Wing Selection and Dynamic Derivative Estimation of a Tailless UAV

摘要

Two alternative designs of a flying wing configuration unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) with different aspect ratios were investigated by the numerical calculation. With the comparisons of lift-drag characteristics, lateral-directional stability and efficiency of control surfaces, the scheme of the smaller aspect ratio was adopted. Then the wind tunnel tests of the selected configuration were conducted to investigate the aerodynamic characteristics. In order to obtain more dynamic parameters desired in the flight simulation, a simple and useful method for the engineering estimation of dynamic derivatives was proposed. The longitudinal and lateral-directional dynamic derivatives of the UAV respectively calculated by the estimation method and CFD method were then compared. The comparison results showed that the estimation method can accurately reveal the dynamic aerodynamic characteristics of the aircraft.