Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-gxg78 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-27T13:54:02.507Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Performing co-ordinated turns with articulated wing-tips as multi-axis control effectors

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  03 February 2016

P. Bourdin ,
A. Gatto  and
M. I. Friswell
P. Bourdin
Affiliation:
University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
A. Gatto
Affiliation:
Alvin.Gatto@brunel.ac.uk, Brunel University, Uxbridge, UK
M. I. Friswell
Affiliation:
Swansea University, Swansea, UK
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

This paper investigates a novel method for the control of aircraft. The concept consists of articulated split wing-tips, independently actuated and mounted on a baseline flying wing. The general philosophy behind the concept was that adequate control of a flying wing about its three axes could be obtained through local modifications of the dihedral angle at the wing-tips, thus providing an alternative to conventional control effectors such as elevons and drag rudders. Preliminary computations with a vortex lattice model and subsequent wind tunnel tests and Navier-Stokes computations demonstrate the viability of the concept for co-ordinated turns, with individual and/or combined wing-tip deflections producing multi-axis, coupled control moments. The multi-axis nature of the generated moments tends to over-actuate the flight control system, leading to some redundancy, which could be exploited to optimise secondary objective functions such as drag or bending moment.

Type
Research Article
Information
The Aeronautical Journal , Volume 114 , Issue 1151 , January 2010 , pp. 35 - 47
Copyright
Copyright © Royal Aeronautical Society 2010 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

1. Culick, F.E.C., The Wright Brothers: First Aeronautical Engineers and Test Pilots, AIAA J, 41, No 6, June 2003, pp 985–1006.Google Scholar
2. Jha, A.K. and Kudva, J.N.. Morphing aircraft concepts, classifications and challenges, Structures and Materials 2004: Industrial and Commercial Applications of Smart Structures Technologies, Proceedings of SPIE, 5388, pp 213–224.Google Scholar
3. Sanders, B., Eastep, F.E. and Forster, E., Aerodynamic and aeroelastic characteristics of wings with conformal control surfaces for morphing aircraft, J Aircr, January–February 2003, 40, (1), pp 94–99.Google Scholar
4. Hall, J.M., Executive Summary AFTI/F-111 Mission Adaptive Wing, WRDC-TR-89-2083, September 1989.Google Scholar
5. Khot, N.S., Zweber, J.V., Veley, D.E., Oz, H. and Eastep, F. E., Flexible composite wing with internal actuation for roll manoeuvre, J Aircr, July–August 2002, 39, (4), pp 521–527.Google Scholar
6. Natarajan, A., Kapania, R.K. and Inman, D.J., Aeroelastic optimization of adaptive bumps for yaw control, J Aircr, January-February 2004, 41, (1), pp 175–185.Google Scholar
7. Neal, D.A., Good, M.G., Johnston, C.O., Robertshaw, H.H., Mason, W.H. and Inman, D.J., Design and wind-tunnel analysis of a fully adaptive aircraft configuration, AIAA Paper 2004-1727, April 2004.Google Scholar
8. Bae, J.S., Seigler, T.M. and Inman, D.J., Aerodynamic and static aeroelastic characteristics of a variable-span morphing wing, J Aircr, 2005, 42, (2), pp 528–534.Google Scholar
9. Henry, J.J., Blondeau J.E. and Pines, D.J., Stability analysis for UAVs with a variable aspect ratio wing, AIAA Paper 2005-2044, April 2005.Google Scholar
10. Seigler, T.M., Neal, D.A., Bae, J.S. and Inman, D.J., Modelling and flight control of large-scale morphing aircraft, J Aircr, 2007, 44, (4), pp 1077–1087.Google Scholar
11. Campanile, L.F. Lightweight Shape-Adaptable Aerofoils: A New Challenge for an Old Dream, Adaptive Structures: Engineering Applications, Ed by Wagg, D., Bond, I., Weaver, P. and Friswell, M., John Wiley & Sons, Chicester, UK, 2007, pp 89–135.Google Scholar
12. Lu, K. J.and Kota, S., Design of Compliant Mechanisms for Morphing Structural Shapes, J Intelligent Material Systems and Structures, 2003, 14, (6), pp 379–391.Google Scholar
13. Bourdin, P., Gatto, A. and Friswell, M. I., Aircraft control via variable cant-angle winglets, J Aircr, March-April 2008, 45, (2), pp 414–423.Google Scholar
14. Saffman, P.G., Vortex Dynamics, Cambridge University Press, 1992, pp 46–48.Google Scholar
15. Weller, H.G., Tabor, G., Jasak, H. and Fureby, C., A tensorial approach to computational continuum mechanics using object-oriented techniques, Comput Phys, 1998, 12, (6), pp 620–631.Google Scholar
16. Patankar, S.V., Numerical Heat Transfer and Fluid Flow, McGraw-Hill, 1980.Google Scholar
17. Spalart, P.R. and Allmaras, S.R., A one-equation turbulence model for aerodynamic flows, La Recherche Aerospatiale, 1994, 1, pp 5–21.Google Scholar
18. Vassberg, J.C., Dehaan, M.A. and Sclafani, T.J., Grid generation requirements for accurate drag predictions based on OVERFLOW Calculations, AIAA paper 2003-4124, 2003.Google Scholar
19. Mueller, T.J., Aerodynamic measurements at low Reynolds numbers for fixed wing micro-air vehicles, RTO AVT/VKI special course on development and operation of UAVs for military and civil applications, 1999.Google Scholar