Design of a Morphing Actuated Aileron with Chiral Composite Internal Structure

The paper presents the development of numerical models referred to a morphing actuated aileron. The structural solution adopted is based on an internal structure consisting of a composite chiral honeycomb that sustains a flexible skin with an adequate combination of flexural stiffness and in-plane compliance. Such structural frame is exploited to investigate the potential of different actuation concepts, based on diffused and discrete actuators installed in the skin or in the skin/core connection. An aeroelastic condensed model of the aileron is developed and applied to carry out sensitivity studies and optimization processes, after the definition of a performance index that quantifies the actuation work and makes possible a comparison with a rigid rotating aileron. The results show that very interesting configurations can be obtained and that the morphing system can exploit the fluid-structure interaction in order to reduce the actuation energy and to attain considerable variations in the lift coefficient of the airfoil.

publications download View | Download
Categories: Reference