Conceptual Design of a 53deg Swept Flying Wing UCAV Configuration

Liersch, Carsten M.; Bishop, G M

doi:10.2514/6.2018-2839

Cited by 14 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 23 publications

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“…The present investigation analyses the effects of the aerodynamic behavior of different alternative yaw control devices on the CCG wing. The boundary conditions of the required effectiveness of the control device result from the flight mechanical requirements acquired in the NATO STO AVT-251 research Task Group by Liersch et al [5]. The summarized flight mechanical requirement for the presented studies is a necessary yawing moment C n of at least 1.5 • 10 −2 with an almost neutral influence on roll and pitch moments.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Control device effectiveness studies of a 53∘ swept flying wing configuration. Experimental, computational, and modeling considerations

Löchert

Huber²,

Ghoreyshi

et al. 2019

Aerospace Science and Technology

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The present investigation covers studies of different control devices on several 53 • swept flying wing configurations without a vertical tail plane. The wings considered share the same planform but differ in their spanwise profile shapes. The planform, developed under the NATO AVT-251 Task Group, is referred to as the MULDICON (or MULtiDIsciplinary CONfiguration). The objectives of this article are twofold: (1) to design yaw control surfaces for the MULDICON wing using an experimental/computational approach and (2) to develop aerodynamic models that rapidly and accurately predict the effectiveness of control surfaces over a wide range of flight conditions. The yaw control surface design (position and size) should provide sufficient yaw moment with almost no contribution in roll and pitch moment. To identify such concepts, a number of preliminary experiments on a generic flying wing configuration have been conducted. Two promising concepts from wind tunnel tests were then numerically examined for being implemented in the MULDICON baseline wing. Concepts with spoilers and a split flap were specifically considered. For medium to high angles of attack, the flow topology of the baseline wing is dominated by a vortical flow field on the upper outer wing. This leads to interactions between vortex and the control device which influences the flow and the attitude of the control device on the upper wing side. Furthermore, this work considers developing aerodynamic models for predicting stability derivatives of several MULDICON designs over a wide range of flight conditions. Aerodynamic loads models are only developed for normal force and pitch moment coefficients, however, the developed approach can easily being extended to include lateral aerodynamic coefficients as well. Quasi-steady models of this work are power series expansions of traditional linear aerodynamic models to capture nonlinear effects. Additionally, the models can estimate static and dynamic stability derivatives and the control surface powers.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Control device effectiveness studies of a 53∘ swept flying wing configuration. Experimental, computational, and modeling considerations

Löchert

Huber²,

Ghoreyshi

et al. 2019

Aerospace Science and Technology

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“…Based on the preliminary lower and upper limits of the takeoff thrust-weight ratio of attacker UCAV and referring to takeoff thrust-weight ratio of X-45/X-47 series, the takeoff thrust-weight ratio of UCAV can be set at not less than 0.30 and preliminary set at 0.4 that is proposed in [8,9].…”

Section: Ucav In Classification Of Combat Aircraftsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Abdulkhamis [1,7] introduced novel equations for component weight estimation in conceptual design phase for a tactical unmanned aerial vehicle with 100 to 500 kg takeoff weight. Carsten M. Liersch et al [8,9] estimated the structural weight of a flying wing UCAV configuration in conceptual design with multi-disciplinary design and performance assessment. Arne Voss et al [10] used a parametric structural model for an UCAV configuration with an optimisation method to achieve the minimum structural weight.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Derivation of structural weight estimation for Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicle (UCAV)

et al. 2021

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Estimation of the structural weight of an Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicle (UCAV) during conceptual design has proven to be a significant challenge mainly due to its unconventional configuration. We investigate development of a customised approach for structural weight estimation of UCAV based on statistical weight of the manned fighter’s components by applying minor modifications on weight formulations of fuselage, wing, empennage, power plant and landing gear. The modifications are applied by considering the corresponding differences between manned fighters and UCAVs such as manned requirements and mission variances. Some new empirical formulas for estimating the weight of UCAV’s components are proposed. Results for the empty weight estimation are validated against actual values of some well-known UCAVs. Moreover, the structural weight is validated against the benchmark UCAV case studies. The results show that the ratio of structural to takeoff weight for UCAVs is approximately between 20% to 10%. Finally, a generalised equation is developed for estimating the structural weight of UCAVs in conceptual design phase.

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“…The following sections briefly discuss the various design requirements; Table 1 provides a quick overview of the most important aspects. Some further details and thoughts behind the design requirements are published by Liersch and Bishop [8].…”

Section: Muldicon Design Requirementsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The other three are a typical Super Critical airfoil, a symmetric NACA-64A-010 and a cambered NACA-65A-410 airfoil. Besides the Baseline, the other airfoils are adapted with a CST [45] approach to apply a constant leading edge curvature radius of r = 1 mm, related to a normalized chord length of 1 m. 8 The aim of this investigation is to provide a less complex topology in comparison to the SACCON leading edge contour distribution to get rid of the discontinuity in the pitching moment gradient which occurs for SACCON at higher angles of attack, as described amongst others by Schütte et al [14].…”

Section: Airfoil Studiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Design studies and multi-disciplinary assessment of agile and highly swept flying wing configurations

Liersch¹,

Schütte²,

Siggel

et al. 2020

CEAS Aeronaut J

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This article belongs to a series of publications on the design and assessment of the MULDICON UCAV configuration. MULDICON is a 53° swept flying wing combat aircraft concept, investigated in a common effort between the DLR research project Mephisto and the NATO STO Research Task Group AVT-251. This article focuses on the development of the overall concept starting from its predecessor, the SACCON configuration, and the requirements which had been defined for the MULDICON design task. A second focus is placed on the investigation of the vortex-dominated flow topology arising around such a configuration and its sensitivity to specific geometric changes. Furthermore, the article briefly introduces the DLR conceptual aircraft design system and the extensions which have been developed for improving its capabilities for UCAV assessment. Finally, an industrial view on the MULDICON design task is provided, as well as a conclusion of the Mephisto results and an outlook upon further work.

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Conceptual Design of a 53deg Swept Flying Wing UCAV Configuration

Cited by 14 publications

References 23 publications

Control device effectiveness studies of a 53∘ swept flying wing configuration. Experimental, computational, and modeling considerations

Control device effectiveness studies of a 53∘ swept flying wing configuration. Experimental, computational, and modeling considerations

Derivation of structural weight estimation for Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicle (UCAV)

Design studies and multi-disciplinary assessment of agile and highly swept flying wing configurations

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