Green Aerotechnics Research Institute Gatri

Gatri
Green Aerotechnics Research Institute of CQJTU
Chongqing, Yuzhong District, China
www.gatri.cn

China's Ministry of Communications and the Ministry of Science and Technology has set a goal in the research and development of electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) and hybrid-electric flying cars, swarm technology, long-endurance drones and more. Therefore, the Green Aerotechnics Research Institute of CQJTU was formed in December 2019 by the Chongqing Jiaotong University (CQJTU) in Chongqing, China. The research institute is also called the Green Aviation Institute.

Green Aerotechnics Research Institute objectives are to develop and drive eVTOL technological innovation, find optimal vehicle materials, aircraft/car design and construction, recruiting researchers and engineers, develop training programs, computer simulation, comprehensive prototype testing and promote the exchange of information between educational institutions and the military.

Develop breakthroughs in industrial manufacturing processes including new battery technologies, advanced composites, additive manufacturing, lightweight alloy metals, innovation in battery technology, intelligent manufacturing technologies and rapid manufacturing.

The institute intends to make roadable eVTOL vehicles that are light weight, high-strength materials, heavy load capability, long flight range, low cost and have a  high degree of safety. The Institute of Materials Manufacturing will develop lightweight, high-strength, low-cost design and manufacturing integration technology for aircraft components and green energy power.

The Gatri is a two passenger autonomous eVTOL car allowing passengers to drive on the road or fly through the air. The ground vehicle looks like a small compact car with the only difference is there is a set of eight propellers and a battery module housing on the top of the roof of the car.

In the car mode, the propellers are rotated and folded. The size of the car with the propeller assembly folded is about the size of a mini-bus or small van allowing normal travel on roads and in parking garages. In flight mode, the propeller flight assembly is rotated and unfolded and only the cabin is lifted off the chassis of the car allowing the passengers to take off vertically for flight. When the passengers want to drive on the road again, they will need to fly back to the car chassis and reattach the cabin to the car.

While no specifications for the Gatri have been released by the institute, the researchers continue to promote long range eVTOL aircraft. This might be why the lower propeller housing is somewhat high and not very streamlined because of the amount of batteries needed to supply power to the propellers for long range flight.

According to the sub-scale model and computer graphic of the Gatri, there is a top set of four propellers and a bottom set of four propellers. The top set of four propellers will swivel on the propeller housing until the propellers are equally spaced apart to lift the cabin part of the aircraft.

The institute has made computer modeling of the aircraft as well as making a sub-scale model of the Gatri. On May 19, 2022, the institute announced it will make its first vertical takeoff and landing flying car this year. The institute continues to suggest that rapid manufacturing is a very important part of the manufacturing process indicating that what ever organization, company or military plans to manufacture this eVTOL aircraft/vehicle, they hope to sell a lot of them.

Specifications:

• Aircraft type: eVTOL flying car (aircraft and road vehicle)
• Piloting: Autonomous
• Capacity: 2 passengers
• Cruise speed: Unknown
• Range: Unknown
• Flight Time: Unknown
• Propellers: 8 propellers
• Electric Motors: 8 electric motors (for VTOL flight), possibly 2 electric motors for ground travel
• Power source: Batteries or hybrid-electric
• Fuselage: Carbon fiber composite
• Windows: Panoramic wrap around windows allowing forward, left, right and top visibility, for spectacular views -  with a solid roof above the passenger compartment
• Windows: The windows resemble those of car
• Landing gear: Four road tires
• Safety features: Distributed Electric Propulsion (DEP), provides safety through redundancy for its passengers and/or cargo. DEP means having multiple propellers (or ducted fans) and motors on the aircraft so if one or more propellers (ducted fans) or motors fail, the other working propellers (or ducted fans) and motors can safely land the aircraft. There are also redundancies in the sub-systems of the aircraft.

Resources:

• Green Aerotechnics Research Institute of CQJTU website
• Chongqing Jiaotong University website