Abstract
For a reusable space vehicle or a missile, the shape of the nose cone has a significant effect on the drag of the vehicle. In this paper, the concept of morphing nose cone is proposed to reduce the drag when the reentry vehicle flies back into the atmosphere. The conceptual design of the structure of morphing nose cone is conducted. Mechanical design and optimization approach are developed by employing genetic algorithm to find the optimal geometric parameters of the morphing structure. An example is analyzed by using the proposed method. The results show that optimal solution supplies the minimum position error. The concept of morphing nose cone will provide a novel way for the drag reduction of reentry vehicle. The proposed method could be practically used for the design and optimization of the deployable structure of morphing nose cone.
Highlights
For a reusable space vehicle or a missile, the nose cone is ejected in the upper parts of the atmosphere
Deepak et al [1] described a unique process of shape optimization for drag reduction for the nose cone of hypersonic flight experiments
This paper proposed the concept of morphing nose cone to reduce the drag when the re-entry vehicle flies back into the atmosphere
Summary
For a reusable space vehicle or a missile, the nose cone is ejected in the upper parts of the atmosphere. Ahmed and Qin [11] compared the spike and aerodisk with the unspiked nose cone and researched a mechanism to explain the drag reduction and the cause of flow instability based on the shape of an effective body. NASA had started the Aircraft Morphing Program to develop and mature smart component technologies for advanced airframe systems that can be embedded in aircraft structures and provide cost effective system benefits [17]. During these years, a hot issue of morphing technology is morphing wing for which numerous studies have been carried out. The method for design and optimization of the morphing nose cone is summarized in the last section
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
