Abstract: Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs） are widely used in power line inspection tasks due to their ef‍ficiency and flexibility. However, noise remains a critical challenge that needs to be addressed. This study employs beamforming technology to perform noise source localization and validate the noise reduction performance of a low-noise toroidal structure propeller. Through noise spectrum analysis and a virtual rotating array beamforming algorithm based on a microphone array, the noise of the toroidal propeller is compared with that of three other common propellers. Experimental results show that the toroidal propeller exhibits significant noise reduction in both broadband and tonal noise. Beamforming analysis further reveals that the primary noise source of common propellers originates from tips, while the toroidal design effectively mitigates tip noise, achieving noise reduction.

Key words: UAVs rotor noise, low-noise propeller, sound source localization