Dynamic load alleviation in wake vortex encounters

Hesse, H. and Palacios, R. (2016) Dynamic load alleviation in wake vortex encounters. Journal of Guidance, Control, and Dynamics, 39(4), pp. 801-813. (doi: 10.2514/1.G000715)

Abstract

This paper introduces an integrated approach for flexible-aircraft timedomain aeroelastic simulation and controller design suitable for wake encounter situations. The dynamic response of the vehicle, which may be subject to large wing deformations in trimmed flight, is described by a geometrically-nonlinear finite-element model. The aerodynamics are modeled using the unsteady vortex lattice method and include the arbitrary time-domain downwash distributions of a wake encounter. A consistent linearization in the structural degrees of freedom enables the use of balancing methods to reduce the problem size while retaining the nonlinear terms in the rigid-body equations. Numerical studies on a high-altitude, long-endurance aircraft demonstrate the reduced-order modeling approach for load calculations in wake vortex encounters over a large parameter space. Closed-loop results finally explore the potential of combining feedforward/feedback H∞ control and distributed control surfaces to obtain significant load reductions.

• Item Type: Articles
• Additional Information: This work was partially carried while Henrik Hesse was at Imperial College and it is funded by the UK Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council Grant EP/I014683/1 \Nonlinear Flexibility E�ects on Flight Dynamics and Control of Next-Generation Aircraft".
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Hesse, Dr Henrik
• Authors: Hesse, H., and Palacios, R.
• College/School: College of Science and Engineering > School of Engineering > Autonomous Systems and Connectivity
• Journal Name: Journal of Guidance, Control, and Dynamics
• Publisher: American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics
• ISSN: 0731-5090
• ISSN (Online): 1533-3884
• Published Online: 08 January 2016