Aircraft Dynamics for Symmetric and Asymmetric V-Shape Morphing Wings

This paper will present the effect of the aircraft turning dynamics for symmetric and asymmetric V-shape changing wings. The aerodynamic forces will be calculated using a 3D aerodynamic model developed that utilizes a modern adaptation of Prandtl’s lifting-line method which can be used for wings of arbitrary camber, sweep and dihedral. The method will be applied to analyze symmetric and asymmetric V-shaped wing configuration of interest for morphing aircraft application. The V-shaped wing has two sections, an out-of-plane dihedral section and a horizontal section. A study of the lift characteristics for symmetric and asymmetric with and without flap deflection will be presented. An investigation as to how the partial dihedral will affect the dynamics of the vehicle, in turning, for wings with asymmetric flap deflection is performed. An comparison of the different turning performance measurements, turning radius, bank angle, load factor, turning rate and roll moment coefficient will be presented.