tail wagging is shown in Fig. 11.
In the case shown, a Model 47 tail rotor with the
pitch-flap coupling, $, increased from +45' to
+581/20 was being evaluated. A pedal displacement a t
100 mph initiatcd a limit amplitude wagging, which
could bc stopped only by redncing airspeed. The frequency of wagging was 7.2 Hz n~hichis close to the
Model 47 tail hoom sccond lateral hending-torsion
natural frequcncy.
Pitch-flap coupling has been identified as the canse
of tail n~agging.This can bc explained as follows:
a t the tail boom natural frequencies, tail rotor flapping
lags the tail Boom angular motion. This is due to the
tail boom natural frequencies being much higher than
the fixed system flapping natural frequency. For
example, the UH-1 tail rotor flapping frequency is
1.088-per-rev in the rotating system. I n the fixed system this appears as a 0.088-per-rcv, ~vllichis 2.4 H z .

AEROELASTICITY

Stability
Main rotor flapping instability has been of concern
recently because of the increase in helicopter speed and
the concept of slowing the rotor on compound lielicopters. Since the tail rotor generally operates a t about
the same advance ratio as the main rotor, i.t is also subject to flapping instability. Pure flapping instability is
less of a problem for the tail rotor because of its lower
Lock number; however, additional considerations arise
because of its mounting on the tail hoom. There are
strong aerodynamic and inestia couplings between
the tail rotor flapping and tail boom modes which can
cause instability. Tail rotor aeroelastic phenomena
u~hich have been encountered a t Bell and their explanations are given in this section.
Tail Wagging. During the flight tests of several
experimental tail rotors, an instability was encountered
where the tail rotor flapping coupled with a tail boom

TAIL B W H
BENTIN VELOCITY

(b)

swnce

01

DESTABILIZ~G

THRUST DAMPI*

F ~ o u ~12.
a Tail boom mode shape
damping.

and EOUtCe

of negative

OCTOBER

1970

TAIL EOTOR DESIGN PART 11:

27

STRUCTURAL DYNAMICS

The tail boom first coupled lateral bending-torsion

mode natural frequency is about 6.5 Hz. The mode
shape of this mode is shown in Fig. 12% If tl:e system
were undamped, flapping would lag the tail boom
motion by 180"; however, flapping is heavily damped,
about 12 to 15% of critical in the rotating system, so
the lag is less than 180'. Thus, when the tail boom is a t
its maximum bending velocity (Fig. 12b) there will be
some lateral (bl) flapping. Sincc a moment balance
must be maintained on the advancing bladc, the force
associated with the moment will be proportional to
bl(nR
V ) 2 tan Sg and on the retreating blade to
b,(nR - 1')2 tan S3. Since thesc forces are not equal,
a changc in tail rotor thrust is generated. This change
in thrust is proportional to bl tan S3, and for conventional pitch-flal~coupling acts in the same direction as
the tail boom bending velocity. Since it tends to increase tlie tail boom motion. thc thrust constitutes
negativc damping.
Figure 13 shows ?vIodcl UH-1 calculated tail boom
lateral bending-torsion mode damping versus airspeed
for several values of pitch-flap coupling. For this machine wli~chhas S3 = +3S0, no problem is indicated
within the possible flight regime. It is apparent that
one solution to tail wagging is to rcduce the pitch-flap
coupling or to use unconventional, negativc S3. Another
solution is to reduce tlie amount of structural coupling
by either stiffening tlie tail boom torsionally or by
relocating the tail rotor closer t o the boom neutral axis.
Ncgative Sa appears to be the bcst solutio~isince it
increases the damping of the tail boom modes. Extensive flight testing of tail rotors with negative 8s
has been made to prove its suitability. Flapping and
loads nrcre essentially identical to those of a similar
tail rotor with conventional positive Sa.
Another possible destabilizing source involves the
tail rotor drive train. When tail wag was first encountered it was speculated that it mas caused by
coupling with the drive train. Although tlie theoretical
studies have Shown that this is not the case in this
instance, there is evidence that the drive system does
have an effect on tail wag. For example, on the
UH-1 a tail rotor drive system natural frequency is
nhout 8 Ha which is close to the tail boom natural frcclucncy. I11 hovcr, the tail rotor adds considerable
damping to the tail boom mode due to the change in
inflow caused by the boom bending velocity. 'This can
amount to 3-4% of critical damping (see Fig. 13).
With the drive system frequency close to the bending
mode frequency, the tail rotor will speed up and slow
down slightly in response to torque changes which
accompany a thrust change; this reduces the a~nount
of thrust damping. The net result is a decrease in
the tail wagging stability.
Blade Motion. Bladr motion instability is a possibility if thc lo~vestinplnne natural frequency is lo-

...
VELOCITY

Kn

FIGURE
13. Calculnted UH-I tail-hoom damping vs. speed and
pitch flap conpline.

catccl slightly higher than the flapping natural frequency.O This is primarily a problem with tail rotors
where the inplane mode is located between 1- and
2-per-rev and which use positive SB. Positive S3 causes
an increase in flapping natural frequcncy as a function
of advance ratio. Under the adverse conditions noted
above, a t some forward speecl the flapping and inplane
blade bending frequency will become coincident. This
typc of instability was encountered with an experimental main rotor where the inplane frequency was
about 1.5-per-rev and a S3 = +39" was used. On the
UH-1 tail rotor, a similar iuplane bending-pitch-flap
coupling exists; however, thc blade motion is very
stable. This is the rcsult of the low Lock number of
the UH-1 tail rotor wliich reduces the effect of the
pitch-flap coupling on the flapping natural frequency.
Blade motion instability is eliminated for stiff inplane
rotors by using negative SR, placing the lowest inplane
natural frequency above 2-per-rev, or by reducing the
rotor Lock number.
Flutter and Divergence
As far as is known classical blade flutter involving
flapping and torsion has never been encountered with a
Bell tail rotor. This may be surprising since Bell tail
rotors are not mass balanced and use large values of
pitch-flap coupling. For example: the UH-1 tail rotor
has an effective chordwise center of gravity a t 37.5%
blade chord and its pitch-flap coupling is S3 = +38O.
For a main rotor, this combination of blade center of
gravity and pitch-flap coupling n~ould cause blade
flutter, even with a stiff control system. Study shows
that there are three reasons why the Bell type tail
rotors are less susceptible to flutter. First, tlie systems
l>ossessa very high stiffness of the blade control system

28

BALKE, BENNElT, GARFEY AND LYNN

-4

EFFECTIVE CO

PERCENT M C

P~ouns14. UH-1 rotor flutter and divergence boundaries

which, in part, results from the lack of cyclic pitch;

second, the damping about the pitch change hearing is
quite high; and third, the tail rotor is not as susceptible
to fluttcr or divergence as a main rotor because of its
higher relative mass. The last reason is primary and
will be discussed in more detail below.
Shown in Fig. 148 are calculated flutter and divergence boundaries for the UH-1 tail rotor. These are
for a blade assumed rigid in bending and with all
torsional flexibility concentrated a t the root. Inclusion of blade bending and torsion flexibility in the
calculation causes only a slight reduction in tlie boundary. Damping for the pitch-change bearing was not included in tlie calculations. For comparison, calcnlatcd
flutter and divergence boundaries for the UH-1 main
rotor are shown in Fig. 14b. These boundarie&are also
for a blade rigid in hending and with all torsion concentrated a t the root. For the main rotor, blade bending
has a more significant effect than for the tail rotor;

particularly blade inplane bending, since flutter occurs

first in that mode. For the purposes of this comparison,
main rotor fiutter and divergence calculations were
made on the same basis as those of the tail rotor. It
can be seen that the tail rotor is considerably less
critical from the flutter standpoint than the main
rotor.
The differences between the flutter and divergence
characteristics of the main and tail rotors will be
understood when it is realized that the tail rotor is not
simply a scaled-down main rotor. Requiremeiits imposed by the tail's rotor more severe environment rcsult in blades that are relatively %6 times as stiff, and
consequently much heavier than those of a Machscaled main rotor. This increase in relative inertia is
apparent in the UH-1 tail rotor where the Lock number is about 2, compared to about 5 for the main
rotor. Another significant difference, peculiar to the
UH-I, is the construction methods. For example, the
UH-I, tail rotor has a 0.025 stainless steel abrasion
strip-the same thickness as that of the UH-1 main
rotor. This and the lower aspect ratio of the tail rotor
blade cause its feathering inertia to be much greater
relative to the flapping inertia than that of the main
rotor.
The impact of the tail rotor's heavier construction
on flutter and divergence can he understood by considering the mechanism of blade flapping divergence.
Similar reasoning can also be used to explain the
difference in blade flutter characteristics. Figure 15
illustrates tlie divergence mechanism a t the point of
neutral static stability-when the inertia and damping
forces are zero. As shown, a perturhation increase in
blade lift, AL, will cause the blade to flap upward
through a flapping angle Ap so that the flapping moment from the centrifugal acceleration normal to the
hlade is equal to the aerodynamic flapping moment.
If the section center of gravity is off of the pitchchange axis this centrifugal force normal component
produces a torquc about the pitch-change axis. If tlie
center-of-gmvity is aft of the pitch change axis, this
moment is nose op. If there is control system flexibility,

PITCH

C-E

AXIS

CFP
ZERO FIAPPING REFERENCE

Froun~15. Mechanism

of flapping divergence

ocl.on~n1970

TAIL ROTOR DESIGN PART 11:

an increase in pitch results which causes a further

increasc in flapping. If the control system is too soft,
flapping will diverge.
Divergence is prcvented by two nose-down moments.
One is the control system; the second is the "tennis
racket" effect which, by itself, is capable of preventing
divergence (see Fig. 14 for w,/n = 0 ) . I n Bell tail
rotors the tennis racket moment, which is approximatcly proportional to the blade feathering inertia is
greater thnn that of a scaled main rotor because of the
blade construction. This is reflected in the UH-1 tail
rotor's divergence hounda~y,Fig. 14a, which shows
freedom from divergence for effective center of gravities of ul) to 48% mac, even with zero control system
stiffness ( ~ , / n= 0 ) . For comparison, the UH-1 main
rotor would diverge if the effective center of gravity
were aft of 26.5% mac (Fig. 14b).
Bealing Dan~ping. It was pointed out earlier that
the centrifugal force on most present Bell tail rotors is
carried by a thrust hearing which also acts as a pitch
change hearing. Considerable mechanical pitch damping is generated by this arrangement. Figure 16 shows
the calculated effect of pitch-change bearing damping
on the flutter and divergence boundaries. It is seen
that control system frequency requirements are reduced significantly as t l ~ edamping is incrensctl. CRUtion must be exercised, hon~ever,for bearing damping
cannot he relied on to prevent flutter problems if there
is a large amount of bncklash in the control system.
Pitch-Flap Coupling and Divergence. Bell tail
rotors normally employ pitch-Hap coupling ratios of
-0.7 to -1.0 (a3 = 35' to 45") to rcducc tail rotor
flapping. As noted, the aerodynamic effects of 8%are discussed in Part I. It is well known that conventional
pitch-flap coupling (hlade pitch is reduced when the

STRUCTITRAL

DPNhnIrcs

EFFECTWE CE

29

PERCENI PUD

FIOURE
17. Effcct of pitch-flap eaupliag on UH-1 tnil rulor

flutter characteristics.

blade flaps up) has an adverse effect on flutter. Positive pitch-flap coupling, however, does decrease the
possibility of flapping divergence. Unconventionnl
pitch-flap coupling, or negative S3, has a stabilizing influence on hlade flutter. With negative Sa, some loss of
static stability (divergence) is incurred but this is not a
problem on most rotors. Figure 17 shows the effect of
pitch-flap coupling on the UW-1 tail rotor's flutter and
divergence boundaries. Thc cffect is much less than it
nrould he on a main rotor because of the lrigher re1a t'ive
illass of the tail rotor.
Solne atlditional discussion of the effect of unconventional pitch-flap coupling is in ortler, especially in view
of comments by several authors that it cannot be used
because of the divergence problems.1 This is probably
true in the case of fully articulated main rotors where
the hlade Lock number is very high. For semirigid
rotors, divergence is not a problem because of the lower
Lock numbers. Assumii~ga rigid control system, the
pitch-flap coupling ratio that causes flapping divergence can be determined by setting the flapping natural
frequency equal to zero. The pitch-flap coupling for
flapping divergence is given as
AB/APai

y.rr.c,,,p.

= tan Sn = Wy.

Even though this divergence boundary must be reduced somewhat to provide for secondary effects, this
simple approach shows that relatively large values of
unconventional pitch-Hap coupling may be used on
tail rotors where the Lock number is less than 4.0.
REFERENCES
EPFECTNE CG

PERCENI UAC

P ~ c u n16.
~ Effect of pitch-axie damping on UH-1 tnil rotor
flutter characteristics.

1. Normand, Y., Diverge7~t Vibration BL Helicopter Tail

Rotors, presented nt Inter~iational Antomotive Engineering Congress, Detroit, Mich., 1965.

1
I

30

BALKE, BENNETT, GAFFES *XI)LYSS

JOURNAL OP THE AMERICAN RELICOPTER SOCIETY

2. Myklestad, N. O., Vibration Analysis, McCram-Hill Book

Co., Inc., Nem I'ork, 1944.
3. Bla~~keuship,
B. L., and Harvcy, I<.\I1.,"A Digital Analysis for Helicopter Performal~ccand Rotor Blade Bending Rton~ents," 7, (4) J. America>&Helicopter Society
(Oetobcr 1962).
4. Etkin, Bernard, Dynanlics of Flight, John Wiley aud
Sons, Inc., New York, 1959.
5. Timosheuko, S., Vibration Problems in Engineering, D.
\'a.~~NostrandCompany, Inc., Prinecton, N.J., 1955.
6. Gessoxx., I\. and Myers, G. C., Jr., Aerodynanzics of the
Helicopter, The, The AlacMilliam Co., Nexv I'ork, 1952.
i . Paul, 11'. F., "A Self-Excited Rotor Blade Oscillation a t

High Subsonic Mach Numbers," 14, (1) J . American

Helicopter Society (January 1969).
8. Crimi, P., Theoretical Prediction of the Flow in the
Wake of a Helicopter Rotor, CAL No. BB-1994-S-1,
Cornell Aeronautical Laboratory, Inc., Buffalo, N.Y.,
September 1965.
9. Gatiey, T. M., "The Etieot of Positive Pitch-Flap
Coupling (Negative S3) on Rotor Blade Motion Stability and Flapping," J. Amelican Helicopter Society,
14, (2) (April 1969).
10. Mil, M. L. et al, Helicopte1.s-Calculation and Design
Volume I, Aerodynamics, NASA Technical Translation,
NASA T T F494, September 1967.