The Aircraft Morphing Program at NASA Langley Research Center explores opportunities to improve airframe designs with smart technologies. Two elements of this basic research program are multidisciplinary design optimization (MDO) and advanced flow control. This paper describes examples where MDO techniques such as sensitivity analysis, automatic differentiation, and genetic algorithms contribute to the design of novel control systems. In the test case, the design and use of distributed shapechange devices to provide low-rate maneuvering capability for a tailless aircraft is considered. The ability of MDO to add value to control system development is illustrated using results from several years of research funded by the Aircraft Morphing Program.
Multidisciplinary Techniques and Novel Aircraft Control Systems
2000
14 pages
Report
Keine Angabe
Englisch
Aircraft , Control systems design , Multidisciplinary design optimization , Aircraft control , Aircraft configurations , Computational fluid dynamics , Airframes , NASA programs , Maneuverability , Differintation , Tailless aircraft , Sensitivity analysis , Aircraft maneuvers , Genetic algorithms , Trailing edges , Leading edges , Control equipment , Automatic differentiation