Flight Stability of an Asymmetric Projectile with Activating Canards

Abstract

Driven by the creation of new smart projectile concepts with maneuver capability, projectile configurations with large aerodynamic asymmetries are becoming more common. Standard linear stability theory for projectiles assumes the projectile is symmetric, both from aerodynamic and mass properties perspectives. The work reported here extends standard projectile linear theory to account for aerodynamic asymmetries caused by actuating canards. Differences between standard linear and extended linear theories reported here are highlighted. To validate the theory, time simulation of the extended linear theory and a fully nonlinear trajectory simulation are made for a representative scenario, with excellent agreement noted. The extended linear-projectile theory offers a tool to address flight stability of projectiles with aerodynamic configuration asymmetries.