Development of an improved framework for the preliminary design of a rotorcraft

• Published in: Aircraft Engineering and Aerospace Technology Vol. 86; no. 5
• Main Authors: Lim, Jaehoon, Shin, SangJoon, Laxman, Vaitla, Kim, Junmo, Jang, JinSeok
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Aircraft Engineering and Aerospace Technology 19.08.2014
• ISSN: 1748-8842; 1758-4213
• DOI: 10.1108/AEAT-10-2012-0177

Purpose The purpose of the present paper is to obtain the capability of designing modern rotorcrafts with enhanced accuracy and reliability. Design/methodology/approach Among the existing rotorcraft design programs, an appropriate program was selected as a baseline for improvement. It was based on a database comprised of conventional fleets of rotorcrafts. The baseline program was not robust because it contained a simple iteration loop, which only monitored the gross weight of the aircraft. Therefore, it is not accurate enough to fulfil the quality and sophistication of a preliminary design framework useful for present and future generations of rotorcrafts. In this paper, the estimation formulas for the sizing and weight of the rotorcraft subsystem were updated by referring to modern aircraft data. In addition, a database of various turboshaft engines available these days was established. Instead of using the power estimation algorithm based on the momentum theory with empirical corrections, blade element rotor aerodynamics and trim analysis were developed and incorporated into the present framework. Moreover, the simple iteration loop for the aircraft gross weight was reinforced by adding a mathematical optimization algorithm, such as a genetic algorithm. Findings The improved optimization framework for rotorcraft preliminary design which has the capability of designing modern rotorcrafts with enhanced accuracy and reliability was constructed by using MATLAB optimization toolbox. Practical implications The optimization framework can be used by the rotorcraft industries at an early stage of the rotorcraft design. Originality/value It was verified that the improved optimization framework for rotorcraft preliminary design has the capability of designing modern rotorcrafts with enhanced accuracy and reliability.