Flutter suppression and gust alleviation using active controls

Abstract

The effects of active controls on the suppression of flutter and gust alleviation of two different types of subsonic aircraft (the Arava, twin turboprop STOL transport, and the Westwind twin-jet business transport) are investigated. The active controls are introduced in pairs which include, in any chosen wing strip, a leading-edge (LE) control and a trailing-edge (TE) control. Each control surface is allowed to be driven by a combined linear-rotational sensor system, located on the activated strip. The control law, which translates the sensor signals into control surface rotations, is based on the concept of aerodynamic energy. The results indicate the extreme effectiveness of the active systems in controlling flutter. A single system spanning 10% of the wing semispan made the Arava flutter-free, and a similar active system, for the Westwind aircraft, yielded a reduction of 75% in the maximum bending moment of the wing and a reduction of 90% in the acceleration of the cg of the aircraft. Results for simultaneous activation of several LE - TE systems are presented. Further work needed to bring the investigation to completion is also discussed.