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Physics-Based Identification and Management of Aeroelastic Limit-Cycle Oscillations (LCO)

Award Information
Agency: Department of Defense
Branch: Air Force
Contract: FA9550-07-C-0070
Agency Tracking Number: F074-006-0095
Amount: $99,997.00
Phase: Phase I
Program: STTR
Solicitation Topic Code: AF07-T006
Solicitation Number: N/A
Timeline
Solicitation Year: 2007
Award Year: 2007
Award Start Date (Proposal Award Date): 2007-07-01
Award End Date (Contract End Date): 2008-04-01
Small Business Information
2780 Skypark Drive Suite 400
Torrance, CA 90505
United States
DUNS: 106823607
HUBZone Owned: No
Woman Owned: No
Socially and Economically Disadvantaged: Yes
Principal Investigator
 David Cowan
 Principal Investigator
 (310) 626-8361
 dcowan@nextgenaero.com
Business Contact
 Zoltan Feher
Title: Manager, Contracts and Pricing
Phone: (310) 626-8384
Email: zfeher@nextgenaero.com
Research Institution
 UNIV. OF ILLINOIS, UIUC
 Kathy Young
 
1901 South First Street, Suite South Research Park
Champaign, IL 61820
United States

 (217) 233-2187
 Nonprofit College or University
Abstract

A highly qualified team consisting of NextGen Aeronautics Inc., the University of Illinois, Texas A&M University and NES Tech, Inc., proposes an approach to the problem of aircraft limit cycle oscillations (LCO) that includes both analytical predictive methods and hardware for preventing in-flight LCO. LCO phenomena to be addressed include those induced by structural nonlinearities, shock-boundary layer interaction, free-play, and transonic flow effects. The team will leverage considerable prior work by its members, including development of an innovative nonlinear energy sink (NES), variations of which have been designed, built and wind-tunnel-tested with very successful results. The approach will allow for the recognition and suppression of transient, nonlinear modal interactions that trigger LCO events. This is in contrast with standard practice of treating the actual LCO event subsequent to its buildup, by either passive or active techniques. The proposed NES hardware is lightweight and possesses unique nonlinear dynamical features that enable it to passively draw and locally dissipate broadband vibration energy from the aircraft structure, leading to rapid and robust suppression of LCO instabilities. Moreover, the NES can interact with structural modes in arbitrary frequency ranges acting, in essence, as a passive adaptive boundary controller.

* Information listed above is at the time of submission. *

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