Unsteady Maneuvering of Carrier-Based Aircraft Using Aerodynamic Flow Control

 

Figure 1. Schematic of the pressure distribution around an airfoil (in gray) with active bleed flow control.

Conventional flight control systems are limited by the servomechanical response time of the control surface which can pose a significant demand on the pilot in adverse circumstances. The current investigation aims to use active bleed to enable considerably faster response times without a devoted powered air source in a scalable and low-observable fashion. The bleed is driven through the aerodynamic surfaces by inherent pressure differences in flight (e.g., between and across the pressure and suction surfaces of the wing) (Figures 1 and 2), and is regulated by low power, surface-integrated louver valves. Experiments will be conducted on a 2-DOF traverse integrated with an open-return wind tunnel (Figure 3). The traverse enables characterization of open-loop aerodynamic response to flow control actuation and demonstrations of commanded, closed-loop control (e.g., trajectory tracking and disturbance rejection).

 

Figure 2. Model of 2D Clark-Y airfoil integrated with bleed ports.

 

Figure 3. 2-DOF Traverse.

 

Supported by ONR