Wing Angle Of Attack Research Articles

MVD and LWC prediction in icing environment based on genetic algorithm optimized neural network

Mean volumetric diameter (MVD) and liquid water content (LWC) are two important meteorological parameters that affect aircraft icing, but they are difficult to measure accurately in practice. If these two parameters can be obtained in real time and accurately, it can provide some guidance for ice accumulation prediction and the establishment of aircraft airworthiness certification standards. This paper proposes a prediction model for icing meteorological parameters based on genetic algorithm optimized neural network. With ice thickness and icing rate of different measurement point combinations, ambient temperature, flight speed and wing angle of attack as input parameters, and icing meteorological parameters MVD and LWC as output parameters, the genetic algorithm optimized icing meteorological parameter prediction model is constructed, and the prediction model is used to predict the icing meteorological parameters of the numerical calculation test group data and the icing wind tunnel experimental data. The results show that the prediction model based on genetic algorithm optimized Elman neural network predicts the icing meteorological parameters of the test group within the relative error of the test group 10%, and the relative error of the experimental data is within the relative error of the experimental data 20%. This method has certain feasibility.

Aerodynamic interactions between distributed propellers and the wing of an electric commuter aircraft at cruise conditions

Beneficial interactions that occur between propellers and the wing can be used to increase the overall efficiency of an aircraft in cruise flight. Different concepts with such interacting propellers are distributed propulsion (DP) and wingtip mounted propellers (WTP). For DP, a full distribution over the entire span can be distinguished from a partial distribution, concentrating the propellers at the wing tip area. The paper focuses on the energy efficiency in cruise flight as a result of the interactions and provides a general comparison of the concepts (WTP, full and partial DP) with a Beechcraft 1900D commuter aircraft as a reference. Parametric CFD studies varying the number and the position of the propellers are performed with a half-wing model. The simulations are performed with the second-order finite-volume flow solver TAU, developed by the German Aerospace Center (DLR), employing Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS) equations. The propellers are modeled using an Actuator Disk (ACD). An algorithm is used to reach cruise condition by iteratively adjusting the propeller rotational speed and the wing angle of attack. The CFD results are analyzed and evaluated with respect to the overall efficiency including the aerodynamic efficiency of the wing as well as the propulsive efficiency of the propellers. The parameter study shows that in cruise flight partial DP is more efficient than a full DP. The pure WTP configuration was found as the optimum of the propeller distribution along the wing, resulting in a saving of required power of 5.6%\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$5.6\\%$$\\end{document}, relative to the reference configuration.

Interaction of quasi-two-dimensional vortical gusts with airfoils, unswept and swept wings

A nearly two-dimensional vortex of small core size has been produced by the transient plunging motion of an upstream airfoil and it interacted with the downstream wings. Depending on the offset distance of the vortex and wing angle of attack, the incident vortex filament deforms, diffuses, and loses coherence, while inducing leading-edge vortex formation and shedding from the wing. No significant spanwise flow develops in the incident vortices during the interaction. The interaction with the swept wing at each spanwise plane appears to be unaffected by the other spanwise planes. The counter-clockwise vortex induces a positive lift peak as it approaches the wing, which can be predicted by the potential flow assumption. The peak lift force is proportional to the circulation of the incident vortex and has its maximum near the zero-offset distance. The minimum lift coefficient is reached after the vortex has just passed and caused flow separation on the lower surface. The maximum lift coefficients for the finite unswept and swept wings can be estimated by making a correction for the aspect ratio and using the independence principle. The only exception is observed for the swept wing at a post-stall angle of attack for which the leading-edge vortex shedding becomes parallel to the leading-edge and increases the peak lift force.Graphical abstract

Effects of canard oscillations on the unsteady flowfield over the wing in supersonic flow

Few studies have been devoted to effects of canard oscillations on the flowfield over the wing in supersonic flow and the associated time lags. In this article, an in-depth experimental study on a closely coupled canard-wing-body configuration in supersonic flow has been undertaken to mark the zone of influence of the oscillatory canard on the wing. Surface pressure measurements have been performed on the wing downstream of canard in both static and oscillatory cases at various wing angles of attack and canard deflection angles as well as the canard oscillation amplitudes and frequencies. The results show that the upwash and downwash flowfields due to an oscillatory canard periodically change the effective angle of attack seen by the wing and have different effects on various regions. In supersonic flow, the pressure rise due to the oblique shock waves causes the primary flow separation and the vortex break down onsets to occur at higher angles of attack, comparing to those in the lower speed regimes. According to the results, the mid-span region on the wing, which is directly in the shadow of the oscillating canard, receives more disturbances. During upstroke, the canard induces a downwash field to the front half of the wing, while in downstroke motion, the front regions of the wing experience upwash flow, giving rise to the effective angle of attack seen by the wing. Among various oscillation parameters, the pitching amplitude was observed to have a strong impact on the time lag in flowfield over the wing.

Lift and power in fruitflies in vertically-ascending flight

We measured the wing kinematics of fruitflies in both vertically-ascending and hovering flights and studied the aerodynamic forces and power in the two flight modes. The average ascending velocity is 0.45 m s−1; the stroke plane angle and the stroke frequency are the same as that in hovering flight, whilst the stroke amplitude is increased by 12% and the wing angle of attack in the latter half of a down- and upstroke both increased by 10%. Flow analysis shows that during ascending, the flies experience a downward inflow which reduces the effective angle of attack considerably. This problem is overcome by the increases in the stroke amplitude and the angle of attack, which result in a larger wing drag. As a result, the power at ascending is increased by 36% over that at hovering. Two very interesting observations were made. (1) Using the same power, level-forward flight can be about four times as fast as ascending flight. (2) Power for ascending flight is the same as that for carrying a load about 27% of the insect’s weight at hovering.

Aircraft wing design at low speeds using Taguchi method

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to determine the impact level of parameters affecting wing design at low speeds using Taguchi method.Design/methodology/approachUsing brain storming approach airfoil shape, wing angle of attack and Reynolds number are determined as important wing design parameters. Most important parameters over these parameters are determined using Taguchi method. The lift-to-drag ratio (CL/CD ratio) is chosen as the performance criterion and L8 orthogonal index is chosen as experimental study scheme for this study.FindingsExperimental results are examined using Taguchi method. After making experiments and also analyses, Reynolds number is found as the most important and identifier parameter for aircraft wing design.Practical implicationsTaguchi method makes the experimental design for experimental studies. This method reduces the number of experiments substantially using orthogonal indices while keeping effects of uncontrolled parameters to a minimum. Reduction in number of experiments helps save time and also cost.Originality/valueIn this study, with less number of experiments, the most important parameter for aircraft wing design is determined. Moreover, with less number of experiments, not only is time saved but the design stage is also made faster.

Numerical investigation into the effects of stroke trajectory on the aerodynamic performance of insect hovering flight

Various stroke trajectories may be observed in insect hovering flight in nature; however their influences on the flight performance of insect are not well estimated. In this study, a numerical investigation into the effects of stroke trajectories on the aerodynamic performance of insect hovering flight is carried out through the solution of the two-dimensional unsteady incompressible Navier-Stokes equations. An insect wing model with ellipse cross section in hovering flight is considered for the purpose and four types of idealized trajectories (Named linear, oval, figure-eight and double-eight) which possess different deviation characteristics from the stroke plane are examined. The influences of the deviation amplitude of trajectory, the attack angle of wing and the inclined angle of stroke plane on the aerodynamic characteristics of hovering wing are systematically analyzed. The results show that in the case of the wing in a normal hovering flight where the stroke plane is horizontal, the trajectory deviation from the stroke plane weakens the aerodynamic performance for each trajectory case considered, and this deteriorative effect becomes more serious as the amplitude of deviation increases. With regard to the influence of the angle of attack, the results show that the time-averaged drag force and power consumption increase monotonically with the angle, whereas the time-averaged lift force and the lifting efficiency increase first and then decrease as the angle increases further. In the case of a hovering flight with an inclined stroke plane, distinctly different trends from a normal hovering flight are obtained.

Experimental Investigation of a Wing-in-Ground Effect Craft

The aerodynamic characteristics of the wing-in-ground effect (WIG) craft model that has a noble configuration of a compound wing was experimentally investigated and Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) wind tunnel with and without endplates. Lift and drag forces, pitching moment coefficients, and the centre of pressure were measured with respect to the ground clearance and the wing angle of attack. The ground effect and the existence of the endplates increase the wing lift-to-drag ratio at low ground clearance. The results of this research work show new proposed design of the WIG craft with compound wing and endplates, which can clearly increase the aerodynamic efficiency without compromising the longitudinal stability. The use of WIG craft is representing an ambitious technology that will help in reducing time, effort, and money of the conventional marine transportation in the future.

Modeling a supersonic flowfield in the core of the wingtip vortex at Mach 6

In this paper numerical calculations of a wingtip vortex for various wing angles of attack are presented, and the resulting flow modes are compared with each other and with the experimental data. Numerical computations were performed at the Keldysh Institute of Applied Mathematics, making use of the Spalart-Allmaras turbulence model. Experiments were carried out at the Institute of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics, Siberian Branch (SB), Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS), Khristianovich, Russia.

Wing kinematics measurement and aerodynamics of free-flight maneuvers in drone-flies

The time courses of wing and body kinematics of two free-flying drone-flies, as they performed saccades, were measured using 3D high-speed video, and the morphological parameters of the wings and body of the insects were also measured. The measured wing kinematics was used in a Navier–Stokes solver to compute the aerodynamic forces and moments acting on the insects. The main results are as following. (1) The turn is mainly a 90° change of heading. It is made in about 10 wingbeats (about 55 ms). It is of interest to note that the number of wingbeats taken to make the turn is approximately the same as and the turning time is only a little different from that of fruitflies measured recently by the same approach, even if the weight of the droneflies is more than 100 times larger than that of the fruitflies. The long axis of body is about 40° from the horizontal during the maneuver. (2) Although the body rotation is mainly about a vertical axis, a relatively large moment around the yaw axis (axis perpendicular to the long axis of body), called as yaw moment, is mainly needed for the turn, because moment of inertial of the body about the yaw axis is much larger than that about the long axis. (3) The yaw moment is mainly produced by changes in wing angles of attack: in a right turn, for example, the dronefly lets its right wing to have a rather large angle of attack in the downstroke (generally larger than 50°) and a small one in the upstroke to start the turn, and lets its left wing to do so to stop the turn, unlike the fruitflies who generate the yaw moment mainly by changes in the stroke plane and stroke amplitude.

Automated hull reconstruction motion tracking (HRMT) applied to sideways maneuvers of free-flying insects

Flying insects perform aerial maneuvers through slight manipulations of their wing motions. Because such manipulations in wing kinematics are subtle, a reliable method is needed to properly discern consistent kinematic strategies used by the insect from inconsistent variations and measurement error. Here, we introduce a novel automated method that accurately extracts full, 3D body and wing kinematics from high-resolution films of free-flying insects. This method combines visual hull reconstruction, principal components analysis, and geometric information about the insect to recover time series data of positions and orientations. The technique has small, well-characterized errors of under 3 pixels for positions and 5 deg. for orientations. To show its utility, we apply this motion tracking to the flight of fruit flies, Drosophila melanogaster. We find that fruit flies generate sideways forces during some maneuvers and that strong lateral acceleration is associated with differences between the left and right wing angles of attack. Remarkably, this asymmetry can be induced by simply altering the relative timing of flips between the right and left wings, and we observe that fruit flies employ timing differences as high as 10% of a wing beat period while accelerating sideways at 40% g.

Experimental investigation into wing span and angle-of-attack effects on sub-scale race car wing/wheel interaction aerodynamics

This paper details a quantitative 3D investigation using LDA into the interaction aerodynamics on a sub-scale open wheel race car inverted front wing and wheel. Of primary importance to this study was the influence of changing wing angle of attack and span on the resulting near-field and far-field flow characteristics. Results obtained showed that both variables do have a significant influence on the resultant flow-field, particularly on wing vortex and wheel wake development and propagation.

Control of flight forces and moments by flapping wings of model bumblebee

The control of flight forces and moments by flapping wings of a model bumblebee is studied using the method of computational fluid dynamics. Hovering flight is taken as the reference flight: Wing kinematic parameters are varied with respect to their values at hovering flight. Moments about (and forces along) x, y, z axes that pass the center of mass are computed. Changing stroke amplitude (or wingbeat frequency) mainly produces a vertical force. Changing mean stroke angle mainly produces a pitch moment. Changing wing angle of attack, when down-and upstrokes have equal change, mainly produces a vertical force, while when down-and upstrokes have opposite changes, mainly produces a horizontal force and a pitch moment. Changing wing rotation timing, when dorsal and ventral rotations have the same timing, mainly produces a vertical force, while when dorsal and ventral rotations have opposite timings, mainly produces a pitch moment and a horizontal force. Changing rotation duration has very small effect on forces and moments. Anti-symmetrically changing stroke amplitude (or wingbeat frequency) of the contralateral wings mainly produces a roll moment. Anti-symmetrically changing angles of attack of the contralateral wings, when down-and upstrokes have equal change, mainly produces a roll moment, while when down-and upstrokes have opposite changes, mainly produces a yaw moment. Anti-symmetrically changing wing rotation timing of the contralateral wings, when dorsal and ventral rotations have the same timing, mainly produces a roll moment and a side force, while when dorsal and ventral rotations have opposite timings, mainly produces a yaw moment. Vertical force and moments about the three axes can be separately controlled by separate kinematic variables. A very fast rotation can be achieved with moderate changes in wing kinematics.

Design of a parallel crank-rocker flapping mechanism for insect-inspired micro air vehicles

In the current paper, a novel micro air vehicle (MAV) flapping mechanism for replicating insect wing kinematics is presented. Insects flap their wings in a complex motion that enables them to generate several unsteady aerodynamic mechanisms, which are extremely beneficial for lift production. A flapping wing MAV that can reproduce these aerodynamic mechanisms in a controlled manner is likely to outperform alternative flight platforms such as rotary wing MAVs. A biomimetic design approach was undertaken to develop a novel flapping mechanism, the parallel crank-rocker (PCR). Unlike several existing flapping mechanisms (which are compared using an original classification method), the PCR mechanism has an integrated flapping and pitching output motion which is not constrained. This allows the wing angle of attack, a key kinematic parameter, to be adjusted and enables the MAV to enact manoeuvres and have flight stability. Testing of a near-MAV scale PCR prototype using a high-speed camera showed that the flapping angle and adjustable angle of attack both closely matched predicted values, proving the mechanism can replicate insect wing kinematics. A mean lift force of 3.35 g was measured with the prototype in a hovering orientation and flapping at 7.15 Hz.

Dragonfly flight: free-flight and tethered flow visualizations reveal a diverse array of unsteady lift-generating mechanisms, controlled primarilyviaangle of attack

Here we show, by qualitative free- and tethered-flight flow visualization, that dragonflies fly by using unsteady aerodynamic mechanisms to generate high-lift, leading-edge vortices. In normal free flight, dragonflies use counterstroking kinematics, with a leading-edge vortex (LEV) on the forewing downstroke, attached flow on the forewing upstroke, and attached flow on the hindwing throughout. Accelerating dragonflies switch to in-phase wing-beats with highly separated downstroke flows, with a single LEV attached across both the fore- and hindwings. We use smoke visualizations to distinguish between the three simplest local analytical solutions of the Navier-Stokes equations yielding flow separation resulting in a LEV. The LEV is an open U-shaped separation, continuous across the thorax, running parallel to the wing leading edge and inflecting at the tips to form wingtip vortices. Air spirals in to a free-slip critical point over the centreline as the LEV grows. Spanwise flow is not a dominant feature of the flow field--spanwise flows sometimes run from wingtip to centreline, or vice versa--depending on the degree of sideslip. LEV formation always coincides with rapid increases in angle of attack, and the smoke visualizations clearly show the formation of LEVs whenever a rapid increase in angle of attack occurs. There is no discrete starting vortex. Instead, a shear layer forms behind the trailing edge whenever the wing is at a non-zero angle of attack, and rolls up, under Kelvin-Helmholtz instability, into a series of transverse vortices with circulation of opposite sign to the circulation around the wing and LEV. The flow fields produced by dragonflies differ qualitatively from those published for mechanical models of dragonflies, fruitflies and hawkmoths, which preclude natural wing interactions. However, controlled parametric experiments show that, provided the Strouhal number is appropriate and the natural interaction between left and right wings can occur, even a simple plunging plate can reproduce the detailed features of the flow seen in dragonflies. In our models, and in dragonflies, it appears that stability of the LEV is achieved by a general mechanism whereby flapping kinematics are configured so that a LEV would be expected to form naturally over the wing and remain attached for the duration of the stroke. However, the actual formation and shedding of the LEV is controlled by wing angle of attack, which dragonflies can vary through both extremes, from zero up to a range that leads to immediate flow separation at any time during a wing stroke.

Modeling and Analysis of Active Flap Using Coiled Bender Piezoelectric Actuators

The applicability and effectiveness of three novel piezoelectric coiled bender actuators to deflect a plain trailing edge flap on a straight wing in the presence of incompressible flow airloads is investigated in this paper through analytical modeling. This work builds upon previous research in which the three actuator configurations, the linear spiral type, the helicoidal type, and the hybrid type, have been proposed and analytically modeled, and the first two configurations have been experimentally validated. A simple analytical model for the piezoelectrically actuated flap is developed and used for this investigation. Results show that the use of coiled piezoelectric actuators for flap deflection is an effective approach. The variation of flap deflection angles with applied actuation voltage and wing angle of attack is also shown, together with performance envelopes.

FLIGHT OF THE VIRTUAL BEE

Insects make fluid dynamic studies extremely difficult. They're small;they'll rarely fly steadily in a wind tunnel; and they tend to flap their wings extremely quickly. A three quarter milligram fruit fly, for example, can flap its 2mm long wings 250 times per second, making observing the air motion around the wings nearly impossible. To examine the flow, some researchers have painstakingly built scaledup models, but others, like Sun Mao of the Beijing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, dream of simulating an insect entirely within a computer. The necessary physics has been known for more than 150 years, but only recently have computers been able to solve these equations for something as complex as an insect.Computational fluid dynamicists like Sun Mao dream of using simulations to ask questions that would be difficult or impossible to answer experimentally. For example, how is a fruit fly different from a bumble bee? Just run the simulation twice and compare the results. How much power do insects use moving their wings, and how much do they use pushing the air around? Just turn off the simulated air, and let the computer do the rest. In his paper with Du Gang in Acta Mechanica Sinica, Sun Mao is beginning to achieve this dream of going where experimentalists dare not tread.The researchers simulated eight different insects, from 0.7 mg fruit flies up to 1.6 g hawkmoths. Sun and Du were interested in how the different animals produce forces and how they modulate the power used to move their wings. Some insects, they thought, might save power by storing energy elastically in some type of spring and using that energy to accelerate the wings, rather than relying on muscular power alone. To create the virtual insects, they took morphological and kinematic data from previous studies, but they couldn't find much information on each insect's wing angle of attack – the angle between a wing and the oncoming flow. Because this angle strongly affects the lift force supporting the insect, they simulated various angles of attack and took the minimum angle necessary to support each animal.Sun and Du confirmed that, despite the 1500-fold weight difference, all the insects produce high lift forces using a mechanism called `delayed stall, 'observed experimentally with model insects. Interestingly, the different insects use different amounts of energy to do it. Large insects have a large inertial power, meaning that the difficult issue is accelerating and decelerating their wings. Because the wings' inertia is their primary problem,they could benefit substantially by storing energy elastically. In contrast,small insects have a small inertial power but large aerodynamic power, meaning that they can easily accelerate their wings, but have trouble with air resistance, and therefore wouldn't gain much from elastic energy storage.These results aren't too surprising, but they would have been extremely difficult to show experimentally. They also make an interesting prediction:that large insects can benefit from elastic energy storage. More importantly,they demonstrate some of the promise of computational fluid dynamic simulations.

Flow field measurements of leading-edge separation vortex formed on a delta wing with vortex flaps

Wind tunnel tests are carried out using a 70 · delta wing model with leading-edge vortex flaps. The structure of the leading-edge separation vortex over the leading-edge vortex flap is measured by use of a 5 holes pitot probe, surface pressure measurement technique and oil flow visualization technique. Separation vortices formed on a plain delta wing, on a vortex flap and inboard the vortex flap hinge line are clearly visualized. Results indicate that the flow around the vortex flaps is classified into several different cross flow patterns. The streamwise flap deflection angle is defined to discuss the vortex flap performance. The optimum lift to drag ratio is attained when the amount of the wing angle of attack is not far different from that of the streamwise flap deflection angle, as long as the vortex flap is deflected modestly.

Measurement of transonic dips in the flutter boundaries of a supercritical wing in a wind tunnel

Flutter experiments were performed on a supercritical transport type wing to investigate the transonic dip in the flutter boundaries and to obtain data for verification of a calculation method for unsteady aerodynamic loads Complete transonic dips were measured at three wing angles of attack At the highest wing angle of at tack, a second dip was found Simultaneously, the mean pressure distribution was measured in one chordwise section which could explain the flutter characteristics. Using a flutter damper device, flutter onset could be measured accurately and rapidly This paper deals with the experimental test setup, describes the on line data reduction, and presents the results.

Performance characteristics of a model VTOL lift fan in crossflow.

This paper presents a summary of principal results obtained from crossflow tests of a model 15-in.-diam lift fan installed in a wing in the NASA Lewis Research Center, 9 by 15 ft V/STOL Propulsion Wind Tunnel. Tests were run with and without exit louvers over a range of tunnel air speeds, fan speeds, and wing angle of attack. Fan thrust in crossflow was influenced by two principal factors: the effects of inflow distortion on blade-row performance, and changes in fan stage operating point brought about by changes in back pressure ratio. In this particular fan, flow separation on the inlet bellmouth did not appear to be a serious problem for crossflow operation.