Geometry-Based Flight Control Under Actuator Effectiveness Constraints
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing flight control systems struggle to determine the optimal combination of actuators and their parameters to achieve desired aircraft motion efficiently, especially in dynamic conditions, due to the complexity of managing multiple actuators and constraints such as thrust distribution and actuator limitations.
Innovation Solution
A geometry-based flight control system that computes an optimal mix of actuators and their parameters in real-time, considering dynamic aircraft geometry and varying actuator effectiveness, using an optimization problem controller that determines actuator commands based on sensor and inceptor inputs to achieve the desired flight trajectory.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If multiple actuators are used to control aircraft motion, then the aircraft can achieve desired motion with better performance and efficiency, but the complexity of determining optimal actuator combinations increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system changes parameters by computing optimal actuator combinations dynamically based on current aircraft state, geometry, and constraints rather than using fixed pre-programmed control laws. This allows the control system to adapt to varying flight conditions and maximize efficiency while managing complexity through real-time optimization.
Solution Approach 2:
The control system transitions from static pre-computed control schedules to dynamic real-time optimization that continuously adjusts actuator commands based on current aircraft state, geometry configuration, and operational constraints. This dynamic approach enables the system to handle complex multi-actuator coordination adaptively.
2Ease of manufacture
If pre-computed control combinations are used offline, then implementation is simpler, but they cannot account for all possible flight conditions and circumstances
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary computation of geometry matrices and actuator effectiveness factors offline to characterize aircraft behavior across the flight envelope. These pre-computed data structures enable fast real-time optimization without requiring complex physics calculations during flight, thus balancing implementation simplicity with comprehensive condition coverage.
Solution Approach 2:
The control system transitions from static pre-computed control schedules to dynamic real-time optimization that continuously adjusts actuator commands based on current aircraft state, geometry configuration, and operational constraints. This dynamic approach enables the system to handle complex multi-actuator coordination adaptively.
3Measurement precision
If dynamic geometry is considered in actuator command determination, then control accuracy improves, but computational complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system pre-computes geometry matrices that capture the relationship between actuator commands and aircraft response for different geometry configurations. These matrices are calculated offline and stored for rapid lookup during flight, enabling accurate accounting of dynamic geometry effects without requiring complex real-time calculations.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes parameters by updating geometry matrices based on current aircraft configuration (such as tiltwing angle) and using these updated matrices in the optimization calculation. This allows the system to accurately reflect dynamic geometry changes while maintaining computational efficiency through the use of pre-computed matrix structures.
Data Source
AI summary
A geometry-based flight control system is disclosed. In various embodiments, a set of inceptor inputs associated with a requested set of forces and moments to be applied to the aircraft is received. An optimal mix of actuators and associated actuator parameters to achieve to an extent practical the requested forces and moments is computed, including by taking into consideration dynamically varying effectiveness of one or more actuators based on a current dynamic state of the aircraft. An output comprising for each actuator in the optimal mix a corresponding set of one or more control signals associated with the set of actuator parameters computed for that actuator is provided.