Cross-Domain Intelligent Flight Vehicle Design

A special issue of Aerospace (ISSN 2226-4310). This special issue belongs to the section "Aeronautics".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 October 2023) | Viewed by 4964

Special Issue Editors

School of Aerospace Engineering, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing, China
Interests: conceptual design of cross-domain flight vehicle; intelligent structure design; mechanical analysis of structure under multi-field coupling
School of Aerospace Engineering, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing, China
Interests: flight vehicle system design; multidisciplinary design optimization; metamodel based design and optimization
Unmanned System Research Institute, Northwestern Polytechnical University, 127 West Youyi Road, Beilin District, Xi'an 710072, China
Interests: cross-domain cluster; cross-domain vehicle

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

With the deepening of human exploration into space, air, land, and sea, novel vehicles which can cross multiple domains have become a research hotspot. In order to realize repeated cross flight between air and ocean, air and space, air and land, a variety of new technologies need to be considered in the design of cross-domain flight vehicles, such as smart morphing structure, unsteady aerodynamic design, cross-domain collaborative control, and so on. Although various individual technologies have been developed in different publications, it is still difficult to apply these technologies to the systematic design of cross-domain flight vehicles. The variable environment of space, air, land, ocean, and other domains crossed by these vehicles should be taken into account at the same time to achieve optimal performance in different regions. This Special Issue is targeting current fundamental research efforts related to cross-domain flight vehicles in a broad range of topics of emerging aerospace applications.

Manuscripts are sought which describe experimental, computational, and/or theoretical research related to the design of cross-domain flight vehicles with a focus on fundamental studies. Publications related to a specific application are relevant to this Special Issue’s scope as well. Submissions may also include ongoing project reports and studies addressing problems in other fields, such as propulsion, energy, or the environment. Topics include but are not limited to: 

  • Design of aero-space cross-domain vehicles;
  • Design of aero-water cross-domain vehicles;
  • Design of aero-land cross-domain vehicles;
  • Flight vehicle system design and optimization;
  • Multidisciplinary design optimization;
  • Smart morphing structural design;
  • Cross-domain unsteady aerodynamic design;
  • Intelligent cooperative control;
  • Ground test facilities and flight experiments.

Dr. Junhui Meng
Dr. Renhe Shi
Dr. Wenjun Ding
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Aerospace is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Published Papers (4 papers)

Order results
Result details
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

16 pages, 1251 KiB  
Article
Autonomous Shape Decision Making of Morphing Aircraft with Improved Reinforcement Learning
by Weilai Jiang, Chenghong Zheng, Delong Hou, Kangsheng Wu and Yaonan Wang
Aerospace 2024, 11(1), 74; https://doi.org/10.3390/aerospace11010074 - 12 Jan 2024
Viewed by 745
Abstract
The autonomous shape decision-making problem of a morphing aircraft (MA) with a variable wingspan and sweep angle is studied in this paper. Considering the continuity of state space and action space, a more practical autonomous decision-making algorithm framework of MA is designed based [...] Read more.
The autonomous shape decision-making problem of a morphing aircraft (MA) with a variable wingspan and sweep angle is studied in this paper. Considering the continuity of state space and action space, a more practical autonomous decision-making algorithm framework of MA is designed based on the deep deterministic policy gradient (DDPG) algorithm. Furthermore, the DDPG with a task classifier (DDPGwTC) algorithm is proposed in combination with the long short-term memory (LSTM) network to improve the convergence speed of the algorithm. The simulation results show that the shape decision-making algorithm based on the DDPGwTC enables MA to adopt the optimal morphing strategy in different task environments with higher autonomy and environmental adaptability, which verifies the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Cross-Domain Intelligent Flight Vehicle Design)
Show Figures

Figure 1

0 pages, 9113 KiB  
Article
Analysis of Catapult-Assisted Takeoff of Carrier-Based Aircraft Based on Finite Element Method and Multibody Dynamics Coupling Method
by Haoyuan Shao, Daochun Li, Zi Kan, Shiwei Zhao, Jinwu Xiang and Chunsheng Wang
Aerospace 2023, 10(12), 1005; https://doi.org/10.3390/aerospace10121005 - 29 Nov 2023
Viewed by 1043
Abstract
Catapult-assisted takeoff is the initiation of flight missions for carrier-based aircrafts. Ensuring the safety of aircrafts during catapult-assisted takeoff requires a thorough analysis of their motion characteristics. In this paper, a rigid–flexible coupling model using the Finite Element Method and Multibody Dynamics (FEM-MBD) [...] Read more.
Catapult-assisted takeoff is the initiation of flight missions for carrier-based aircrafts. Ensuring the safety of aircrafts during catapult-assisted takeoff requires a thorough analysis of their motion characteristics. In this paper, a rigid–flexible coupling model using the Finite Element Method and Multibody Dynamics (FEM-MBD) approach is developed to simulate the aircraft catapult process. This model encompasses the aircraft frame, landing gear, carrier deck, and catapult launch system. Firstly, reasonable assumptions were made for the dynamic modeling of catapult-assisted takeoff. An enhanced plasticity algorithm that includes transverse shear effects was employed to simulate the tensioning and release processes of the holdback system. Additionally, the forces applied by the launch bar and holdback bar, nonlinear aerodynamics loads, shock absorbers, and tires were introduced. Finally, a comparative analysis was conducted to assess the influence of different launch bar angles and holdback bar fracture stain on the aircraft’s attitude and landing gear dynamics during the catapult process. The proposed rigid–flexible coupling dynamics model enables an effective analysis of the dynamic behavior throughout the entire catapult process, including both the holdback bar tensioning and release, takeoff taxing, and extension of the nose landing gear phases. The results show that higher launch bar angle increase the load and extension of the nose landing gear and cause pronounced fluctuations in the aircraft’s pitch attitude. Additionally, the holdback bar fracture strain has a significant impact on the pitch angle during the first second of the aircraft catapult process, with greater holdback bar fracture strain resulting in larger pitch angle variations. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Cross-Domain Intelligent Flight Vehicle Design)
Show Figures

Figure 1

19 pages, 10648 KiB  
Article
Fluid–Structure Coupling and Aerodynamic Performance of a Multi-Dimensional Morphing Wing with Flexible Metastructure Skin
by Hui Yang, Songcheng Jiang, Yan Wang and Hong Xiao
Aerospace 2023, 10(8), 678; https://doi.org/10.3390/aerospace10080678 - 30 Jul 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 977
Abstract
A multi-dimensional morphing wing skeleton mechanism is proposed with double-sided triangular pyramid units, which can realize continuous variable span-wise bend, span-wise twist, and sweep. A lockable morphing unit is designed, and its mechanism/structure characteristics, degree of freedom, and the deformable function of its [...] Read more.
A multi-dimensional morphing wing skeleton mechanism is proposed with double-sided triangular pyramid units, which can realize continuous variable span-wise bend, span-wise twist, and sweep. A lockable morphing unit is designed, and its mechanism/structure characteristics, degree of freedom, and the deformable function of its deformable wing skeleton mechanism are analyzed. One kind of flexible skin is proposed to meet the performance requirements, consisting of an internal metastructure and a flexible surface bonded on both sides. The morphing wing skeleton mechanism and the equivalent treated metastructure flexible skin are then combined. Subsequently, a two-way fluid–structure interaction analysis is conducted to investigate the influence of aerodynamic loads on the flexible skin and skeleton mechanism in different deformation states, including the influence of structural passive deformation on the aerodynamic characteristics of the morphing wing. The computational fluid dynamics method is employed to analyze the aerodynamic characteristics of the morphing wing in its initial state, as well as in three deformation states, and to study its aerodynamic performance in different flight environments. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Cross-Domain Intelligent Flight Vehicle Design)
Show Figures

Figure 1

23 pages, 8261 KiB  
Article
Integrated Aircraft Design System Based on Generative Modelling
by Wojciech Skarka, Rafał Nalepa and Robert Musik
Aerospace 2023, 10(8), 677; https://doi.org/10.3390/aerospace10080677 - 29 Jul 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1511
Abstract
This article presents the effects of work performed during a software project for generative models and spreadsheets, allowing the quick creation of conceptual models for aircraft. The presented software at the current stage is suitable for the creation of glider representation; however, a [...] Read more.
This article presents the effects of work performed during a software project for generative models and spreadsheets, allowing the quick creation of conceptual models for aircraft. The presented software at the current stage is suitable for the creation of glider representation; however, a modular structure allows for developing and extrapolating the presented application to match the requirements of planes and UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) design. The subject of this work is a response to the current trends and needs prevailing in the field of CAD (computer-aided design) and aviation. In the initial sections of this paper, theoretical issues related to the work being carried out are introduced, and the methodology for creating software for the construction and verification of the aircraft structure along with the need for interchange between databases of generative models is presented. In the following sections, the concepts and selected solutions for the user interface that supports the knowledge base are presented along with a set of procedures for its operation. Furthermore, a method for database integration with the methods used to determine design features for the developed generative models and the Siemens NX system is introduced. Problems encountered during software development, as well as solution examples for model applications, are specified. The results obtained and the models generated on their basis were tested with a strength analysis using Autodesk Inventor software and analysed in terms of meeting the initial assumptions. In the end, conclusions and observations were formulated resulting from the effects of the work performed during the project. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Cross-Domain Intelligent Flight Vehicle Design)
Show Figures

Figure 1

Back to TopTop