2011-2012 FALL SEMESTER

AE 451
AERONAUTICAL ENGINEERING DESIGN I

SpaceShipTwo
 2011-2012 FALL SEMESTER
AE 451
AERONAUTICAL ENGINEERING DESIGN I

Instructor: Assoc. Prof. Dr. D. Funda Kurtuluş (Room: 101, Tel: 210 42 91, Email:
dfunda@ae.metu.edu.tr)

Course Hours: (Section 1) Tuesday 10:40-12:30; Thursday 15:40-17:30; Room

AE125

Description:
Conceptual design of fixed wing aircraft. Aircraft sizing. Airfoil and geometry
selection. Thrust to weight ratio and wing loading. Configuration layout. Propulsion
and fuel system integration. Landing gear and subsystems. Weights and balance.
Stability, control and handling qualities. Performance and flight mechanics. Cost.
Certification and qualification.

Textbook:
Raymer D.P., "Aircraft Design: A Conceptual Approach", 4th Edition AIAA
Education Series, 2006
 2011-2012 FALL SEMESTER
AE 451
AERONAUTICAL ENGINEERING DESIGN I

Grading:
Studies 20%
Project Report 20%
Project Presentation 15%
Attendance 5%
1 Midterm 20%
Final 20%

Teamwork is an integral part of establishing successful engineering projects.

Therefore students are encouraged to form groups of 4 students. The team is
expected to work together and act as a team.
Project : AIAA Undergraduate Team Aircraft Design Competition
Humanitarian Response Unmanned Aircraft System (HR-UAS)

http://www.aiaa.org/content.cfm?pageid=223

There is a need for an affordable, humanitarian response aircraft system that

can provide aid to the populations of both developed and under-developed
nations worldwide when natural disasters occur.

2011-Ugrad-Team-Aircraft.pdf
2007 winner: California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo
Aerospace Engineering Department
 Overview of
Aircraft Design Process
 How Airplanes Fly
1. Lift generated to oppose Weight
• Example: Wing with trailing edge
• Weight kept to a minimum

2. Thrust generated to oppose Drag

3. Structure is strong/stiff enough

• Stays together under maximum forces
• Deflections low enough that aerodynamic forces still OK

4. Can be trimmed (moments brought to zero) i.e. “balanced”

5. Either stable OR controllable

 Design is:

• A team effort
• A large system integration activity
• Iterative
• Creative, knowledge based
• Done in three stages
– Conceptual design
– Preliminary design
– Detailed design
 Conceptual Design
• What will it do?
• How will it do it?
• What is the general arrangement of parts?
• The end result of conceptual design is an artist’s or
engineer’s conception of the vehicle/product
• May carry multiple – very different – versions to later stages
 Conceptual design
• A set of specifications for a concrete goal is
given.
• Overall size, shape, weight and performance
of the airplane are determined yielding the
general layout.
• Shape and location of the wings, vertical and
horizontal tails, engine type, size and
placement.

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 Conceptual design
• Major drivers:
– Aerodynamics
– Propulsion
– Flight performance
• Can the design meet the specifications?
• If yes, is it the best design meeting the
specifications (is the design optimized)?

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Conceptual design, Boeing X-32

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 The pivot points for conceptual
design
• Pivot points are the aspects that anchor the
conceptual design process. They allow
different, more detailed thinking from each
pivot point. Fixing the pivot points will create
an intellectual framework for the design.

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 The pivot points for conceptual
design
• Requirements,
• First estimate of the weight of the airplane,
• Critical performance parameters,
CL, max , L/D, W/S, T/W
• Configuration layout,
• Better weight estimate,
• Performace analysis, does the design meet the
requirements?
• Optimization.

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Example: Kelly Johnson & the P-38

From The Great Book of World War II Airplanes

 Advanced Tactical Fighter Concepts - Precursor to F-22

Advanced Tactical Fighter to F-22 Raptor, David C. Aronstein,

Michael J. Hirschberg and Albert C. Piccirillo, AIAA Case Study
All Pro/Con and Multi Design Optimization (MDO):
Done to support decisions

source: C-28 Juggernaut Final Design Report,

1993, Scott Dyer, Team Leader
JSF Conceptual Designs
 Preliminary Design
• How big will it be?
• How much will it weigh?
• What engines will it use?
• How much fuel or propellant will it use?
• How much will it cost?
• Many of the techniques/methods from this course
apply here
 Preliminary design
• Minor changes are made to the conceptual
design.
• Involves structural and control system
analysis, detailed wind tunnel testing and CFD
calculations.
• In the end configuration is frozen.
• Decision for commiting to manufacturing.

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Preliminary design, Boeing X-32

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Preliminary Design
 Detailed Design
• How many parts will it have?
• What shape will they be?
• What materials?
• How will it be made?
• How will the parts be joined?
• How will technology advancements (e.g. lightweight
material, advanced airfoils, improved engines, etc.)
impact the design?
• How will in be maintained?
• How will it be upgraded?
 Detail design
• Precise design of each individual structural
element.
• The size, number and location of fasteners.
• Manufacturing tools are designed.
• Simulators for aircraft are developed.

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Detail design, Boeing X-32

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Detailed Design
Detailed Design
 Specification And Standards

• The designer needs to satisfy

– Customer who will buy and operate the vehicle (e.g.
Turkish airlines)

– Government Regulators
(U.S. , Military, European, Japanese…)
 Customer Specifications
Performance:
– Payload weight and volume
– How far and how fast it is to be carried
– How long and at what altitude
– Passenger comfort
– Flight instruments, ground and flight handling qualities
• Cost
– Price of system and spares, useful life, maintenance hours
per flight hour
• Firm order of units, options, delivery schedule,
payment schedule
 Government Regulators
• Civil
– FAA Civil Aviation Regulations define such things as
required strength, acoustics, reliability, take-off
and landing performance

• Military
– May play a dual role as customer and regulator
– MIL SPECs (Military specifications)
– May set minimum standards for Mission turn-around time,
strength, stability, speed-altitude-maneuver capability,
detectability, vulnerability
 Aerospace Design Involves
• Lot of analyses to support design decisions
• Ground testing and simulation, examples:
– Wind tunnel tests
– Flight simulation
– Full scale mock-up
– Fatigue tests
• Flight tests
 Life Cycle
• The average airplane gets major upgrades five
times in its lifetime
– New avionics, interiors, etc.

• Airplane lifetimes are exceeding 50 years in some

cases
Civil Aircraft Development Process (McMasters)