The tiltrotor blades, or proprotor, act as a rotor in the helicopter mode and a propeller in the airplane mode. The helicopter mode generally requires relatively a low built-in twist angle, whereas in the airplane mode, a high built-in twist is desired. Meeting these rather conflicting requirements make the tiltrotor design a challenging task. This paper explores an optimal design of a variable-twist proprotor that changes the built-in twiusing the shape memory alloy hybrid composite (SMAHC). The optimum design problem attempts to find the cross-section internal layout that maximizes the twist actuation of the variable-twist proprotor while satisfying a series of design constraints. An optimum design framework is constructed in the current work by combining various analysis and design tools, in an adaptive manner by such as an active composite cross-sectional analysis, a nonlinear flexible multibody dynamics analysis, a 3-D strain analysis, and a gradient-based optimizer. The MATLAB is used to integrate and synthesize the individual tools. A static tip twist is chosen as an objective function that should be maximized for the best performance. The optimum results exhibit that the twist actuation of the variable-twist proprotor can be maximized while satisfying all the prescribed design constraints.
Optimal design of a variable-twist proprotor incorporating shape memory alloy hybrid composites
Optimaler Entwurf eines Proprotors mit variabler Drehung unter Verwendung von Formgedächtnis-Hybridkomposits
Composite Structures ; 93 , 9 ; 2288-2298
2011
11 Seiten, 19 Bilder, 5 Tabellen, 24 Quellen
Article (Journal)
English
Application of Shape Memory Alloy Hybrid Composites for Variable-Twist Proprotors
British Library Conference Proceedings | 2010
|NTRS | 1977
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