Coupled Flexible and Flight Dynamics Modeling and Simulation of a Full-Wing Solar-Powered Unmanned Aerial Vehicle

Guo, An; Zhou, Zhou; Zhu, Xiaoping; Zhao, Xin

doi:10.1007/s10846-021-01343-z

Cited by 5 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 18 publications

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“…Helios aerial disintegration Zephyr S wing breakage Aquila landing crash In the structural and flight dynamic modeling of solarpowered UAVs, multirigid body, flexible beam, and finite element models have different advantages, and the flexible beam theory is widely used for its ability to take into account the dynamic characteristics and computational cost, and the representatives are displacement formulation [20], intrinsic formulation [21][22][23], or strain formulation [24][25][26]. Voß et al [27] used an intrinsic beam model to analyze the challenges of flight envelope boundaries on structural safety and presented the changing weight of aeroelastic analysis in the design of solar-powered UAVs.…”

Section: Helios Zephyr S Aquilamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Increasing airspeed is beneficial to flight stability and control, but the increased aerodynamic forces cause deformation of the lightweight UAV. Multiple flights of the fullwing solar-powered UAV show that the wing is prone to deformation under wind interference, and the deformation amplitude increases with airspeed, while the fuselage and vertical stability surfaces are almost unaffected [25]. The 6-DOF rigid-body model is unable to consider the deformation and needs to be extended.…”

Section: Multirigid-body Dynamic Modeling and Airspeed Sensitivity An...mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Comparative Study and Airspeed Sensitivity Analysis of Full-Wing Solar-Powered UAVs Using Rigid-Body, Multibody, and Rigid-Flexible Combo Models

Guo,

Mu,

Zhou

et al. 2024

International Journal of Aerospace Engineering

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Solar-powered UAVs are characterized by large-scale, lightweight, and low airspeed, and changes in airspeed lead to wing deformation or stalling, which can easily induce serious flight accidents. A single dynamic model cannot accurately describe this feature, and this airspeed sensitivity can only be analyzed by integrating rigid-body, multirigid-body, and rigid-flexible combo models. This paper proposes a dynamic analysis method for a mixture of rigid-body, multirigid-body, and rigid-flexible combo models, considering the applicable airspeed ranges, computational costs, and structural deformation assumptions of the three models and comparing the differences of modes and responses at different airspeeds, and quantitatively analyzes the effects of airspeed on the motion, deformation, and coupling. The results show that appropriate increase of airspeed is beneficial to the stability of large-scale lightweight platforms, but when it is increased to more than two times the cruise speed, the structural deformation is coupled with the flight dynamic modes, leading to the deterioration of the overall dynamic response. Finally, a mixture of the three models at different airspeeds is proposed, which is necessary for future ultralarge-scale solar-powered UAVs.

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Section: Helios Zephyr S Aquilamentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Multirigid-body Dynamic Modeling and Airspeed Sensitivity An...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Comparative Study and Airspeed Sensitivity Analysis of Full-Wing Solar-Powered UAVs Using Rigid-Body, Multibody, and Rigid-Flexible Combo Models

Guo,

Mu,

Zhou

et al. 2024

International Journal of Aerospace Engineering

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“…The scenario was based on the Northwestern Polytechnical University's "MY" fullwing solar-powered UAV [7,40]. The simplified wing is shown in Figure 1a.…”

Section: Quasi-steady Analytical Modelmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Moreover, it can save time and costs for some special UAVs to reach the designated airspace and improve safety in their approach. For example, a near-space solar-powered UAV [6][7][8] requires a lot of time and energy to climb to its cruising altitude, and it always encounters safety problems caused by atmospheric turbulence in the climb process. If air-drop launch technology is adopted, the problems associated with near-space solar-powered UAV takeoff sites can be effectively solved, flight safety can be improved, and limited energy can be used for the mission flight rather than for climbing.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Investigation of the Free-Fall Dynamic Behavior of a Rectangular Wing with Variable Center of Mass Location and Variable Moment of Inertia

et al. 2023

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In recent years, the air-drop launch technology of near-space UAVs has attracted much attention. Between downfall from the carrier and the flight control system’s initiation, the UAV presents free-fall movement. This free-fall process is very important for the control effect of the flight control system and is also crucial for the safety of the UAV and the carrier. Focus is required on two important dynamic parameters of the UAV: the moment of inertia and the center of mass position. In this paper, we used a quasi-steady model proposed by predecessors to address the flat-plate falling problem with modifications to describe the freely falling motion of the wing. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) were used to simulate the free-fall movement of the wing with various parameters, and the wing release behavior was analyzed to check the quasi-steady model. Research shows that the movement characteristics of the falling wing are mostly reflected in the longitudinal plane, and the developed quasi-steady analytical model can more accurately describe the dynamic behavior of free-fall to some extent. By using CFD methods, we further investigated the aerodynamic performance of the free-fall wing. The results show that the wing mainly presents tumbling and fluttering motion. Changing the moment of inertia around the tumbling axis changes the tumbling frequency and the time point as the wing enters tumbling. In contrast, changing the position of the center of mass significantly changes the form of falling and makes the free-fall motion more complex. Therefore, it is necessary to carefully configure the center of mass in the UAV design process.

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Stability control of a fixed full-wing layout UAV under manipulation constraints

Sun

Zhou

Zhu

2022

Aerospace Science and Technology

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Coupled Flexible and Flight Dynamics Modeling and Simulation of a Full-Wing Solar-Powered Unmanned Aerial Vehicle

Cited by 5 publications

References 18 publications

Comparative Study and Airspeed Sensitivity Analysis of Full-Wing Solar-Powered UAVs Using Rigid-Body, Multibody, and Rigid-Flexible Combo Models

Comparative Study and Airspeed Sensitivity Analysis of Full-Wing Solar-Powered UAVs Using Rigid-Body, Multibody, and Rigid-Flexible Combo Models

Investigation of the Free-Fall Dynamic Behavior of a Rectangular Wing with Variable Center of Mass Location and Variable Moment of Inertia

Stability control of a fixed full-wing layout UAV under manipulation constraints

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