Numerical Aerodynamics And Performance Evaluation Of A Hover-Capable Airship For Uam Applications Using The Flightstream Solver

Abstract

Within the challenging and fast-growing environment of urban air mobility, a hover-capable airship is currently under development to serve as a testbed for Positioning and Guidance Systems. The hover capabilities require a new approach towards 360 ° aerodynamics in the early design stage, to enable accurate model-based controller design. In this paper, the recently developed flow solver FlightStream®, is used to obtain aerodynamic data for a 360° inflow analysis. Using MATLAB as interface, meshing, simulation and post-processing are unified in a framework for easy and quick application. The aerodynamic model is built successfully and integrated in the existing Flight Dynamics Model of the airship. A way to reduce simulation effort by making use of symmetry is presented and employed. The aerodynamic data is found to be accurate in comparison to existing wind-tunnel test data. The solver can robustly handle the airship, and the results presented herein open new possibilities for future usage.