This paper describes analysis results of vibration characteristics and modal test for a small-scale quad-rotor drone. The rotor arm has a slender body with a propeller and motor at its tip. Rotor system generates excitation for an unbalanced mass. Therefore, the drone platform is involved in the possibility of resonance. For advance identification of the possibility of resonance, confirmation of eigen-mode being closest to the propeller operation range is necessary. Material properties of CFRP tubes used for the rotor arm were acquired by finding the natural frequency based on Rayleigh method. A simplified quad-rotor FE model consisting of rotor arm assembly with tip mass was built to perform numerical analysis, and a free-free boundary condition was applied to provide flight status. Modal tests for the actual platform with impact hammer instrument were performed to verify analysis results. Separation margin from hazardous eigen-mode was checked on the propeller operation range.
