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Effect of twist morphing wing segment on aerodynamic performance of UAV

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Abstract

The design space for morphing wings is incredibly broad and allows for a wide range of improvements versus fixed wing aircrafts such that each type of morphing can be useful for different purposes. This work introduces a novel concept for a twist morphing wing segment where only a segment of the wing is actuated which causes a rotation of the tip of the wing while the base segment fixed. The morphing segment consists of a smart soft composite structure made from PDMS and PLA which is actuated by multiple embedded SMA wires. This structure was implemented in a UAV-sized wing and was tested both in still-air conditions and in an open-type wind tunnel to determine the actual impact of this mode of actuation. Results show that this concept can improve the aerodynamic properties of the wing, particularly at low angles of attack.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Seoul National University, Seoul, 151-742, Korea

    Hugo Rodrigue, Seunghyun Cho, Min-Woo Han, Binayak Bhandari, Jae-Eul Shim & Sung-Hoon Ahn

  2. Institute of Advanced Machines and Design, Seoul National University, Seoul, 151-742, Korea

    Hugo Rodrigue, Binayak Bhandari & Sung-Hoon Ahn

  3. Sol International School, Department of Railroad Integrated System, Woosong University, Daejeon, 300-718, Korea

    Binayak Bhandari

Authors
  1. Hugo Rodrigue
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  2. Seunghyun Cho
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  3. Min-Woo Han
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  4. Binayak Bhandari
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  5. Jae-Eul Shim
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  6. Sung-Hoon Ahn
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Sung-Hoon Ahn.

Additional information

Hugo Rodrigue is currently a Postdoctoral researcher in the Department of Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering at Seoul National University where he completed his Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering in 2015. He obtained his M.Sc.A in Industral Engienering from Ecole Polytechnique de Montreal in 2010 and hi B.Eng. in Mechanical Engineering from McGill University in 2008. His current research interests are related to smart soft composite, soft actuators and soft robotics.

Seunghyun Cho is a Ph.D. candidate in Mechanical Engineering at Seoul National University, Korea, and has received his B.S in Mechanical Engineering from Seoul National University, Korea, in 2009. His research interests are currently related to the wake structure of a propeller driven drone and biomimetic flow controls.

Min-Woo Han received his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Dongguk University, Korea, in 2010 and his M.S. degree in Mechanical Engineering from Seoul National University, Korea, in 2013. He is currently a Ph.D. candidate in Mechanical Engineering at Seoul National University, Korea, and his research interests include soft robotics, actuators, woven materials and additive manufacturing.

Binayak Bhandari, Ph.D., is currently serving as an Assistant Professor in Railroad Engineering at Woosong University, Daejeon Korea. Dr. Bhandari holds a B.S. from Kathmandu University (2004), Nepal, M.S. from Myongji University (2009), Korea, and a Ph.D. from Seoul National University (2014), Seoul, Korea. Prior to his arrival at Woosong University, Dr. Bhandari served as a Post-doctoral Fellow in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at Seoul National University. His work focuses on smart material, renewable energy and design and analysis of mechanical systems. Dr. Bhandari has about a dozen peer reviewed publications in various fields.

Jae-Eul Shim is a Ph. D. student working at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Korea. Before joining KAIST, he graduated from CHA University in 2011, majoring in biomedical science. He earned his master degree from Seoul National University in 2015, majoring in mechanical engineering. He is currently focusing on the characterization of N/MEMS for biomedical applications.

Sung-Hoon Ahn is currently Professor at the Department of Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering at Seoul National University. He obtained his Ph.D. in 1997 and M.S. in 1994 from Stanford University in Aeronautics & Astronautics, and his B.S.E. in 1992 from University of Michigan, Ann Arbor in Aerospace Engineering. He is president of the University Industry Technology Force (UNITEF) and editor-in-chief of the International Journal of Precision Engineering and Manufacturing-Green Technology.

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Rodrigue, H., Cho, S., Han, MW. et al. Effect of twist morphing wing segment on aerodynamic performance of UAV. J Mech Sci Technol 30, 229–236 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12206-015-1226-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12206-015-1226-3

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