UAE Innovation Challenge 2012
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UAE Innovation Challenge 2012 Soaring to New Heights Student Competition Curriculum Configuration Selection Once the team has read and understood the competition rules they must select the aircraft configuration that is best suited for the required mission. Teams are to select a configuration from each of the options below or they may choose to have a combination of the options. Additional configuration options that are not listed here will be allowed with mentor approval. Basic Aircraft Configuration Wing, Body and Tail Flying Wing Canard Biplane Conventional Wing, Body, and Tail This is the most common aircraft design. It is easy to control and a more stable configuration. It will generally have more predictable flying qualities. Having a fuselage (body) will allow more volume for carrying flight equipment and avionics than a flying wing configuration. On the downside this configuration requires 3 basic aircraft components (wing, body, and tail) and thus more construction compared to a flying wing for example. Having a fuselage is generally more weight as it is aircraft structure that is not producing lift. Flying Wing Aerodynamically this is the most efficient design. Virtually 100% of the aircraft structure is producing lift. The flying wing will require the least amount of construction. Only one aircraft component needs to be built – the wing! Flying Wings, however, are more difficult to build stable. They allow less CG (center of gravity travel) to allow for a stable aircraft. They may be more difficult to control and less maneuverable than a conventional wing, body, and tail aircraft. Canard This is similar to the conventional wing, body, and tail aircraft with the exception being having the tail in the front. The benefit with having the tail in front of the wing is that the tail can be producing lift in same direction (up) as the wing allowing more aerodynamic efficiency. The downside is that the canard configuration is more difficult to attain pitch stability. The canard in the front can also result in turbulent air hitting the wing resulting in aerodynamic inefficiencies. Biplane Biplanes were more common during the early days of aviation. They allow more wing area for a shorter wingspan. The advantage here is from a structure standpoint, the wing can be stronger because of less wingspan. Some modern aerobatic airplanes are also biplanes because it is possible to have more maneuverability. But, generally a biplane will be more weight and drag. It will also add complexity and construction time of having to build 2 wings. Wing Placement Low Wing The low wing configuration allows for ease of construction. Here you are able to build one continuous wing piece and simply place the fuselage on top of the wing. However, having the wing low might cause some lateral instability. The low wing might also result in a slight pitching moment with power setting due to the engine thrust line being off center to the wing mass. Mid Wing The mid wing configuration allows for the engine thrust line to be centered with the wing mass allowing there to be very little pitching moment with power setting. The wing in the middle of the fuselage will generally allow for a slightly more laterally neutral stable airplane. This configuration may require more elaborate construction techniques in order for the wing to bisect the fuselage. Either a 2 piece wing must be built and attach to the fuselage sides, or a hole must be made in the fuselage for the wing to pass through. High Wing Similar to the low wing configuration, the high wing allows for the simple construction of one continuous wing. The high wing also offers a more lateral stability than the other wing positions. Also similar to the low wing configuration, the high wing might result in a slight pitching moment with power setting. Wing Planform Elliptical Wing The elliptical wing is aerodynamically the most efficient shape for a wing. It minimizes induced drag. But, this is also the most difficult wing shape to manufacture. It also will likely result in a heavier wing in order to get the proper curvature. Rectangular Wing The rectangular wing is the easiest and fastest wing to manufacture and usually will be the lightest. This shape may also be the least aerodynamically efficient wing. Tapered Wing This is a step up in efficiency from the rectangular wing but not quite as efficient as the elliptical wing. It is relatively easy to manufacture. The tapered wing will be slightly more time to manufacture than a simple rectangular wing because of the different wing cross sections needed along the wingspan. Pointed Tip Wing The pointed wing tip planform allows for a more elliptical lift distribution and lower induced drag. It is easier to build than an elliptical wing but more difficult than a tapered or square wing. The wing tips may be difficult to make properly. However, the pointed wing tip planform is prone to tip stall – a condition where the wing tips stall before the roots do. This may result in the aircraft going into a spin. Sweepback Wing A sweptback wing will result in lateral stability. It can also help move the aerodynamic center after if it is needed for proper balancing of the aircraft. At very high speeds (supersonic), wing sweep allows for less drag. Sweptback wings are also more work to build and more care must be taken to find the aerodynamic center which is critical to balancing the airplane. Tail Design Conventional For most aircraft designs the conventional tail will usually provide adequate stability and control at the lightest weight. 70% or more aircraft in service have this tail arrangement because it is simple and it works well. T-Tail The T-tail will be heavier than the conventional tail because the vertical tail must be strengthened to support the horizontal tail. However, with the T-tail you can have a smaller vertical tail because of the end plate effect that the horizontal tail provides. It also allows the horizontal tail to be lifted out of the wing wake and prop wash making it more effective and, thus, allowing it to be smaller. Cruciform The cruciform tail is a compromise between the conventional tail and the T-Tail. It has slightly less weight penalty than the T-tail but will not provide the same end plate effect the T-tail does. H-Tail The H-Tail allows the vertical tails to be out of the wake of the fuselage during high angles of attack. This is especially an advantage when the airplane has a large wide fuselage. The 2 vertical tails also give an endplate effect for the horizontal tail, allowing it to be smaller. The H-tail is, however, heavier than the conventional tail because the horizontal tail must be made stronger to support the loads of the vertical tails. V-Tail The V-tail can reduce wetted area, or surface area exposed to air. This may reduce parasitic drag (skin friction drag). With only 2 tail surfaces there is less interference drag as well. It will also speed build time by making less tail surfaces and possibly less weight. The V-tail, however, does add complexity to aircraft control because a coupling must be set up between the rudders and elevators to create ruddervators. Y-Tail Similar to the V-tail, the Y-tail gives less interference drag. The vertical tail is used for yaw control and the other 2 surfaces are used for pitch control only. This reduces the complexity of needing ruddervators. With this arrangement the 2 angled tails can also be placed outside of the wing’s wake. The Y-tail could, however, create a problem with the vertical tail striking the ground. Twin Vertical Tail The twin vertical tails allow more rudder effectiveness at high angles of attack by keeping the tails outside of the fuselage wake. It also reduces tail height but may also be heaver. It will make controls more complex by the need to control 2 rudders instead of just one. Boom Mounted Boom mounted tails allow for a pusher engine to be mountain on the aircraft centerline. The need for two booms will likely be a heavier arrangement but could still be advantageous due to the engine location. Engine Placement Fuselage Tractor The fuselage tractor is the most common propeller airplane engine placement. Usually, the engine in the front will be most desirable for properly balancing the airplane and allowing the shortest forebody. This gives smaller tail area and more stability. Fuselage Pusher The pusher configuration can reduce skin friction drag by allowing the aircraft to fly in undisturbed air. With the tractor configuration the aircraft flies in the turbulence from the propeller wake. However, this configuration may cause the propeller to lose efficiency because it is working in the disturbed air from the fuselage. It may also be more difficult to properly balance a pusher mounted engine requiring extra ballast to be placed in the front of the aircraft. Wing Mounted Wing mounted engines is the ideal configuration for more than one engine. With the wing mounted on the fuselage the wing structural weight is reduced. Fuselage drag is also reduced by removing the fuselage from the propeller wake. Pod Mounted and Tail Mounted These configurations tend to be ideal for seaplanes or for airplanes without landing gear (skids). This allows more clearance from the ground. With these configurations there may also be an undesirable pitching moment with power setting due to the thrust line being far off from the center of mass. The tail mounted configuration may also be heavy because of the additional tail structure needed to support the engine loads.