Aerodynamic Effects of Parafoil Upper Surface Bleed Air Actuation

Abstract

Control of the glide slope of parafoil and payload aircraft is limited with current control mechanisms, which makes the precision landing of autonomous systems extremely challenging. The incorporation of bleed air vents into the upper surface of the parafoil canopy to create aerodynamic spoilers has been shown to be an extremely effective means of obtaining a wide range of glide slope control with minimal actuation effort and complexity. The current work presents physical insight into these novel control mechanisms through a combination of computational fluid dynamic simulation and wind tunnel testing.