Control of aeroelastic divergence

Abstract

On forward-swept-wing aircraft, aerodynamic destiffening of the primary wing-bending mode can cause coupling with the short-period mode, potentially resulting in a low-frequency dynamic instability. For a clamped wing this coupled mechanism degenerates into conventional static wing divergence. Studies of a fundamental analytical model of this mechanism show that active control of the clamped wing is possible only through the use of displacement feedback. Control laws for the clamped wing are evaluated and also assessed when body freedom is restored. Additionally, control laws are synthesized directly for a more refined representation of the unrestrained vehicle. Control configured vehicles (CCVs) are not considered.