Patent attributes
A ducted fan UAV that can be collapsed into a stowed configuration and then deployed for flight by, for example, inflating the duct to a deployed configuration. The UAV includes a plurality of rotor blades, a plurality of struts and a plurality of control vanes each being pivotally mounted to a center body by a hinge so that the rotor blades, the struts and the control vanes can be folded into the stowed configuration to be substantially parallel to the center body and be unfolded into the deployed configuration to be substantially perpendicular to the center body. The UAV also includes a pressurization system providing a pressurant to a chamber within the duct so as to inflate the duct and cause the struts, the rotor blades and the control vanes to move from the stowed configuration to the deployed configuration.
