A Fast Correction Method of Model Deformation Effects in Wind Tunnel Tests

Abstract

The influence of model deformation needs to be corrected before the aerodynamic force data measured in the wind tunnel is applied to aircraft design. In order to obtain the aerodynamic forces on rigid model shape, this paper presents a fast correction method by establishing a mathematical modelling method connecting aerodynamic forces and wing section torsion. The aerodynamic force coefficients on rigid model shape can then be calculated quickly just by setting section torsion to zero. A 25-point simulation dataset of the High Reynolds Number Aero-Structural Dynamics (HIRENASD) model generated by Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) and Static Computational Aeroelasticity (CAE) approach is used to investigate the influence of section locations, basis function type, support radius, and deformation perturbation on the prediction accuracy. Finally, the present correction method is applied to predict the aerodynamic forces on the rigid shape of a NASA common research model. The results of parametric analysis and application show that the present correction method with the Wendland’s C6 function and a support radius of 1.0 can provide a reasonable prediction of aerodynamic forces on the rigid model shape.

Keywords

• fast correction method
• model deformation
• aerodynamic force modelling
• radial basis function
• wing section torsion