Advanced Composite Vibration Damping Mount for Enhanced UAV Payload Stability: A Comprehensive Review

Abstract

Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are now widely used in military, commercial, agricultural, and surveillance applications, where payload stability is critical to mission success. However, UAV structures remain highly susceptible to vibrations from the propulsion system, aerodynamic disturbances, and structural dynamics, which degrade sensitive payloads such as cameras, LiDAR sensors, and communication equipment through image distortion, sensor inaccuracy, and reduced reliability. Conventional isolation methods, such as rubber mounts, spring-damper systems, and tuned mass dampers, are simple and inexpensive but offer only narrow operating bandwidths, added weight, and limited adaptability. This review examines advanced composite materials, including fiber-reinforced polymers, viscoelastic sandwich composites, hybrid composites, and smart materials such as piezoelectric elements and shape memory alloys, as more effective alternatives. Their damping mechanisms (fiber–matrix friction, matrix viscoelasticity, and constrained-layer damping) enable broadband vibration suppression with minimal weight penalty, offering better frequency coverage, fatigue resistance, and payload protection than conventional isolators. Key challenges remain in material optimization, structural integration, environmental durability, and manufacturing scalability. Future research directions include multifunctional smart composites, machine-learning-assisted design, self-sensing and self-healing materials, and full-scale UAV validation.