An Experimental Testing of an UAV Composite Wing Structure

Abstract

The wing of an UAV plays an important role in the vehicle behavior. In order to understand its main influences, a dedicated test rig was designed and realized to load the composite wing in the bending configuration. This study describes the details of a numerical and an experimental investigation done with the aim to identify the stiffness characteristics ofa composite wing structure of an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV). The wing was divided into discrete span-wise stations. Wooden bolted clamps were placed along the upper and lower surfaces of the wing at each station, to support the applied load and the displacement transducers. The wing was suspended and secured horizontally (at the wingfuselageconnection base) in a rigid test stand in an orientation similar to the familiar cantilever beam. A single weight was applied individually, at each station to stress the wing in elastic yield, as in real conditions. Displacement transducers were installed to measure the vertical displacements of the entire wing, and monitor any motion of the overall airframe. During the measurement procedures (loading and unloading) were conducted on the specified stations, and repeated 10 times, the mean value of the measurements was obtained. A detailed numerical model of the composite wing was developed using of the finite element method in order to reproduce the experimental experiences. Numerical and experimentalresults were compared to validate the model of the composite wing. All the obtained parameters are mainly being used in a development process of UAV behavior.