Servo & Trim Tabs
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This page is devoted to Trim Systems, or more precisely Servo, Anti- Servo & Trim Tabs Note : This is not the " Reflexing of trailing edges" discussion page. It is a close cousin, but for a full discussion on why these silly trim tabs actually work, you need to click < h ere > That will take you to the Reflexing discussion page. Please take the time to read this alternate page. it contains the " why " that this page's " how" assumes you already know. What is a Servo tab? The classic definition goes something like this: A servo tab is a small portion of a flight control surface that deploys in such a way that it helps to move the entire flight control surface in the direction that the pilot wishes it to go. it is power steering for control surfaces. A servo tab is a dynamic device that deploys to decrease the pilots work load and de- stabilize the aircraft. What is a Anti- Servo tab? The classic definition goes something like this: An anti- servo tab is small portion of a flight control surface that deploys in such a way that it works to oppose the motion of the entire flight control surface from the direction that the pilot wishes it to go. That is to say, an anti- servo tab is a dynamic device that deploys to increase the pilots work load and stabilize the aircraft. Note that the servo tab makes a pilots work load go down (and makes the aircraft less stable) while the anti- servo tab makes the pilots work load go up and stabilizes the aircraft. A servo assisted control surface system is at best a trade off. To get a high amount of lift from the elevator, you must send it down into the air stream. To get it down into the air stream, you must overcome the rotational moment that is created by the air hitting the elevator and trying to shove it back up. This rotational moment gets higher the farther you try to put the elevator down into the breeze. A servo tab (when deployed from neutral) creates a small zone of very negative rotational moment that is added to the elevator's overall positive rotational moment. The sum of the negative and positive moments on the elevator is brought to be near zero and the pilot can overcome the forces of control that are acting on the elevator. All this helpful counter rotation force does not come free. It creates drag. In effect, the pilot is getting lift and the ability to control the aircraft at the cost of creating drag. And drag means more engine power needed to overcome it. Essentially, you are trading engine power for the ability to control the process of lift. So why all this trading of this for that ??? Well...... the only thing the pilot has to overcome the forces of flight is his upper body strength. In the tandem wing design, the canard's elevator is rather large and is connected to the pilot through the control linkage. The problem breaks down something like this : The pilot pulls back on the control stick, the elevator rotates down into the air stream and the air stream does not want to be deflected. Air slams against the elevator and it tries to rotate back up. That force is in turn delivered to the stick and the eventually to the pilots arm. Without a trim system, the elevator will eventually win every time. The more lift you want out of that elevator, the more resistive force you get. At high demands for lift, the rotational moment forces created by the elevator will overpower the best efforts of any pilot. So we need a trim system. We need something that will help pull the elevator down into the breeze or let it cycle up (controlled) as we wish it. That is why "sparrow strainers" were invented. Strainers are little up- side- down wings that " fly " the elevators down and reduce the pilot's work load. They are true aerodynamic surfaces that are use the free stream to do work on the control surface. They are slightly "anti- servo" in nature, in that they are always trying to return the elevator to its neutral trim position. Being aero surfaces, they respond to speed changes as do the control surfaces (forces proportional to the square of the speed). In this way they can automatically adjust to changes in speed. There is however another way to get there from here. By deflecting a portion of the trailing edge of the elevator in the opposite direction from the rest of the surface, air pressure itself can be used to balance the forces caused by lift. Airfoils with a portion of its trailing edge reflexed up will still create lift. It will make less lift than it did with the trailing edge in neutral trail (or deflected down), but it will still make lift. In the case of the Mark 2 Dragonfly, the plans built canard airfoil is a GU25- 5(11)8 modified If you take a bit of the trailing edge of this airfoil's elevator section and move it upwards into the air stream, the whole elevator will want to move downwards in response to the forces that have been applied by the trim tab's movement. When the pressures over and under the elevator adjust and finally come to equilibrium, the new position of the elevator is stable with respect to the aerodynamic forces acting on it. There are four major types of this trailing edge tab control. ( 1 ) An " active anti- servo " trim tab system : Anti- Servo Trim Tab This system of trim utilizes the "race ahead and help push it back" theory of trim. It does this by having the little trim tabs race ahead of the elevator in both directions of travel and aerodynamically force the elevator back to equilibrium. The linkage basically connects the trim tab to a fixed part of the airframe (or servo motor attached to the airframe). The way you get reversed travel is to push on a lever that is ahead of the trim tab's pivot point. From a trimmed position, if you bump the stick, this concept aggressively returns the aircraft to its former state of flying. In general, the tab's position is always up to offset the aerodynamic loads of the elevator. The tab travels farther up as the elevator travels up, and the tab travels down as the elevator travels down. Note: this is the most stable configuration you can come up with. The trim settings (once established) would neutralize elevator forces to the control stick for a very small range of elevator travel. Once the pilot exceeds this little range of neutral (low) forces, the stick loads would load up fast. ( 2 ) An " active " or " motor driven " trim tab system : Active Trim Tab This system of trim utilizes the "motorized bent metal plate" theory of trim. The little tabs are inert as the elevator goes up or down and do not actively assist in returning the elevator to equilibrium. The linkage connects an electric motor (or mechanical trim wheel cable) to the movable trim tab at a point that is aft of the trim tab's hinge point. In general, the tab's position is always up to offset the aerodynamic loads of the elevator. From a trimmed position, if you bump the stick, this concept neither hinders or helps return the aircraft to its former state of flying. Return to equilibrium is achieved by a longer period porpoise effect as the aircraft "seeks its own" based upon power and drag. This type of trim tab system is only slightly better than the " fixed " version in that the servo motor can adjust the tab positions and affect a trim condition for the aircraft. The trim settings (once established) would neutralize elevator forces to the control stick for a small range of elevator travel. Once the pilot exceeds this little range of neutral ( low ) forces, the stick loads would load up fast. ( 3 ) A " passive " or "un- powered" trim tab system : Same as above except that this is just a bent metal plate sticking out in the breeze. It would be the same as above when the servo motors fail. You bend the tab once and it is good for a small range of speeds and elevator settings. There is no pilot control of the pitch trim. Once the pilot exceeds this little range of neutral ( to low ) forces, the stick loads would load up fast. ( 4 ) An " active servo " trim tab system. Servo Trim Tab This system of trim utilizes the "push in the opposite direction and help the elevator to go" theory of trim. It does this by having the little trim tabs work opposite of the elevator and generate aerodynamic forces that aid in the elevators travel. The elevator is helped away from equilibrium. From a trimmed position, if you bump the stick, this system aggressively pulls the aircraft farther into the perturbed state. The linkage essentially connects the trim tabs to some fixed part of the airframe (or servomotor attached to the airframe) at a point that is aft of the trim tab's pivot point. In general, the tab's position is up if the elevator is down, neutral if the elevator is neutral and down if the elevator is up. The tabs travel up as the elevator travels down, and the tabs travel down as the elevator travels up. Stick forces imparted by the elevator would be neutral the whole time.