Hybrid Electroactive Wings Morphing for Aeronautic Applications

Abstract

As part of the RTRA funded EMMAV (Electroactive Morphing for Micro-Airvehicles) research program electroactive materials were studied as well as their applications as actuators for morphing wings. The aim of this research program is to study both the actuation with large displacements at low frequencies as well as low displacement, high frequency actuation. The large displacement actuation, which targets primarily the flight control, is achievable using Shape Memory Alloys (SMA) while high frequency; low displacement actuation can be achieved using piezoelectric actuators [. This high frequency actuation is especially interesting for improving the aeroelastic coupling effect inducing both noise and drag. This paper describes the construction of a prototype incorporating piezoelectric and SMA based actuation mechanisms. Furthermore, a cooling mechanism for SMAs is described aiming at improving the cycle time of the actuator. The developed prototype is to be evaluated during wind-tunnel experiments showing the influence of the actuation on the fluid.