Aeronautical Vehicles Commons^™

Assessment Of Iso-Ahola’S Theory Of Tourism Motivation On Willingness To Fly As A Point-To-Point Suborbital Space Tourist, Brian T. Musselman

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

Suborbital space tourism involves flight in an air vehicle to an altitude exceeding 100 kilometers (62 miles). This altitude is referred to as the Karman Line and the edge of space. Point-to-point space travel is transportation in an air vehicle where the vehicle flies around the earth in space to decrease the time to travel from one point on the earth’s surface to another point on the earth’s surface. The commercial space flight industry has a vision for point-to-point space travel.

The study aimed to assess the influence of the four dimensions of Iso-Ahola’s (1982) theory of tourism motivation on …

Understanding Unsteady Corner Separation Within Wing-Body Junction Flows, Paul G. Winner

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

Wing-body junction flows, formed at the interface between a wing and fuselage surface, are a complex, coupled, three-dimensional, turbulent flow field. This thesis focused on the unsteady corner separation that develops at the trailing edge of this wing-body junction under certain conditions. A NACA 0015 wing mounted on a flat plate at an angle of attack of 13°was used as the model junction flow field. The wing had an aspect ratio of 8 with a linear washout twist of 15°. The Reynolds number based on the wing chord was Re_c = 4.5 × 10⁵. Time-dependent stereoscopic particle …

Effect Of Spray Rails On Takeoff Performance Of Amphibian Aircraft, Soham Bahulekar

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

Amphibian aircraft have seen a rise in popularity in the recreational and utility sectors due to their ability to take off and land on both land and water, thus serving a myriad of purposes such as aerobatics, surveillance, and firefighting. The design of such seaplanes requires to be both aerodynamically and hydrodynamically efficient, especially during the takeoff phase. In the past, naval architects have implemented ways to make boats, yachts, and large ships more efficient; one of them being the addition of chine strips and spray rails on the hull. This thesis study explores the possibility of implementing spray rails …

Quasi-Static Structural Analysis Of An Experimental Aircraft Wing, Scott Bender

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

In this report, a quasi-static load analysis is conducted on an experimental light sport aircraft wing via a whiffletree bending test. This report will discuss the loads present on the aircraft during straight level flight at a speed of 82 knots equivalent air speed. Flight load calculations are described along with the design of the whiffletree and mounting structures utilized for applying the distributed point loads. Initial finite element analysis is performed on the wing structure to determine critical strain locations and optimal sensor distribution. Subsequent mechanical experimentations are performed using a bending test to measure the strain at critical …

A Patient Risk Minimization Model For Post-Disaster Medical Delivery Using Unmanned Aircraft Systems, Mark J. Simpson

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

The purpose of this research was to develop a novel routing model for delivery of medical supplies using unmanned aircraft systems, improving existing vehicle routing models by using patient risk as the primary minimization variable.

The vehicle routing problem is a subset of operational research that utilizes mathematical models to identify the most efficient route between sets of points. Routing studies using unmanned aircraft systems frequently minimize time, distance, or cost as the primary objective and are powerful decision-making tools for routine delivery operations. However, the fields of emergency triage and disaster response are focused on identifying patient injury severity …

Behavioral Intention Factors For Prescription Deliveries By Small Unmanned Aircraft In Rural Communities, Sarah M. Talley

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

Nearly half of the U.S. population regularly use and depend on prescription medications; however, pharmacy availability and access to pharmacy services are often lacking, particularly in rural communities. In an effort to meet local healthcare needs, delivery by sUAS is proposed to ensure the nearly 60 million rural residents have access to their prescription medications.

As an emerging technology with little research into home delivery applications, the successful implementation of sUAS for prescription medication delivery requires public acceptance and positive behavioral intention toward its use. At the time of the current research, no prior studies have specifically focused on the …

Vertically Air Lifted High Altitude Light Launch Apparatus (Valhalla), Benjamin E. Chaback, Ethan L. Deweese, Avery Evans, Alyssa Hodum

Beyond: Undergraduate Research Journal

Project VALHALLA aims to get collegiate level rockets to reach higher altitudes by providing a launch platform that shall allow them to be launched from 100,000 ft. This shall allow researchers to pass ninety percent of Earth's dense atmosphere when launching their rockets and shall allow for research at altitude. VALHALLA’s design consists of using multiple high-altitude balloons arranged around a launch platform to reach the target altitude with the rocket. The project shall consist of the following subsystems: policy, structure and design, helium recovery system, and electronics. The policy team shall be responsible for ensuring that this platform conforms …

Drone Cage Design And Implementation To Enable Small Drone Architecture Testing, Marco Fagetti, Emily M. Suh

Undergraduate Student Works

Geometric mechanics is a dynamical formalism that allows for simultaneous treatment of rotational and translational motion without the drawbacks of attitude parameterization sets. While geometric mechanics is well suited to deal with full six degree-of-freedom motion or significant position-attitude coupling, this formalism has yet to be extensively applied to hardware systems. The broader research goals of this work aim to prove the practical viability of this theoretical framework by applying it to a class of Crazyflie drones, which are frequently used to assess Guidance, Navigation, and Control schemes. To efficiently achieve these goals, a reliable, collapsible drone cage is required …

Uas For Public Safety: Active Threat Recognition, Joseph Cerreta, Tray Denney, Scott S. Burgess, Anthony Galante, David Thirtyacre, Gloria A. Wilson, Patrick Sherman

International Journal of Aviation, Aeronautics, and Aerospace

The Center for Homeland Defense and Security identified an increase of active threat events, such as mass shootings, annually since 1999. Literature suggests that 90% of shootings were over before law enforcement arrived at the scene and the first responder response was limited to “surround and contain” until Special Weapons and Tactics Teams (SWAT) arrived on the scene. Using Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) to detect which individual was the threat and type of weapon used can provide useful information to increase the speed of the response for first-on-scene rather than waiting for SWAT if the type of weapon was known. …

Conceptual Design Of Fuel Dumping System In Aircraft, Naveen M. Kumar Mr., Ravi A. Kannan Be., Magesh L Be., Praveen T. Kumar Be., Vijay K. Babu Me., Prashanth Radhakrishnan Be.

International Journal of Aviation, Aeronautics, and Aerospace

Airlines release the unburned jet fuel into the atmosphere to reduce the weight of aircraft before landing. Sometimes, aircraft reach a weight more than takeoff weight while departing from the airport. Therefore, the pilot follows the ATC comment to dump fuel into the atmosphere to reduce the aircraft's weight to avoid accidents. Due to fuel dumping, an airline faces fuel consumption, loss, and several diseases affect environmental pollutants, and living things. The total fuel consumption of commercial airlines worldwide in 2021 is 57 billion gallons. If jet fuel routinely hit the ground, it would pollute water and land and damage …

Space Cargo: Ultra-Fast Delivery On Earth –Potential Of Using Suborbital Space Vehicles For The Transportation Of Cargo, Robert O. Walton, Robert A. Goehlich

International Journal of Aviation, Aeronautics, and Aerospace

No abstract provided.

Utilizing Uas To Support Wildlife Hazard Management Efforts By Airport Operators, Flavio A. C. Mendonca, Ryan Wallace

Publications

The FAA requires airports operating under the Code of Federal Regulations Part 139 to conduct a wildlife hazard assessment (WHA) when some wildlife-strike events have occurred at or near the airport. The WHA should be conducted by a Qualified Airport Wildlife Biologist (QAWB) and must contain several elements, including the identification of the wildlife species observed and their numbers; local movements; daily and seasonal occurrences; and the identification and location of features on and near the airport that could attract wildlife. Habitats and land-use practices at and around the airport are key factors affecting wildlife species and the size of …

Analyzing The Effect Of Delta Airlines' Fleet Upgrade On Operations At Atlanta-Hartsfield Jackson International Airport, Carlos Alberto Castro, Shlok Misra

Publications

Commercial aviation has seen a growth in terms of passengers traveled and flights operated in the past decade (BTS, 2020). To cope up with this growth, airlines adopt various strategies such as network expansion and fleet upgrades. Airlines adopt fleet upgrade strategies to modernize their fleet, reduce costs, expand network coverage, and improve customer loyalty and experience. Research suggests that change in wake turbulence categorization and aircraft performance can directly impact the movements and delays at an airport. For this study, Delta Airline's fleet upgrade program and its effect on operating parameters at Atlanta-Hartsfield Jackson International Airport were analyzed. The …

Viability And Application Of Mounting Personal Pid Voc Sensors To Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems, Cheri Marcham

Publications

Small Unmanned Aerial Systems in Emergency Response

Current sUAS Uses

• Search and rescue
• Thermal imaging
• Evaluating structural stability
• Spread of wildfires
• Storm damage

Robust Nonlinear Tracking Control For Unmanned Aircraft In The Presence Of Wake Vortex, Petr Kazarin, Vladimir Golubev, William Mackunis, Claudia Moreno

Publications

The flight trajectory of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) can be significantly affected by external disturbances such as turbulence, upstream wake vortices, or wind gusts. These effects present challenges for UAV flight safety. Hence, addressing these challenges is of critical importance for the integration of unmanned aerial systems (UAS) into the National Airspace System (NAS), especially in terminal zones. This work presents a robust nonlinear control method that has been designed to achieve roll/yaw regulation in the presence of unmodeled external disturbances and system nonlinearities. The data from NASA-conducted airport experimental measurements as well as high-fidelity Large Eddy Simulations of the …

Unmanned Aircraft Systems For Archaeology Using Photogrammetry And Lidar In Southwestern United States, Imai Bates-Domingo, Alexandra Gates, Patrick Hunter, Blake Neal, Kyle Snowden, Destin Webster

Study America

Researchers can use small unmanned aircraft systems (sUAS), also known as drones, to make observations of historical sites, help interpret locations, and make new discoveries that may not be visible to the naked eye. A student team from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University gathered data for historical site documentation in New Mexico using the DJI Phantom 4 Pro V2, DJI Mavic Pro 2, DJI M210 and DJI M600, and senseFly eBee. Utilizing these drones, student analysts were able to take the data gathered and create georectified orthomosaic images and 3D virtual objects. At Tularosa Canyon, at a site known as the Creekside …

Active Control Of Coherent Structures In An Axisymmetric Jet, Michael Marques Goncalves

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

The primary objective of this work is to develop high-fidelity simulation model for jet noise control predictions and quantify the sound reduction when an external source frequency mode excitation is imposed on the jet flow. Whereas passive approaches using mixing devices, such as chevrons, have been shown to reduce low-frequency noise in jet engines, such approaches incur a performance penalty since they result in a reduced thrust. To avoid a performance penalty in reducing jet noise, the current work investigates a open-loop active noise control (ANC) system that utilizes a unsteady microjet actuator on the nozzle lip in the downstream …

A Reduced-Order Model Bi-Modal Excitation Of A Supersonic Planar Jet, Benjamin Malczewski

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

This work analytically and numerically examines the effects of bi-modal excitation on a Mach 1.5 heated planar jet. Starting with the Navier-Stokes equations, triple decomposition is applied to the flow components. A reduced order model is derived, turning the Navier-Stokes partial differential equations into a set of coupled ordinary differential equations, relating the momentum thickness and amplitudes of a fundamental and subharmonic mode to the streamwise location along the jet. Computational fluid dynamics data from the minor plane of a Mach 1.5 heated rectangular jet is used to verify a hyperbolic tangent profile for the mean flow at various streamwise …

Design And Flight-Path Simulation Of A Dynamic-Soaring Uav, Gladston Joseph

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

We address the development of a dynamic-soaring capable unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) optimized for long-duration flight with no on-board power consumption. The UAV’s aerodynamic properties are captured with the integration of variable fidelity aerodynamic analyses. In addition to this, a 6 degree-of-freedom flight simulation environment is designed to include the effects of atmospheric wind conditions. A simple flight control system aids in the development of the dynamic soaring maneuver. A modular design paradigm is adopted for the aircraft dynamics model, which makes it conducive to use the same environment to simulate other aircraft models. Multiple wind-shear models are synthesized to …

Modeling Of A Hybrid-Electric System And Design Of Control Laws For Hybrid-Electric Urban Air Mobility Power Plants, Sohail Bin Salam Lahaji

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) is an emerging market and technology in the aerospace industry. These systems are being developed to overcome traffic congestion. The current designs make use of Distributed Electric Propulsion (DEP): either fully electric or hybrid electric. The hybrid engine system consists of two power sources: prime movers, such as turbine engines, and batteries. The hybrid systems offer higher range and endurance compared with the existing fully electric systems. Hybrid-electric power generation systems for AAM have different mission requirements when compared to systems used in automobiles. Therefore, there is a particular need to model hybrid-electric systems and the …

Computational Investigation Of Perforated Plate Film Cooling Utilizing Conjugate Heat Transfer, Jonathan Sippel

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

The accuracy of modern state-of-practice computational fluid dynamics approaches in predicting the cooling effectiveness of a perforated plate film-cooling arrangement is evaluated in ANSYS Fluent. A numerical investigation is performed using the Reynolds Averaged Navier Stokes equations and compared to NASA Glenn’s available Turbulent Heat Flux 4 experimental measurements collected as a part of the Transformational Tools and Technologies Project. A multiphysics approach to model heat conduction through the solid geometry is shown to offer significant improvements in wall temperature and film effectiveness prediction accuracy over the standard adiabatic wall approach. Additionally, localized gradient-based grid adaption is analyzed using the …

The Effects Of Remotely Piloted Aircraft Command And Control Latency During Within-Visual-Range Air-To-Air Combat, David Thirtyacre

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

The type of military missions conducted by remotely piloted aircraft continues to expand into all facets of operations including air-to-air combat. While future within-visual-range air-to-air combat will be piloted by artificial intelligence, remotely piloted aircraft will likely first see combat. The purpose of this study was to quantify the effect of latency on one-versus-one, within-visual-range air-to-air combat success during both high-speed and low-speed engagements. The research employed a repeated-measures experimental design to test the various hypothesis associated with command and control latency. Participants experienced in air-to-air combat were subjected to various latency inputs during one-versus-one simulated combat using a virtual-reality …

Can The Timeframe Of Reported Uas Sightings Help Regulators?, Spencer Erik Pitcher, Kelly A. Whealan-George

Beyond: Undergraduate Research Journal

Remotely controlled small aircraft, otherwise known as Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) or drones have started to impact the United States National Airspace System by interfering with the safe flight of aircraft. As the UAS industry continues its expected growth into the future, lawmakers, as well as regulators at the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the aviation community must be able to predict when there will be more UAS craft in the air that could cause an interruption to air traffic so that more resources can be allocated optimally to counter the threat of UAS craft. The purpose of this study …

Viability And Application Of Mounting Personal Pid Voc Sensors To Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems, Cheryl Lynn Marcham, Scott Burgess, Joseph Cerreta, Patti J. Clark, James P. Solti, Brandon Breault, Joshua G. Marcham

Publications

Using a UAS-mounted sensor to allow for a rapid response to areas that may be difficult to reach or potentially dangerous to human health can increase the situational awareness of first responders of an aircraft crash site through the remote detection, identification, and quantification of airborne hazardous materials. The primary purpose of this research was to evaluate the remote sensing viability and application of integrating existing commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) sensors with small unmanned aircraft system (UAS) technology to detect potentially hazardous airborne contaminants in emergency leak or spill response situations. By mounting the personal photoionization detector (PID) with volatile organic compound …

Exploring The Impact Of Composite Material Fires And Associated Response Protocol On The Material Analysis During An Aircraft Accident Investigation, Flavio A. C. Mendonca, Natalie Zimmermann, Peng Hao Wang, Julius Keller

Publications

Metals, beginning in the 1930s, have been frequently used as the material of choice for aircraft construction (Hallion, 1978; Jakab, 1999). Common metals used in the aviation industry range from alloyed and heat-treated aluminum to titanium, magnesium, and superalloys, the latter used in specialized applications (Hallion, 1978; Mouritz, 2012). Nevertheless, a shift in aircraft construction – specifically in terms of the materials used – began in the 1970s, as composite materials were introduced into commercial aircraft (Mouritz, 2012). Among others, the increased use of composited materials was – and still is – propelled by the ability to manufacture comparative lightweight …

Comparative Study On The Prediction Of Aerodynamic Characteristics Of Mini - Unmanned Aerial Vehicle With Turbulence Models, Somashekar V, Immanuel Selwyn Raj A

International Journal of Aviation, Aeronautics, and Aerospace

When dealing with CFD simulations the turbulent nature is seen on most of the engineering flows and these flows need to be solved. Reliable and applicable CFD outputs can be obtained from the accurate modelling of the turbulence as it is one of the most vital elements of CFD modelling. The RANS equations are extensively employed to analyse the complex flows over aircraft and for this purpose, a turbulence model is needed for turbulent flow analyses. Compatible turbulence must be chosen for the exact predictions of aircraft aerodynamic characteristics. In this report, numerical analyses of Mini-UAV are done to compare …

Internet Of Things 36-Rotor Multicopter For Ionizing Radiation Surveying, Svetoslav Zabunov, Garo Mardirossian, Rositsa Miteva, Todor Kunchev

International Journal of Aviation, Aeronautics, and Aerospace

This paper presents an Internet of things 36-rotor unmanned aerial vehicle suitable for radiological surveying of buildings and facilities. The design of the 36-rotor multicopter platform is disclosed. The aircraft is used as a testbed for a lightweight gamma/beta/neutron ionizing radiation sensor closely coupled with the autopilot of the multirotor aircraft. A prototype of the drone and sensor was developed and initial tests were conducted. Test results are presented with data from measuring different radiation sources. The proposed novel design is compared to existing work and advantages to the latter were established.

Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems Acoustic Analysis For Noninvasive Marine Mammal Response: An Exploratory Field Study, David Thirtyacre, Gennifer Brookshire, Sarah Callan, Brittany Arvizu, Patrick Sherman

International Journal of Aviation, Aeronautics, and Aerospace

As in countless other fields of human endeavor, small unmanned aircraft systems (sUAS) have the potential to benefit pinniped (Pinnipedia; e.g., Phocidae [seals], Otariidae [sea lions], and Odobenidae [walruses]) response efforts. The employment of sUAS could give responders a close-up look at animals in distress in order to determine their condition as well as develop a response strategy. However, unlike other subjects that are regularly inspected by sUAS (e.g., croplands and civil infrastructure) pinnipeds may respond to the distinctive sound generated by small, multirotor sUAS. This reaction may include retreating into the water en masse, which could put …

Albatross And Falcon Inspired Bionic Uav: An Aerodynamic Analysis, Bilji C. Mathew, Sagar K. Sahu, Prantik Dutta, Rushi Savale, Muruga Lal Jeyan Jv Dr.

International Journal of Aviation, Aeronautics, and Aerospace

The drone industry yearns for enhanced aerodynamic performance. In order to achieve this feat, researchers and engineers are trying to mimic the natural flyers due to their aerodynamic optimality. One such flyer, the Albatross is an inspiration for many marine drones due to its planform and aerodynamic efficiency. The wing of the plan form is designed and simulated to study its properties. The Bell-Shaped Lift Distribution is incorporated for higher efficiency and elimination of the total downwash produced in case of an Elliptical Lift Distribution. A blended wing body inspired by the Falcon is used for smoother airflow interactions. Furthermore, …

Digitalization Of Educational And Methodological Support For The Training Of Aviation Dispatchers, Zair Ziyaevich Shamsiev

International Journal of Aviation, Aeronautics, and Aerospace

The tasks of improving the educational process of training civil aviation dispatchers on the basis of the development and implementation of digital teaching aids are considered. Legislative and regulatory documents are accepted as an object of digitalization. The end result of the research is expressed in the provision of the educational process with a special electronic educational complex, which has the functions of providing the necessary information and conducting practical exercises to deepen, consolidate and control knowledge in the field of aviation documents.