Hydrodynamic Investigation of a Free Fall Lander for the Descent Trajectory Control

In this paper we conducted a hydrodynamic investigation of a Free Fall Lander used for ocean explorations. Because such systems do not have any type of control system, we aim to assess drag coefficients and added mass to develop a control strategy based on rudders. The evaluation is conducted by Com...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inOCEANS 2024 - Singapore pp. 1 - 6
Main Authors di Maria, Enrico, Nakatani, Takeshi, Maeda, Yosaku, Inoue, Tomoya
Format Conference Proceeding
LanguageEnglish
Published IEEE 15.04.2024
Subjects
added mass
CFD
Drag
drag coefficient
Fluids
Force
Geometry
Hydrodynamics
Life estimation
Oceans
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Summary:In this paper we conducted a hydrodynamic investigation of a Free Fall Lander used for ocean explorations. Because such systems do not have any type of control system, we aim to assess drag coefficients and added mass to develop a control strategy based on rudders. The evaluation is conducted by Computational Fluid Dynamics analyses, which in the last years proved to be a useful tool for determining hydrodynamic parameters of AUVs and ROVs. Unlike such systems, Landers are characterized by a much more complex geometry, which makes the analysis more challenging. At first, steady-state and transient analyses are carried out on a simplified version of the Lander (a rectangular cuboid) to confirm the reliability of the simulations, before conducting the same analysis on the Lander's geometry. For the drag coefficient, a further assessment is given by the comparison with the drag force estimated through some of the measurements obtained during the missions in the ocean.
DOI:10.1109/OCEANS51537.2024.10682155