Design and Validation of a New Morphing Camber System by Testing in the Price—Païdoussis Subsonic Wind Tunnel

Abstract

This paper presents the design and wind tunnel testing of a morphing camber system and an estimation of performances on an unmanned aerial vehicle. The morphing camber system is a combination of two subsystems: the morphing trailing edge and the morphing leading edge. Results of the present study show that the aerodynamics effects of the two subsystems are combined, without interfering with each other on the wing. The morphing camber system acts only on the lift coefficient at a 0° angle of attack when morphing the trailing edge, and only on the stall angle when morphing the leading edge. The behavior of the aerodynamics performances from the MTE and the MLE should allow individual control of the morphing camber trailing and leading edges. The estimation of the performances of the morphing camber on an unmanned aerial vehicle indicates that the morphing of the camber allows a drag reduction. This result is due to the smaller angle of attack needed for an unmanned aerial vehicle equipped with the morphing camber system than an unmanned aerial vehicle equipped with classical aileron. In the case study, the morphing camber system was found to allow a reduction of the drag when the lift coefficient was higher than 0.48.

Wing component allocation for a morphing variable span of tapered wing using finite element method and topology optimisation – application to the UAS-S4

“…A variable-span morphing wing was designed using the telescopic mechanism concept. Both segments of the morphing variable span of the tapered wing were designed based on a NACA 4412 aerofoil shape (29) . The wing was divided into two sections, as shown in Fig.…”

Aerodynamic Design Optimization of a Morphing Leading Edge and Trailing Edge Airfoil–Application on the UAS-S45

“…Various solutions have been implemented by the aviation industry, including smart material technology, laminar flow technology, air traffic management technologies, advanced propulsion techniques and sustainable fuels [2][3][4]. Morphing wing technology is one of the technologies showing high potential in decreasing aircraft fuel consumption [5][6][7][8]. Even though there is no settled definition for "morphing", this term is borrowed in Aviation Technology from avian flight to describe the ability to modify maneuvers at certain flight characteristics in order to obtain the best possible performance.…”

“…This type of application requires morphing structures capable of adapting to changing flight conditions. Morphing systems include several wing shape modifications, span or sweep changes, changes in twist or dihedral angle [9] and variations of the airfoil camber [7] or of the thickness distribution [4]. In the design phase, both military and civilian aircraft traditionally fly at a single or few optimum flight conditions; morphing, however, is envisioned to increase the number of optimum operational points for a given aircraft [5].…”

A Review on Applications and Effects of Morphing Wing Technology on UAVs

“…Communier et. al., [26], studied a design and validation for a new morphing camber system. The project included both design phase and the testing process of the final aerodynamic shape on wind tunnel.…”