On the generation of flight dynamics aerodynamic tables by computational fluid dynamics

An approach for the generation of aerodynamic tables using computational fluid dynamics is discussed. For aircraft flight dynamics, forces and moments are often tabulated in multi-dimensional look-up tables, requiring a large number of calculations to fill the tables. A method to efficiently reduce the number of high-fidelity analyses is reviewed. The method uses a kriging-based surrogate model. Low-fidelity (computationally cheap) estimates are augmented with higher fidelity data. Data fusion combines the two datasets into one single database. The approach can also handle changes in aircraft geometry. Once constructed, the look-up tables can be used in real-time to fly the aircraft through the database. To demonstrate the capabilities of the framework presented, five test cases are considered. These include a transonic cruiser concept design, an unconventional configuration, two passenger jet aircraft, and a jet trainer aircraft. Investigations into the areas of flight handling qualities, stability and control characteristics and manoeuvring aircraft are made. To assess the accuracy of the simulations, numerical results are also compared with wind tunnel and flight test data. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.