Eli5: what are the benefits of a normal helicopter design vs a quadcopter we see on drones?
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Helicopters with a single rotor will tend to spin on their axis because of the momentum of the rotor, so a tail rotor is required to counter that force and keep them flying straight.
Quad rotors don’t have this problem because the rotors spin in opposite directions and cancel each other out. This makes them far more stable.
So why do drones use this configuration but helicopters don’t?
Cost mostly, having 4 rotors and the associated engines would make a full sized helicopter far too expensive to build an maintain as well as adding a lot of weight. It just isn’t a practical design.
While in a drone it’s more practical because the tiny electrical engines are very light, cheap and provide more than enough power for those rotors. This also makes them easier to fly for amateur pilots.
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