Computational Aeroelasticity of Flying Robots with Flexible Wings

SERGIO PREIDIKMAN; BRUNO A. ROCCIA; MARCOS VERSTRAETE; MARCELO VALDEZ; DEAN T. MOOK; BALAKUMAR BALACHANDRAN

Aerial Robots

INTECH

Año: 2017; p. 3 - 30

A computational co-simulation framework for flying robots with flexible wings is presented. The authors combine a non-linear aerodynamic model based on an extended version of the unsteady vortex-lattice method with a non-linear structural model based on a segregated formulation of Lagrange?s equations obtained with the Floating Frame of Reference formalism. The structural model construction allows for hybrid combinations of different models typically used with multi-body systems, such as models based on rigid-body dynamics, assumed-modes techniques, and finite-element methods. The aerodynamic model includes a simulation of leading-edge separation for large angles of attack. The governing differential-algebraic equations are solved simultaneously and interactively to obtain the structural response and the flow in the time domain. The integration is based on the fourth-order predictor-corrector method of Hamming with a procedure to stabilize the iteration. The findings are found to capture known non-linear behavior of flapping wing systems. The developed framework should be relevant for conducting aeroelastic studies on a wide variety of air vehicle systems.