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飛機工程師從鳥類世界尋找新的和改進的機翼設計
2010-08-12
【據英國《飛行國際》網站2010年8月9日報導】 機翼設計人員從航空誕生初期就從鳥類汲取靈感。但現在的工程師依然基於鳥類世界中發現的例子來尋找改進設計的方法。
空中客車飛行物理研究高級管理人員David Hills稱，該歐洲製造商在設計A350 XWB的機翼時將自然“當作指導者”。他說：“飛機載滿燃油起飛後，情況發生了變化，因而需要的升力降低。所以你需要做的是有一系列機翼，每種機翼針對不同狀況進行優化。這就是我們正在做的變曲面和差動襟翼。”“如果你觀察鳥類，你會發現它們一直就在這樣做，尤其是在持續飛行期間。它們通過扭轉使得翅膀適應飛行環境。這就是我們在A350 XWB正在做的。”
從研發A320開始，空中客車就已設計了飛行控制系統以自動減緩突發陣風的影響，這一靈感源於鳥類的羽毛，二者具有類似的功能。空中客車還在繼續改進設計，Hills稱：“在A350 XWB上，這種設計改進達到了新的細化水準。”
在無人機領域，一個團隊的工程師已設計了變形機翼原型機，該機翼內嵌了形狀記憶合金作動器，可在加熱時改變機翼形狀（《飛行國際》，7月20~26日）。多倫多大學Shaker Meguid教授作為變形機翼研究項目的領導者解釋說，這一設計的靈感源於鳥類。他說：“為達到飛行任務適應能力，鳥類改變它們翅膀的尺寸和形狀。我們嘗試使用類似的原理實現機翼變形以使其能夠高度適應。鳥類滑翔時可獲得最大升力，而折起翅膀可降低阻力。這就是鳥類採用的基本原理，提示我們對機翼平面形狀進行研究。”
樹也可以為設計提供靈感，因為它們可以改變其樹葉的形狀以降低熱量損耗。Meguid說：“也可以模仿樹葉的形狀和變形特性，將其用於飛機機翼從而優化機翼的氣動特性。”
他認為無人機變形機翼設計的技術最終可用於民用飛機，並宣稱“一些大的飛機製造商已開始對該技術產生濃厚興趣並開始進行變形機翼的使用研究”。他補充說：“實際上，變形機翼一定會用於商用飛機；只是何時能用還不得而知。很可能就在不久的將來。”
Hills並不贊同上述觀點，並指出與軍用飛機不同，民用科技“不需要像石頭一樣下墜，所以我們並不需要”變形機翼。但是，儘管變形機翼被排除，機翼扭轉仍是可以考慮的技術。
Hills說：“我們正在考慮機翼扭轉。這會使機翼平面形狀像使用智慧材料一樣改變機翼形狀。我們正在考察發展應用該技術是否能帶來足夠好的收益。”（中國航空工業發展研究中心 王傳勝）
http://www.flightglobal.com/articles/2010/08/09/345832/aircraft-engineers-look-to-bird-world-for-new-and-improved-wing.html
DATE:09/08/10
SOURCE:Flight International
Aircraft engineers look to bird world for new and improved wing designs
By Kerry Reals
Aircraft wing designers have drawn their inspiration from birds since the dawn of aviation. But engineers are still finding ways of improving design based on examples found in the ornithological world.
Airbus senior manager of flight physics research David Hills says the European manufacturer has used nature "as a mentor" in the design of the A350 XWB's wings. "Conditions change - aircraft take off with full tanks of fuel so the amount of lift needed decreases. So what you'd like to do is have a series of wings, each optimised for different conditions. This is what we're trying to do with the variable camber and differential flaps," he says. "If you look to birds you see them do this all the time, especially in long-duration flights. They are twisting and bringing their wings in to adapt to conditions. This is what we're doing with the A350 XWB."
Since the development of the A320, Airbus has designed the flight-control system to automatically alleviate the effect of sudden gusts of wind, taking its inspiration from the wing feathers of birds, which act in the same way. Airbus has been continually improving this design, and Hills says that "on the A350 XWB it is at a point of significant refinement".
© H.Gousse/Airbus
One day, airliner wings could have the shape and morphing characteristics of a leaf
In the world of unmanned air vehicles, one team of engineers has designed a morphed wing prototype which uses in-built shape memory alloy actuators that deform the shape of the wing when heated (Flight International, 20-26 July). Inspiration for this design was drawn from birds, as the University of Toronto's Professor Shaker Meguid, who is heading the morphed wing research programme, explains. He says: "To achieve flight mission adaptability, birds change the size and shapes of their wings.
"We are trying to use similar principles to morph aircraft wings to make them highly adaptable. A bird glides for maximum lift and folds its wings for reduced drag. This is the basic principle adopted from birds that prompted us to focus on wing planform."
Trees also played a part in inspiring the design because they have the ability to morph the shape of their leaves to decrease heat loss. "One could also mimic the shape and morphing characteristics of a leaf and apply them to an aircraft wing to optimise the aerodynamic characteristics of the wing," says Meguid.
He believes the technology behind the UAV morphed wing design could eventually be applied to civil aircraft, and claims that "some of the big airplane manufacturers are already interested in this technology and current research is being done to implement morphed wings". He adds: "The fact that morphing wings will be used in commercial aircraft is certain; the only unknown is when this will happen. Most likely it will be in the near future."
Hills disagrees, pointing out that unlike military aircraft, commercial airliners "do not need to drop like a stone, so we don't have the need" for morphed wings. However, while wing morphing on civil aircraft is out, wing twisting is something that is under consideration.
"We are looking at wing twisting," says Hills. "This is keeping the planform similar and using smart materials to change the shape of the wing. We are looking at whether there are enough benefits to progress with it."
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