Enhancing Yaw Control Authority and Resilience for eVTOL Aircraft through Rotor Canting Configuration

Maximizing yaw control authority is a critical challenge in the design of electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft, as it directly affects stability and maneuverability during hover, transition, and cruise. With distributed electric propulsion at the core of modern eVTOL designs, innovative strategies such as rotor canting offer new avenues to enhance yaw control authority. This study investigates how lateral and longitudinal rotor cant angles can be leveraged to improve yaw control authority in an eight-rotor, lift-plus-cruise eVTOL configuration. By systematically comparing multiple rotor spin configurations and performing sensitivity analyses with incremental cant angles, we establish the relationship between cant geometry and yaw control authority. Our results suggest that orthogonal canting yields superior yaw control authority by effectively maximizing moment generation, thereby enhancing eVTOL resilience in challenging flight conditions.