Aerospace Vehicle Development Research Articles

Uncertainty Quantification of Artemis I Space Launch System Integrated Aerodynamics Databases

Accurate prediction of integrated aerodynamic forces and moments is a necessary part of aerospace vehicle development. This accuracy can be quantified in the form of an uncertainty model, which makes the prediction more useful within an integrated vehicle design effort. Aerodynamic force and moment databases were constructed for the Artemis I mission of the Space Launch System vehicle. These databases reconcile data from multiple sources to yield unified predictions of how NASA’s most advanced launch vehicle interacts with Earth’s atmosphere as it ascends into orbit. This paper outlines how the uncertainty quantification was performed for these databases to ensure comprehensive and tractable uncertainty source coverage.

Bionic Artificial Self-Recovery Enables Autonomous Health of Machine

This paper explores Engineering self-recoveries theory, which emerged from the research of Bionics to meet the great demand of modern high-risk process manufacturing and the development of aerospace vehicles. Bionics opens a new era in which artefact s learn from natural objects. With the rapid development of the industrial Internet and Artificial intelligence technology, we have gained a deep understanding of the law of fault generation and development, which provides an opportunity for the emergence of Engineering self-recoveries theory. Engineering self-recoveries expands the research field of Cybernetics and Engineering cybernetics, endows machines with the self-recovery mechanism, which is unique to humans and animals, and enables machines to store, supplement and activate self-recovery power to maintain body health. Bionics research on Artificial intelligence has greatly enhanced the function of imitating the human brain, but has ignored the important system and function of humans and animals to maintain their own health—the self-recovery system and self-recovery function. Artificial intelligence imitates the conscious thinking control behaviour of the human brain to realize automation and intellectualization, making machines smarter. Artificial self-recovery can imitate the self-recovery mechanism of human unconscious thinking, and prevent and suppress faults in operation to realize self-recovery, possibly making machines healthier. Artificial self-recovery technology includes self-repair, compensation, self-protection and self-recovery regulation. Engineering self-recoveries is the basis of the autonomous health of machines and even artificial systems, and a new research field of Bionics. This has broad application prospects in engineering.

Recent Progress in 1D Nanostructures Reinforced Carbon/Carbon Composites

AbstractCarbon fiber reinforced carbon matrix (carbon/carbon, C/C) composites have become the promising candidates for high‐temperature thermal structure materials in aerospace fields, owning to a series of excellent structural merits. However, for aculeate or thin‐walled C/C composites, due to the fact that continuous carbon fibers are cut off during the machining process and the amount of residual carbon fibers is limited, carbon matrix cannot be effectively strengthened just by using carbon fibers, resulting in a sharp decline in mechanical performance. Furthermore, the rapid development of aerospace vehicles requires that C/C composites not only have excellent mechanical properties but also possess multifunctional properties. To effectively solve these problems and meet the increasing demands, various 1D nanostructures as nanoreinforcements have been introduced into C/C composites, achieving the great improvement in mechanical and functional properties. In this review, the state‐of‐the‐art research activities regarding different 1D nanoreinforcements applied in C/C composites are systematically summarized. Finally, this review is concluded and the future research prospects are proposed. This review provides the “1D nanoreinforcements” strategy to further improve the properties of C/C composites, which could be widely used for reference by researchers in the fields of different fiber/matrix composites.

Quick Detection of Influential Inputs in Monte Carlo Simulation

Monte Carlo simulation (MCS) has been widely used in the development of aerospace vehicles. The rapid growth of computer power has allowed it to be applied in particular to the evaluation of systems before flight, where its capability of directly evaluating nonlinear systems incorporating various uncertain inputs is a key advantage. To improve a system’s design, it is crucial to detect those uncertain inputs that have a significant influence on unsatisfactory MCS results. This paper presents a new approach for detecting such input parameters quickly. It combines two statistical tests: Kuiper’s test and the test. The advantage of the approach is that it uses only input and output data from MCS simulation evaluations: knowledge of the system model or further simulations are unnecessary. Because its results can be obtained quickly, the method contributes to the efficient development of flight vehicles. The approach also can be applied to MCS results that have a relatively small number of unsatisfactory results, so it is effective not only during the early stages of design where failures are more likely, but also for successive design iterations where failures are fewer.

The Role of Terrestrial and Space Environments in Launch Vehicle Development

Natural (Terrestrial & Space) Environment (NE) phenomena play a significant role in the design and flight of aerospace vehicles and in the integrity of the associated aerospace systems and structures. Natural environmental design criteria guidelines described here are based on measurements and modeling of atmospheric and climatic phenomena relative to various aerospace vehicle development and mission/operational procedures, and for vehicle launch locations. Both the terrestrial environment (0-90 km altitude) and the space environment (Earth orbital altitudes) parameters and their engineering application philosophy are given with emphasis on launch vehicle-affected terrestrial environment elements. This paper also addresses the basis for the NE guidelines presented, the interpretation of the guidelines, and application to the development of launch or space vehicle design requirements. This paper represents the first of three on this subject.

Computational aerodynamics: Advances and challenges

ABSTRACTComputational aerodynamics, which complement more expensive empirical approaches, are critical for developing aerospace vehicles. During the past three decades, computational aerodynamics capability has improved remarkably, following advances in computer hardware and algorithm development. However, most of the fundamental computational capability realised in recent applications is derived from earlier advances, where specific gaps in solution procedures have been addressed only incrementally. The present article presents our view of the state of the art in computational aerodynamics and assessment of the issues that drive future aerodynamics and aerospace vehicle development. Requisite capabilities for perceived future needs are discussed, and associated grand challenge problems are presented.

A physics-based distributed collaborative design process for military aerospace vehicle development and technology assessment

This manuscript presents a design exploration and technology assessment process for military aerospace vehicles. The new process utilises physics-based analyses and a distributed collaborative computational environment to predict vehicle performance which in turn is used in mission level simulations to assess the impact of a given configuration or technology on the combat effectiveness of a system. The new process will be executable within the same time and resource constraints of the traditional process. This enables AFRL technology developers to have a quantifiable and traceable trail of the impact of their technologies on system performance parameters such as weight, lift, and drag into terms that Air Force leadership uses to measure system effectiveness – lethality, survivability, sustainability, and affordability. This leads to well informed decisions concerning technology investment and achievable capabilities.

Functional characteristics of dragonfly wings and its bionic investigation progress

Dragonfly is one of the most excellent nature flyers, and its wings exhibit excellent functional characteristics through the coupling and synergy of morphology, configuration, structure and material. The functional characteristics presented by dragonfly wings provide an biological inspiration for the investigation and development of aerospace vehicles and bionics flapping aerocraft flapping-wing micro air vehicles. In resent years, some progresses have been achieved in the researches on the wings’ geometric structure, material characteristics, flying mechanism and the controlling mode. In this paper, the functional characteristics of the dragonfly wings including flying, self-cleaning, anti-fatigue, vibration elimination and noise reduction are introduced and the effects of their morphology, configuration, structure and material on the functional characteristics are described. Moreover, the current state of the bionic study on the functional characteristics of dragonfly wings is analyzed and its application prospect is depicted.

Updated Terrestrial Environment Guidelines for Aerospace Vehicle Development

NASA recently released extensively revised and updated guidelines and information on terrestrial environments (land, water, and atmosphere). The guidelines are applicable in developing design requirements and specifications for aerospace vehicles, payloads, and associated ground support equipment operating in specific geographic regions.The document, “Terrestrial Environment (Climatic) Criteria Guidelines for Use in Aerospace Vehicle Development, 2008 Revision” (NASA/TM‐2008‐215633), has been updated periodically since its initial publication in 1964. The latest version includes a broad scope of information about the terrestrial environment, though spaceflight systems development and test centers are the primary geographic areas encompassed in the document.

Mass growth in space vehicle and exploration architecture development

Inert or dry mass in aerospace systems has historically grown during aerospace vehicle development because of a number of factors: changing requirements, uncertainty in the performance of the initial technology selection, addition of redundancy, errors in the original design, as well as uncertain masses and loads. In the case of exploration architectures for lunar missions, compounding effects of a multi-staged mission design makes mass-efficient vehicles a necessity for achieving the total delta-V performance required to reach the lunar surface and return to Earth. Current standards and guidelines for mass growth risk mitigation are compared, including the industry and NASA standard methods for risk management and mitigation through the application of mass margin. Historical mass growth trends are analyzed, and average levels of growth are compared to the standard margin allocation levels. Analysis of the available historical data shows that the mean inert mass growth is 28%, and 30% of historical programs experience inert mass growth in excess of the allowable growth and margin recommended level of 32.5%. As an illustrative example of the mass growth of lunar exploration architectures the mass growth sensitivity of the Apollo architecture is calculated. Results show that a kilogram of mass growth on the lunar ascent stage is compounded over 800 times in gross mass.

流体力学 いま何が問われているか 航空宇宙機器の開発と流体力学 いま何が問われているか

流体力学 いま何が問われているか 航空宇宙機器の開発と流体力学 いま何が問われているか

Simulation of Instrumentation-Telemetry Systems for Aerospace Programs

Simulation, or modeling, has become an indispensable tool in aerospace vehicle development, providing essential experimental information in support of analytical work on an economical and timely basis. Simulation techniques, properly implemented and applied, are equally useful for telemetry and instrumentation design and development. This paper describes a Data System Simulator facility designed and constructed to provide factual evidence of data system design approach validity prior to proposal preparation or commitment to hardware construction. Representative uses of the simulator and advantages of data system simulation are discussed.