The design optimization of a wing for supersonic transport by means of Multiobjective Genetic Algorithm (MOGA) is presented. The objective function is to minimize the drag for transonic cruise, the drag for supersonic cruise and the bending moment at the wing root for the supersonic condition. The wing shape is defined by planform, thickness distributions and warp shapes, in total of 66 design ...

This paper describes the implementation of optimization techniques based on control theory for wing and wing-body design. In previous studies [18, 19,221 i t wasshown that control theory could be used to devise an effective optimization procedure for airfoils and wings in which the shape and the surrounding body-fitted mesh are both generated analytically, and the control is the mapping functio...

This paper presents a new method to measure wing deflections in flight for small UAVs. It employs a pair of high resolution stereo cameras and LED wing markers, as well as a small form factor computer for control and storage. Post-processing of all the data is done off-line. Accuracy benchmark tests are conducted. Finally, theoretical discussion of wing shape reconstruction is presented. The me...

An extensive experimental study is conducted to examine effects of different winglet-shapes and orientations on the vortex behind a wing, static surface pressure over the wing, and wing wake of a swept wing at various angles of attack. Four types of winglets, spiroid (forward and aft), blended, and winggrid are used in this investigation. Wing static surface pressure measurements are obtained f...

The diversity of wing morphologies in birds reflects their variety of flight styles and the associated aerodynamic and inertial requirements. Although the aerodynamics underlying wing morphology can be informed by aeronautical research, important differences exist between planes and birds. In particular, birds operate at lower, transitional Reynolds numbers than do most aircraft. To date, few q...

The recently developed geometric morphometrics methods represent an important contribution of statistics and geometry to the study of biological shapes. We propose simple protocols using shape distances that incorporate geometric techniques into linear quantitative genetic models that should provide insights into the contribution of genetics to shape variation in organisms. The geometric approa...

We describe the design of four ornithopters ranging in wing span from 10 cm to 40 cm, and in weight from 5 g to 45 g. The controllability and power supply are two major considerations, so we compare the efficiency and characteristics between different types of subsystems such as gearbox and tail shape. Our current ornithopter is radio-controlled with inbuilt visual sensing and capable of takeof...